3rd October 2007 saw the official launch of Craig's 12th album
"HEART OF AUSTRALIA." 
The album has an all-Australian theme and contains 14 great tracks. Owing to numerorus requests, Craig has re-recorded some of his own songs from earlier albums that are no longer available including his very first chart single, "Daddy Clown".  Some new songs are "Picture On The Mantle", "A Bushman's Last Lament", "When Am I Going Home" and "He Rides Alone". There are four classics featured on the album ... "You Can Never Do Wrong In A Mothers Eyes", "This Land Is Your Land", "Blue Heeler" and "Indian Pacific" which he did as a duet with The Gentle Giant Of Country Music, Reg Poole.
The album was recorded at Redbak Studios in Leeton, NSW.

The ALL STARS COUNTRY ROADSHOW artists are CRAIG GILES, REG POOLE, SHARON BENJAMIN & OWEN BLUNDELL.
All talented and seasoned artists in their own right, these four popular entertainers combine their wealth of stage experience to present their audience with a musical journey of old and new songs plus some unpredictable comedy. The show had it's debut at Batemans Bay on the 15th of February 2007 to a full-house, then onto Batlow to a very appreciative audience and another full-house at Shepparton. This show has already proven a winner and bookings are already being secured for 2008.  Phone Roz at Big River Entertainment  on  0408 597307 for further enquiries or quotes.

Craig secures three Finalists places in the 2007 People's Choice Awards.
Around 3,000 people voted in the 2007 Awards and Craig secured a Top Five Finalist
position for MALE VOCAL, ALBUM and SONG.

November 2006 CRAIG gained a Top 5 Finalist position in the 2006 NSW Gold Medallion Awards. The awards were designed to reflect radio activity and the success of artists and tracks.

October 2006 CRAIG WINS AUSTRALIAN TOURING ARTIST AWARD:
For the second consecutive year Craig has taken out the "Artist On Tour Award" section in
the Australian Country Recording Awards. Last year he tied for first place with fellow
entertainer Tom Maxwell but this year  Craig won the section hands down. The announcement was made on the 30th Sept. at the Music & Arts Festival at Manilla NSW.

CRAIG TO SING FOR VIETNAM VETS:
Craig has been asked by the Goulburn Valley Vietnam Veterans to perform his song
"TOGETHER AS ONE - A TRIBUTE TO THE VIETNAM VETS" at their upcoming
40th ANNIVERSARY of the BATTLE OF LONG TAN  at the Shepparton Cenotaph on 19th August 2006. The song was originally written  by Craig Giles, Rosalynne Giles and Lorna Nelson for the  1990  Riverina  Vietnam Veterans  re-union . The song was an instant hit with the Vets. So   much so  that  it was played in the NAMBUS which carries memorabilia,
artifacts & exhibitions of the  Vietnam War throughout Australia. Craig, Roz and Lorna are very proud   that this song still means so much to our Vietnam Veterans.

Feb.2006-ALCHERINGA HALL OF FAME - A GREAT PLACE TO VISIT
On the 19^th of February Craig Giles was given the honor of officially opening the Alcheringa’s Hall Of Fame at Wellington in South Australia by it’s proprietor Mr David Williams. David is the nephew of the legendary R.M.Williams and has the same love of horses and the Australian way of life flowing through his veins. David said “I chose Craig to do the official opening because of his professional approach to everything he does and because of his popularity and rapport with people Australia-wide. I feel both Craig and his wife Rosalynne are good ambassadors for the museum and country music in general.” 
David Williams is best known for the training and showing of the beautiful Andalusian Spanish Dancing Horses which he has done since 1950. David has performed for Royalty and at shows and festivals all around the country. He has bred many champions, won   countless accolades, broken many records and worked alongside most of our great country music artists past and present. David owned and trained Australia’s first Line Dancing Horse, Domero. Domero and three more of Davids magnificent horses were  chosen to feature in the block buster movie, Lord Of The Rings. The producers of the show were so impressed by the performances of the four horses that they gave David a priceless collection of Lord Of The Rings memorabilia. The Lord Of The Rings collection as well as memorabilia collected over the past fifty years can all be viewed at the museum.
For more information on the museum contact Roz Giles on  0408 597307

Jan. 2006-The Tamworth Country Music Festival is over for another year.
It was a very suucessful and varied festival for Craig. His three main shows at Butlers Auditorium all went well with good attendances and lots of variety. Craig's appointments were many and varied from enjoying a wonderful evening and dinner with country music icon Smoky Dawson and his lovely wife Dottie to co-hosting the Tomkins Guitar Showcase with rock legend and former lead singer of Rose Tatoo"Angry Anderson"
It certainly was a festival with a difference for Craig.
There'll be no slowing down for Craig as he has two trips to S.A. a trip to W.A. and his annual Qld tour as well as his regular NSW and Victorian gigs all coming up in the next five months. You can keep up with this hectic schedule by visiting Craig's tour page   Tour Dates

December 2005-CRAIG GILES and SHARON BENJAMIN finalists in Duo / National
section of the VICTORIAN & NATIONAL COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS  with "West Texas Waltz" which is featured on Craig's latest album,  "Kick It."

November 2005-ANOTHER AWARD FOR  CRAIG:
Two of the nation’s most popular entertainers,  Craig Giles and Tom Maxwell have ended
up toe to toe in The ACRAS 2005. (The Australian Country Recording Awards) In the section, Australian Artists on Tour Award they ended even on points when all scores were tallied. The two artists are among the most traveled and most popular in the country music genre. It was an easy decision to accept the dead heat for what it is, an acknowledgement of both as diligent achievers in their field.

September 2005-CRAIG and ROZ GILES WIN 1st & 2nd places in the OPEN CONTEMPORARY
SECTION OF TASMANIA & NZ SONGWRITERS CONTEST :
On the 9th September Craig was on stage entertaining a packed house when he received a
phone call "Live From The Awards Show" in Tasmania to tell him that Roz and himself  had
not only taken out first place with their song "A Million Beer Drops" but also second place with
"Riding That White Line." Both songs were written for Craig's eleventh album, "Kick It."

September 2005-"WHO SAID GIRLS DON'T DRIVE " VIDEO CLIP:  ON CMC NOW.
We had a lot of fun and a lot of help filming this clip. The entire clip was shot outdoors and thankfully we had a few days of beautiful sunshine. Many thanks to the producer Marcus Hooper who is a genius with a camera and Sharon Benjamin and Mark Hillier for the many hours and ideas they put in as well. Thanks
also to Danielle Waters for all her time, effort and  beautiful blue ute. Mandy McKenzie for her
truck and ute driving skills also. Thanks  to Stephanie, Ben and Josh Dean for being part of the
fun. Lisa McCrae was terrific in Wayne Aylette's racing Monaro and Naomi Sands had a great
time with husband Andrew's 1937  Chevrolet Master Hot Rod. Thank you also to two
gorgeous little girls Emileigh and Kilara Curphey and two great mates Gerry and Angelique
Kraan.

"WHO SAID GIRLS DON'T DRIVE"
CLIMBING THE COUNTRY MUSIC CHARTS.
It's the first airplay single to be released from Craig's "KICK IT" album which was launched in Sept.'05. "
The song is about how our Aussie girls love to get behind the wheel of a vehicle and have a good time as much as their male counterparts. This hooky little number will have you tapping and singing along and Craig's solid vocal almost puts you right in the drivers seat. Female drivers Australia-wide are already adopting this song as their own unofficial anthem. So hang onto your hats boys and girls and enjoy the ride.

 February 2005-CRAIG and SHARON BENJAMIN WOW TASMANIA         
In February 2005 Craig and Sharon along with Bass player Mark Hillier had a very successful Tasmanian tour. It’s been a few years since Craig has performed in Tasmania but the  fans down there certainly hadn’t forgotten him and showed their support at each of the venues.
Craig and Sharon showed their versatility by presenting three entirely different shows. Firstly at Hobart where they performed a three hour concert packed with humor, singalongs and some of their original songs. Craig and Sharon have a wonderful rapport’ on stage and their voices compliment each other superbly.  Mark kept them on their toes with his dry humour and antics, making sure he was going to be part of the fun.  Next night was Ulverstone for the “Little Bit Country Little Bit Rock’n’Roll Dance Show.”  Once again an outstanding success with dancers packing the floor all night. Their final Tasmanian performance was at the Launceston Country Music Festival. Fans came from all over the state to enjoy the first class performances of these popular mainland entertainers along with some very talented local bands and artists.
The one question fans continually asked was “When are you coming back”.
Well Tassie, if Craig and Sharon have anything to say about it, it won’t be long.

September 2003: Saw the release of Craig’s  TENTH ALBUM titled "YOUR REQUESTS".   This album contains twelve evergreen hits by some of the world's best known singers.  IT’S NOT UNUSUAL,  MEMORIES ARE MADE OF THIS,  MAKE THE WORLD GO AWAY,  I STILL CALL AUSTRALIA HOME, SING,  SAY YOU’LL STAY UNTIL TOMRROW,  THE LAST WALTZ,  LOVE LETTERS IN THE SAND,  WOODEN HEART,  WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD,  DON’T FENCE ME IN and PRETTY WOMAN.

Feb. 2003: "GETTING TOO OLD FOR THIS" is the second air-play single  to be lifted from Craig's award winning album "No Matter What."  "GETTING TOO OLD FOR THIS"  is a catchy little rocker that just about any muso or devoted country music follower will be able to relate to.  Listen out for "GETTING TOO OLD FOR THIS" at your favourite radio station now !

Jan.2003: CRAIG WINS A TIARA (Tamworth Independent Artists Recognition Award) for vocal collaboration with DONELLA PLANE on the title track of his latest album "No Matter What." The announcement was made at the TIARA Awards Night  at the Tamworth RSL Club on January 21st 2003. Craig and Donella then performed the song at the Winners Concert to a very appreciative audience.

Jan. 2003: CRAIG TAKES OUT THIRD PLACE IN THE CELEBRITY FENDER BENDER RACE at Tamworth Speedway on January 26th 2003. It was a great way for Craig to finish the 2003 Tamworth Festival and all for a good cause with all profits going to "Youth Suicide Prevention."

CRAIG GILES HAS JUST HAD A FACE-LIFT,
or that is to say that his mural in the center of his home town of Finley has.
In November 1998, Craig’s home town of Finley in Southern NSW, paid tribute to him by unveiling a large mural containing his photo framed by a hand carved wooden scroll,
baring the inscription “Finley The Home Of Craig Giles.”  
The original tribute was an initiative of Finley sign writer, Greg Butterfield and the Finley Tidy Towns Committee.The mural is mounted in the Finley Mall and has been a significant tourist attraction for the town. Recently though the image started to fade owing to the direct sunlight so a canopy was installed over the mural for protection from the elements. Then even more recently it was decided by the Finley Tidy Towns Committee to give Craig’s image a real face lift for Christmas 2002 so Pat and Hayden Maher and Jenny Robinson employed a Melbourne company to do the job.  The photo was scanned and enlarged then digitally printed off and put on a special adhesive surface.   It was given a 3D effect and coated with a UV resistant laminate to protect it from fading.

CRAIG GILES TAKES OUT MAJOR AWARD IN THE      TASMANIA & NEW ZEALAND SONGWRITERS AWARDS
  “ALBUM OF THE YEAR”
There was no bad luck for Craig Giles on Friday the 13th September 2002 when he was announced the winner of the INDEPENDENT ARTISTS ALBUM OF THE YEAR AWARD for his latest album release “NO MATTER WHAT”.
The award was accepted by Gaylene Faulkner on behalf of Craig and Roz Giles who could not be present at the Awards Night which was held at the Australian Italian Club in Launceston, Tasmania on 13^th September.
“No Matter What” is the popular singer/songwriters ninth album and this latest achievement adds to his already impressive swag of awards and accolades.

The following story was published in the July 2002 edition of Capital News.
CRAIG GILES ALBUM
THE ONE THAT ALMOST GOT AWAY
  Craig Giles has just released his ninth album No Matter What. It’s simply  his best album to date, loaded with catchy, danceable, infectious songs that effortlessly leave you wanting to hear the album over and over, but it almost didn't happen.
It was a time when one of Australia's most popular touring artists had almost decided that  enough was enough on the recording side. Heavy touring schedules, rising costs, some of the toughest times he could remember, and Craig was just that close to calling album number eight the final instalment.  "It really has been hard in recent times,"says Craig, " and one of the biggest factors is the CD burner. You work hard and travel constantly to get your music out there and sell albums, and it's very disheartening to walk into someone's house and see two or three burnt copies of your albums sitting there."   But the fire was still smouldering, and it was a decision to leave a familiar path and head to new territory that brought the fire to life.  "We were looking for something new, and this album basically came out of the blue. It gave me the enthusiasm and the spark that I really needed to kick me off again."  'New' came in the forms of a rush of new songs written by Craig and his wife Roz, and a new producer, in the shape of Roger Corbett.    "I honestly hadn't written anything for about two years," confesses Craig. "I thought the well had dried up, but once the new album came into the equation, so did the songs, and we ended up with over twenty new originals to choose from."  "We decided to try everything new and fresh," says Craig. "A different studio, a different producer - we'd enjoyed a great relationship on previous albums with Grant Luhrs at Flying Fox Studio - but we just settled on a different direction."  "This time we gave other people involved on the project more input in the songs, and it's definitely worked for the better. I've learned a lot from it, and it's the closest recording I've done to being Craig Giles."   Craig's wife, manager and co-writer Roz concurs. "With No Matter What I just love listening to it. The songs, the recording and the playing on it are a true representation of the real Craig Giles that I see, up on stage every night, and that's exactly what we set out to achieve."  Producer Roger Corbett was also enthusiastic about the project from the outset.  “When Craig came to me to discuss the album” says Roger, “I asked him what he really wanted to achieve. He had a real desire to create an album of entertaining and memorable tunes and wanted to get a different result from this project. We talked and mailed the songs back and forth for about nine months and then when we finally got into the studio it all fell together so quickly we were all surprised. Every part just felt perfect and by the time we’d finished we’d created an album that we all felt very happy with.”  Over the years Craig's albums have been very much directed at the fans - lots of Craig's own songs, and favourites that he has worked live at shows, and No Matter What certainly fits that bill, but at the same time this new album has a different feel to it, capturing the power and the infectious feel of a live Craig Giles performance.  "If I was to do a single forty minute set, I could just do the whole album and be completely happy with it," says Craig.  Six songs on the album are written by Craig and his wife Roz, one by Roger Corbett, another by Pru Clearwater, two from US writers, and four covers. One personal favourite of Craig's is the Faron Young classic Hello Walls. "We've rocked it up a bit," laughs Craig, "to make it more 'Craig Giles Style', and it's come up great."  Only a few weeks after its release, the first radio single Better Back Up is living up to its name with high rotation airplay around the nation, and there's a legion of Craig Giles fans just hanging out for the album's release.  So after the doubts, the trials and tribulations, is this the last album?  "I guess it's summed up best in the final track on the new album," admits Craig. "You drive for hours to the end of another bush track, do another gig until 3 or 4 in the morning, and think 'I'm getting too old for this'."  "But then reality sinks in - it's a passion and it's in the blood. Three o'clock in the morning, the people enjoying themselves, and it’s exactly like the last lines in the song 'look at this smile right across my dial you're never too old for this'."  MIKE SMITH  Capital News July '02        www.capitalnews.com.au

GILES' ROO SONG HAS THEM HOPPING WITH EXCITEMENT : After Craig's performance at the W. A. Boyup Brook Festival in February 2001, he was approached by the manager of the "Roo Gully Wild Life Sanctuary & Education Centre" to write a song to help promote their centre. As soon as the touring schedual slowed down a bit, Craig and Ros put pen to paper and came up with a bouncy little number which they titled "True Blue Roos."  The song is basically about two of the young Roos that the centre saved and the antics they get up to. The song was then recorded and sent across to Carol and Roy Hands, owners of the centre, for their approval.  The song was an instant hit and it will now be included on a mini-album of Aussie songs for release to the public. There is also a video being produced which will feature "True Blue Roos".  Further to that, the co-ordinator of W.A. singing troup, "Kids Country" have asked for permission for "Kids Country" to sing the song at their future shows.

For further information contact Ros on (03) 5883 2019 or mobile 0408 597 307

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