Mark A Hunter

I was born in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia and lived there for most of my life. I was raised by my father who, as a single parent, raised me from the age of five. Dad was always broke and struggled to support us. He was very musical and played his harmonica to put us kids to sleep at night, and harmonica was the first instrument I learned to play.

A lot of people in Darwin played guitar and sang all the old songs when I was young and this was also a big influence for me.

What influenced me to write songs I suppose came from the pleasure I got from making people laugh. As a kid I used to change the words to the songs we sang in school to make my friends laugh. Years later, I found myself doing the same thing at parties and BBQ's.

I loved most of the country & western hits of the 50's & 60's and I believe this is where most of my musical influences come from. I've always had a strong desire to write, and "The Top End" country, it's people and culture have been the main source of material for my songs.

I’ve always seen The Northern Territory as being a unique place, especially where I live in the far north, right on the coast. This is part of a region commonly referred to as “The Top End” which was also known as “The Buffalo Country”, and that's where I got the title for my first album “SONGS FROM THE BUFFALO COUNTRY”.

The album is a reflection of life in “The Top End“, it‘s me, telling you about my experiences in “The Buffalo Country“