Songs From The Canyon is a charming celebration of Laurel Canyon’s counterculture catalogue

The tapestry of music scenes is one that has been woven and rewoven again, with moments in time and movements shaping scenes.

Down on the West Coast, the fabrics of the scene have a story to tell. A legendary landscape that led to a music movement is Laurel Canyon; the Hollywood Hills having generated one of the biggest musical hubs of the 60s during the counterculture movement. The makeup was significant to the development of the foundations for the folk genre, spearheaded by The Beach Boys, Joni Mitchell, Carole King, Crosby Stills Nash and Young, The Doors, The Byrds, and The Mamas and the Papas. 

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Over the last four years, the Laurel Canyon connection has been celebrated by folk figureheads of Australia through a dedicated concert series, Songs From The Canyon. Sister contemporary folk duo, Mabel and Ivy Windred-Wornes of Charm of Finches have been leading the charge alongside an all-star ensemble of artists, taking on the Laurel Canyon class catalogue. 

“These are artists that so many folk musicians of today grew up listening to. Laurel Canyon in the 60s was home to some of the greatest songwriters of all time, and as writers of original folk music, their lyrics and harmonies teach us so much,” the Windred-Wornes’ say. 

“One of the reasons this show is so fun is because we get to learn these epic arrangements from The Beach Boys’ ‘God Only Knows’ to the Crosby Stills and Nash epic, ‘Suite Judy Blue Eyes’. It’s challenging and so satisfying to sing with a group of other harmony singers!”

The Laurel Canyon umbrella has been pivotal in informing and shaping the Charm of Finches sound. The siblings have taken threads from Carole King, The Beach Boys, and Joni Mitchell, and woven them into their own makeup.

“We grew up listening to Carole King and The Beach Boys in particular. Our Grandma used to play Tapestry when we were younger. She would drive us around country Victoria, singing along to every word. We loved the album, Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys. It could well be the reason harmonies are such an integral part of our original music now. We came to Joni Mitchell a bit later and fell in love with her evocative lyric writing. All these artists definitely influenced our love for lyric writing and harmonies so much,” they explain.

Alongside acclaimed singers and musicians Husky Gawenda, Hannah Cameron, Stephen Grady, and Dan Challis, Charm of Finches have been on tour with Songs From The Canyon across 2025 to renowned theatres and halls across the country. This November they are bringing the show to the glorious Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne for a Live At The Gardens show on Sunday 30 November. The elevated event will see You Am I legend and solo star Davey Lane join the lineup for the first time, and folk firebird Freya Josephine Hollick will step up as a special guest.

“It’s been such a treat to be able to perform this show in such incredible heritage venues like the Palais Theatre here in Melbourne and the State Theatre in Sydney. We had an amazing run of nine shows earlier this year and we were thrilled with the response. It’s the fourth year of this show now, and it just keeps getting bigger and better,” they say.

“It’s going to be such a treat to perform this show under the stars on a spring night in the Botanical Gardens. We can’t help but see the parallel of Laurel Canyon being this magical leafy Canyon in the middle of LA and the Royal Botanical Gardens being Melbourne’s magical leafy haven in the heart of the city! It’s a perfect setting to bring these amazing songs to life!”

 

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Between honouring their folk forefathers, the Windred-Wornes’ are back in their own songcrafting cocoon. Coinciding with their recent Daylesford drop-in for Winter Sounds, the girls are back in release mode. It follows on from last year’s huge title, Marlinchen In The Snow, which has been toured extensively across the UK, Europe, Canada and Australia, including a show a mere 50km from the Arctic Circle in Sweden.

“We actually spent a bit of time in the Daylesford area over the winter, writing new music in a tiny home. Our last album, Marlinchen in the Snow, was recorded in Nova Scotia, Canada, in the winter of 2023. We thought we’d continue that tradition of creating in cold climates! We recorded with Nick Huggins in Point Lonsdale, and Daniel Ledwell over in Canada, who produced our last two records. We will be releasing a brand new single ‘Meteor’ with a show on 20 November at the Brunswick Ballroom here in Melbourne. We can’t wait to share it. Then we’ll be heading back over to the UK for some time, to tour, write, and record!”

Catch Charm of Finches at their release show, and see them showcase Songs From The Canyon at the Live At The Gardens concert.

Tickets are on sale now and can be picked up here.

WHEN: SAT 30 NOV

WHERE: Live At The Gardens – Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne