Soul and spirit in perfect harmony at the Magpie Nest Café
- deansimpson7
- 17 hours ago
- 8 min read
Updated: 11 hours ago
This is a feel-good story. One that can’t help but lift your spirits, even on the gloomiest of days. What began as a simple idea – to bring together a bunch of highly talented musos to entertain diners at Melbourne’s Salvos Magpie Nest Café – has sparked a soulful revolution in the heart of the café. The Tambourine Cabaret Club has been a roaring success since its launch in March, with its live gigs doing more than filling a room with music; they are creating a soul-stirring space where melodies and voices transform. It’s more than just a performance. It’s a lifeline as Salvos Online journalist LERISSE SMITH discovered.
It’s impossible to ignore the buzz.
The Tambourine Cabaret Club is rewriting the story of live music and community in the heart of Melbourne’s bustling CBD.
Every Wednesday at Salvos Project 614’s Magpie Nest Cafe in Bourke St, amid the lunchtime hustle and bustle as plates of delicious food are devoured and folks from all walks of life gather, eyes lock onto the corner stage where music really comes alive.
More than just entertainment, it’s a unifying force that transcends race, religion and resources.
“It has been astounding,” said Matthew Daniels, Café Supervisor.
“A lot of people have come to us after listening to the music and have told us how much they have enjoyed listening to an event, a live music performance, something that they don’t get to experience in their own lives, as they often don’t have access to music and technology.
“We have people telling us they haven’t heard songs in years played again, reminding them of better times in their lives, but also just making them feel normal – and that’s the whole idea behind the café. A normal atmosphere for those experiencing life on the edge, those experiencing life in the margins, essentially.”
A key player behind the club’s amazing success is rock legend Paulie Stewart, a 40-year member of the legendary rock band Painters and Dockers, who has helped bring the cabaret club to life.
He has worked closely alongside fellow music industry veteran Fiona Lee Maynard, with the club growing into an all-consuming labour of love for the two.
“It is really magical,” reflects Paulie.
“It’s funny, you give somebody a microphone – and their English might not be at the level where they can write a word together – but suddenly they turn into William Shakespeare, and they’re like, putting this stuff out. And you go, what? Where’s this coming from?! It is really magical. It’s giving people, often vulnerable people, a chance to shine.”
So, how did Paulie and Fiona’s relationship with the Salvos begin?
Quite simply, with an invitation for his band to play a Salvos gig, courtesy of Salvos Melbourne Project 614 Team Leader Major Brendan Nottle, who, with his wife Major Sandra, has spent many years serving Melbourne’s most vulnerable alongside his team.
Paulie accepted the invitation, but with one caveat: The Salvation Army brass band had to play too, especially as the Painters and Dockers have a three-piece brass section.
He laughs as he recalls stating very clearly to Brendan that he couldn’t wait to play the good, old traditional Salvo songs such as ‘Onward Christian Soldiers’. However, to his surprise, it was met with a firm “no!”
“He (Brendan) walked in and said no, no, we want to do your songs – Nude School, Die Yuppie Die and all our crazy songs!” he recalled.
“We then got on like a house on fire. We have done it about two or three times where the Salvos get up and play with us … people don’t believe us because we are a pretty sort of notoriously over-the-top punk band, and when the Salvos walk on, people go - what’s happening here? But Brendan and the guys are so lovely, and they fitted right in with us, and we get on really well.”
A Christmas gig at 69 Bourke St, organised by Paulie and Fiona, lit the fuse for what would become the ‘Tambourine Cabaret Club’, affectionately named after one of the Salvos’ best-known percussion instruments (although Salvos generally call it by the older biblical term, the ‘timbrel’).
After visiting the Nest Café, the two wondered, “Why not a weekly gig at the place?” Brendan agreed – and the rest is history.
The first show was a hit. It pulled off a major coup.
Mindy Meng Wang, artist-in-residence at the Recital Centre, who has played at the Berlin Opera House and with the San Francisco Philharmonic Orchestra, played beautiful classical Chinese music. Everyone was utterly transfixed.
And from that spark, a flame ignited.
Performances have included show business stalwart Rebecca Barnard, rising Indigenous singer/guitarist Elijah Augustine, husband-and-wife duo Fiona Lee Maynard and James Lomas, an Elvis impersonator, Colin Badger and Paulie from the Painters and Dockers.
A myriad of acts, from African drummers to Indigenous singers and a Bolivian guitarist , have also featured.
And there’s been no shortage of wild and wonderful moments.
A recent ‘Elvis Day’ got everyone grooving and moving along with his celebrated favourite sandwich: banana, peanut butter and bacon!
“I honestly think the musicians who play get as much out of it as the people who watch it,” Paulie remarked. “They just love it because a lot of the crew at the cafe would unfortunately never get a chance to see live music.”
A large crowd filled Project 614’s main auditorium for the special Tambourine Cabaret Club ‘Elvis Day’ show (Anthony Petrucci, impersonator). Elvis’ celebrated favourite sandwich - banana, peanut butter and bacon - was on offer too!
But there is a twist for the visiting musos. It’s not your standard gig.
“I say to all the musicians now, listen. This gig is a bit different because people aren’t coming to see you, they’re coming to eat,” he said.
“That is the main thing they are there for – and we are the background music. And then they go, okay, no worries! It’s not rock stars talking down at people. We are all in this together. And it’s really magic. It’s absolutely magical. I just love it.”
Many powerful, deeply human moments have sprung from the live music scene, too.
A man in a wheelchair recently performed handstands in his chair, while ladies who had previously sat alone, not talking to anyone, screamed at the top of their voices to join in the fun. People have also formed deep connections – over songs, stories, and shared joy.
One of the most moving moments for everyone at the café came when a gentleman, living in a tent with three dogs, separated from his family and grieving the loss of his mother, stood up to sing.
“He said no one had ever asked him that before,” Paulie remarked. “He sang Johnny Cash’s Hurt – and everyone was bawling their eyes out. It was the most heartfelt thing we have ever heard.”
At the helm of the cabaret club is Paulie, Fiona Maynard and music lover, leading social justice lawyer and all-round nice guy James Hains. Together, they have revitalised the live music scene – and it has been a big hit amongst café attendees.
Johnny, an ex-boxer, is the club’s MC. No one had given him a chance before to undertake such a task, and he’s thrilled.
So, what is the greatest buzz for Paulie?
It is seeing people who have just been sitting in the cafe saying nothing, getting up and asking, “Can I sing a song?” Additionally, it’s real friendships that bond over music, favourite bands and shared stories.
“It’s hard to walk up to someone and say, ‘I’ve got brain damage’ or ‘I’ve been on ice,” he explained. “But you can walk up and say, ‘Hey, do you like the Rolling Stones?’… music breaks the ice.”
Playing an integral role in the cabaret club’s great success is the café team. Paulie and Fiona speak highly of them with Matthew at the helm.
“Matthew is one of the most beautiful human beings I’ve ever met,” Paulie said.
“All the staff at the café are just wonderful people. There’s no judgment, there’s no screaming. Just calm, compassion, and love. Some of the participants go off sometimes because of mental health issues, but the staff are always nice, calm and collective.”
Even footballers are getting in on the act.
The Collingwood Football Club are one of the major contributors, hence the Magpie Nest Café name, with both staff and footballers serving meals throughout the week. And yes, the Good Old Collingwood Forever song has been played – more than once!
Other major companies also contribute to the café with James Hains from ‘The Gertrude Players’ undertaking major fundraising efforts. Schools such as Geelong Grammar are also getting involved too organising various fundraisers.
“It’s the old Paul Kelly song - From little things, Big things grow,” Paulie added. “The wheel is turning and I can feel it’s huge already – and it’s still gaining momentum.”
And that momentum is pushing big dreams into motion.
Paulie, Fiona, James, Matthew, and the team aspire to go upstairs at Bourke St, where there is a large ballroom, to set up a small recording studio and start making music with some of the café attendees.
On the future dream list, too, are artists Paul Kelly, as well as Taylor Swift and Beyoncé. Why not?
“Music transcends language barriers, allowing people from diverse backgrounds to connect through shared rhythms and melodies,” Paulie commented.
“There is so much evidence now that confirms that music helps to promote individual confidence, reduce anxiety and improve social relationships. They (the café attendees) have all got amazing stories, but music is the ultimate door opener. I feel honestly blessed to be doing it… Music isn’t just about Top 40 hits and $300 priced tickets. It’s for everyone, especially those who have never had a chance to be part of something like this.”
Spurring the café and club team on is the overwhelmingly positive feedback from attendees.
“It has been amazing,” Matthew said.
“People have literally said to me, Matthew, I have not listened to that song since I was a teenager, or I don’t listen to music. I don’t have access to it. They come to me saying, ‘You brought tears to my eyes, because I was able to listen to a song that I haven’t listened to in decades.’ And that is absolutely sad, but it’s also amazing they have that opportunity to do that here. People are dancing and singing and really getting into it.
“We are really lucky to have people like Paulie, Fiona and James get behind us and help create really amazing experiences for people who don’t have amazing experiences. You have got to remember we are looking after people who have literally been through some of the worst of the worst. They are dealing with mental illness, addiction issues, loneliness, and come here and get a glimpse of what heaven on earth might look like for them … but for us here, that’s what we’re trying to do. To create that kind of world for them, that kind of idea that they are just like us.”
