In 1985, dad taught me how to play guitar. I was 15 years old. He's a classic campfire style guitarist who can play any song with 4 chords. He's also a fisherman. The first song I ever learnt was Dylans, The times are a changing and I was hooked.
My sister Vikki picked up the guitar in about 1988 . She was 14 and playing, House of The Rising Sun. She was hooked.
Josh lived on a farm in New South Wales and picked up his first guitar after seeing Michael J fox play Johnny be Good in Back To The Future in 1987. He was also self taught and got hooked at 15.
In 1992 Vik, and I bought a campervan and headed off from Albany W.A. to travel around Australia singing. It was just the two of us girls, singing in the front bars of pubs in resorts, gold mines, zinc mines, biker bars, beer gardens, markets and fishing towns playing our favourite songs to anyone that chose to listen. Music was only a means of making money to travel. ….and travel we did.
We met up with Josh in 1992 in Broome far up on the remote North West Coast of Western Australia. He was on tour and playing bass guitar for an all bloke Rock n Roll band. We jammed for about 10 mins and I asked him to join the band and he said "ok"….. Just like that, and we became The Waifs. We toured around Australia now 3 of us living in the Van , for the next 3 years..
In 1996 we moved across the country and recorded an album with the help of Jen Anderson and Michael Thomas from "Weddings Parties Anything". Our self titled album "The Waifs" was released in 1996 Independently. We launched it in and around Melbourne and then hit the road again for another year touring.
In 1998 we released our 2nd album "Shelter Me" recorded in Adelaide. It was another Independent release. Again we launched it in the major cities and hit the road again for another year or so touring it.
In 2000 we Independently released our 3rd album "Sink or Swim" recorded in Melbourne, and our 4th album in 2002 UP ALL NIGHT, recorded in Los Angeles and Melbourne (Aust) Again……..we launched it and hit the road again and have spent ever since touring with it.
We seem to put out an album every two years. It's not planned, It just happens that way.
Donna
