Forever Five: Murray Cook

Waxx Lyrical
14 hours ago
3 min read

Ever wondered what albums sit atop your favourite artists’ turntables? Forever Five is a Waxx Lyrical series spotlighting the five records that shaped the artists we love most. No rankings, no essays — just the albums that live closest to their hearts. Come for the choices, stay for the typically remarkable playlist that follows — woven from their picks and their own catalogue — culminating in a fascinating little mini music lesson every time.

Explore more in the Media Centre and on Instagram via #waxxlyricalforeverfive.

MURRAY COOK

🎶 Melody man disguised as a children’s icon

🎸 Telecaster traditionalist with a soft spot for groove

🌏 Pub-rock heart, global ears

For three decades, Murray Cook was The Red Wiggle. He raised a generation and made millions of kids, and just as many parents, move. The backbeat was real. The guitars were in tune. The groove was never phoned in.

But before the skivvy became shorthand for childhood joy, Cook was a guitarist shaped by British melody, American roots, Australian grit and late-night listening sessions that stretched well past sensible hours. That education never disappeared. It simply found a younger audience.

These days, he’s still swinging, still strumming with The Soul Movers aka Murray and The Movers, reconnecting with the rhythm-and-blues DNA that shaped him long before fruit salads ruled the airwaves. Different rooms, different crowds, same belief: music matters. Groove matters. Movement matters.

And his Forever Five? It reads like the blueprint.

Forever Five Kris Sch

LISTEN — MURRAY COOK'S FOREVER FIVE

A trio of tracks from each of Murray's choices, plus an essential five tracks of his own.

The resulting playlist flows like a mini-music history lesson.

Forever Five Murray Cook

THE BEATLES - ABBEY ROAD (1969)

Precision disguised as ease.

The harmonies glide. The guitars shimmer. And Side B’s medley remains one of pop’s most elegant high-wire acts. For a songwriter, it’s a masterclass in economy and ambition coexisting peacefully. Cook’s instinct for melody? You can draw a straight line here.

Needle drop: ‘Something’

THE ROLLING STONES — Exile on Main St. (1972)

Loose. Sweaty. Glorious.

If Abbey Road is architectural, Exile is instinct. Gospel, blues, country and rock tumbling over each other in a humid basement sprawl. This is feel over finish. Groove over gloss.

Needle drop: ‘Tumbling Dice’

LUCINDA WILLIAMS — Car Wheels on a Gravel Road (1998)

Dust, doubt and devotion.

Williams writes like someone circling the truth until it gives in. The record took years to complete, and you can hear that patience in every line. It’s intimate without being fragile. Tough without posturing.

For someone who’s balanced joy with craft his entire career, this kind of songwriting depth makes perfect sense.

Needle drop: ‘Right in Time’

MIDNIGHT OIL — Diesel And Dust (1987)

Urgent. Political. Unmistakably Australian.

This is a record with spine. With purpose. Songs that move hips and minds simultaneously.

For an Australian guitarist coming of age in the 80s, this wasn’t just music — it was atmosphere. It proved you could be local and global in the same breath.

Needle drop: ‘Beds Are Burning’

MILES DAVIS — Kind of Blue (1959)

Restraint as revelation.

Modal jazz that feels like open sky. Every note placed with intention, every pause as meaningful as the melody. It’s the quiet outlier in the list — and perhaps the most telling. Great musicians listen as much as they play.

Needle drop: ‘So What’