by Mat Churchill

Originals or covers? That's the quandary that faces many local musicians in the Port Douglas hinterland. And it seems that if earning a living from music is the career of choice there is only one answer when it comes to playing in Port Douglas - Covers.

"You couldn't get a gig in town if you only played originals." says Billy Tarrant, a musician who gigged throughout Melbourne for ten years before moving to Port Douglas a year ago.

Billy, who works with local guitar maker Stewey Forbes from Cloud Nine Guitars, puts the need to play covers down to catering for the mainly inebriated party goers who frequent the bigger venues in town.

"I'll do four, one hour sets in a night and three quarters of the songs played will be covers because the venue sells more drinks that way." he said.

To make matters harder for both musicians and venues, Port Douglas is governed by strict noise laws which affects the style of music being played around town.

According to Billy solo and duo acts often get the work ahead of full bands due to the lower noise levels, "The noise restrictions affects how the act plays to the point where the music is so low it's almost background music."

Steve Hull from the Ironbar in Macrossan Street says the type of audience has a lot to do with the type of music being played. "We cater for the young hospitality party crowd, especially after 11pm as they want to dance and sing to songs they are familiar with. But at the 9pm set we welcome a few originals to be thrown in." 

Cost is a major factor in trying to attract bigger name original artists to the area, "It's an expensive exercise for little return," Steve said. "With acts such as Diesel there are many other expenses and so the cover charges have to go up accordingly."

Despite this, original music still has its place. The Clink Theatre and Radio Port Douglas are both supporters of local artists, especially when it comes to a new CD release, and we've seen some great music festivals hit town over the years.

So tell us what your preference is - originals or covers? And let us know your thoughts on the Port Douglas live music scene.