HARRY HOOK a musician's journey

WORDS BY KEN ROBERTS

PHOTOS KINDLY SUPPLIED

The life of any creative person is a journey of ups and downs, hits and misses, and never ever is it predictable. Such has been the tale of Harry Hook, a singer songwriter and musician who began life in the tiny Gippsland town of Cowwarr. He claimed once that the town’s decorated tin cows that line the main street were more famous than he was but that is far from the case!

Harry comes from a musical family, his parents and 5 siblings all play instruments and so it was pretty natural for young Harry to begin to play one too. He started with piano lessons (which he wasn’t that keen on) and then at 16 his father taught him to play guitar.

He overcame any fear of performing early and said any kind of stage, from school plays to the local hall, and he was there. His first “gig” was at the local watering hole, The Cricket Club Hotel in Cowwarr, to an audience of 4 people and one dog. It was the beginning of much bigger crowds in the future. Since then he has toured extensively across Australia, USA, UK, France, China, South Africa and Cuba. His early influences were the Beatles, Bob Dylan and the like and so his style developed into a Blues, Folk, Country, Alternative, Indie mix.

Harry moved to Melbourne to study Arts and Law and while there he began busking in the city; it was great training for fearless performing and getting out there. He really enjoyed his student days but once he’d graduated with his Law degree and worked in that field he didn’t enjoy the Law so much.

An unexpected turn in his journey came when he entered the ‘Telstra Road to Discovery’, a national talent development program to compete for a tailor made 12-month prize package which included the ultimate prize of performing in “global music city” Nashville USA. Tailored to suit each winner’s musical aspiration the prize package included connection with a network of music industry professionals, mentorship for 12 months, studio recording, corporate gigs and much more. After several heats, Harry won first prize in the 2011 competition! It was a life changing event.

“It’s taken my music from a street corner in Melbourne to the main stage of The Basement in Sydney in a matter of months. It has taken my music to the ears of some highly respected musicians and industry people who have offered me really insightful advice on the music industry and how it works. Needless to say it has been a very fulfilling leap, and one that gives me hope I can make a career of doing what I so dearly enjoy.”

He commented at the time.

Harry made the most of all on offer and he used the CD recording that he made as a result to “cold call” post CDs to every record company and agency that he could think of. Luckily it was noticed and resulted in him being signed to Warner Records. It was a dream come true and he was so hungry to get ahead that he readily signed the contract offered.

Any aspiring musician would have relished being in this position of having management, recording an album and having that promoted by a big recording company. Being under the umbrella of such a large organisation gets you noticed. It was all such a success that Harry’s debut album ‘Misdiagnosed’ was nominated in 2014 for an ARIA award (Australian Recording Industry Association) for Best Blues and Roots Album. Although he didn’t win it, it was still a heady time, making music videos, mixing with all the people in the industry, sitting next to Molly Meldrum at the award ceremony (another former Gippslander - he was born in Orbost) and being a part of the Sydney music scene.

Harry continued on and recorded a second album but he soon found that being a part of a corporate music machine and being seen as a “product” was not all it was cracked up to be. Looking at the history of the recording industry not many artists survive being a puppet of the system unscathed. Complications arose and Harry departed the scene. His second album remained behind never to be released and more importantly the company had the rights, via the hastily signed contract, to his original name, Harry Hookey. That was when he launched his new professional name, ‘Harry Hook is Real’.

Harry left for a totally new start in the centre of his type of music in the world, Nashville. Another huge learning curve he says where every second person is a songwriter peddling their wares and trying to get that all important break. He played lots of gigs, wrote songs but finally he was disillusioned with the whole “starmaker” aspect of the scene and returned to Australia.

Coming home was the beginning of a period of reflection and finding out what he wanted to be and to get back to who he was after being distracted by the expectations of others. He calls it his “second act”. He met the love of his life the stunningly original Mim, they had two children, Felix and Dot and settled in a quirky cottage in Sale, not far from his original hometown of Cowwarr. They married during lockdown which suited them both as small and unique was their style, Mim’s wedding dress was an over the top $5 Op shop find while Harry’s blazer was once owned by Geoffrey Rush (he also has a much treasured T shirt that belonged to Paul McCartney). This bohemian couple suit each other down to the ground!

It seemed that things fell into place naturally for Harry. He began working in another creative field as a Gallery Technician at Gippsland Art Gallery Sale. Not only did he get to explore his creative side by working with artists but the flexibility of the job meant that he had time to continue to write and record. He released his second album ‘No snake in the Tree’ in 2021 and his third, ‘A beast in me’ in 2023. His creativity now unleashed is free to explore and his main aim is to release a body of work that he is proud of.

Harry has a studio space, an abandoned room at the top of the old Sale Memorial Hall complex where he records at night in the cold and draughty space, because there is no noise then in the deserted town centre. Time and advances in technology since he first began means that streaming and online content have replaced CDs.

He is now exploring and learning to use AI (Artificial Intelligence) in the recording process. He still plays gigs, though distance is limited due to his commitments, but on the other hand, the world is open to him through the portal of the internet.

A stranger to his work will be enchanted by the poetry of the words he writes and by his clear tone and skilful musicianship. He has a likeable charm and charisma that makes him a consummate professional who is so at ease in what he does. It’s a pleasure to listen to him perform.

This second act of Harry’s is only at the beginning and there is much more ahead for him. This time he is doing it on his own terms and in his own way, but still, what a journey it has been!

The last words go to Harry, “I just like making things and I believe in being original. Whether you like my work or hate it, I hope it makes you feel! The feel is real.”