Joy McKean

Joy McKean
OAM
Background information
Birth nameMildred Geraldine Joy McKean
Born(1930-01-14)14 January 1930
Singleton, New South Wales, Australia
Died25 May 2023(2023-05-25) (aged 93)
GenresCountry
Occupation(s)Singer-songwriter, musician, talent manager
Years active1940–2023
Formerly ofThe McKean Sisters (1948–1956)
SpouseSlim Dusty

Mildred Geraldine Joy Kirkpatrick[1] OAM (née McKean; 14 January 1930 – 25 May 2023), known professionally as Joy McKean, was an Australian country music singer-songwriter and wife and manager of Slim Dusty. Her daughter is country singer and musician Anne Kirkpatrick.

McKean was known as the Queen of Australian country music,[2] and considered a pioneer in the industry, recognized as one of Australia's leading songwriters and bush balladeers and wrote several of Dusty's most popular songs.[3] In 1973, she was awarded the first ever Golden Guitar, for writing "Lights on the Hill". Several documentary films tell of the couple's success and adventures as performers, including The Slim Dusty Movie and Slim and I.

The McKean-Dusty partnership produced over 100 albums, and sold eight million records in Australia alone.

McKean was awarded the OAM in 1991, with the citation "services to the entertainment industry".[1]

In 2014, a bronze statue of McKean and Slim Dusty was unveiled in Tamworth, New South Wales[2]

McKean won several APRA Awards and was inducted into the Australian Roll of Renown in 1983.[4] She was the first winner of the Golden Guitars, an award she would win 45 times in her career.

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference hon was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b "Joy McKean, the first, Golden Guitar winner and wife and manager of Slim Dusty, dies age 93". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 26 June 2023. The Country Music Association of Australia said the singer-songwriter was the "Queen of Australian Country Music".
  3. ^ "Joy McKean on country music and her marriage to Slim Dusty". Conversations with Richard Fidler. 22 February 2011. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  4. ^ "Roll of Renown". TCMF. Archived from the original on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 21 August 2018.