The Cartwheels

The Cartwheels are truly a family band, comprising singer-guitarist Wendy Phypers, bassist Dave Patterson, and their teenage son, drummer Charley.

Wendy and Dave are very well known in country music circles, being core members of Golden Guitar winners The Sparnetts. Charley has been playing drums since primary school – and can be found banging skins in numerous bands accross the state.

The band formed in 2001 and released its debut CD the same year. In 2002, one of the band’s songs, ’24 Hours’, was listed Top 10 in the Australian Country Music Awards.

The Cartwheels deliver a high energy and very personable show, mixing instantly accessible originals with well-chosen, reinterpreted covers, including obscure gems such as Kirsty MacColl’s wry ‘There’s A Bloke Works Down The Chip Shop Thinks He’s Elvis’. It’s a combination that has seen them invited to play at the Tamworth Country Music Festival and the Gympie Muster, as well as in countless pubs along the south-eastern seaboard.

A typical Cartwheels set meanders between country, rockabilly and rock’n’roll, interspersed by witty commentary from the band members. Wendy, Dave and Charley believe that a band, first and foremost, exists to excite and entertain. They have put together a huge repertoire, and combined it with serious talent and a patent love of performing. The result is a band which can happily get the mob in a crowded front bar on its feet, or keep a party crowd dancing whether they be grannies or grommets or both.

The Cartwheels – proving that the family which plays together usually ends up doing at least three encores together.