Together husband & wife owners Keven Oxford & Karin Woods have been responsible for two of Byron’s best-known attractions. Living in Byron Bay in 1977 they formed Live Coverage together with long-time partner Dan Doeppel & brought a bevy of international & national touring artists to a culturally starved far north coast. Artists such as BB King, Osibisa, Blondie, Fairport Convention, Split Enz & Little River Band to name but a few that played regular shows at The Lismore City Hall, Ballina Theatre & The Everglades (now Byron @ Byron). In 1978 together they staged Byron’s first outdoor music festival “Sunrock 78” at the then named Globetrotters Caravan Park (now the Becton site at Sunrise Beach). That event was headlined by Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs & was billed as “Where The New Wave Meets The Old Wave & Washes Up In Paradise” as the lineup included several Sydney & Brisbane Punk & New Wave artists playing alongside “Thorpie” & many familiar names representing the old guard.
From 1984 until 1993 once again with Dan Doeppel they were the part-owner/operators of The Piggery, Byron Bay Arts Factory, the legendary 1500 person capacity entertainment, restaurant and backpacker accommodation complex, that many believe along with Cape Byron Lighthouse, the surf and The Beach Hotel, was responsible for the beginning of Byron Bay’s surge in popularity during the late 80’s and early 90’s. As talent buyer and manager, Keven utilised his former background of working for Record Companies & in Artist Management to lure major international touring artists to Byron, putting the venue on the national touring map. The Piggery, Byron Arts Factory became a regular stopover for touring artists and was the only regional gig outside capital cities for many international tours. The unique style and décor of this venue (which was based on many USA clubs that Keven & Dan had checked out on their many visits) set it aside from any other music establishment operating in Australia. As the venue’s licensee and operations manager Karin was responsible for overseeing a staff of 30 bar, restaurant & maintenance people. Keven, Karin and Dan operated the venue from 1983 until it’s closure in 1992. During these 10 years Keven & Dan booked and promoted over 1200 major concerts by international artists as diverse as New Order, The Ramones, Violent Femmes, The Pogues, Sonic Youth, Los Lobos, Michelle Shocked, Henry Rollins, Public Image Ltd, The Cramps, The Buzzcocks, Mudhoney, Big Audio Dynamite, Dinosaur Jr, Wall Of Voodoo, Concrete Blonde, Shriekback, The Wailers, The Band, Lucinda Williams, Nico, Marianne Faithful, Joe Walsh, Eric Burdon, Rick Wakeman, Tom Rush, Nick Lowe & Georgie Fame. Countless Blues artists played, turning the venue into a haven for lovers of the genre with Johnny Winter, Robert Cray, Albert Collins, Roy Buchanan, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Buddy Guy, Albert King, Bo Diddley, Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, Lonnie Mack, John Mayall, Canned Heat, Johnny Copeland, Screaming Jay Hawkins, Jeff Healey, Lonnie Brooks, Clarence Gatemouth Brown, Champion Jack Dupree, John Hammond, Hubert Sumlin, Charlie Musselwhite, & Jimmy Witherspoon to name but a few of the many legendary artists that played there. The venue was a leading light in the late 80’s & early 90’s promoting Australian talent of that period & became a favourite of many including Midnight Oil, Hunters & Collectors, Paul Kelly, The Go-Betweens, The Triffids, The Models, Yothu Yindi, The Saints, The Divinyls, The Church, GANGgajang, The Reels, Laughing Clowns, The Angels, Vince Jones, The Rockmelons, Do Re Mi, I’m Talking, Big Pig, The Warumpi Band, Boom Crash Opera, Mondo Rock, Archie Roach & Ruby Hunter, Died Pretty, Frente, Gondwanaland & Weddings, Parties Anything. It was also the place chosen for the Australian debut of Crowded House. During its 10 years of operation the venue became a coming of age for much of Byron’s youth & many still living in the area (now nearing middle-age) remind Keven & Karin regularly of the many shows they attended that were highlights of their teenage life.
In 1990 during their time at The Piggery, Byron Arts Factory Keven & Karin founded Bluesfest, The East Coast Blues & Roots Music Festival. Keven had been inspired to stage a similar event as those he attended in the USA in the early eighties. The event began as a 6,000 ticket series of sold-out five-day indoor concerts at the venue & eventually moved outdoors to Belongil Fields in 1993 then finally to its current home the Byron Red Devil Football Grounds in 1997. For 15 years they were both the creative and motivating force behind this award winning festival & took the event to annual ticket sales of over 70,000 in 2004. It was Keven who introduced Australian audiences to both Ben Harper & Jack Johnson bringing both to Bluesfest for their very first visits to this country. In 2003 Keven was named in an article in The Australian newspaper as one of this country’s Six Most Important Music Promoters.
The 2004 Bluesfest was nominated as International Music Festival Of The Year at the USA Pollstar Awards alongside UK’s Glastonbury (the eventual winner) & The Montreaux Jazz Festival, the first time an Australian Festival had ever been nominated. With Bluesfest growing larger and becoming less what Keven’s original vision for the event as each year passed, Keven and Karin decided that this was the right time to accept an offer to be bought out by music industry heavyweights Glenn Wheatley and Michael Chugg. They deserved a much-needed break after 20 years of Bluesfest & The Piggery and wanted to enjoy the relaxed Byron lifestyle they so sorely missed.
A funky little Café, Restaurant & Bar in Mullumbimby seemed like a really great idea to put some energy into.
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