Here are excerpts from an interview with Paul Busch of Outside my Inside, a Substack contributor and long time music writer:

HOW I GOT HERE:
I moved to Australia way more than 222 full moons ago, and have been playing in a variety of successful festival bands ranging from Delta blues to Gypsy world music.
And NOW? “See here how everything leads up to this day”: forming Horse Drawn Cadillac with friends that I have played with in other bands, to celebrate music as a journey through new and forgotten landscapes!

MAJOR HARP INFLUENCES:

For harp, the main inspiration are players who treat the harp as a horn or percussive addition to a band.
For Blues, ANY of Muddy Waters’ long list of great harp players in his bands, Rod Piazza for that jump and jive, and Mickey Raphael for Country. I owe alot to Charlie Musselwhite and John Mayall for “accessible” styles - AND I really do owe everything to Jim Conway, from the original Backsliders - an amazing player, and I would not have gotten to where I am without his toootelage!!

MAJOR SONGWRITING INFLUENCES:

UM, so many!
Truly, for poignancy, irony, humour, I love Chicago’s favourite son John Prine and Oz wordsmiths too, from Kelly to Crighton!

IF I COULD PLAY IN ONE OTHER BAND:

Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen. Sadly, the Commander never asked me, and he passed away in 2021, but it is the spirit of their music - humour, a big band giving each other space, and a rollicking good time, that I strive for with HDC….

”Rock that boogie til the break of day, then let the man come and take me away!” RIP Commander!

SONGWRITING PHILOSOPHY IN A QUOTE/LYRIC:

“I try to write from the perspective of the untrustworthy narrator” -Randy Newman

CURRENTS:

I had the pleasure of playing with Benji and The Saltwater Sound system for over a decade, and sitting in with the Moonhounds when the moon is just right. Honestly, these days HDC keeps me busy, as the main songwriter and manager for the band.