"He drove in the morning after in his VH Holden and he let us kids hold it," Bowtell said. "I'll never forget that. It was so heavy."

These days the Greta-based artist has a cabinet full of her own to hold and marvel. On Saturday Bowtell won another two awards at the 48th Country Music Awards of Australia to take her total to nine.

She and Sydney's Luke O'Shea took home Heritage Song of the Year and Vocal Collaboration of the Year for their single Sing Me A Story, which they also performed on the night in Tamworth.

"I was chuffed to have been able to sing at the awards with Luke, because I'm so proud of that song and everything we've done over the past 12 months touring," she said.

Bowtell had previously won Vocal Collaboration with her supergroup trio with Kevin Bennett and Felicity Urquhart, with the late Karl Broadie and for F U Cancer with Catherine Britt and Beccy Cole.

However, it was her first Heritage Song of the Year award.

It was a hectic week at the Tamworth Country Music Festival for Bowtell, which included various solo and band performances. It was also a bittersweet experience as it was the first festival since her good friend and Urquhart's husband Glen Hannah took his own life last May.

Bowtell was one of many artists who performed at a fundraiser for Hannah's daughters.

"There were so many times when he would appear in your mind, and in a corner of a room you'd think you'd see him," she said.

"He was always with us throughout the festival for the last 20-odd years, so it was tough but we were all together."

READ MORE: Felicity Urquhart carrying on with life and love after her husband's death

The Hunter's other winner at the Golden Guitars was Newcastle's Nashville-based country-pop star Morgan Evans. Evans claimed Male Artist and Contemporary Album of The Year for his record Things That We Drink To.

"Australia, thank you so much," Evans posted on Facebook. "I know it's a hard time right now, I know you've really been going through it, just know that I appreciate your support beyond words and I cannot wait to get back in March to play some more music for you all."

NEWCASTLE country-pop artist Max Jackson will release her debut album Life Of The Party on February 7.

The Gina Jeffreys protege recorded the album between the Sound Emporium in Nashville,and The Music Cellar in Erina under award-winning Australian producer Rod McCormack (Paul Kelly, Troy Cassar-Daley, Beccy Cole).

The first single, Saturday, reached No.4 on the iTunes Country chart and was followed by How To Love A Girl and Life Of The Party which continued to showcase Jackson's very pop brand of country. The title track was written about Jackson's battle with social anxiety and how she used music to cope with the condition.

SUNDAY is expected to be the biggest day yet for Wallsend's Hiss & Crackle Records when surf-punk heavyweights Dune Rats stop by at 5pm for an in-store signing.

Dune Rats will release their third record Hurry Up and Wait on Friday, which is this week's Triple J feature album. The record has already spawned the tracks Crazy and No Plans and is tipped to debut in the ARIA top-10 next week.

Dune Rats' in-store tour is mostly visiting independent record shops and is not expected to feature a live performance.

The signing kicks off a busy period for Hiss & Crackle, with Newcastle country act Aaron White & The Passengers (February 8) and surf-rockers Loons (February 22) launching their new EPs in-store.

NEWCASTLE country queen Catherine Britt will head into her backyard studio on Thursday to begin work on her first independent record since her debut album Dusty Smiles and Heartbreak Cures in 2001.

Britt announced last week she would be releasing her album independently after leaving Universal Music, who released her 2018 record Catherine Britt & the Cold Cold Hearts. To coincide with the announcement the 35-year-old launched a Pozible fundraising campaign to generate $35,000 for the album.

As of Wednesday the campaign had reached $7,615.

NEWCASTLE has a new recording facility following the launch of Studio B at Elermore Vale.

The purpose-built studio is owned and operated by Newcastle-based sound engineer and music producer, Allon Silove, who has studied under Grammy Award-winner Andrew Scheps (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Green Day.)

"I've invested my heart and soul into this studio because, after 25 years in the industry, I believe that's what it takes in order to make great art," Silove said.