Wayne Murray and his company Sound Waves Group are breathing new life into the historic Khartoum Hotel on Cessnock Street, Kitchener.
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Boasting 40 years in the hotel and music business, Wayne’s vision is to establish the Khartoum as the number one food and entertainment venue in the Valley.
The son of a Wollongong hotelier, Wayne grew up immersed in pub culture and cut his teeth as a frontman for country rock outfit Vibrations in the 1970s and ‘80s, touring as support for iconic Aussie acts like Mental As Anything, Noiseworks, The Choirboys and Cold Chisel.
He counts Oz music legends like Brian Cadd, Brian Canham (Pseudo Echo), Mark Gable (Choirboys) and Barry Crocker as personal friends and boasts an unrivalled back catalogue of contacts.
He’s bringing that wealth of live music and hospitality experience and knowledge to the Khartoum.
“I’m an old-school entertainer with 40 years in the game encompassing every aspect of the hotel business,” Wayne said. “I passionately believe that people want to go out and have a good time and then get home safe and sound.
“It gives me great pleasure in thinking people will come back because they know every time they go to the Khartoum, something great is going on.”
Live entertainment is scheduled to the end of the year, all personally booked, and kicked off with close mate Glen Tucker’s Soul Station in July.
“Glen’s from the Central Coast and a good friend who also manages a few acts,” Wayne said.
“Soul Station are red hot live and indicative of the kind of music you’re going to get.”
This week Witchery are playing (August 4), followed by Marneagle (Aug 11), Soul Station (Aug 18), Slam Tango (Aug 19) and Whiskey Business (Aug 25).
”We’ve already had Jenny Marie Lang and Allstar and I’m lining up Troy Kemp for September,” Wayne said.
“I can’t wait for summer to get the Saturday and Sunday afternoon shows rocking, and I’m really keen to get the mega retro disco with full laser show up and running. I guarantee people are going to be amazed.”
Food will remain a focus under Wayne’s stewardship.
Award-winning chef Helen Polley has been retained along with regular features like Wednesday Schnittie night ($13.50) and Thursday Surf n Turf ($13.50) along with Friday night meat raffles and members badge draws Thursday and Sunday nights.
Meanwhile Emma Drummond will oversee the smooth running of the bar.
Entertainment won’t just encompass live music.
The Ampro Darts series, hosted by five-time Australian champion Barry “China” Jounnet, kicks of this month with $200 on offer each Monday night.
Wayne used to play with Cessnock darts superstar Simon “The Wizard” Whitlock as a doubles partner and loves his darts.
“We once scored 601 in 14 darts at Warilla in 2009 in one of the big tournaments before Simon hit the big time in England,” Wayne recalled.
Further events in the pipeline include a show and shine car show (September 10), a woodchop series (August 19), a Yamaha 500 Thumper round-up (September 23) and a big Harley Davidson owners day.
“Being a Harley owner, I’ve been speaking to a few groups and I hope to have 400 hogs parked out the front in late August,” Wayne said.
“There’s a lot going on at the Khartoum and I’ve got a headful of untapped ideas. All I need is for the locals to come and enjoy themselves.”
Check the Khartoum Hotel Facebook page for regular updates.
