Judith Margaret Small is a retired judge of the

Federal Circuit Court of Australia The Federal Circuit Court of Australia, formerly known as the Federal Magistrates Court of Australia or the Federal Magistrates Service, was an Australian court with jurisdiction over matters broadly relating to family law and child support, ad ...

and former folk singer. Small was known for her feminist, often patriotic, and political songs, usually following a traditional theme. She produced twelve albums, hundreds of songs and has been described as being among the most popular political singers in Australia, with many such songs based on topical factual events like the Montreal Massacre. She enjoys singing about real people and issues, stating "If an audience comes away thinking about issues it is a worthwhile performance". She toured the country and internationally, playing primarily in clubs and pubs, and at various conventions.

Biography

Judy Small, now based in Melbourne was born in

Coffs Harbour, New South Wales Coffs Harbour is a city on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane. It is one of the largest urban centres on the North Coast, with a population of 78,759 as per 2021 census. The Gumbaynggirr ...

. She moved to Sydney in 1972, studying psychology and began her career as a singer and songwriter in the late 1970s, inspired by the folk boom of the 1960s and describing her influences as such folk singers as

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...

Peter, Paul and Mary Peter, Paul and Mary was an American folk group formed in New York City in 1961 during the American folk music revival phenomenon. The trio consisted of tenor Peter Yarrow, baritone Paul Stookey, and contralto Mary Travers. The group's reper ...

and

The Seekers The Seekers were an Australian folk-influenced pop quartet, originally formed in Melbourne in 1962. They were the first Australian pop music group to achieve major chart and sales success in the United Kingdom and the United States. They were ...

. One of her successful ballads is "The White Bay Paper Seller", based on newspaper seller and Sydney icon Beatrice Bush. Apart from her own repertoire she is a renowned interpreter of song both traditional and contemporary. After a successful performance at the

Vancouver Folk Music Festival The Vancouver Folk Music Festival (VFMF), founded in 1978, is an outdoor multistage music festival, located at Jericho Beach Park on the west side of Vancouver, British Columbia. It takes place annually, on the third weekend of July. The fes ...

in 1982 she became a full-time singer-songwriter. Over the next the 16 years, she regularly toured throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Australia and New Zealand. In 1990, she received the "Mo" Award -

Mo Awards The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards) were an annual Australian entertainment industry award, that where established in 1975, to recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia. They were l ...

for Australian Folk Performer of the Year and in 1997 was the

Port Fairy Folk Festival The Port Fairy Folk Festival is an annual four-day music festival based in the historic fishing village of Port Fairy in Victoria, Australia. History The festival began on 2 December 1977 under the theme of "Australian and Irish Traditional Mu ...

Artist of the Year. She was also invited to Beijing for the United Nations Women's Conference NGO Forum - UN in 1995, where she sang to thousands of women from all over the world. People had been asking for some years for Judy Small to release an album recorded live, so they can hear her introductions and stories of her songs, which have become much a part of the show, as her actual concert performance, so a concert was recorded called "Live at the Artery" in her home town of Melbourne and subsequently was released as a double CD Collection set, spanning her 35-plus years of music. Judy Small retired from full-time performance in 1998. She became a family lawyer in Melbourne working for

Victoria Legal Aid Victoria Legal Aid (VLA), formerly the Legal Aid Commission of Victoria, is an organisation that provides information, legal advice and education with a focus on the prevention and early resolution of legal problems. They prioritise intensive l ...

, but continued to write new songs and to perform regularly. In March 2013, she was appointed as a Judge with the Federal Circuit Court of Australia, and retired fully from performing. Judy retired from the Bench in April 2020. She married Charlotte Stockwell in Wanaka, New Zealand on 10 May 2014. Judy was appointed Co-Chair of Midsumma Festival in September 2019.

Music

Judy Small's songs cover a wide range of topics and styles, especially social justice, equity and harmony with a particular emphasis on

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

and

peace Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

. Among the most popular are "Mothers, Daughters, Wives", "Women of Our Time", "One Voice in the Crowd" and "Global Village". Her songs have been recorded by numerous artists including

Ronnie Gilbert Ruth Alice "Ronnie" Gilbert (September 7, 1926 – June 6, 2015), was an American folk singer, songwriter, actress and political activist. She was one of the original members of the music quartet the Weavers, as a contralto with Pete Seeger, Le ...

Eric Bogle Eric Bogle (born 23 September 1944) is a Scottish-born Australian folk singer-songwriter. Born and raised in Scotland, he emigrated to Australia at the age of 25, to settle near Adelaide, South Australia. Bogle's songs have covered a variety of ...

, Charlie King and

Priscilla Herdman Priscilla Herdman (born February 11, 1948) is an American folk singer, whom ''The New York Times'' called "one of the clearest and most compelling voices of contemporary folk music." Although she has written songs, she is notable chiefly for her ...

and groups such as

The McCalmans The McCalmans (originally ''The Ian MacCalman Folk Group'') were a Scottish folk trio. Formed on 6 October 1964, they recorded and toured without interruption until they disbanded in December 2010. Their performance was based on three part ha ...

and

The Corries The Corries were a Scottish folk group that emerged from the Scottish folk revival of the early 1960s. The group was a trio from their formation until 1966 when founder Bill Smith left the band but Roy Williamson and Ronnie Browne continued ...

. Several of her recordings have been translated to a number of languages.

Discography

* ''A Natural Selection'' (1982) * ''Mothers, Daughters, Wives'' (1984) * ''Ladies and Gems'' (1984) * ''One Voice in the Crowd'' (1985) * ''The Anzacs'' (with

Ted Egan Edward Joseph Egan (born 6 July 1932) is an Australian folk musician and a former public servant who served as Administrator of the Northern Territory from 2003 to 2007. Early life Egan was born in Coburg, Victoria, moving to the Northern Ter ...

, Nerys Evans and the Anzac Band & Singers) (1985) * ''Home Front'' (1988) * ''Snapshot'' (1990) * ''Best of Judy Small'' (1992) * ''Second Wind'' (1993) * ''Global Village'' (1995) * ''Three Sheilas'' (1997) * ''Let the Rainbow Shine'' (1999) * ''Never Turning Back'' (2001) * ''Mosaic'' (2003) * ''Judy Small: Live at The Artery'' (2006) (double 2 CD disc, recorded live in Melbourne)

Awards and recognition

Mo Awards

The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the

), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. (wins only) , - , 1989 , Judy Small , Folk Performer of the Year , , - In 1995, she was invited to Beijing for the United Nations Women's Conference NGO Forum. In 1997 she was the

Artist of the Year. In 2006, Australian Rhymes Magazine named her club/pub entertainer/performer of the year. In June 2013 she was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for her contribution to folk music.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Small, Judy Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Australian women singers Australian folk singers Political music artists Judges of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia 21st-century Australian judges Members of the Order of Australia 20th-century Australian women 21st-century Australian women