Tom Curtain is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and tourist operator based in Katherine in the Northern Territory.
Tom Curtain is an Australian country music singer, songwriter and tourist operator based in Katherine in the Northern Territory.
Curtain was born in Mildura, Victoria in 1979 before returned his family property Old Boyneside, Kumbia near Kingaroy in Queensland where he attended Kumbia State School. He boarded at Marist College in Brisbane before attending the University of Queensland. [1]
Curtain worked at cattle stations across northern Australia but attributes the beginning of his song-writing to his time working in the stock-camp of Mount Sanford Station in the Northern Territory.
He began the tourism venture Katherine Outback Experience in Katherine, Northern Territory in 2013, that he runs with his wife Annabel. He is well known for performing while riding a horse and sharing his knowledge of training horses and working dogs for life on the land. Katherine Outback Experience won Gold for Tourist Attraction of the Year at the Australian Tourism Awards in 2021, 2023 and 2024. [2]
Curtain has released five albums and toured widely, performing with Sara Storer, The Sunny Cowgirls, Pete Denahy and the Davidson Brothers. [1]
Curtain was friends with Amy ‘Dolly’ Everett and her family, a local teenager who died by suicide after being bullied. This inspired him to write Speak Up, a duet with Sara Storer which reached No. 1 on the iTunes Australian Music Chart. [3] [4] [5]
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [6] | AUS Artist [7] | ||
| Smack Bang! |
| — | — |
| Heatwave |
| — | — |
| Territory Time |
| — | — |
| We're Still Here |
| — | — |
| Nothin's Gonna Stop Us |
| — | — |
| Here's to You |
| 76 | 8 |
Curtain has won several Golden guitar awards at the Tamworth Country Music Awards of Australia. [11]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | "Never Never Land" (featuring Luke O'Shea) | Toyota Heritage Song of the Year | Won |
| "Never Never Land" (featuring Luke O'Shea) | Video Clip of the Year | Won | |
| 2021 [12] | "She Gave Us the Song" (with Lee Kernaghan & Sara Storer) | Toyota Heritage Song of the Year | Nominated |
| 2024 [13] [14] | Nothing's Gonna Stop Us | Traditional Country Album of the Year | Nominated |
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | "Territory Time" | Tourism NT Tourism Song of the Year [15] | Nominated |
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 [16] | himself | Independent Male Artist of the Year | Won |
| "Never Never Land" (featuring Luke O'Shea) | Single of the Year | Won | |
| Territory Time | Album of the Year | Won | |
| himself | Independent Artist of the Year | Won |
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | himself | Best Male Vocal category | Won |