Australian country music legend Ron Shegog celebrated in George Town

But his extended family is not the only reason Mr Shegog is celebrated.

With a musical career starting at the tender age of nine, Mr Shegog is a renowned country music artist.

To celebrate his contributions to the Australian country music scene and his local community, Mr Shegog's vinyl record, The Redback's Point Of View, was framed and hung at the Gray's Hotel at George Town on Monday.

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Surrounded by friends and family, Mr Shegog said he was very surprised by the occasion.

"I didn't expect this, but it's nice to see everyone here," he said.

"I'm not even sure where they got a copy of my record. The last one, my daughter, tracked down was a copy from Germany."

Musical talent runs in the family, as Mr Shegog's brother, Kevin Shegog, was also a successful country musician.

"Kevin was my younger brother, and we used to play together. We performed in the Australian Amateur Hour along with our sister, where we came third," he said.

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"I learnt to play the guitar and was self-taught, learning on a four-string guitar.

"Many of my songs were inspired by something someone would say or something I saw. My wife Barbara had been asking me to write her a song for a while, and one day, I was lobster fishing, and I was watching the water flow down the river when a song idea came to me.

"I called the song Til Water Ceased To Flow, and it was about my wife. So I recorded it and played it to her, and she cried because she loved it that much."

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