As Tamworth celebrates its 50th country music festival, the late Slim Dusty still holds the record for 38 Golden Guitars, an honour he shares with musician Lee Kernaghan.
But it was Slim's wife Joy McKean who won the very first Golden Guitar in 1973 for writing one of Slim's most iconic songs: Lights on the Hill.
The festival's annual Golden Guitar awards are the highest accolade in Australian country music, and Lights on the Hill was written from Joy's own experience towing a heavy caravan up the then notorious Devil's Pinch near Guyra on the NSW Northern Tablelands.
