Our best resource is creativity
Like many others in WA, I came here from somewhere else, surfing a late 1980s boom wave into a wash of pastels, boutique beer, Freo and a town abuzz with the thrill of international sailing.
My band mates and I did our best to integrate into a tight music scene and, in the process, discovered something unique - and, at the time, quite odd.
The Friday paper carried dozens of full-page ads for bands whose claims to fame involved playing "the best of" in unusually named beer halls like The Overflow, Nookenburra and so on. They pulled big crowds and played not so much interpretations but note-for-note covers. They were impeccable renditions with the occasional original sneaked into the early part of the third set.
It was huge, it was prolific, and it represented the bulk of the music scene in WA. But the reason for this cover scene didn't occur to me until later.
Other than the rare international act at the "Ent Cent", WA was not on the national tour circuit, so we made do. We did the next best thing: great covers of bands that skirted the State. It's yet another example of how we adapted to our isolation.
But in the background, a small, dedicated original scene was brewing. A handful of highly committed souls were doing interesting things and quietly influencing other corners of the world, like Seattle. This originality, coupled with a talent for brilliant imitation, was the foundation for what has become one of the richest and most vibrant contemporary music scenes in the world.
The list of winners and finalists of the last ARIAs is clear testimony to WA's status on the Australian music scene. Internationally, the likes of Tame Impala and San Cisco are proudly flying the flag.
There is no doubt that today WA punches way, way above its weight in contemporary music.
Our creative heavy-hitters aren't limited to the music talent pool. From theatre and dance to visual arts and writing - even commercial creativity - West Australians are carving their names alongside those who have made their mark.
Right now, in Australia's foremost contemporary dance company - the Sydney Dance Company - there are three West Australians. Juliette Barton front and centre alongside Jessica Thompson and Charmene Yap. Then you have David McAllister guiding the Australian Ballet, and Lucy Durack singing up a storm on the biggest musicals on stage.
Beyond Tim Winton and Robert Drewe, our pool of internationally acclaimed writers is deep. Craig Silvey (no slouch as a musician) made a pretty big mark with his novel Jasper Jones, then there's Joan London, Shaun Tan, Gail Jones and Kim Scott - twice winning the Miles Franklin Award.
Artist Stormie Mills is a global sensation and Lena Nyadbi has been etched in history via numerous works, including one on the roof of the Musee du quai Branly in Paris.
We have talented digital artists scattered all over the globe. John Fragomeni is calling the effects shots in Hollywood on the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and the Expendables. Down the road there is Alan Lindsay who has turned his Bunbury-based Vue Group into a global animation force. In the arena of commercial creativity such as design and advertising, Matt Eastwood is in New York presiding over the creative output of communications group JWT Worldwide.
Then there are the ones who tend to get the coverage - the actors. Beyond household names such as Heath Ledger, Frances O'Connor, Lisa McCune, Sam Worthington and Judy Davis the list of emerging stars, such as Ewen Leslie, Emma Booth and Kate Mulvany, is seemingly endless.
In reality, I'm scratching the surface. It's quite remarkable and I'm not sure that we in WA recognise and appreciate the significance of it. It's not just what is happening now - we have been big-time for a long time. Yes, it is a cliche that WA is the boom/bust State. Since the gold-rush days, it is in our DNA. We strike something and we can't help but go large - spend and build. It's the magnet that has drawn so many talented people here, and a major contributor to our diversity, culture and creativity. We do our best to capitalise on the opportunities of a boom, but then it inevitably ends.
Through it all, there has been one consistent feature: the enduring, intense, exceptional creativity of our people and the ability to make an impact on the world stage from our comparatively small and remote location.
So here we are, bleary-eyed, nursing ourselves through our most recent post-boom hangover. In the past, out of each boom we have returned to situation normal with all those wondrous WA benefits - great weather, cheap living and affordable homes. Not this time. We partied hard and have paid the price. We have even been punished with an A taken off our credit scorecard.
We were the powerhouse State; driving the country's economy. But now what? Who are we? What do we stand for?
Perhaps a focus for future investment should be on one of our strongest resources - the creativity of our people. Look at what has been achieved with modest contribution so far. We should celebrate our extraordinary creative achievements.
Foster this creativity, prize the artists, financially champion them and turn our uniqueness, isolation and clearly fertile environment into a global creative oasis - a magnetic state drawing creativity in from around the world and generating a new kind of rush, for a more proved resource - one that won't ever run out.
Al Taylor is chairman of West Australian Music, a member of the WA Chamber of Arts and Culture and runs communications agency 303Lowe. He played drums in the 1980s Perth cover band Short Note.
