- A wonderful moment: Nick and two of Tamworth's legends with Smoky Dawson during Smoky's final visit to Tamworth in January 2007.
Nick took over hosting Hoedown when John Minson (next to Nick) retired in 1987. Max Ellis (right) was the manager of 2TM when the station created the Golden Guitar Awards and many of the core events of the Tamworth Country Music Festival.
CMR (Country Music Radio) has a long history as Australia's leading Country Music radio program.
It began as Hoedown at Easter in 1965. The original host was the legendary John Minson, who developed Hoedown into a widely heard night time program, broadcsat on 2TM Tamworth through their clear channel frequency 1287AM. Hoedown had regular listeners all over Eastern Australia and even in New Zealand.
Hoedown's success led to the establishment of the annual Golden Guitar Awards in Tamworth, which grew into the now world famous Tamworth Festival held each January.
John Minson retired in 1987 and another leading Country Music broadcaster Nick Erby (host of the nationally broadcast Nick Erby's Country Music Jamboree) took over Hoedown and the program was expanded into an all-night, every-night broadcast on 2TM Tamworth and 4WK Toowoomba/Darling Downs, and then onto several other stations. In the mid 90s 2TM became part of Bill Caralis' Super Network and Hoedown's name was changed to CMR, and broadcast across the Super Network at weekends. At the beginning of 2000 CMR was dropped by the network.
From Christmas 2003 Nick Erby was contracted to program CMR for the Super Network stations on Saturday and Sundays with Brian Howard handling the after midnight shifts and Nick on air between 6pm and 12mn. In 2008 The Super Network lost interest so Nick decided to move on. CMR's last broadcast on the Super Network was Sunday August 17 2008.
CMR Online has now been introduced via the internet, broadcasting a full music format 24 hours a day, with feature programs on Sunday.
Monday-Friday (Tamworth time) CMR Online has the full mix of CMR's music format, and over the weekend features Country's All-Time Favourites from the 90s back to the Golden Oldies.
Nick is Australia's leading Country Music broadcaster.
During his long broadcasting career he has held several mangerial positions at radio stations in major and regional cities.
Nick began hosting Country Music programs at his first station.
He produced and hosted Nick Erby's Country Music Jamboree for 20 years from 1977.
He has hosted three television programs, and worked on several others.
Nick has been a major industry supporter. He was a Foundation Board member of Country Music Australia in the 70s, a Foundation Board member of the Country Music Association of Australia and a past Chairman of the Australian Country Music Foundation. Nick has also served on the Board of the (US) Country Music Association.
Nick's service has been recognised with a Golden Guitar, a CMAA Achiever Award, a TSA "Tex Morton Award", a Bush Laureate's Golden Gumleaf, a Warner-Chappel Industry Award and two CMA (US) International Broadcaster of the Year Awards.
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