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Australian society in the 1960s
was sheltered.
4
00:01:21,040 --> 00:01:23,960
We were very isolated
from the rest of the world.
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00:01:27,130 --> 00:01:29,090
It was like we were sleepwalking.
6
00:01:41,186 --> 00:01:42,937
Music woke us up.
7
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The big question was,
who was gonna be our big star?
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00:01:55,158 --> 00:01:56,868
Who were we gonna worship?
9
00:02:02,040 --> 00:02:04,417
I was born in London,
in the heart of London.
10
00:02:06,002 --> 00:02:08,629
I came to Australia,
I was about 10, I think.
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00:02:13,676 --> 00:02:16,387
There was always music going on.
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There's just two years
between Jean and John,
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00:02:19,516 --> 00:02:24,229
and they used to go around
entertaining the old people in England.
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00:02:28,900 --> 00:02:31,694
At one stage there,
Jean and John did "Tin Soldier,"
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00:02:31,778 --> 00:02:34,155
and Jean had to sit on Johnny's lap.
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00:02:34,239 --> 00:02:37,408
She fell off
and John just carried on with the show.
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00:02:38,117 --> 00:02:41,829
From that moment, my father-in-law said
he's gonna be a showman.
18
00:03:06,521 --> 00:03:09,524
We played at a country dance,
a place called Cohuna.
19
00:03:10,149 --> 00:03:11,985
I joined a group called Strings Unlimited.
20
00:03:12,068 --> 00:03:14,821
We used to work the local discos,
and dances, and things.
21
00:03:14,904 --> 00:03:17,323
We backed Bev Harrell,
who was an Adelaide singer.
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00:03:17,407 --> 00:03:18,700
She was very big at the time.
23
00:03:18,783 --> 00:03:21,744
What am I doing here with you
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00:03:21,828 --> 00:03:25,164
When I promised that I'd be true?
25
00:03:25,248 --> 00:03:28,293
I arrived and I've done my rehearsal,
26
00:03:28,376 --> 00:03:30,879
the band has started to play,
27
00:03:30,962 --> 00:03:33,631
and I had no idea who the singer was.
28
00:03:43,975 --> 00:03:46,144
And I peeked round the corner,
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00:03:46,227 --> 00:03:49,606
to have a look at this boy,
and just thought:
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00:03:54,152 --> 00:03:55,612
In all ways.
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00:03:56,613 --> 00:03:59,490
I was there with Darryl,
who was my boyfriend.
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00:04:00,200 --> 00:04:02,410
I think he probably thought
the same as me.
33
00:04:02,493 --> 00:04:04,704
This is a star in the making.
34
00:04:04,787 --> 00:04:07,832
What was it that told you
he had the potential it needed?
35
00:04:07,916 --> 00:04:10,793
His looks.
The way he worked to the public.
36
00:04:10,877 --> 00:04:12,879
And we took it from there.
37
00:04:12,962 --> 00:04:14,881
Darryl went up to John and said:
38
00:04:14,964 --> 00:04:19,092
"Look, can I have your number?
I'm really interested in managing you."
39
00:04:19,177 --> 00:04:21,554
He rang about seven weeks later and said:
40
00:04:21,638 --> 00:04:23,681
"I've got you some work in Adelaide.
41
00:04:23,765 --> 00:04:26,017
Got you $30 for the three jobs."
42
00:04:26,100 --> 00:04:29,187
I was still a plumber's apprentice,
and I was on 22 a week.
43
00:04:29,270 --> 00:04:31,150
I went over to Adelaide
and worked three dances.
44
00:04:31,231 --> 00:04:33,733
That was the first time
anybody had ever screamed at me.
45
00:04:34,776 --> 00:04:39,030
I was doing a TV show with Bev,
and I met Darryl Sambell.
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00:04:39,113 --> 00:04:42,659
She said, "This guy does my hair
and he's a friend of mine."
47
00:04:42,742 --> 00:04:45,161
We chatted while doing the TV show.
48
00:04:45,245 --> 00:04:49,582
He said, "There's a guy you've gotta hear.
His name's Johnny Farnham."
49
00:04:50,708 --> 00:04:51,918
I was in the studio,
50
00:04:52,001 --> 00:04:56,089
and Peter Best, he had written
a jingle for Ansett-ANA.
51
00:04:56,172 --> 00:04:59,676
They said, "We're looking
for a great voice for this jingle.
52
00:04:59,759 --> 00:05:01,010
Do you know anybody?"
53
00:05:02,303 --> 00:05:05,557
I said, "Listen to this boy."
They said, "That's the voice."
54
00:05:05,640 --> 00:05:07,141
Susan Jones
55
00:05:07,225 --> 00:05:08,059
Hello there.
56
00:05:08,142 --> 00:05:11,437
The happiest girl
With the friendliest smile
57
00:05:11,521 --> 00:05:13,857
He hadn't had this experience
in the studio,
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00:05:13,940 --> 00:05:16,234
he hadn't been
a professional session singer,
59
00:05:16,317 --> 00:05:18,778
but he took direction
straight off the top.
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00:05:18,862 --> 00:05:20,864
He was just floating through these notes,
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00:05:20,947 --> 00:05:25,076
which, not many,
even professional jingle singers would do.
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00:05:25,159 --> 00:05:27,120
I walked into the studio and said:
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00:05:27,203 --> 00:05:29,956
"I'd really like to sign you to EMI."
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00:05:30,039 --> 00:05:31,583
And he said, "Well, yeah,
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00:05:31,666 --> 00:05:33,877
you'd have to come
and talk to my mom and dad."
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00:05:35,587 --> 00:05:39,007
The next day, I went out
and met his mom and dad.
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00:05:41,092 --> 00:05:42,969
We wondered what he was going into.
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00:05:43,720 --> 00:05:46,306
He was giving up an apprenticeship.
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00:05:47,056 --> 00:05:50,602
I went to my parents and said,
"Look, I've got a chance here.
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00:05:50,685 --> 00:05:53,354
I can either stay at plumbing,
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00:05:53,438 --> 00:05:55,857
and work at that for the rest of my life,"
72
00:05:55,940 --> 00:05:58,484
so it was either do one or the other.
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00:05:58,568 --> 00:06:01,112
So I thought, "I'm only gonna get
one chance in my life
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00:06:01,196 --> 00:06:03,364
to really get stuck into singing."
75
00:06:03,448 --> 00:06:06,451
So they said,
"All right, you do that if you want,
76
00:06:06,534 --> 00:06:08,870
and we'll be right behind you
all the way."
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00:06:08,953 --> 00:06:12,081
When I went out to the house with him
and I said, "Do you write songs?"
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00:06:12,165 --> 00:06:15,251
And he sang this "In My Room."
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00:06:15,335 --> 00:06:19,255
In my room there is heartache
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00:06:19,339 --> 00:06:22,842
In my room there is sorrow
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00:06:22,926 --> 00:06:27,847
In my room there's no happiness, only pain
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00:06:27,931 --> 00:06:30,767
And I said, "That's a great song.
That's a lovely song."
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00:06:30,850 --> 00:06:34,187
It was an era
when people didn't write their own songs,
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00:06:34,270 --> 00:06:37,649
so the record producers would get demos
from overseas.
85
00:06:40,109 --> 00:06:41,319
What's going on? Who's this?
86
00:06:41,402 --> 00:06:43,655
- You can't clean now.
- Who is it?
87
00:06:43,738 --> 00:06:46,491
I've told them repeatedly not to clean
while we're on the air.
88
00:06:46,574 --> 00:06:50,578
I was writing to every publisher
around the world to get songs.
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00:06:50,662 --> 00:06:53,873
They're only gonna send the songs
that weren't making it to the big artists
90
00:06:53,957 --> 00:06:55,875
in America and in England.
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00:06:55,959 --> 00:06:58,545
- What is your name?
- Sadie, the cleaning lady.
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00:06:58,628 --> 00:07:01,631
And "Sadie" was one of those songs
that no one was interested in.
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00:07:01,714 --> 00:07:05,844
He played it to me and I said, "Oh, no,
I want to be a rock 'n' roll singer."
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00:07:05,927 --> 00:07:08,471
David really tried
to convince him to do it
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00:07:08,555 --> 00:07:11,432
because he just knew it'd be number one.
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00:07:11,516 --> 00:07:13,017
I did indeed.
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00:07:13,101 --> 00:07:16,396
That's a pretty big thing
to convince someone,
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00:07:16,479 --> 00:07:20,650
to say, "Next time,
then you can do what you want to do."
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00:07:20,733 --> 00:07:22,110
Looks like Phyllis Diller to me.
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00:07:22,193 --> 00:07:25,196
- Madam, madam.
- This boy sings the song about me.
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00:07:25,280 --> 00:07:26,573
It did the job.
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00:07:26,656 --> 00:07:28,700
He started singing
with groups around Melbourne
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00:07:28,783 --> 00:07:31,703
and is now being groomed
as one of pop music's young hopefuls.
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00:07:31,786 --> 00:07:35,665
Ladies and gentlemen,
a Bandstand start for Johnny Farnham.
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00:07:37,417 --> 00:07:42,547
Sadie, the cleaning lady
106
00:07:42,630 --> 00:07:47,427
With trusty scrubbing brush
And pail of water
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00:07:47,510 --> 00:07:50,388
Worked her fingers to the bone
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00:07:50,471 --> 00:07:53,683
For the life she had at home
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00:07:53,766 --> 00:07:58,104
We released that
on November the 19th, 1967.
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00:07:58,188 --> 00:08:02,192
Sadie, the cleaning lady
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00:08:02,275 --> 00:08:06,446
And by the 21st,
it was number one in Victoria.
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00:08:06,529 --> 00:08:08,615
It was incredible. It was unbelievable.
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It broke him immediately, really,
and he became a heartthrob overnight.
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00:08:14,537 --> 00:08:18,333
So she could spend the night by TV napping
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00:08:18,416 --> 00:08:21,127
He must have been 17. A baby.
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00:08:25,673 --> 00:08:29,886
Johnny Farnham was the cool thing,
and he was a little pop idol.
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00:08:29,969 --> 00:08:33,515
Oh, Sadie, the cleaning lady
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00:08:33,598 --> 00:08:35,934
I went to see, with my girlfriends,
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00:08:36,016 --> 00:08:37,852
a concert in Perth,
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00:08:37,935 --> 00:08:40,646
and I can remember
girls were just screaming.
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00:08:41,271 --> 00:08:42,899
Well, her red-detergent hands
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00:08:42,982 --> 00:08:44,400
And he only had "Sadie."
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00:08:44,484 --> 00:08:47,278
Have for years not held a man's
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00:08:47,362 --> 00:08:52,158
And time would find her heart
Expired of hunger
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00:08:52,242 --> 00:08:57,121
Scrub your floors, do your chores
Dear old Sadie
126
00:08:57,205 --> 00:08:59,123
I liked hard rock when I was young.
127
00:08:59,207 --> 00:09:02,710
Even as a young fella, I liked it
'cause my brother was in bands.
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00:09:02,794 --> 00:09:05,797
But John's voice,
as much as it was a novelty song,
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00:09:05,880 --> 00:09:07,549
and it was like vaudeville almost.
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00:09:07,632 --> 00:09:09,968
There was something about his voice
that was so appealing.
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You'd find yourself whistling it,
singing it, as you walk.
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00:09:13,096 --> 00:09:15,640
When he brought out "Sadie," I laughed.
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00:09:15,723 --> 00:09:17,141
"What's he doing?"
134
00:09:17,225 --> 00:09:20,103
He wanted rock 'n' roll
and he's doing this "Sadie"?
135
00:09:20,186 --> 00:09:23,898
It's not my kind of song.
A lot of people liked it.
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00:09:25,775 --> 00:09:27,443
It's hard to believe now,
137
00:09:27,527 --> 00:09:30,655
but "Sadie" was
the biggest hit of the '60s.
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00:09:30,738 --> 00:09:33,324
In Australia,
the biggest hit of the decade.
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00:09:35,910 --> 00:09:37,912
Unfortunately,
with the success of "Sadie,"
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00:09:37,996 --> 00:09:42,083
he didn't have time to write
because he was so busy doing television
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00:09:42,166 --> 00:09:43,459
and everything else.
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00:09:43,543 --> 00:09:46,004
So we never got to record
a lot of his songs.
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00:09:51,301 --> 00:09:54,387
Raindrops are falling on my head
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00:09:55,555 --> 00:10:01,019
I'm just like a guy
Whose feet are too big for his bed
145
00:10:01,102 --> 00:10:02,812
Nothing seems to fit
146
00:10:02,896 --> 00:10:05,940
I remember at the time,
I was image-hunting.
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00:10:06,608 --> 00:10:09,360
There were people that wore boots
to the knees and tight pants,
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00:10:09,444 --> 00:10:11,946
and very loose shirts and a lot of beads.
149
00:10:12,030 --> 00:10:14,991
I thought I'd dress him
in a similar thing,
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00:10:15,074 --> 00:10:17,952
like the dude
on the Johnnie Walker bottle.
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00:10:19,412 --> 00:10:20,914
Minus the hat, of course.
152
00:10:22,165 --> 00:10:25,210
'Cause I'm never gonna stop the rain
153
00:10:25,293 --> 00:10:29,214
Johnny's version of "Raindrops,"
again, straight to number one.
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00:10:29,297 --> 00:10:32,675
Because I'm free
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00:10:32,759 --> 00:10:35,011
Nothing's worrying me
156
00:10:35,094 --> 00:10:36,471
He was lovable Johnny.
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00:10:36,554 --> 00:10:38,765
He looked great, he had hits.
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00:10:38,848 --> 00:10:42,060
Walking the floor
On my hands over you, girl
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00:10:42,143 --> 00:10:44,020
I can't believe
What you're trying to do
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00:10:44,103 --> 00:10:46,105
And so the crown went on the head.
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00:10:46,189 --> 00:10:47,649
Good on you, king!
162
00:10:48,525 --> 00:10:50,193
There's a big king for you.
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00:10:52,529 --> 00:10:55,949
Walking the floor
On my hands over you, girl
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00:10:56,032 --> 00:10:58,618
I can't believe what you're trying to do
165
00:10:58,701 --> 00:11:00,245
Johnny Farnham.
166
00:11:03,831 --> 00:11:05,875
I want it. I want it.
167
00:11:06,918 --> 00:11:09,337
I've got an outfit that'll just match it.
168
00:11:13,925 --> 00:11:17,428
King of Pop is something
that I look at very fondly.
169
00:11:18,513 --> 00:11:22,308
'Cause I won it three times
and John won it five in a row.
170
00:11:22,392 --> 00:11:24,894
Congratulations, you really deserve it.
171
00:11:24,978 --> 00:11:27,230
I think you're marvelous, just great.
172
00:11:28,189 --> 00:11:29,774
I hope it fits.
173
00:11:29,858 --> 00:11:32,902
John was worthy
of being on top of the pile,
174
00:11:32,986 --> 00:11:34,279
and people just worshiped him.
175
00:11:38,074 --> 00:11:43,913
One is the loneliest number
That you'll ever do
176
00:11:43,997 --> 00:11:48,251
Every TV company wanted him.
Every newspaper wanted him.
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00:11:48,334 --> 00:11:51,129
6KY Perth, and we're gonna get Johnny
to read an ad.
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00:11:51,212 --> 00:11:52,505
- Johnny.
- Now?
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00:11:52,589 --> 00:11:53,882
- Yes, now.
- Now, now.
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00:11:53,965 --> 00:11:57,177
$1.85 is all you pay
when you rent General Electric TV...
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00:11:57,260 --> 00:12:00,388
John'd be good,
he'd do whatever you asked him to do.
182
00:12:00,471 --> 00:12:02,891
- Either I was working or I was asleep.
- Thanks, Mark.
183
00:12:02,974 --> 00:12:05,602
I did work an enormous amount of hours.
184
00:12:05,685 --> 00:12:07,979
So when I was awake, I was vulnerable.
185
00:12:08,062 --> 00:12:10,315
Yes, it's the saddest thing
186
00:12:10,398 --> 00:12:12,275
It was a game to Darryl.
187
00:12:12,358 --> 00:12:15,153
He'd had no experience at all
in this business.
188
00:12:15,236 --> 00:12:17,572
He was a hairdresser,
and suddenly here he is,
189
00:12:17,655 --> 00:12:20,408
managing the hottest property
in the country.
190
00:12:20,491 --> 00:12:23,077
I would always set the songs he sang.
191
00:12:23,661 --> 00:12:26,206
I would also rehearse the bands.
192
00:12:26,289 --> 00:12:29,834
I knew nothing about music,
but I knew what it sounded like.
193
00:12:31,211 --> 00:12:33,296
Darryl was definitely different.
194
00:12:33,379 --> 00:12:36,216
He was terribly focused,
and if he'd chosen John,
195
00:12:36,299 --> 00:12:38,718
he's gonna put everything into John.
196
00:12:40,011 --> 00:12:42,055
Well, Darryl was in love with him.
197
00:12:42,138 --> 00:12:45,350
He wasn't a nice man.
He was quite evil, actually.
198
00:12:45,433 --> 00:12:47,519
One is the loneliest...
199
00:12:47,602 --> 00:12:50,063
He used to give John uppers and downers.
200
00:12:50,146 --> 00:12:53,816
John'd sleep all day and think,
"Why am I sleeping so long?"
201
00:12:53,900 --> 00:12:55,693
He have any time for girls?
202
00:12:55,777 --> 00:12:57,487
Very little. He's...
203
00:12:57,570 --> 00:12:59,531
Hasn't got a girlfriend.
204
00:12:59,614 --> 00:13:02,909
Is he at the mercy of his fans,
or is he at the mercy of his manager?
205
00:13:02,992 --> 00:13:07,455
Is he just somebody who's pushed
from here to there and turned on?
206
00:13:07,539 --> 00:13:11,543
Well, John and myself,
we are more friends, I'd say,
207
00:13:11,626 --> 00:13:13,711
than manager and artist.
208
00:13:15,171 --> 00:13:17,549
Has yours been maybe a fatherly role?
209
00:13:17,632 --> 00:13:18,716
I don't know.
210
00:13:18,800 --> 00:13:21,845
I think looking after my interests,
I suppose.
211
00:13:36,526 --> 00:13:41,614
I asked my love to take a walk
212
00:13:41,698 --> 00:13:44,617
Everyone wanted to go to London
to be a star.
213
00:13:44,701 --> 00:13:48,705
Olivia Newton-John was taking off.
She was huge at the time.
214
00:13:48,788 --> 00:13:52,250
She was having the kind of career
that John should have been having.
215
00:13:52,333 --> 00:13:55,795
London was full of music
and all these amazing people.
216
00:13:56,379 --> 00:13:57,714
Yeah, incredible time.
217
00:13:58,381 --> 00:14:03,887
Down by the banks of the Ohio
218
00:14:06,097 --> 00:14:10,476
Every band that was worth anything
would work their way to London.
219
00:14:11,352 --> 00:14:13,354
America was still a closed shop,
220
00:14:13,438 --> 00:14:15,773
whereas, I think
because we all came from Britain,
221
00:14:15,857 --> 00:14:19,027
and to try and get success there,
you know,
222
00:14:19,110 --> 00:14:20,820
was sort of like Mecca for us.
223
00:14:25,033 --> 00:14:26,743
Can he be a star overseas?
224
00:14:26,826 --> 00:14:29,579
- Of course. Of course.
- How easily?
225
00:14:30,246 --> 00:14:32,790
Very easily. We've just gotta find
the right channel.
226
00:14:32,874 --> 00:14:34,709
Can you be a star overseas too?
227
00:14:35,502 --> 00:14:38,296
I don't know,
but I'll give it a damn good go.
228
00:14:42,717 --> 00:14:46,471
Because of "Sadie,"
EMI offered me a job at Abbey Road,
229
00:14:46,554 --> 00:14:48,515
and John was still signed to EMI.
230
00:14:48,598 --> 00:14:50,808
So I thought, if I'm gonna be
at EMI in England,
231
00:14:50,892 --> 00:14:55,230
at least I've got a chance of getting them
interested in John for the U.K.
232
00:14:56,606 --> 00:14:58,191
Darryl flew over with John
233
00:14:58,274 --> 00:15:00,568
and was an embarrassment
from the start.
234
00:15:00,652 --> 00:15:03,029
He didn't hold his alcohol too well,
235
00:15:03,112 --> 00:15:06,324
and he was supposed to be coming
and introducing Johnny
236
00:15:06,407 --> 00:15:08,117
to the people at EMI.
237
00:15:09,244 --> 00:15:11,287
I couldn't get them interested in John.
238
00:15:11,371 --> 00:15:15,124
I took him in to EMI,
I took him around to publishers,
239
00:15:15,208 --> 00:15:18,962
but EMI said, "We've got Cliff Richard.
We don't need this guy."
240
00:15:19,045 --> 00:15:23,007
Congratulations and jubilations
241
00:15:23,091 --> 00:15:26,302
I want the world to know
I'm happy as can be
242
00:15:26,386 --> 00:15:30,014
So John just got on the plane
and went back to Melbourne,
243
00:15:30,098 --> 00:15:31,891
which was a heartbreak for me.
244
00:15:54,747 --> 00:15:57,166
Everything was changing in Australia.
245
00:15:58,543 --> 00:16:00,086
We were at war in Vietnam.
246
00:16:00,170 --> 00:16:02,255
It's because I love you
247
00:16:02,338 --> 00:16:05,258
Not because we're far apart
248
00:16:06,426 --> 00:16:09,012
It's because I miss you
249
00:16:09,804 --> 00:16:12,765
Thoughts of you come back to me
250
00:16:13,725 --> 00:16:16,561
At home, the music world
was just going crazy
251
00:16:16,644 --> 00:16:18,521
with events like Sunbury.
252
00:16:18,605 --> 00:16:22,483
Do what you wanna do
Be what you wanna be, yeah
253
00:16:28,156 --> 00:16:32,202
Do what you wanna do
Be what you wanna be, yeah
254
00:16:40,710 --> 00:16:42,253
Once we walked together...
255
00:16:42,337 --> 00:16:46,132
The whole manufactured pop stars
became a thing of the past,
256
00:16:46,216 --> 00:16:48,426
and it wasn't about one person anymore.
257
00:16:48,510 --> 00:16:49,802
It became bands.
258
00:16:52,263 --> 00:16:56,434
Do what you wanna do
Be what you wanna be, yeah
259
00:16:56,518 --> 00:16:59,145
I was in The Masters Apprentices,
and we were always dubbed
260
00:16:59,229 --> 00:17:01,272
as the "bad boys of rock."
261
00:17:01,356 --> 00:17:03,358
And John was the pop star.
262
00:17:03,441 --> 00:17:05,902
We were chalk and cheese
in that respect,
263
00:17:05,984 --> 00:17:08,738
but that didn't stop us
becoming great mates.
264
00:17:08,820 --> 00:17:11,074
My sister was four years younger,
265
00:17:11,157 --> 00:17:15,036
and she had every John Farnham poster
in her bedroom.
266
00:17:15,118 --> 00:17:19,581
I was next door with every
Masters Apprentices poster on my walls,
267
00:17:19,666 --> 00:17:23,043
and the two collided
somewhere in the hallway.
268
00:17:25,922 --> 00:17:29,175
We used to go out on the weekends
shooting bunny rabbits together.
269
00:17:29,259 --> 00:17:32,178
Go out to Wangaratta
and sleep in the Masters van.
270
00:17:32,262 --> 00:17:34,389
We did silly things together.
271
00:17:35,557 --> 00:17:37,934
John and Glenn became friends
272
00:17:38,017 --> 00:17:42,856
through their mutual experiences
in the industry at that particular time.
273
00:17:43,523 --> 00:17:47,986
Yes, Glenn was very rock 'n' roll,
but he was very sweet at heart.
274
00:17:48,069 --> 00:17:50,697
And I think John was really sweet,
275
00:17:50,780 --> 00:17:54,117
but perhaps there was rock 'n' roll
in there that wanted to come out.
276
00:17:54,200 --> 00:17:58,204
And they just found a beautiful plateau
where they both...
277
00:17:58,288 --> 00:18:03,001
Not sought solace in each other
but definitely companionship.
278
00:18:05,587 --> 00:18:08,590
We actually shared the same manager,
Darryl Sambell.
279
00:18:09,549 --> 00:18:11,467
We were flatting together in St. Kilda
280
00:18:11,551 --> 00:18:15,388
in what Darryl liked to say always
that we were staying at his penthouse.
281
00:18:16,681 --> 00:18:19,350
It was just the top floor
of a block of flats.
282
00:18:20,518 --> 00:18:24,022
The penthouse was full Darryl's friends.
283
00:18:26,774 --> 00:18:28,902
And here's this two little blond boys.
284
00:18:34,657 --> 00:18:36,993
My life changed dramatically one night
285
00:18:37,076 --> 00:18:40,538
after a Festival Hall show
with The Masters Apprentices.
286
00:18:40,622 --> 00:18:43,333
The show was sold out,
we were the headline attraction.
287
00:18:43,416 --> 00:18:47,212
There was chaos that night
and I remember being pulled off the stage.
288
00:18:47,295 --> 00:18:50,089
My velvet suit was ripped to shreds.
289
00:18:50,173 --> 00:18:53,843
My guitar did a lap around Festival Hall
before it came back to me.
290
00:18:54,594 --> 00:18:57,722
All I can remember was
the promoter running around, going:
291
00:18:57,805 --> 00:18:59,849
"We had a bigger crowd
than the Beatles."
292
00:19:00,808 --> 00:19:03,478
I'm sitting here.
"A bigger crowd than the Beatles."
293
00:19:04,896 --> 00:19:07,524
That was the night
the penny dropped for me.
294
00:19:07,607 --> 00:19:09,567
We only got paid $200.
295
00:19:09,651 --> 00:19:13,530
So by the time the four people divided
into 200, it cost me that night,
296
00:19:13,613 --> 00:19:16,741
because my suit that I had to replace
cost me $70.
297
00:19:16,824 --> 00:19:19,494
I started to think,
"Something's wrong with this management,
298
00:19:19,577 --> 00:19:21,329
this doesn't add up."
299
00:19:21,412 --> 00:19:24,707
So that day, I decided to move on
from Darryl Sambell.
300
00:19:24,791 --> 00:19:27,168
I took over management
of The Masters Apprentices
301
00:19:27,961 --> 00:19:30,088
and changed the way we did business.
302
00:19:31,923 --> 00:19:34,175
Good afternoon.
We are the Little River Band.
303
00:19:34,259 --> 00:19:37,262
Glenn went from playing bass
to full-time music management.
304
00:19:37,345 --> 00:19:41,182
He put a couple of very fine singers,
songwriters together,
305
00:19:41,266 --> 00:19:43,601
who became the Little River Band.
306
00:19:43,685 --> 00:19:46,020
Boy, did they absolutely take off.
307
00:19:46,104 --> 00:19:48,273
Why are you in so much hurry?
308
00:19:48,356 --> 00:19:50,567
Is it really worth the worry?
309
00:19:50,650 --> 00:19:54,362
Look around, then slow down
310
00:19:55,071 --> 00:19:57,073
What's it like inside the bubble?
311
00:19:57,156 --> 00:19:59,367
Does your head ever give you trouble?
312
00:19:59,450 --> 00:20:01,452
It's no sin
313
00:20:01,536 --> 00:20:03,288
Trade it in
314
00:20:03,371 --> 00:20:07,625
Hang on, help is on its way
315
00:20:07,709 --> 00:20:10,879
I'll be there as fast as I can
316
00:20:12,797 --> 00:20:14,465
My God, how good are they?
317
00:20:15,049 --> 00:20:17,343
There wasn't a note out of place.
318
00:20:17,427 --> 00:20:20,638
There wasn't a voice
that wasn't perfectly in tune.
319
00:20:20,722 --> 00:20:23,266
Everything was so perfectly scripted.
320
00:20:25,101 --> 00:20:29,647
We looked at LRB as being like
they're gonna take over from the Eagles.
321
00:20:29,731 --> 00:20:33,067
Don't you forget who'll take care of you
322
00:20:33,151 --> 00:20:37,864
They were having the overseas success
that people like us only dream of.
323
00:20:41,910 --> 00:20:45,872
In Australia, there are rumors
of enormous multimillion-dollar deals
324
00:20:45,955 --> 00:20:48,374
between yourselves and Capitol Records.
325
00:20:50,210 --> 00:20:51,628
I'm afraid they're not rumors.
326
00:20:52,420 --> 00:20:56,508
It is a substantial deal that we've done
with Capitol Records here in America.
327
00:20:56,591 --> 00:20:58,092
Hang on
328
00:21:09,521 --> 00:21:14,150
By the mid-'70s, Johnny's star was fading
and the hits were drying up.
329
00:21:18,363 --> 00:21:19,948
Slate 11, take 1.
330
00:21:21,032 --> 00:21:22,450
Do you ever get depressed at all?
331
00:21:22,534 --> 00:21:24,786
Yeah, a lot.
I don't like the word "depressed."
332
00:21:25,495 --> 00:21:28,081
I'm funny with words, I think, but I...
333
00:21:29,874 --> 00:21:32,377
I get thinking about...
334
00:21:35,588 --> 00:21:37,674
where I'd like to go,
what would I like to do,
335
00:21:37,757 --> 00:21:39,050
and I don't really...
336
00:21:39,884 --> 00:21:42,637
get anywhere with what I'm thinking about.
337
00:21:43,471 --> 00:21:45,181
And it's a really funny way.
338
00:21:52,313 --> 00:21:55,859
Darryl was grabbing at anything,
and he even put Johnny in a musical.
339
00:21:57,151 --> 00:21:59,487
It's where he met his strongest ally.
340
00:22:01,239 --> 00:22:04,909
He was very funny
and very happy to be around.
341
00:22:04,993 --> 00:22:09,205
He was very easy to get along with,
very cute, very cute.
342
00:22:15,795 --> 00:22:20,425
Jill at that time was probably
the best modern dancer of her era.
343
00:22:22,552 --> 00:22:24,596
She was absolutely fantastic,
344
00:22:24,679 --> 00:22:28,224
and it didn't take long
for John to notice her in the chorus.
345
00:22:28,766 --> 00:22:33,271
I think once his heart was set
and his eyes were on her, that was it.
346
00:22:33,354 --> 00:22:34,397
It was a done deal.
347
00:22:34,480 --> 00:22:38,526
Where she comes, from nobody knows
348
00:22:39,110 --> 00:22:41,821
Now that you ask me...
349
00:22:41,905 --> 00:22:46,367
Perhaps Darryl felt he was losing John
because John fell in love.
350
00:22:46,451 --> 00:22:49,037
The way she smiles at him
351
00:22:49,120 --> 00:22:50,997
His heart just swells...
352
00:22:51,080 --> 00:22:52,582
Darryl wanted Jill gone,
353
00:22:52,665 --> 00:22:56,211
and he did everything he could
to try and destroy that relationship,
354
00:22:56,294 --> 00:22:58,296
which only made it stronger.
355
00:23:01,966 --> 00:23:04,135
Ah, baby, it's magic
356
00:23:05,220 --> 00:23:08,640
Look in her eyes
They're a little bit hazy
357
00:23:08,723 --> 00:23:12,602
Paradise coming to a sweet little lady
358
00:23:12,685 --> 00:23:14,437
Don't you know it's magic?
359
00:23:14,521 --> 00:23:16,147
Baby
360
00:23:16,231 --> 00:23:18,733
Oh, baby, it's magic
361
00:23:19,400 --> 00:23:23,321
Magic carpet ride for a woman in love
362
00:23:23,404 --> 00:23:25,615
Don't you know it's magic?
363
00:23:25,698 --> 00:23:29,577
After a nine-year partnership,
Johnny sacked Darryl.
364
00:23:30,411 --> 00:23:32,747
A few months later, EMI dropped Johnny.
365
00:23:32,830 --> 00:23:39,254
Magic carpet ride for you and me
366
00:23:39,337 --> 00:23:42,632
It's a tough business
because you can become very disposable.
367
00:23:45,468 --> 00:23:49,097
There was a period in the '70s
where I don't know where he went.
368
00:23:49,180 --> 00:23:52,350
This spectacular voice
was missing in action.
369
00:23:52,433 --> 00:23:56,521
'Cause I'm never gonna stop the rain...
370
00:23:56,604 --> 00:24:00,358
We lost track of John.
He may have floundered as well.
371
00:24:01,901 --> 00:24:03,736
I got back to Australia,
on the Gold Coast,
372
00:24:03,820 --> 00:24:07,156
John's on at Twin Town,
so I went down to see him perform.
373
00:24:07,240 --> 00:24:08,491
Thank you, everybody.
374
00:24:09,075 --> 00:24:11,703
Do you like the old songs?
Do you like old songs?
375
00:24:12,662 --> 00:24:14,122
Can I have a C, please, fellas?
376
00:24:14,205 --> 00:24:15,206
C
377
00:24:15,290 --> 00:24:17,041
I think... Yup. It goes...
378
00:24:21,045 --> 00:24:23,548
He had a band that could not play.
379
00:24:23,631 --> 00:24:25,758
And at one point,
halfway through one of the songs,
380
00:24:25,842 --> 00:24:28,595
he puts his hand up
and says, "I can't go on."
381
00:24:28,678 --> 00:24:30,847
Then he said to the band,
"Okay, guys, it's here.
382
00:24:30,930 --> 00:24:34,434
It's one, two, three, four."
383
00:24:34,517 --> 00:24:35,935
He had to count the band in.
384
00:24:37,812 --> 00:24:40,356
I'm sitting there,
going, "This is the worst--
385
00:24:40,440 --> 00:24:45,528
How can this be John Farnham,
the best singer I'd ever heard,
386
00:24:45,612 --> 00:24:47,238
and he's got a band that can't play?"
387
00:24:50,241 --> 00:24:52,619
Some nights there was only 15 people.
388
00:24:52,702 --> 00:24:55,121
We were on the bones of our ass.
389
00:24:56,372 --> 00:24:59,375
I got his black tie,
threw it in the slops bin.
390
00:24:59,459 --> 00:25:04,005
I said, "Mate, you singing with a band
that couldn't even play in time.
391
00:25:04,964 --> 00:25:06,341
How bad is that?"
392
00:25:10,887 --> 00:25:12,305
Good night. God bless you.
393
00:25:15,725 --> 00:25:17,310
Look around you...
394
00:25:17,393 --> 00:25:20,188
The fateful night was
when John came to Vegas.
395
00:25:20,271 --> 00:25:23,066
Glenn invited John and Jill to come
and see Little River Band
396
00:25:23,149 --> 00:25:24,359
at the height of their fame.
397
00:25:24,442 --> 00:25:27,487
Take time to make time
Make time to be there...
398
00:25:27,570 --> 00:25:29,656
John couldn't believe
that this little Aussie band
399
00:25:29,739 --> 00:25:31,866
playing to a sold-out house
and people going crazy.
400
00:25:31,950 --> 00:25:33,660
Look around...
401
00:25:33,743 --> 00:25:35,161
And it blew me away.
402
00:25:35,245 --> 00:25:37,580
Afterwards, we had beers together
and he said:
403
00:25:37,664 --> 00:25:40,500
"What are you doing?"
I said, "I'm not doing terribly much."
404
00:25:40,583 --> 00:25:43,878
Feel for the winter
But don't have a cold heart...
405
00:25:43,962 --> 00:25:45,755
He was financially in trouble.
406
00:25:45,839 --> 00:25:47,757
Invested in a restaurant which went bad.
407
00:25:47,841 --> 00:25:49,926
And I love you best
408
00:25:51,719 --> 00:25:53,930
You're not like the rest
409
00:25:54,013 --> 00:25:55,974
He was pretty much broke.
410
00:25:56,057 --> 00:25:58,726
You're there when I need you
411
00:25:58,810 --> 00:26:01,646
I said, "Listen, mate,
why don't I start to manage you?"
412
00:26:01,729 --> 00:26:05,108
I'm gonna need you
413
00:26:06,401 --> 00:26:07,777
When John signed with Glenn,
414
00:26:07,861 --> 00:26:11,489
I think he finally found somebody
that totally believed in him
415
00:26:11,573 --> 00:26:13,283
and had a vision for him.
416
00:26:13,366 --> 00:26:16,035
John was the creative.
He wasn't the businessman.
417
00:26:16,119 --> 00:26:20,039
He needed the support
so that he could do what he did best.
418
00:26:20,123 --> 00:26:23,293
I basically suggested,
"Mate, you're not Johnny anymore.
419
00:26:23,376 --> 00:26:26,921
Johnny Farnham's synonymous
with 'Sadie, The Cleaning Lady.'
420
00:26:27,005 --> 00:26:28,715
You're John. John Farnham."
421
00:26:28,798 --> 00:26:32,093
Once he changed to John,
it said, "I'm serious.
422
00:26:32,177 --> 00:26:35,054
I'm a grown-up artist,
and this is where I'm going to go."
423
00:26:36,556 --> 00:26:38,516
I was a bit frustrated there for a while.
424
00:26:38,600 --> 00:26:40,727
I wasn't being stimulated
by what I was doing.
425
00:26:40,810 --> 00:26:42,604
I don't think
the people I was working to
426
00:26:42,687 --> 00:26:44,856
were being stimulated by what I was doing.
427
00:26:44,939 --> 00:26:48,818
I decided to stick me neck out
and go in a different direction.
428
00:26:49,736 --> 00:26:52,780
His version of "Help" came
from singing it at home,
429
00:26:52,864 --> 00:26:54,532
playing the piano himself.
430
00:26:54,616 --> 00:27:00,914
When I was young
So much younger than today
431
00:27:01,998 --> 00:27:05,084
"Help" was when he finally realized,
"Oh, I can do this."
432
00:27:05,168 --> 00:27:07,086
That was when the penny dropped.
433
00:27:07,170 --> 00:27:12,342
He did it in a way that really served
his gift and his range.
434
00:27:12,967 --> 00:27:15,553
Help me if you can
435
00:27:15,637 --> 00:27:18,056
I'm feeling down
436
00:27:20,475 --> 00:27:26,940
And I do appreciate you being 'round
437
00:27:27,023 --> 00:27:29,859
This was him doing something
that was John Farnham,
438
00:27:29,943 --> 00:27:31,069
his own arrangement.
439
00:27:31,152 --> 00:27:33,446
Heart on his sleeve, "This is me."
440
00:27:34,239 --> 00:27:38,826
And now my life has changed
In oh so many ways
441
00:27:38,910 --> 00:27:40,912
The emotion that came through,
442
00:27:40,995 --> 00:27:45,583
that's when I started to think,
"Oh, my gosh, Johnny Farnham can sing."
443
00:27:45,667 --> 00:27:48,127
Help me if you can
444
00:27:48,211 --> 00:27:50,839
I'm feeling down
445
00:27:52,924 --> 00:27:57,220
And I do appreciate you
446
00:27:57,303 --> 00:28:01,015
When John did it,
it became a power ballad anthem.
447
00:28:01,099 --> 00:28:03,935
It's a vocal master class. Just that song.
448
00:28:04,018 --> 00:28:10,567
Please, please help me
449
00:28:10,650 --> 00:28:13,361
I wouldn't call it desperation
behind the song,
450
00:28:13,444 --> 00:28:15,530
but there was definitely--
451
00:28:15,613 --> 00:28:19,534
This was John's almost audition
to the world again.
452
00:28:24,038 --> 00:28:25,540
How can I reach you...
453
00:28:25,623 --> 00:28:27,166
John's an incredible musician.
454
00:28:27,250 --> 00:28:28,626
With so many words in the way...
455
00:28:28,710 --> 00:28:32,130
The thing that surprised me was,
he can just sing anything.
456
00:28:32,213 --> 00:28:34,883
And there's something I've just got to say
457
00:28:34,966 --> 00:28:36,384
I set up a meeting.
458
00:28:36,467 --> 00:28:38,678
I said, "I would like to produce."
459
00:28:38,761 --> 00:28:40,221
You know that I want you
460
00:28:40,305 --> 00:28:43,892
I believe Glenn approached Graeham
to produce John,
461
00:28:43,975 --> 00:28:45,560
to give him a fresh start.
462
00:28:45,643 --> 00:28:47,812
New songs, new album.
463
00:28:47,896 --> 00:28:50,190
"Let's get John's voice back out there."
464
00:28:50,273 --> 00:28:53,693
Let's make it last
465
00:28:55,195 --> 00:28:58,114
Graeham Goble was a founding member
of Little River Band
466
00:28:58,198 --> 00:29:00,700
and the writer of some
of the most extraordinary--
467
00:29:00,783 --> 00:29:01,910
Most of their hits.
468
00:29:01,993 --> 00:29:04,537
Friday night, it was late
I was walking you home
469
00:29:04,621 --> 00:29:08,583
We got down to the gate
I was dreaming of the night
470
00:29:08,666 --> 00:29:11,002
In Little River Band,
we had other writers.
471
00:29:11,085 --> 00:29:12,670
Would it turn out right?
472
00:29:12,754 --> 00:29:14,547
You might get three songs a year.
473
00:29:16,382 --> 00:29:19,844
I thought this is a great opportunity
for John and myself.
474
00:29:19,928 --> 00:29:22,764
I want to build my world around you
475
00:29:22,847 --> 00:29:25,058
Glenn knew how tricky Graeham was.
476
00:29:25,892 --> 00:29:30,021
But he also knew
how obsessed he was with John's voice
477
00:29:30,104 --> 00:29:33,024
and how he also had fantastic songs.
478
00:29:33,107 --> 00:29:36,694
So it was just the great voice,
the great songs. "Let's do it."
479
00:29:36,778 --> 00:29:39,155
John had a kit bag full of cassettes.
480
00:29:39,239 --> 00:29:42,659
He said, "These are songs that people
have written for me or given to me."
481
00:29:42,742 --> 00:29:44,619
There would've been 100 songs.
482
00:29:44,702 --> 00:29:47,789
I was honest
and I said, "I don't really hear anything
483
00:29:47,872 --> 00:29:49,958
other than an arrangement of 'Help.'"
484
00:29:50,041 --> 00:29:53,962
And "Jilly's Song" that he'd half-written
about his wife Jilly.
485
00:29:54,045 --> 00:29:58,258
He said, "Do you have any songs?"
I said, "Of course. Lots of songs."
486
00:29:58,341 --> 00:30:01,135
Graeham is a total control freak.
487
00:30:02,178 --> 00:30:05,932
Graeham would have known
what songs he wanted John to sing
488
00:30:06,015 --> 00:30:09,060
before they even purported
to have an album.
489
00:30:11,771 --> 00:30:15,316
I think the Uncovered album was some
of the best singing that he's ever done.
490
00:30:17,026 --> 00:30:20,613
Uncovered could have been
John's signature album.
491
00:30:20,697 --> 00:30:22,657
However, Graeham was the producer,
492
00:30:22,740 --> 00:30:25,702
and once again,
John was reined in very much.
493
00:30:25,785 --> 00:30:29,914
I ended up writing eight of the ten songs,
as well as producing it.
494
00:30:30,498 --> 00:30:32,643
A lot of people might not appreciate
the gamble you took
495
00:30:32,667 --> 00:30:34,127
when you decided to change image,
496
00:30:34,210 --> 00:30:37,255
to go to a more sophisticated rock style.
497
00:30:37,338 --> 00:30:39,924
It's not just saying,
"Let's do new songs."
498
00:30:40,008 --> 00:30:42,927
- Almost a lifestyle change.
- Yeah. Total change.
499
00:30:43,011 --> 00:30:45,054
I don't sing "Sadie"
or "Raindrops" anymore.
500
00:30:45,138 --> 00:30:47,390
I wanna move forward.
Took a long time to decide that.
501
00:30:47,473 --> 00:30:50,310
"You're John, best singer in the country,
502
00:30:50,393 --> 00:30:52,645
I'll get you out and be doing
what you should be doing."
503
00:30:52,729 --> 00:30:55,315
Too much too soon
504
00:30:55,398 --> 00:30:57,692
I put together
the best band in the country.
505
00:30:57,775 --> 00:31:00,945
People like Tommy Emmanuel.
I mean, it was a hot band.
506
00:31:01,029 --> 00:31:02,280
John was loving it.
507
00:31:02,363 --> 00:31:05,033
When we started rehearsing,
we fine-tuned it.
508
00:31:05,116 --> 00:31:09,204
The sound was really great,
he had a great team around him.
509
00:31:09,287 --> 00:31:11,456
Then we took that band out on the road.
510
00:31:11,539 --> 00:31:12,999
I don't really want you to leave
511
00:31:13,082 --> 00:31:16,085
I remember the opening night.
It was the night I met Glenn.
512
00:31:16,169 --> 00:31:19,506
He had John performing
with his hot new band,
513
00:31:19,589 --> 00:31:22,926
and they were singing the songs
from the Uncovered album,
514
00:31:23,009 --> 00:31:25,929
which for the first time
did not include "Sadie."
515
00:31:28,014 --> 00:31:32,477
The Australian music scene in the '80s
was absolutely exploding
516
00:31:32,560 --> 00:31:34,938
with all this new and edgy sound.
517
00:31:36,773 --> 00:31:41,819
Everybody would just go to the pub
just to rock out with these great bands.
518
00:31:41,903 --> 00:31:44,989
Midnight Oil. Cold Chisel with Jimmy.
519
00:31:45,365 --> 00:31:49,077
All last night we were learning
520
00:31:49,160 --> 00:31:52,622
When you're in the thick of a pub
and knee-deep in beer,
521
00:31:52,705 --> 00:31:55,416
and there's people grabbing your arse,
it's tribal.
522
00:31:56,084 --> 00:31:57,752
It's not the place for the faint-hearted.
523
00:31:57,836 --> 00:32:00,171
Somewhere bridges were burning
524
00:32:00,255 --> 00:32:04,592
If you're too nice, too polished,
or you miss that primal connection,
525
00:32:04,676 --> 00:32:06,302
it doesn't matter how good you are.
526
00:32:08,847 --> 00:32:11,182
John's natural environment is not a pub.
527
00:32:12,934 --> 00:32:15,061
You can put a pair of leather pants
on that man,
528
00:32:15,144 --> 00:32:17,647
but it does not make him a Jimmy Barnes.
529
00:32:19,941 --> 00:32:21,276
He was not that.
530
00:32:21,359 --> 00:32:25,697
And it was a whole scene.
Johnny did not fit into that at all.
531
00:32:25,780 --> 00:32:28,950
I remember coming off the stage
and we're in the dressing room,
532
00:32:29,033 --> 00:32:31,411
and he punched the locker door.
533
00:32:31,494 --> 00:32:33,955
And it was metal and he smashed it in.
534
00:32:34,038 --> 00:32:36,082
And I said to him, "Hey, singer.
535
00:32:36,165 --> 00:32:38,793
Your turn's coming. Don't worry.
536
00:32:38,877 --> 00:32:40,378
Your turn is coming."
537
00:32:40,461 --> 00:32:42,922
Happy anniversary, baby
538
00:32:43,006 --> 00:32:45,300
Got you on my mind
539
00:32:45,383 --> 00:32:48,511
LRB to the public and LRB in private.
540
00:32:48,595 --> 00:32:50,263
I don't know how Glenn did it.
541
00:32:50,346 --> 00:32:54,184
I don't know how he managed
these very strong personalities.
542
00:32:54,267 --> 00:32:55,727
I see it in your eyes
543
00:32:55,810 --> 00:32:58,521
Managing Little River Band was
like managing World War II.
544
00:32:59,898 --> 00:33:03,151
It was a firecracker,
always ready to go off.
545
00:33:04,611 --> 00:33:05,612
Skid marks.
546
00:33:05,695 --> 00:33:07,780
We had played with both Fleetwood Mac
and the Eagles,
547
00:33:07,864 --> 00:33:11,659
and to be frank, we thought
we were every bit as good as them.
548
00:33:11,743 --> 00:33:14,787
Graeham sacrificed Shorrock to get John.
549
00:33:15,788 --> 00:33:18,917
It got to the point with Glenn
where it had broken down,
550
00:33:19,000 --> 00:33:21,211
and I'd sort of had enough of him.
551
00:33:22,378 --> 00:33:26,174
I think Glenn had enough of us as well.
It was a two-way street.
552
00:33:26,257 --> 00:33:29,969
I didn't make a decision to leave.
It was made for me.
553
00:33:30,053 --> 00:33:31,471
Glenn was asked to leave.
554
00:33:31,554 --> 00:33:35,892
They're both amazing vocalists,
but Glenn would interpret my songs
555
00:33:35,975 --> 00:33:38,353
and John would sing what I had written.
556
00:33:38,436 --> 00:33:42,565
That was the big difference
and the big appeal for me as a songwriter.
557
00:33:42,649 --> 00:33:47,987
There's a lesson here to learn
When your baby ups and leaves you
558
00:33:48,071 --> 00:33:51,199
Glenn and I were just married
at that very point.
559
00:33:51,282 --> 00:33:54,035
First of all,
Glenn Shorrock and John Farnham
560
00:33:54,118 --> 00:33:56,496
were both best men at our wedding,
561
00:33:56,579 --> 00:33:58,039
so we loved them both.
562
00:33:58,748 --> 00:34:00,917
John was the only call
that we wanted to make.
563
00:34:01,000 --> 00:34:03,169
Happy anniversary
564
00:34:05,755 --> 00:34:09,175
John said to me, "What do you think?"
I said, "What are you gonna lose?"
565
00:34:11,093 --> 00:34:14,389
I thought that move of John
as a front man to LRB
566
00:34:14,472 --> 00:34:17,600
was a really important transition
to mainstream pop.
567
00:34:18,267 --> 00:34:20,352
It would be just perfect for him.
568
00:34:21,271 --> 00:34:24,023
Suddenly people went,
"Oh, I can see John in a band.
569
00:34:24,107 --> 00:34:27,861
I can see John doing Apollo Stadium,"
or whatever the theaters are.
570
00:34:28,695 --> 00:34:29,946
When I was asked to join,
571
00:34:30,028 --> 00:34:32,407
I said "Look, if you want me
to sing like Glenn Shorrock,
572
00:34:32,490 --> 00:34:34,950
we've got a problem because I can't.
573
00:34:35,034 --> 00:34:36,828
I can only sing how I sing."
574
00:34:38,830 --> 00:34:39,831
Well...
575
00:34:42,082 --> 00:34:45,669
This is all-- It was all very exciting
for us all in here.
576
00:34:45,753 --> 00:34:47,213
How did it affect the band?
577
00:34:47,921 --> 00:34:49,883
Going with a new lead singer,
578
00:34:49,966 --> 00:34:53,845
and especially someone of John's stature
because he's such an individualist?
579
00:34:53,928 --> 00:34:57,348
The nervous part for us, Don,
is that we don't know yet.
580
00:34:57,432 --> 00:35:01,519
This is officially our first engagement
since John has joined the band.
581
00:35:01,603 --> 00:35:03,438
We've basically been in the studio.
582
00:35:03,521 --> 00:35:07,442
Time will tell. We're all confident.
We feel that it's going to work.
583
00:35:07,525 --> 00:35:09,045
John has to sing old material as well.
584
00:35:09,110 --> 00:35:11,070
That's what Little River Band
is famous for.
585
00:35:11,154 --> 00:35:12,989
It's not John Farnham
and Little River Band?
586
00:35:13,072 --> 00:35:14,115
It's Little River Band.
587
00:35:14,199 --> 00:35:18,578
I remember John being so excited
about touring with Little River Band.
588
00:35:18,661 --> 00:35:22,999
I know the appeal for John was
to finally be not a pub singer,
589
00:35:23,082 --> 00:35:25,543
not a cabaret singer,
590
00:35:25,627 --> 00:35:28,087
he was finally where he should be.
591
00:35:28,171 --> 00:35:31,382
On a huge stage, with a huge crew,
592
00:35:31,466 --> 00:35:32,967
fabulous lighting,
593
00:35:33,051 --> 00:35:37,555
full production,
in front of tens of thousands of people.
594
00:35:37,639 --> 00:35:38,806
Fantastic!
595
00:35:39,766 --> 00:35:41,059
Thank you very much.
596
00:35:42,519 --> 00:35:47,315
If there's one thing in my life
That's missing
597
00:35:47,398 --> 00:35:50,652
It's the time that I spend alone
598
00:35:51,778 --> 00:35:58,034
Sailing on the cool and bright clear water
599
00:35:59,744 --> 00:36:01,788
There's lots of those friendly people...
600
00:36:01,871 --> 00:36:04,582
John and I being the newcomers
to the Little River Band,
601
00:36:04,666 --> 00:36:10,839
I think both of us were keen to imprint
our personality in the band.
602
00:36:10,922 --> 00:36:12,507
Oh, yeah. Come on!
603
00:36:12,590 --> 00:36:14,217
- He's a front man.
- Come on!
604
00:36:14,300 --> 00:36:18,930
John's much more adventurous on-stage
than all those guys.
605
00:36:20,557 --> 00:36:22,100
He immediately comes forward
606
00:36:22,183 --> 00:36:24,394
and is singing to people
and engaging the crowd.
607
00:36:24,477 --> 00:36:26,271
He's the one in the spotlight.
608
00:36:26,354 --> 00:36:28,189
Just say that you love me...
609
00:36:29,274 --> 00:36:33,570
The spotlight would always be on John,
and we felt like, "Why are we even here?"
610
00:36:33,653 --> 00:36:36,906
Because there was no attention to us.
611
00:36:37,782 --> 00:36:40,869
And we felt we were a backing band
to a solo artist.
612
00:36:42,537 --> 00:36:45,957
At one stage, Graeham had
the crew gaffer-tape his mic stand
613
00:36:46,040 --> 00:36:48,126
and lead to the stage.
614
00:36:48,209 --> 00:36:50,712
He fucking ripped
that thing off the floor.
615
00:36:50,795 --> 00:36:53,965
He went on, "You fucking tied me
to the fucking stage."
616
00:36:56,634 --> 00:36:58,928
I don't remember completely.
617
00:36:59,012 --> 00:37:00,930
Sounds like something I'd do
back in the day.
618
00:37:02,724 --> 00:37:04,517
I wouldn't do that today.
619
00:37:10,315 --> 00:37:11,858
I think he assumed
620
00:37:11,941 --> 00:37:15,987
he would be going in there
with a little bit of input
621
00:37:16,070 --> 00:37:18,406
into what he would be singing.
622
00:37:20,200 --> 00:37:21,576
But that was not to be the case.
623
00:37:22,452 --> 00:37:28,333
He was singing somebody else's catalog
on somebody else, "Graeham's," stage.
624
00:37:29,500 --> 00:37:32,879
All I was was the singer singing the hits
that were already there.
625
00:37:33,421 --> 00:37:35,340
I was never really in the band.
626
00:37:35,423 --> 00:37:38,551
I think he probably felt trapped in LRB
after a while.
627
00:37:38,635 --> 00:37:40,720
He wasn't in control
of what he was singing.
628
00:37:40,803 --> 00:37:43,014
It was like "Sadie" all over again.
629
00:37:43,097 --> 00:37:44,766
I found it a real challenge.
630
00:37:45,725 --> 00:37:48,978
Once again,
John found himself being controlled.
631
00:37:49,687 --> 00:37:51,898
I'm not gonna take my shirt off. Nah.
632
00:37:53,608 --> 00:37:55,985
- I don't wanna ruin my cashmere, mate.
- Take 6.
633
00:37:56,069 --> 00:37:57,612
When you make your move...
634
00:37:57,695 --> 00:38:00,031
I remember
when John wrote "Playing to Win"
635
00:38:00,114 --> 00:38:01,741
and how proud he was of that song.
636
00:38:01,824 --> 00:38:03,284
You can be too late
637
00:38:03,368 --> 00:38:05,370
That was his coming-of-age song.
638
00:38:06,120 --> 00:38:08,039
"Playing to Win."
639
00:38:08,122 --> 00:38:09,791
Definitely my motto, for sure.
640
00:38:09,874 --> 00:38:12,544
Song I wrote while with Little River Band.
"Playing to Win."
641
00:38:12,627 --> 00:38:17,715
"Playing to Win," John wrote that,
and that was a message to LRB.
642
00:38:17,799 --> 00:38:21,094
The night at the Universal Amphitheatre
was very important.
643
00:38:21,177 --> 00:38:23,888
Everybody was in the audience
to see Little River Band.
644
00:38:23,972 --> 00:38:25,723
You can be too late
645
00:38:27,308 --> 00:38:29,727
This time I'm playing to win
646
00:38:29,811 --> 00:38:30,812
It was star-studded.
647
00:38:30,895 --> 00:38:34,691
A lot of famous people
in the audience. Frank Sinatra...
648
00:38:34,774 --> 00:38:39,112
And Glenn was absolutely
watching the band implode.
649
00:38:39,195 --> 00:38:41,698
Playing to win this time
650
00:38:42,407 --> 00:38:44,284
I was running like a headless chook,
651
00:38:44,367 --> 00:38:46,953
trying to pacify everybody,
"Just keep it together," you know?
652
00:38:47,787 --> 00:38:49,330
If you take too long...
653
00:38:49,414 --> 00:38:52,834
So I got Glenn's drink
and crushed a Valium into it.
654
00:38:52,917 --> 00:38:54,919
This time I'm playing to win
655
00:38:55,003 --> 00:38:56,921
I think it was two Valium.
656
00:38:57,005 --> 00:38:59,549
I shouldn't have put the second Valium in
657
00:38:59,632 --> 00:39:04,345
because as everybody is tearing
each other's hair apart,
658
00:39:04,429 --> 00:39:07,807
we walked into the promoter's room
and Glenn's asleep on the couch.
659
00:39:07,891 --> 00:39:11,060
I didn't see that was not what I needed
660
00:39:11,144 --> 00:39:13,313
Oh, I was a fool
661
00:39:13,938 --> 00:39:17,192
That was the end. That night, John came up
to Graeham and Beeb, and said:
662
00:39:17,275 --> 00:39:21,112
"You're stopping me.
I want you guys to get out of my way."
663
00:39:22,238 --> 00:39:25,575
I was the one in the spotlight,
and it put a lot of pressure on me.
664
00:39:25,658 --> 00:39:27,887
I thought, if I'm gonna put myself
under this kind of pressure,
665
00:39:27,911 --> 00:39:31,414
then I'll do it for all of the reasons,
and stand or fall on my decisions.
666
00:39:32,916 --> 00:39:35,460
He played to all those fantastic numbers,
667
00:39:35,543 --> 00:39:38,338
and you'd think
he'd be earning a lot of money.
668
00:39:38,421 --> 00:39:40,632
The debt that LRB had
669
00:39:40,715 --> 00:39:43,885
against previous albums
that were not successful
670
00:39:43,968 --> 00:39:46,930
were put across to John's earnings.
671
00:39:47,805 --> 00:39:49,724
John, by the time he did leave,
672
00:39:49,807 --> 00:39:52,685
LRB actually had substantial debt.
673
00:39:56,481 --> 00:40:02,487
'Twas grace that taught
674
00:40:02,570 --> 00:40:07,784
My heart to fear
675
00:40:08,952 --> 00:40:12,080
And grace
676
00:40:12,163 --> 00:40:19,170
My fears relieved...
677
00:40:19,254 --> 00:40:22,090
That was very difficult. I had to sell
my house, my cars and stuff.
678
00:40:22,173 --> 00:40:23,842
My mother-in-law was sitting there,
679
00:40:23,925 --> 00:40:25,969
and she said,
"Let's take Robert to McDonald's."
680
00:40:26,052 --> 00:40:27,846
I actually couldn't take them.
681
00:40:27,929 --> 00:40:30,890
I turned to my wife. "I can't. We can't."
We didn't have the money.
682
00:40:30,974 --> 00:40:37,230
Through many dangers
683
00:40:37,313 --> 00:40:41,317
Toils and snares
684
00:40:42,193 --> 00:40:44,696
John left LRB in debt but a total man.
685
00:40:44,779 --> 00:40:51,786
I have already come
686
00:40:52,829 --> 00:40:56,958
'Twas grace that led...
687
00:40:57,041 --> 00:41:00,003
I tried to get him a record deal
and couldn't.
688
00:41:00,086 --> 00:41:03,047
The problem was, this was the curse
of "Sadie, The Cleaning Lady,"
689
00:41:03,131 --> 00:41:07,218
because every record company is going,
"I won't sign Johnny Farnham."
690
00:41:07,302 --> 00:41:09,220
I mean, everybody passed.
691
00:41:09,304 --> 00:41:13,975
Will lead me home
692
00:41:15,059 --> 00:41:18,938
Amazing Grace...
693
00:41:19,022 --> 00:41:21,024
Well, he nailed everything he sang.
694
00:41:21,107 --> 00:41:23,484
How sweet the sound
695
00:41:23,568 --> 00:41:26,779
For him to sing "Amazing Grace,"
how he carried it,
696
00:41:26,863 --> 00:41:31,743
his participation in it,
was really so truthful and so clear.
697
00:41:31,826 --> 00:41:36,748
Wretch like me
698
00:41:37,457 --> 00:41:42,921
I once was lost...
699
00:41:43,004 --> 00:41:44,464
I made him a promise.
700
00:41:44,547 --> 00:41:49,677
"I promise you a chance to do the album
that defines what John Farnham is."
701
00:41:51,346 --> 00:41:53,932
It would've been very easy for John
to pull the covers up
702
00:41:54,015 --> 00:41:56,351
and just feel crushed.
703
00:41:58,102 --> 00:42:02,232
But between Glenn and Jill,
and with John's voice,
704
00:42:02,315 --> 00:42:05,068
they came together and formulated a plan.
705
00:42:05,860 --> 00:42:11,074
I see, yes, I see
706
00:42:11,157 --> 00:42:18,164
Yes, I see
707
00:42:20,708 --> 00:42:23,461
Good evening, here is the news.
708
00:42:26,548 --> 00:42:28,132
There was a few questions from Gaynor
709
00:42:28,216 --> 00:42:31,845
when I said we've had to take a mortgage
on the house to borrow the money.
710
00:42:31,928 --> 00:42:36,182
'Cause I needed cash, I mean,
we needed to pay the studio,
711
00:42:36,266 --> 00:42:37,559
to pay the musicians.
712
00:42:37,642 --> 00:42:41,062
We didn't have a mortgage in those days.
They were the good days.
713
00:42:41,145 --> 00:42:44,440
God, now we re-mortgage
the mortgages of the mortgage.
714
00:42:44,524 --> 00:42:48,361
I was not consulted, but, gosh,
I would've put two houses on John
715
00:42:48,444 --> 00:42:50,363
at that particular point in time.
716
00:42:50,446 --> 00:42:52,115
In hindsight. Probably.
717
00:42:53,783 --> 00:42:58,162
I desperately tried to get
all the superstar producers to come out.
718
00:42:58,246 --> 00:42:59,747
Quincy Jones, right?
719
00:42:59,831 --> 00:43:02,542
Glenn was trying to get Quincy
to do the next Farnham album,
720
00:43:02,625 --> 00:43:04,502
and he couldn't get it.
721
00:43:04,586 --> 00:43:07,964
Ross was a music producer
who doubled as a stage manager
722
00:43:08,047 --> 00:43:10,967
on tour in America back in the LRB days.
723
00:43:11,050 --> 00:43:12,677
Ross said, "Pick me."
724
00:43:12,760 --> 00:43:16,514
And for some reason, Glenn did.
725
00:43:16,598 --> 00:43:17,932
John liked Ross,
726
00:43:18,016 --> 00:43:21,019
'cause Ross was pretty quiet
and easygoing.
727
00:43:21,853 --> 00:43:24,022
I think John felt comfortable with Ross.
728
00:43:24,105 --> 00:43:27,609
I set him up, he was renting a house
in Manningham Road.
729
00:43:27,692 --> 00:43:29,152
Soul-destroying.
730
00:43:29,235 --> 00:43:30,945
But he had a garage.
731
00:43:31,029 --> 00:43:33,907
So the old garage band came to be.
732
00:43:33,990 --> 00:43:35,116
Jill was upstairs.
733
00:43:35,700 --> 00:43:37,035
I didn't hear a thing.
734
00:43:37,118 --> 00:43:39,370
I would take them down biscuits
every now and again.
735
00:43:39,454 --> 00:43:42,957
John said, "We should get Hirschy up,
let's get this going."
736
00:43:43,917 --> 00:43:45,543
So I rang Hirschy and said:
737
00:43:45,627 --> 00:43:48,546
"Interested in coming up and working
with John and I to do a record?"
738
00:43:48,630 --> 00:43:50,006
He said, "Yeah."
739
00:43:50,089 --> 00:43:51,841
I'd just invested a lot of money
740
00:43:51,925 --> 00:43:55,386
in a very expensive piece of equipment
called a Fairlight,
741
00:43:55,470 --> 00:43:59,307
which costs $35,000 in 1984.
742
00:44:00,308 --> 00:44:02,060
Which I think is insane.
743
00:44:02,143 --> 00:44:05,104
I can't believe I spent all that
on one piece of equipment.
744
00:44:05,188 --> 00:44:08,441
So I got the Kombi,
I filled it up with all my gear.
745
00:44:08,525 --> 00:44:12,028
I had the Fairlight, I had a DX7,
746
00:44:12,111 --> 00:44:14,906
I had a Prophet-5 synthesizer,
747
00:44:14,989 --> 00:44:16,783
a QX1 sequencer
748
00:44:16,866 --> 00:44:21,704
hooked up to a bank of eight DX7s,
which were in modules.
749
00:44:21,788 --> 00:44:24,082
John had a eight-track recorder.
750
00:44:24,165 --> 00:44:27,877
We could record his voice
onto analog tape.
751
00:44:27,961 --> 00:44:30,129
And then we combined that with Ross.
752
00:44:30,213 --> 00:44:32,590
He had this new drum machine,
a sampling drum machine,
753
00:44:32,674 --> 00:44:36,010
so that was our orchestra, if you like,
in John's garage.
754
00:44:36,594 --> 00:44:38,721
That was our palette for Whispering Jack.
755
00:44:39,347 --> 00:44:42,058
The digital world was only just starting
when we were doing this.
756
00:44:42,141 --> 00:44:44,811
And sampling. This was really early.
757
00:44:44,894 --> 00:44:48,565
So I think the sampler we had,
the drum machine,
758
00:44:48,648 --> 00:44:50,650
was one of the first ones in the country.
759
00:44:50,733 --> 00:44:54,153
And what you find with John,
he loves trying things out.
760
00:44:54,237 --> 00:44:56,573
He's up for anything as he said.
"Yep, I'm up for that."
761
00:44:59,701 --> 00:45:02,120
We were all on this funny,
little boat together,
762
00:45:02,203 --> 00:45:04,455
three wacky, different personalities.
763
00:45:07,041 --> 00:45:10,753
John and I were, I guess,
the primary creative forces.
764
00:45:10,837 --> 00:45:14,174
And Ross was there to observe,
and to guide,
765
00:45:14,257 --> 00:45:16,217
and to help choose the best moments.
766
00:45:16,301 --> 00:45:18,303
It was a good team, I think.
767
00:45:18,386 --> 00:45:22,932
This album was really important for him
'cause there was so much riding on it.
768
00:45:23,850 --> 00:45:25,518
So much riding on it.
769
00:45:27,020 --> 00:45:29,272
Looking for the songs is the basic start,
770
00:45:29,355 --> 00:45:32,442
and I must have listened
to 2000 songs, easy.
771
00:45:32,525 --> 00:45:34,360
Demo tapes, I listened to everything.
772
00:45:34,444 --> 00:45:36,529
And I had to listen to the songs
in their entirety
773
00:45:36,613 --> 00:45:38,865
because being a budding songwriter myself,
774
00:45:38,948 --> 00:45:41,326
I understand how much work
these people put into it,
775
00:45:41,409 --> 00:45:44,329
so I had to do at least that,
give them that courtesy.
776
00:45:44,412 --> 00:45:47,207
I was ringing publishers
and saying, "Send songs, send songs."
777
00:45:47,290 --> 00:45:49,209
And a lot a people couldn't be bothered.
778
00:45:49,292 --> 00:45:53,296
"John? What are you...? John Farnham?
Not really, no. Johnny? No."
779
00:45:55,507 --> 00:45:58,593
Despite all the pressure,
he was, for the first time,
780
00:45:58,676 --> 00:46:00,678
in control of his career.
781
00:46:00,762 --> 00:46:02,847
And really, he couldn't be happier.
782
00:46:03,848 --> 00:46:05,558
John is very fussy.
783
00:46:05,642 --> 00:46:08,061
He rejected some big songs.
784
00:46:08,144 --> 00:46:11,731
The one I remember is,
we got a demo of "We Built This City."
785
00:46:11,814 --> 00:46:12,690
On rock 'n' roll.
786
00:46:12,774 --> 00:46:14,359
We built this city
787
00:46:15,902 --> 00:46:20,490
We built this city on rock 'n' roll
788
00:46:20,573 --> 00:46:22,450
Ross and I looked at each other
and thought:
789
00:46:22,534 --> 00:46:24,702
"Wow, that's such a pop anthem."
790
00:46:24,786 --> 00:46:28,748
And John said, "Nah. I don't like it.
It's too twee. It's like..."
791
00:46:28,831 --> 00:46:30,416
We built this city
792
00:46:30,500 --> 00:46:32,502
He started mocking it, so... Next.
793
00:46:36,798 --> 00:46:41,052
We put a lot of effort into the sounds
and the arrangements of the songs.
794
00:46:41,135 --> 00:46:42,720
It was a very important album for me.
795
00:46:42,804 --> 00:46:44,931
I wanted to walk away from it and say:
796
00:46:45,014 --> 00:46:47,308
"This is the best album I have ever made."
797
00:46:47,392 --> 00:46:52,021
You have no cause to doubt what you see
798
00:46:52,105 --> 00:46:56,401
Close your eyes and set your feelings free
799
00:46:58,987 --> 00:47:01,573
Set the wheels in motion
800
00:47:03,241 --> 00:47:05,285
And watch them turning round
801
00:47:06,953 --> 00:47:10,123
I want to sail across the ocean
802
00:47:10,206 --> 00:47:13,084
I've grown weary of this town
803
00:47:13,167 --> 00:47:15,962
I think they'd listened
to absolutely every song,
804
00:47:16,045 --> 00:47:18,965
every demo that had been sent,
and there were deadlines,
805
00:47:19,048 --> 00:47:20,800
we had to put this album out.
806
00:47:21,551 --> 00:47:23,761
A little closer to you
807
00:47:23,845 --> 00:47:28,099
We had eight songs that were really good,
and we needed one more song.
808
00:47:28,183 --> 00:47:31,519
I'll never forget the morning
when we pulled out a cassette,
809
00:47:31,603 --> 00:47:34,105
put it on and it was "You're the Voice."
810
00:47:36,357 --> 00:47:38,985
And by this songwriter of Manfred Mann.
811
00:47:39,068 --> 00:47:42,697
He'd done this and I thought,
"Oh, yeah. Well, he's a good songwriter."
812
00:47:42,780 --> 00:47:44,824
A nuclear war cannot be won.
813
00:47:44,908 --> 00:47:47,327
You can't talk to the Soviet Union
the way you can speak
814
00:47:47,410 --> 00:47:49,287
to other governments and states.
815
00:47:49,370 --> 00:47:54,375
It was at a time when the fear
of nuclear weapons was at its height.
816
00:47:54,459 --> 00:47:58,463
I was with some friends,
and we were gonna go to the CND march,
817
00:47:58,546 --> 00:48:01,466
which started at 6:00 in the morning and--
818
00:48:01,549 --> 00:48:02,759
Yeah, we overslept.
819
00:48:06,471 --> 00:48:09,557
I think there was 150,000 people
or something.
820
00:48:10,558 --> 00:48:13,603
I was pretty upset with myself
for not being there
821
00:48:13,686 --> 00:48:16,898
and it just gave me the idea for a song.
822
00:48:16,981 --> 00:48:21,903
I had a session booked in with two other
writers that I'd worked with a lot before,
823
00:48:21,986 --> 00:48:24,197
Andy Qunta and Maggie Ryder.
824
00:48:25,532 --> 00:48:29,369
Now, within an hour or something,
we had what we liked as a verse.
825
00:48:32,163 --> 00:48:34,958
I came up with that as an idea
and she went:
826
00:48:38,795 --> 00:48:39,796
And I sang:
827
00:48:42,340 --> 00:48:43,758
And we went, "Fantastic."
828
00:48:44,509 --> 00:48:47,679
Keith Reid, who was the great lyricist
for Procul Harum,
829
00:48:48,221 --> 00:48:51,057
I went around to his place the next day
and within about four hours,
830
00:48:51,140 --> 00:48:54,060
we had written the lyric
that is what it is today.
831
00:48:55,770 --> 00:48:58,940
Doris Tyler worked for Glenn
as a publisher.
832
00:48:59,732 --> 00:49:00,859
She gave it to me.
833
00:49:00,942 --> 00:49:03,194
I got in the car
to drive out to John's place,
834
00:49:03,278 --> 00:49:06,614
and I went, "Holy shit, this is good."
835
00:49:06,698 --> 00:49:08,491
Get to John's place, I said, "Play this."
836
00:49:09,909 --> 00:49:12,787
We listened to it and we all looked
at each other and thought, "Wow."
837
00:49:12,871 --> 00:49:14,956
And he went, "That's fucking great."
838
00:49:15,039 --> 00:49:16,958
And "You're the Voice" came in
about two weeks
839
00:49:17,041 --> 00:49:19,085
before we finished recording the album.
840
00:49:19,169 --> 00:49:22,213
And I just arced up.
I said, "That's mine. I want that song."
841
00:49:23,298 --> 00:49:26,050
We gotta have the songs now.
This is a killer.
842
00:49:26,134 --> 00:49:29,012
Well, I got a call
from my publishing company.
843
00:49:29,095 --> 00:49:32,807
They said, "John Farnham has
recorded 'You're the Voice.'
844
00:49:32,891 --> 00:49:34,809
Is it okay to give him permission?"
845
00:49:34,893 --> 00:49:38,438
And I said, "No. No."
846
00:49:38,521 --> 00:49:40,356
The only thing I knew about John Farnham
847
00:49:40,440 --> 00:49:42,483
was a song called
"Sadie, The Cleaning Lady."
848
00:49:42,567 --> 00:49:47,113
Oh, Sadie, the cleaning lady
849
00:49:47,197 --> 00:49:50,825
We couldn't take no.
We went ahead and did it anyway.
850
00:49:50,909 --> 00:49:52,243
And they recorded it.
851
00:49:52,327 --> 00:49:56,539
They weren't supposed to,
without getting permission, but they did.
852
00:49:56,623 --> 00:50:00,210
We decided to go for the machine gun,
sort of hand-clap effect
853
00:50:00,293 --> 00:50:05,715
as a sort of militaristic
but also celebratory tribalism.
854
00:50:05,798 --> 00:50:08,551
I don't know what we were doing,
but it just-- That--
855
00:50:08,635 --> 00:50:12,263
All that sort of stuff seemed
to feel right for the lyric of the song.
856
00:50:13,598 --> 00:50:17,435
But in the solo section,
my idea was pan pipes.
857
00:50:18,353 --> 00:50:22,732
All these pan pipes of the Andes,
and I simulated them all on synthesizers
858
00:50:22,815 --> 00:50:26,027
and samples of actual pan pipes as well.
859
00:50:26,110 --> 00:50:30,657
But John said, "There's something missing.
It's just not quite lifting enough.
860
00:50:31,533 --> 00:50:33,451
I know, bagpipes."
861
00:50:37,914 --> 00:50:40,708
I went, "Really? Really?" You know?
862
00:50:40,792 --> 00:50:43,086
"Yeah, I can hear them."
I said, "Okay, your call."
863
00:50:43,169 --> 00:50:47,257
We contacted one of the best
bagpipe exponents in Melbourne.
864
00:50:47,340 --> 00:50:51,261
He said, "Bagpipes can only play
in one key, B flat."
865
00:50:51,344 --> 00:50:52,971
And I said, "Oh, well, we're in F."
866
00:51:00,019 --> 00:51:05,024
When I had to change the whole arrangement
to go up to that key for the bagpipes,
867
00:51:05,108 --> 00:51:07,443
the amazing thing was
that the song sounded better
868
00:51:07,527 --> 00:51:10,196
even before we put the bagpipes on there.
869
00:51:11,030 --> 00:51:16,119
Sometimes the limitation of an instrument
is the very thing that you need
870
00:51:16,202 --> 00:51:17,620
to make something great.
871
00:51:18,413 --> 00:51:22,083
For me, the lay down misère
of all the songs was "You're the Voice,"
872
00:51:22,166 --> 00:51:26,296
and I said to Glenn I wanted to be
in the studio when they recorded it.
873
00:51:27,714 --> 00:51:30,383
"Okay, we're ready.
We're gonna play the song down."
874
00:51:30,466 --> 00:51:33,261
'Cause they wouldn't let me in
while they're doing the mix.
875
00:51:33,344 --> 00:51:36,306
Gaynor and Glenn came in, they're off
to some restaurant or something.
876
00:51:36,389 --> 00:51:38,141
They had their nice clothes on.
877
00:51:38,224 --> 00:51:39,851
We had a bottle of champagne.
878
00:51:39,934 --> 00:51:42,645
We'll go into the studio,
get ready to hear it.
879
00:51:42,729 --> 00:51:47,692
"Okay, hit me. Play it to me."
And it left me flat.
880
00:51:47,775 --> 00:51:51,321
Glenn and I looked at each other,
and it was like, "That's not--"
881
00:51:52,197 --> 00:51:54,866
It wasn't quite-- And John looked at us--
882
00:51:54,949 --> 00:51:56,309
Said, "You don't like it, do you?"
883
00:51:56,367 --> 00:51:58,536
I said, "It wasn't like the demo."
884
00:51:58,620 --> 00:52:00,830
And he said,
"No, but we've recorded it properly."
885
00:52:00,914 --> 00:52:03,958
I said, "My problem is, I thought
that your vocal on the demo was better
886
00:52:04,042 --> 00:52:05,502
than the vocal you've done on this."
887
00:52:05,585 --> 00:52:07,545
And he was angry.
888
00:52:07,629 --> 00:52:09,172
So he got very angry with me.
889
00:52:09,255 --> 00:52:13,092
He said, "Okay," to Ross Fraser.
"I'm going out and sing it again.
890
00:52:13,176 --> 00:52:15,720
So turn the lights out, turn the cans up."
891
00:52:15,803 --> 00:52:18,723
I hate it when there are people
in the studio when I'm trying to sing
892
00:52:18,806 --> 00:52:19,807
because I get paranoid.
893
00:52:19,891 --> 00:52:22,268
I think they're laughing at me.
They're talking about me.
894
00:52:22,352 --> 00:52:25,438
You're the voice
Try and understand it
895
00:52:25,522 --> 00:52:28,358
Make a noise and make it clear
896
00:52:29,984 --> 00:52:34,072
And he sang
the living hell out of that song.
897
00:52:34,155 --> 00:52:38,451
And the hairs on our arms
and the back of our necks came up,
898
00:52:38,535 --> 00:52:40,537
and it was like, "That's the song."
899
00:52:40,620 --> 00:52:41,788
It was awesome.
900
00:52:44,332 --> 00:52:46,042
And that became the one.
901
00:52:47,752 --> 00:52:53,550
That was the first time
that I'd really put 110% into it.
902
00:52:53,633 --> 00:52:55,927
I was in every beat of every bar.
903
00:52:56,010 --> 00:52:59,764
After all the elation,
knowing that we had a great product,
904
00:52:59,848 --> 00:53:04,853
it was then I think John sort of plummeted
because we were back in the unknown.
905
00:53:04,936 --> 00:53:07,355
Would it be well received? We didn't know.
906
00:53:08,398 --> 00:53:11,192
I went through the floor
after I finished this record.
907
00:53:11,276 --> 00:53:14,487
It mattered to me, I think,
more than anything else.
908
00:53:15,321 --> 00:53:17,574
We had a launch for Whispering Jack,
909
00:53:17,657 --> 00:53:21,160
and it was just to the people
involved in it, just friends.
910
00:53:21,244 --> 00:53:22,745
It wasn't a media event.
911
00:53:23,454 --> 00:53:25,748
John wasn't there. John wasn't coming.
912
00:53:25,832 --> 00:53:27,166
John wouldn't come.
913
00:53:27,250 --> 00:53:29,669
John doesn't like parties and gatherings,
914
00:53:29,752 --> 00:53:32,672
but this was his moment.
This was his celebration.
915
00:53:32,755 --> 00:53:36,134
Glenn spoke to Jill and said,
"You have to bring him here,
916
00:53:36,217 --> 00:53:37,218
he has to be here.
917
00:53:37,302 --> 00:53:38,845
This is a great moment for him."
918
00:53:38,928 --> 00:53:40,763
Jill said he couldn't face it.
919
00:53:40,847 --> 00:53:43,892
She had to drag him out of the home
'cause he was in the fetal position.
920
00:53:43,975 --> 00:53:45,685
She said he was a fucking mess.
921
00:53:45,768 --> 00:53:48,146
So we had a little blue Corolla.
922
00:53:48,229 --> 00:53:52,817
I drove in and John was
in the passenger seat, curled up, crying.
923
00:53:52,901 --> 00:53:53,985
I just said to him:
924
00:53:54,068 --> 00:53:58,156
"Listen, if you don't get out of this car
when we get there and walk in,
925
00:53:58,239 --> 00:53:59,699
it's not gonna happen."
926
00:54:00,909 --> 00:54:04,829
In those days, we didn't know
much what the word depression was,
927
00:54:04,913 --> 00:54:08,958
but I think that John was going
through the stages of that,
928
00:54:09,042 --> 00:54:11,461
with this album,
particularly when he'd finished it.
929
00:54:13,004 --> 00:54:15,924
I knew we'd made something interesting,
and John was--
930
00:54:16,007 --> 00:54:17,634
Voice sounded amazing.
931
00:54:17,717 --> 00:54:20,136
But you never know
whether people are gonna get it or not.
932
00:54:20,220 --> 00:54:22,972
And then I remember Glenn thinking,
"Now, what do I do with it?"
933
00:54:24,349 --> 00:54:26,392
Glenn started going around
the radio stations
934
00:54:26,476 --> 00:54:29,062
and trying to get them to play it,
and no one would play it.
935
00:54:29,145 --> 00:54:31,397
"Nah. Johnny Farnham, nah. Don't want it."
936
00:54:32,106 --> 00:54:33,441
Probably didn't even listen.
937
00:54:33,525 --> 00:54:35,902
I couldn't get the majors
to distribute me.
938
00:54:37,362 --> 00:54:40,823
In the end, decided
that I'm gonna go this alone
939
00:54:40,907 --> 00:54:43,826
and set up my own little record label.
940
00:54:43,910 --> 00:54:45,161
Wheatley Records.
941
00:54:47,664 --> 00:54:49,457
I took the white labels
around to Triple M.
942
00:54:49,541 --> 00:54:52,085
And he's going,
"Glenn, this is fucking Johnny.
943
00:54:52,168 --> 00:54:54,254
As long as my ass is facing the ground,
944
00:54:54,337 --> 00:54:57,048
we're never gonna be playing
Johnny Farnham on Triple M."
945
00:54:57,131 --> 00:55:00,426
Glenn had rung
and said he was popping in
946
00:55:00,510 --> 00:55:03,847
with John's new album,
and he wanted to play it to me.
947
00:55:03,930 --> 00:55:08,101
What I did know is that Glenn had been
to several radio stations
948
00:55:08,184 --> 00:55:09,185
and got knock backs.
949
00:55:09,269 --> 00:55:12,730
So I was a little bit worried
that it was another "Sadie"
950
00:55:12,814 --> 00:55:14,357
or something crappy.
951
00:55:14,858 --> 00:55:18,653
Glenn bounced in,
like he always does, over the desk,
952
00:55:18,736 --> 00:55:20,572
with the album, "Let's put this on."
953
00:55:20,655 --> 00:55:22,740
And he said, "Now, this is the single."
954
00:55:22,824 --> 00:55:25,618
And I heard this intro.
955
00:55:28,580 --> 00:55:32,834
And I thought, "Oh, that's unusual."
And it kept building and building.
956
00:55:37,005 --> 00:55:38,923
And the instruments came in.
957
00:55:48,516 --> 00:55:49,893
And then John came in.
958
00:55:49,976 --> 00:55:51,853
We have
959
00:55:52,854 --> 00:55:57,025
The chance to turn the pages over
960
00:55:57,108 --> 00:56:01,779
And I thought, "Holy moly.
This is exquisite. It's great."
961
00:56:01,863 --> 00:56:03,948
And I didn't wait
till the end of the song...
962
00:56:04,032 --> 00:56:05,366
I'm getting a bit emotional.
963
00:56:05,450 --> 00:56:10,496
I didn't wait, and I waltzed up
the corridor into the on-air studio
964
00:56:10,580 --> 00:56:13,166
and I said to the announcer,
"Please play this song."
965
00:56:13,249 --> 00:56:15,335
He said, "Who is it?"
I said, "It's John Farnham."
966
00:56:15,418 --> 00:56:18,087
And he said, "Oh, what?"
And I said, "Play it."
967
00:56:18,796 --> 00:56:21,549
You're the voice
Try and understand it
968
00:56:21,633 --> 00:56:24,511
Make a noise and make it clear
969
00:56:28,640 --> 00:56:30,934
I said, "Where's John?"
"He's in the boardroom.
970
00:56:31,017 --> 00:56:35,313
Probably curled up in a fetal position
under the boardroom table by now."
971
00:56:35,897 --> 00:56:38,233
John came in
and they just hugged each other.
972
00:56:38,316 --> 00:56:40,902
And Glenn looked over at me
and just said, "Thank you."
973
00:56:40,985 --> 00:56:43,821
I said, "You don't have to thank me.
This is brilliant."
974
00:56:43,905 --> 00:56:48,117
It was just one of those magical moments
in your career, where you--
975
00:56:48,201 --> 00:56:49,702
You just don't forget it.
976
00:56:51,871 --> 00:56:54,624
With the power to be powerful
977
00:56:55,250 --> 00:56:57,085
I was driving around in Sydney,
978
00:56:57,168 --> 00:57:01,214
and it just leapt out of the speaker like,
"Holy hell, who's this? Look out."
979
00:57:01,297 --> 00:57:03,883
I went to pick up a songwriting friend,
980
00:57:03,967 --> 00:57:07,262
and he came out
of the house with tears, and I said:
981
00:57:07,345 --> 00:57:10,890
"Bobby, you all right?"
He said, "I heard the singer's new song."
982
00:57:10,974 --> 00:57:13,476
And he cried, you know. He was so--
983
00:57:13,560 --> 00:57:17,522
He knew, as I did,
we knew it was gonna be a hit.
984
00:57:17,605 --> 00:57:19,065
We knew it. This is it.
985
00:57:19,148 --> 00:57:20,316
He's off.
986
00:57:20,400 --> 00:57:23,278
It sounded to me like,
"Oh, my God, he's found his voice.
987
00:57:23,361 --> 00:57:25,113
This is dangerous. He's gonna be big."
988
00:57:25,196 --> 00:57:28,283
Of course, as soon as I heard it,
I realized it was a great record
989
00:57:28,366 --> 00:57:29,993
and he sang it fantastically well.
990
00:57:30,076 --> 00:57:32,161
Having the bagpipes in it
was very special.
991
00:57:32,245 --> 00:57:34,873
I was like, "Who the hell is this guy?"
992
00:57:34,956 --> 00:57:37,292
It was so powerful.
993
00:57:38,251 --> 00:57:40,044
His voice was incredible.
994
00:57:40,128 --> 00:57:44,799
It's religious without being religious,
and I like that.
995
00:57:44,883 --> 00:57:46,217
It fills in the gap
996
00:57:46,301 --> 00:57:49,220
where religion should be,
if you don't have religion.
997
00:57:49,304 --> 00:57:50,930
First of all, the song is amazing.
998
00:57:51,014 --> 00:57:56,436
But John's performance,
his vocal on that song, is what makes it.
999
00:57:56,519 --> 00:58:00,148
So emotional. I loved it so much.
1000
00:58:00,231 --> 00:58:02,609
John loved the sentiment, he really did.
1001
00:58:02,692 --> 00:58:05,612
All I am is a singer and I can make
the comments that I make
1002
00:58:05,695 --> 00:58:07,488
and hopefully capture
someone's imagination
1003
00:58:07,572 --> 00:58:08,907
and make them think about it.
1004
00:58:08,990 --> 00:58:12,744
It's such an incredible song,
and John's interpretation is incredible.
1005
00:58:13,828 --> 00:58:17,040
We are the voice,
and sometimes I think we all forget that,
1006
00:58:17,123 --> 00:58:20,168
that we do have a say,
if we stand up for what we believe in.
1007
00:58:22,086 --> 00:58:25,215
My whole reason for making records,
for doing the interviews,
1008
00:58:25,298 --> 00:58:29,219
for being involved in this,
is so I can go out and play music live.
1009
00:58:29,302 --> 00:58:30,303
That's it.
1010
00:58:37,060 --> 00:58:41,856
So we had created this amazing album,
now John wanted to take it on the road.
1011
00:58:41,940 --> 00:58:46,110
We talked about it and John decided
we needed some fresh young players
1012
00:58:46,194 --> 00:58:48,112
who could play like no one else.
1013
00:58:48,196 --> 00:58:50,573
Yeah, if you needed 32 bars
of face-melting guitar,
1014
00:58:50,657 --> 00:58:53,952
then you've come to the right place,
that's kind of what I was qualified to do.
1015
00:58:56,162 --> 00:58:58,081
Very raw, high energy.
1016
00:59:00,959 --> 00:59:02,836
Started bashing out demos
for the fun of it.
1017
00:59:02,919 --> 00:59:05,171
Sent out cassettes
to any management companies
1018
00:59:05,255 --> 00:59:06,673
or record companies I could find.
1019
00:59:10,510 --> 00:59:12,738
One of the addresses I found
was the Wheatley Organization.
1020
00:59:12,762 --> 00:59:17,600
Brett was living in Central Victoria.
He sent a cassette in the mail.
1021
00:59:17,684 --> 00:59:19,686
The Wheatley letterhead.
Isn't that fantastic?
1022
00:59:19,769 --> 00:59:22,939
"Dear Brett, just received
your tape and letter. Please phone me."
1023
00:59:23,022 --> 00:59:26,025
Brett Garsed, he just got into the band.
1024
00:59:26,109 --> 00:59:28,486
That's a good letter right there.
That's the one you want.
1025
00:59:29,279 --> 00:59:30,822
From his cassette tape, that was it.
1026
00:59:30,905 --> 00:59:34,450
One of the most astounding guitar players
you could imagine
1027
00:59:34,534 --> 00:59:38,705
and just the style that John wanted,
sophisticated and dexterous,
1028
00:59:38,788 --> 00:59:40,582
but also had heavy power chords.
1029
00:59:40,665 --> 00:59:44,836
There's only one step left to overcome
in your quest for success.
1030
00:59:45,670 --> 00:59:46,671
Pressure.
1031
00:59:49,132 --> 00:59:52,468
They'd given me a tape of four
or five songs off the album.
1032
00:59:52,552 --> 00:59:56,055
I studied them religiously for a week.
1033
00:59:56,139 --> 00:59:58,349
We could have picked
the finest veteran drummers,
1034
00:59:58,433 --> 01:00:00,351
but there was something
about Angus's energy.
1035
01:00:00,435 --> 01:00:01,352
Just turned 20, I think.
1036
01:00:01,436 --> 01:00:05,356
He had this lovely smile,
not only on his face but in his drumming.
1037
01:00:05,440 --> 01:00:09,319
But he could also lay into the drums.
Like the drumming version of John.
1038
01:00:09,402 --> 01:00:11,988
They rang me that night and said,
"Can you start tomorrow?"
1039
01:00:12,071 --> 01:00:13,072
I said, "Yep."
1040
01:00:15,074 --> 01:00:18,953
I have two young guys in the band,
Brett Garsed on guitar, who's red-hot,
1041
01:00:19,037 --> 01:00:20,580
and our drummer, Angus Burchall.
1042
01:00:22,415 --> 01:00:25,001
Wasn't even born when I started,
so there's no preconceptions.
1043
01:00:25,084 --> 01:00:26,085
It's great.
1044
01:00:30,006 --> 01:00:33,426
I really wanna get out there.
I'm hoping that we can do plenty of dates.
1045
01:00:33,510 --> 01:00:38,264
John was ready to go out and sing
his heart out with these fabulous songs.
1046
01:00:40,850 --> 01:00:43,645
We couldn't actually get many gigs.
1047
01:00:46,648 --> 01:00:48,775
I think what did become
a problem was people
1048
01:00:48,858 --> 01:00:50,735
never really saw me as a credible singer.
1049
01:00:50,818 --> 01:00:53,780
'Cause I can feel it
It's rising like a storm
1050
01:00:53,863 --> 01:00:56,241
Being tagged with soft music,
like "Sadie,"
1051
01:00:56,324 --> 01:00:59,202
except it was 19 years ago
and I don't do that in my set anymore.
1052
01:00:59,285 --> 01:01:01,996
Take the pressure down
1053
01:01:02,080 --> 01:01:06,543
Booking agents who had politely
given John some gigs just to be nice.
1054
01:01:06,626 --> 01:01:08,169
The gigs they booked John...
1055
01:01:09,879 --> 01:01:12,298
the shittiest pub gigs.
1056
01:01:13,341 --> 01:01:15,885
Take hold of the wheels
And turn them...
1057
01:01:15,969 --> 01:01:18,489
I remember him saying, "I don't wanna
go back into the Leagues Club."
1058
01:01:18,513 --> 01:01:21,516
"If I have to do that,"
he said, "it's all over."
1059
01:01:25,019 --> 01:01:28,147
We'd get in the car and drive
to Bendigo and Ballarat and do them,
1060
01:01:28,231 --> 01:01:30,650
and then off to Adelaide, all in Taragos.
1061
01:01:31,401 --> 01:01:32,694
At least six nights a week.
1062
01:01:32,777 --> 01:01:37,407
Things have changed
Since we met you...
1063
01:01:37,490 --> 01:01:41,536
The early shows in the pubs were fun
because they were so grungy.
1064
01:01:42,453 --> 01:01:45,957
The audience that walked in the door
were such a mixture
1065
01:01:46,040 --> 01:01:48,251
and to see them so close...
1066
01:01:48,334 --> 01:01:50,295
It's not the same
1067
01:01:50,378 --> 01:01:54,382
...and to feel their energy so close
was really exciting.
1068
01:01:56,050 --> 01:01:59,721
Don't you know
1069
01:01:59,804 --> 01:02:02,307
What it's all about
1070
01:02:02,390 --> 01:02:05,476
It affirmed that we've got
something good going on.
1071
01:02:05,560 --> 01:02:08,646
Going, going, gone
Don't wait too long
1072
01:02:08,730 --> 01:02:10,899
You end up being like a coal miner
in this business,
1073
01:02:10,982 --> 01:02:14,027
particularly at the stage that I'm at,
with this record starting to break
1074
01:02:14,110 --> 01:02:16,863
in different places,
you just have to follow the grain.
1075
01:02:16,946 --> 01:02:18,781
Don't wait too long
1076
01:02:18,865 --> 01:02:22,327
At every stage, we got better,
and he had the ideas about
1077
01:02:22,410 --> 01:02:24,871
how he wanted it to go
once it started moving.
1078
01:02:24,954 --> 01:02:25,955
He knew what he wanted.
1079
01:02:26,039 --> 01:02:27,916
How they run your world
1080
01:02:27,999 --> 01:02:31,085
It was like a domino effect
across the country.
1081
01:02:31,169 --> 01:02:33,963
Everyone went,
"Oh, my God, this is amazing."
1082
01:02:35,173 --> 01:02:36,758
It was great to see.
1083
01:02:36,841 --> 01:02:38,927
I remember my mother yelling out to me:
1084
01:02:39,010 --> 01:02:41,262
"Come on, you're on the telly.
You're on the telly."
1085
01:02:41,346 --> 01:02:42,472
I came running down
1086
01:02:42,555 --> 01:02:45,517
and "You're the Voice" video clip
was on all the morning shows.
1087
01:02:45,600 --> 01:02:48,770
And they just kept choosing this clip
with me in my tank top.
1088
01:02:50,396 --> 01:02:51,606
Oh, man.
1089
01:02:52,607 --> 01:02:55,068
So I thought,
"He's getting it. Getting recognition.
1090
01:02:55,151 --> 01:02:57,946
It's finally happening for him.
It's beautiful. It's gonna work."
1091
01:02:58,029 --> 01:03:00,448
You're just a name
1092
01:03:01,366 --> 01:03:02,700
Just a flag unfurled
1093
01:03:02,784 --> 01:03:05,620
Once the album was heard,
it just resonated.
1094
01:03:05,703 --> 01:03:08,748
What they say
1095
01:03:09,582 --> 01:03:11,918
Is what you do
1096
01:03:13,753 --> 01:03:16,172
And touring became extensive.
1097
01:03:17,090 --> 01:03:20,969
The venues were huge and then
we couldn't get venues big enough.
1098
01:03:23,972 --> 01:03:26,516
Every show, they would get
in a circle with the band,
1099
01:03:26,599 --> 01:03:29,519
backup singers, Farnham, Glenn, Gaynor.
1100
01:03:29,602 --> 01:03:32,814
Like a family moment at Christmas
before you hit the stage,
1101
01:03:32,897 --> 01:03:36,192
and have a little tipple
as they went out on-stage.
1102
01:03:36,276 --> 01:03:39,153
Big family, everyone loved John.
1103
01:03:39,237 --> 01:03:40,905
Going, going, gone
1104
01:03:47,579 --> 01:03:50,373
I remember the day
the album went to number one.
1105
01:03:50,456 --> 01:03:53,793
We were driving to a function,
I looked around and I said:
1106
01:03:53,877 --> 01:03:57,672
"John, do you realize that we have
the number one album in the country?
1107
01:03:57,755 --> 01:03:59,048
Can you believe it?"
1108
01:04:02,260 --> 01:04:03,761
He just exploded.
1109
01:04:05,513 --> 01:04:08,933
He just-- Tears just came out of him.
1110
01:04:11,978 --> 01:04:15,565
I always thought we had something special,
but gee whiz, I mean, to be number one
1111
01:04:15,648 --> 01:04:19,068
for 26 weeks, no one anticipated that.
1112
01:04:20,320 --> 01:04:23,990
It was the most amazing thing
because we'd had so much resistance.
1113
01:04:24,073 --> 01:04:27,535
I wasn't given credibility
or credence at all as a musician
1114
01:04:27,619 --> 01:04:29,370
or particularly a singer.
1115
01:04:30,622 --> 01:04:32,123
He gave me a little cassette,
1116
01:04:32,207 --> 01:04:35,043
a little handwritten note saying,
"Thank you, mate, for this.
1117
01:04:35,126 --> 01:04:38,254
Thank you for giving me the chance.
Love, Johnny."
1118
01:04:38,338 --> 01:04:40,798
It's a very treasured memento.
1119
01:04:40,882 --> 01:04:43,259
It always has been very significant
for Glenn.
1120
01:04:44,302 --> 01:04:47,222
He'd went from being a guy
who was having his--
1121
01:04:47,305 --> 01:04:50,183
Was it an early-midlife-crisis
musical moment?
1122
01:04:50,266 --> 01:04:52,644
Was he trying to be a rock guy?
1123
01:04:52,727 --> 01:04:56,105
Whatever people's perception was,
was blown out of the water
1124
01:04:56,189 --> 01:04:58,942
by the public acceptance,
which none of us expected.
1125
01:05:00,151 --> 01:05:06,032
A whole generation of people discovered
this new act, this new singer,
1126
01:05:06,115 --> 01:05:08,993
these amazing songs,
and this amazing guy,
1127
01:05:09,619 --> 01:05:12,372
and he'd been right
under their noses the whole time.
1128
01:05:12,455 --> 01:05:15,041
I think the bigger the crowd,
the happier he got.
1129
01:05:15,124 --> 01:05:18,878
Singer John Farnham's record-breaking tour
of Australia moves to Sydney tonight
1130
01:05:18,962 --> 01:05:21,881
with five concerts scheduled
for the Entertainment Centre.
1131
01:05:21,965 --> 01:05:23,967
John Farnham's Whispering Jack Tour
1132
01:05:24,050 --> 01:05:26,302
is the biggest ever
by an Australian artist.
1133
01:05:26,386 --> 01:05:28,656
Told we're working to about
a quarter of a million people.
1134
01:05:28,680 --> 01:05:31,391
And I've got all their names,
and I'm gonna write and thank them.
1135
01:05:31,474 --> 01:05:33,643
Number one in West Germany,
number one in Sweden,
1136
01:05:33,726 --> 01:05:35,478
roaring up the French and Italian charts,
1137
01:05:35,562 --> 01:05:38,731
in England he broke into the charts
at number 66 in the top 100,
1138
01:05:38,815 --> 01:05:40,692
and they're really keen for him
in America,
1139
01:05:40,775 --> 01:05:43,736
so congratulations, John,
give him a wish, yeah.
1140
01:05:43,820 --> 01:05:46,865
Number one in Sweden
and Norway and Denmark.
1141
01:05:46,948 --> 01:05:48,491
He was the King of Pop in Sweden.
1142
01:05:51,786 --> 01:05:55,039
And to see those German fans,
that was pretty special.
1143
01:06:07,844 --> 01:06:11,264
The Berlin Wall was still up.
The people, they'd had enough.
1144
01:06:12,140 --> 01:06:14,767
That's why "You're the Voice"
was a success there,
1145
01:06:14,851 --> 01:06:17,187
was because they were ready for change.
1146
01:06:18,021 --> 01:06:19,814
Ready for people's change.
1147
01:06:19,898 --> 01:06:23,276
We have the chance
1148
01:06:23,359 --> 01:06:27,530
To turn the pages over
1149
01:06:29,824 --> 01:06:32,493
We can write what we want to write
1150
01:06:32,577 --> 01:06:39,250
We gotta make ends meet
Before we get much older
1151
01:06:39,834 --> 01:06:41,711
And it was over 100,000 people.
1152
01:06:42,253 --> 01:06:44,881
By the time we hit the stage,
they were going nuts.
1153
01:06:44,964 --> 01:06:47,383
We're all someone's daughter
1154
01:06:48,009 --> 01:06:50,720
We're all someone's son
1155
01:06:51,554 --> 01:06:57,519
How long can we look at each other
1156
01:06:59,229 --> 01:07:02,690
Down the barrel of a gun?
1157
01:07:02,774 --> 01:07:03,983
Sing it!
1158
01:07:04,067 --> 01:07:06,903
You're the voice
Try and understand it
1159
01:07:06,986 --> 01:07:09,447
Make a noise and make it clear
1160
01:07:15,703 --> 01:07:18,248
We're not gonna sit in silence
1161
01:07:18,331 --> 01:07:21,000
We're not gonna live with fear
1162
01:07:26,881 --> 01:07:28,633
We didn't have bagpipe players,
1163
01:07:28,716 --> 01:07:31,219
so one of our roadies who,
at least he was Scottish,
1164
01:07:31,302 --> 01:07:33,304
he held the bagpipes
and walked out there,
1165
01:07:33,388 --> 01:07:34,848
and he nearly collapsed.
1166
01:07:36,474 --> 01:07:39,018
I could see the back of him,
and as he turned around,
1167
01:07:39,102 --> 01:07:40,520
he was white, he was ashen.
1168
01:07:41,187 --> 01:07:43,273
We're all someone's daughter
1169
01:07:44,232 --> 01:07:46,776
We're all someone's son
1170
01:07:47,485 --> 01:07:53,992
How long can we look at each other
1171
01:07:56,035 --> 01:08:00,123
Down the barrel of a gun?
1172
01:08:02,876 --> 01:08:05,587
You're the voice
Try and understand it
1173
01:08:05,670 --> 01:08:08,298
Make a noise and make it clear
1174
01:08:13,887 --> 01:08:16,931
We're not gonna sit in silence
1175
01:08:17,015 --> 01:08:19,391
We're not gonna live with fear
1176
01:08:24,980 --> 01:08:28,150
You're the voice
Try and understand it
1177
01:08:28,234 --> 01:08:29,985
Make a noise and make it...
1178
01:08:30,069 --> 01:08:32,905
It's all right. Take your time.
I got all night.
1179
01:08:35,033 --> 01:08:39,787
John loves his fans, but to actually
have acceptance from his peers
1180
01:08:39,871 --> 01:08:41,413
meant the world to him.
1181
01:08:41,497 --> 01:08:42,957
The winner is--
1182
01:08:43,041 --> 01:08:45,043
Darling, I hope you're gonna buy
a bigger house.
1183
01:08:45,126 --> 01:08:46,753
John Farnham, "You're the Voice."
1184
01:08:48,046 --> 01:08:50,882
Most of all,
would like to thank my manager
1185
01:08:50,965 --> 01:08:53,635
and very close friend, Glenn Wheatley.
1186
01:08:54,636 --> 01:08:57,971
He put his money where my mouth is,
and I thank him for that.
1187
01:08:58,056 --> 01:09:00,141
Thanks, Glenn. Thank you very much.
1188
01:09:00,225 --> 01:09:03,936
We won seven ARIA awards that night.
1189
01:09:04,020 --> 01:09:07,940
Whispering Jack became
the highest-selling album of the year.
1190
01:09:08,024 --> 01:09:13,570
It remains the highest-selling album
by a local artist in Australia.
1191
01:09:15,073 --> 01:09:18,201
We're not gonna live with fear
1192
01:09:33,757 --> 01:09:36,386
Good night, and thank you very much.
Goodbye.
1193
01:09:37,929 --> 01:09:41,181
It's really nice to see someone
like John come back after 20 years
1194
01:09:41,266 --> 01:09:42,867
and make better records than he ever has.
1195
01:09:42,891 --> 01:09:45,686
I think it's tremendous.
An inspiration to everybody.
1196
01:09:51,525 --> 01:09:54,362
Hearing "You're the Voice"
was so motivational.
1197
01:09:54,445 --> 01:09:56,656
I just thought, "God."
1198
01:09:56,739 --> 01:09:59,117
I was working on the roads with council,
1199
01:09:59,200 --> 01:10:02,745
trying to get together songs
to do an album.
1200
01:10:02,829 --> 01:10:07,166
My love of life just gets stronger
1201
01:10:07,250 --> 01:10:10,336
As the days go by
1202
01:10:12,130 --> 01:10:16,593
Not even his success,
but just him doing something that was...
1203
01:10:18,094 --> 01:10:19,345
so, so good.
1204
01:10:20,096 --> 01:10:21,181
That you just--
1205
01:10:21,264 --> 01:10:24,058
You couldn't help
but listen to it and to him...
1206
01:10:24,601 --> 01:10:26,853
and feel affected by it, which I was.
1207
01:10:26,936 --> 01:10:30,148
Some things don't look to me
1208
01:10:30,648 --> 01:10:33,818
Like they used to be, no
1209
01:10:33,902 --> 01:10:36,362
That sort of pushed my career along.
1210
01:10:36,446 --> 01:10:38,781
I get a little closer
1211
01:10:38,865 --> 01:10:40,491
I pulled my finger out.
1212
01:10:40,575 --> 01:10:46,206
John came in and he sang on "As The Days,"
and he sang on four or five other tracks.
1213
01:10:46,289 --> 01:10:49,209
As the days go by
1214
01:10:49,292 --> 01:10:51,836
I get a little closer to
1215
01:10:51,920 --> 01:10:53,546
You need that motivation,
1216
01:10:53,630 --> 01:10:57,967
and he was most definitely
the big part of completing that album.
1217
01:10:58,760 --> 01:11:01,888
As the days go by...
1218
01:11:01,971 --> 01:11:03,640
You know, thank you, John.
1219
01:11:04,599 --> 01:11:09,521
I'm coming back to you
1220
01:11:17,946 --> 01:11:22,325
I still had a real problem with what
I thought was my lack of credibility.
1221
01:11:23,660 --> 01:11:26,829
"Sadie" came out and just took off,
and I left my plumbing job
1222
01:11:26,913 --> 01:11:29,457
two days before it was released,
and it was a hit.
1223
01:11:29,541 --> 01:11:32,460
From the day that we were born
1224
01:11:32,544 --> 01:11:34,546
We've been heading down the tracks
1225
01:11:34,629 --> 01:11:37,674
I felt that I never had to work for it,
and it was given to me for nothing.
1226
01:11:37,757 --> 01:11:40,677
Sometimes it's made for good
1227
01:11:40,760 --> 01:11:43,471
I feel a lot better about it now
because I've worked my ass off.
1228
01:11:45,557 --> 01:11:48,393
And if we look behind us
1229
01:11:49,102 --> 01:11:51,479
There's a wind coming down
1230
01:11:53,940 --> 01:11:59,863
Carrying us forward to a new age
1231
01:11:59,946 --> 01:12:01,990
What about the world?
1232
01:12:02,073 --> 01:12:06,661
What about the world around us?
1233
01:12:06,744 --> 01:12:09,038
What about the world?
1234
01:12:09,122 --> 01:12:13,001
After scrounging around for songs
from unknown writers,
1235
01:12:13,084 --> 01:12:15,920
after Whispering Jack, we were inundated.
1236
01:12:17,797 --> 01:12:19,591
And now that our fathers...
1237
01:12:19,674 --> 01:12:23,052
Everyone was offering us
their latest and their best.
1238
01:12:23,136 --> 01:12:26,139
Unless it resonated with John,
he wouldn't sing it.
1239
01:12:26,222 --> 01:12:31,978
What about the age of reason
1240
01:12:32,061 --> 01:12:34,814
David Hirschfelder on the keys,
folks, please.
1241
01:12:35,315 --> 01:12:37,734
The luck I have is now,
I have a working unit,
1242
01:12:37,817 --> 01:12:40,904
who are all great players
and want the best for the project.
1243
01:12:46,701 --> 01:12:49,704
John's follow-up album,
the Age of Reason,
1244
01:12:49,787 --> 01:12:53,917
was a brilliant record
and debuted at number one in Australia.
1245
01:12:54,709 --> 01:12:57,545
Well, I think it just affirmed
this is not a one-hit wonder,
1246
01:12:57,629 --> 01:12:59,669
that he's made a second album
and it's just as good.
1247
01:13:09,682 --> 01:13:11,851
I remember he told me once,
in his early days,
1248
01:13:11,935 --> 01:13:15,355
whoever was the producer would pick
the songs, pick the keys,
1249
01:13:15,438 --> 01:13:17,774
record them, and then he'd come in
and do the vocals.
1250
01:13:17,857 --> 01:13:21,194
So it's totally, totally different.
1251
01:13:21,277 --> 01:13:23,613
By the third album,
we were writing the songs ourselves.
1252
01:13:23,696 --> 01:13:27,825
I got myself into some trouble tonight
1253
01:13:28,618 --> 01:13:31,746
Guess I'm just feeling blue
1254
01:13:32,830 --> 01:13:34,165
It's been so...
1255
01:13:34,249 --> 01:13:36,042
When I first heard "Burn for You,"
1256
01:13:36,125 --> 01:13:39,045
I thought,
"Oh, my God, he's outdone himself.
1257
01:13:39,128 --> 01:13:41,798
He keeps upping the ante," you know?
1258
01:13:43,341 --> 01:13:45,176
But I burn...
1259
01:13:45,260 --> 01:13:48,555
"Burn for You," what a cracker of a song.
1260
01:13:48,638 --> 01:13:51,850
I know all the backstories
to a lot of these songs.
1261
01:13:53,059 --> 01:13:56,187
Yeah, I think he did get himself
into some trouble one night.
1262
01:13:56,271 --> 01:13:57,981
Not bad trouble but, yes,
1263
01:13:58,064 --> 01:14:02,986
I know "Burn for You" was definitely
one of those "dig your way out of a hole."
1264
01:14:03,069 --> 01:14:06,489
I guess it feels like you're always alone
1265
01:14:06,573 --> 01:14:10,994
I remember when I had to tell him
that I had addiction problems.
1266
01:14:11,077 --> 01:14:15,999
He was shocked and he was hurt
because I hadn't told him before.
1267
01:14:16,583 --> 01:14:20,753
But he was still kind
and loving towards me,
1268
01:14:20,837 --> 01:14:23,131
and said,
"Come on, do something about it."
1269
01:14:23,214 --> 01:14:24,382
You know. And I did.
1270
01:14:24,465 --> 01:14:28,803
I burn for you
1271
01:14:29,637 --> 01:14:33,766
What am I gonna do
1272
01:14:33,850 --> 01:14:37,020
I burn...
1273
01:14:37,103 --> 01:14:39,314
There's a point
where he felt confident enough
1274
01:14:39,397 --> 01:14:44,319
to share his voice in the written form
and he wanted to sing his songs.
1275
01:14:44,402 --> 01:14:46,321
He's written some fine songs.
1276
01:14:47,071 --> 01:14:49,908
Think that was an important transition
for an artist,
1277
01:14:49,991 --> 01:14:53,161
to be able to express
their feelings on their own
1278
01:14:53,244 --> 01:14:55,955
and not relying on other people
to write their music.
1279
01:14:56,039 --> 01:15:03,046
Burn for
1280
01:15:04,088 --> 01:15:10,053
You
1281
01:15:14,516 --> 01:15:17,185
He'd get asked
to sing "Sadie" occasionally,
1282
01:15:17,268 --> 01:15:19,604
- and he refused for years and years.
- No!
1283
01:15:20,438 --> 01:15:21,814
Never!
1284
01:15:21,898 --> 01:15:25,026
And so, eventually,
not only did he sing it live...
1285
01:15:25,109 --> 01:15:26,277
Oh, all right, then.
1286
01:15:28,404 --> 01:15:32,617
...I did an arrangement
for a 96-piece orchestra to accompany it.
1287
01:15:32,700 --> 01:15:34,744
"Here's fucking Sadie,
right in your face."
1288
01:15:34,827 --> 01:15:39,082
Oh, Sadie, the cleaning lady
1289
01:15:39,165 --> 01:15:40,542
And we're all playing ukuleles.
1290
01:15:40,625 --> 01:15:43,253
With the trusty scrubbing brush and pail
1291
01:15:43,336 --> 01:15:45,296
I can't believe I'm doing this.
1292
01:15:45,380 --> 01:15:51,302
Works her fingers to the bone
For the life she had at home
1293
01:15:51,386 --> 01:15:55,098
He sang it confidently and with warmth
and spirit and good heart.
1294
01:15:55,181 --> 01:15:56,349
Come on!
1295
01:15:56,432 --> 01:15:58,059
Oh, Sadie...
1296
01:15:59,060 --> 01:16:02,105
At that moment, I observed
a John Farnham that said:
1297
01:16:02,689 --> 01:16:05,024
"I don't care what people think anymore."
1298
01:16:08,403 --> 01:16:11,656
I never set out to portray
any kind of image, that's just me.
1299
01:16:12,156 --> 01:16:14,450
Other people put names and tags on it.
1300
01:16:14,534 --> 01:16:16,953
Doesn't worry me one way or the other.
1301
01:16:19,330 --> 01:16:22,625
It was a fantastic time
for both Glenn and John.
1302
01:16:24,502 --> 01:16:27,714
Seeing John shine on every level.
1303
01:16:30,550 --> 01:16:34,596
The story of Glenn's belief in John
is pretty legendary.
1304
01:16:34,679 --> 01:16:38,016
It's unlike almost anything
I've ever heard of before.
1305
01:16:38,099 --> 01:16:43,730
I mean, if you really wanna find good,
quality, loyal, compassionate people,
1306
01:16:44,397 --> 01:16:45,940
the entertainment business
1307
01:16:46,024 --> 01:16:50,069
is probably not the first industry
you wanna look for that.
1308
01:16:50,153 --> 01:16:54,282
Which is why they-- The ones
who are really good people stand out.
1309
01:16:54,365 --> 01:16:57,327
They're kind of joined at the hip
in a lot of ways.
1310
01:16:57,410 --> 01:16:59,120
There's not many gigs I can't remember
1311
01:16:59,204 --> 01:17:01,664
not seeing Glenn
on the side of stage, you know?
1312
01:17:02,290 --> 01:17:05,168
We're like brothers.
We're really that close.
1313
01:17:05,251 --> 01:17:07,879
He's godfather of one of my children,
best man at my wedding.
1314
01:17:07,962 --> 01:17:09,255
We've never had a contract.
1315
01:17:09,339 --> 01:17:12,008
That's not something
that we've ever deemed necessary.
1316
01:17:12,091 --> 01:17:13,593
Glenn was there for John,
1317
01:17:13,676 --> 01:17:17,347
but John's been there for Glenn
on more than one occasion.
1318
01:17:19,098 --> 01:17:22,852
He's been there with us
for many ups and downs.
1319
01:17:22,936 --> 01:17:24,812
I was managing John Farnham,
1320
01:17:24,896 --> 01:17:27,065
I got myself into sport management.
1321
01:17:27,148 --> 01:17:30,652
My company, Wheatley Organization,
ended up floating on the stock exchange.
1322
01:17:30,735 --> 01:17:33,863
I'd love you to do me a favor
and be a chalkie, up on the board.
1323
01:17:33,947 --> 01:17:35,240
You know what those guys are?
1324
01:17:35,323 --> 01:17:38,034
I can use chalk,
but I don't know what I have to write.
1325
01:17:38,117 --> 01:17:40,161
- Ever been to the stock exchange?
- No, I haven't.
1326
01:17:40,245 --> 01:17:41,996
- They're worse than rock concerts.
- Yeah?
1327
01:17:42,080 --> 01:17:43,414
- Vicious.
- Okay.
1328
01:17:44,415 --> 01:17:48,461
I was very much at the beginning
of the launch of FM radio in Australia.
1329
01:17:48,545 --> 01:17:53,216
Hubris got in the way with me.
I felt I was, you know, undefeatable.
1330
01:17:56,135 --> 01:17:57,971
Glenn got mixed up in a tax scam.
1331
01:17:58,054 --> 01:18:01,516
Lots of big names were involved,
many for much bigger sums of money.
1332
01:18:01,599 --> 01:18:03,476
Wheatley was the first person
to be convicted
1333
01:18:03,560 --> 01:18:05,395
under the government's Operation Wickenby.
1334
01:18:05,478 --> 01:18:08,273
The Australian Tax Department wanted
to make an example out of him,
1335
01:18:08,356 --> 01:18:09,649
and they certainly did.
1336
01:18:09,732 --> 01:18:12,360
He was sentenced
to a minimum of 15 months jail
1337
01:18:12,443 --> 01:18:14,904
for a $320,000 tax fraud.
1338
01:18:14,988 --> 01:18:18,074
Glenn ended up serving 15 months.
1339
01:18:18,157 --> 01:18:20,952
Ten months in prison,
then five months home detention.
1340
01:18:21,035 --> 01:18:22,829
He did the time and paid it all back.
1341
01:18:22,912 --> 01:18:24,289
He's gonna get back to work
1342
01:18:24,372 --> 01:18:27,458
and he's gonna spend
a lot of time redeeming himself,
1343
01:18:27,542 --> 01:18:28,877
in everybody's eyes.
1344
01:18:28,960 --> 01:18:31,671
I'm gonna help him
as much as I can to do that.
1345
01:18:31,754 --> 01:18:34,924
A lot of our friends didn't know
what to do when Glenn went to prison.
1346
01:18:35,008 --> 01:18:39,345
It was a very hard social situation,
but John always seemed to know what to do.
1347
01:18:40,180 --> 01:18:43,016
A lot of people would have
walked away. Right?
1348
01:18:43,099 --> 01:18:44,684
In this industry, right?
1349
01:18:44,767 --> 01:18:46,978
It would have been
a great excuse to walk away.
1350
01:18:47,061 --> 01:18:48,062
Not Farnham.
1351
01:18:50,523 --> 01:18:51,983
Capital L for loyalty.
1352
01:18:52,066 --> 01:18:55,111
Of course I felt for him. It was hard,
and I wasn't gonna desert him
1353
01:18:55,195 --> 01:18:56,446
under those circumstances,
1354
01:18:56,529 --> 01:18:59,157
and he wouldn't have deserted me
under the same circumstances.
1355
01:18:59,240 --> 01:19:02,577
I love the man. He's my friend.
He's part of my family.
1356
01:19:04,287 --> 01:19:07,081
All he said was,
"I'm just returning the favor.
1357
01:19:09,250 --> 01:19:10,460
You saved my ass.
1358
01:19:11,419 --> 01:19:13,463
Coughed up cash when I needed it.
1359
01:19:14,255 --> 01:19:15,715
You gave me the album.
1360
01:19:16,925 --> 01:19:19,177
Mate, I'm just repaying the favor,
that's all."
1361
01:19:21,304 --> 01:19:24,599
Something that I believe in
very, very strongly is,
1362
01:19:24,682 --> 01:19:26,267
what you give is what you get.
1363
01:19:30,396 --> 01:19:34,150
When the war is over
1364
01:19:35,318 --> 01:19:37,403
Got to get away
1365
01:19:40,114 --> 01:19:41,407
After Glenn got out of prison,
1366
01:19:41,491 --> 01:19:43,493
it all kicked off again,
and we did amazing shows.
1367
01:19:43,576 --> 01:19:49,457
You and I
We used each other's shoulder
1368
01:19:49,541 --> 01:19:55,505
Still so young but somehow so much older
1369
01:19:56,422 --> 01:20:02,679
How can I go home and not get blown away
1370
01:20:09,060 --> 01:20:16,067
Ain't nobody gonna steal this heart away
1371
01:20:18,486 --> 01:20:21,823
First and foremost, I'm a fan,
and I remember I was a bit sort of--
1372
01:20:21,906 --> 01:20:23,533
"Hey, John, would you sing with me?"
1373
01:20:23,616 --> 01:20:26,056
And he said, "Yeah, no worries, mate.
You're a bloody beauty."
1374
01:20:27,745 --> 01:20:30,790
I've been lucky, I've worked with
a lot of fantastically talented people
1375
01:20:30,874 --> 01:20:32,041
over the years.
1376
01:20:33,585 --> 01:20:36,713
When the war is over
1377
01:20:37,714 --> 01:20:40,758
Got to start again
1378
01:20:40,842 --> 01:20:43,636
All those years,
years and years of working, doing gigs.
1379
01:20:45,638 --> 01:20:46,890
Little crappy ones.
1380
01:20:49,350 --> 01:20:51,394
Great big-- Great ones,
you know, all in between.
1381
01:20:57,901 --> 01:21:03,990
You and I
We sent each other stories
1382
01:21:04,073 --> 01:21:09,996
Just a page
I'm lost in all its glories
1383
01:21:10,079 --> 01:21:16,920
How can I go home
And not get blown away
1384
01:21:17,003 --> 01:21:18,213
He's got the spirit.
1385
01:21:19,464 --> 01:21:21,257
He won't surrender.
1386
01:21:21,341 --> 01:21:23,593
The audience has to have
the time of their life.
1387
01:21:24,219 --> 01:21:26,137
Otherwise, you know,
he'll just keep going.
1388
01:21:26,721 --> 01:21:28,515
And not get blown away
1389
01:21:28,598 --> 01:21:31,059
Ain't nobody gonna steal...
1390
01:21:31,142 --> 01:21:33,102
I can't explain
how much I love it, you know?
1391
01:21:33,186 --> 01:21:35,396
I can't explain
how much pleasure I get out of it,
1392
01:21:35,480 --> 01:21:37,607
particularly when it engages people.
1393
01:21:38,233 --> 01:21:41,778
To this day,
I think he fears nobody will come.
1394
01:21:42,987 --> 01:21:47,367
That comes from a time when there was
only a handful of family and friends
1395
01:21:47,450 --> 01:21:49,285
during the '70s.
1396
01:21:49,994 --> 01:21:52,997
And that is the one promise
Glenn has always made to him.
1397
01:21:53,081 --> 01:21:55,375
"Mate, if it's not full,
you're not going on."
1398
01:21:56,000 --> 01:22:00,380
Glenn has been very passionate
about making sure every show is a sellout.
1399
01:22:03,007 --> 01:22:05,802
The last lot of gigs we did
before the pandemic,
1400
01:22:05,885 --> 01:22:07,846
a lot of them were outdoor shows.
1401
01:22:07,929 --> 01:22:10,515
The young kids, he absolutely killed it.
1402
01:22:11,683 --> 01:22:13,184
They just loved him.
1403
01:22:13,268 --> 01:22:15,937
They're going nuts,
and he sang beautifully.
1404
01:22:29,784 --> 01:22:31,411
Brett Garsed on the guitar.
1405
01:22:33,079 --> 01:22:34,080
Yeah!
1406
01:22:38,126 --> 01:22:40,086
When something is wrong
1407
01:22:41,588 --> 01:22:45,425
With my baby
1408
01:22:46,885 --> 01:22:50,930
Olivia adored John,
and John adored Olivia too.
1409
01:22:52,473 --> 01:22:54,934
It was really lovely
to watch them together.
1410
01:22:55,018 --> 01:22:59,898
They were so daggy
and so fun and so utterly adorable.
1411
01:22:59,981 --> 01:23:04,777
We've been through so much together
1412
01:23:04,861 --> 01:23:08,031
He's my favorite singer,
and I've worked with a lot of singers
1413
01:23:08,114 --> 01:23:10,366
and listened to thousands, probably.
1414
01:23:10,450 --> 01:23:13,411
We spoke as one
1415
01:23:13,494 --> 01:23:15,079
He is The Voice, right?
1416
01:23:15,163 --> 01:23:16,998
That's what makes it better
1417
01:23:17,081 --> 01:23:19,083
That was the last time
they performed together.
1418
01:23:20,043 --> 01:23:22,378
I'm getting quite emotional
thinking about it, you know?
1419
01:23:22,462 --> 01:23:26,257
Good evening. Generations of Australians
grew up loving her music
1420
01:23:26,341 --> 01:23:28,510
as she rose to Hollywood stardom.
1421
01:23:28,593 --> 01:23:31,262
Tonight, they're united
with celebrities around the world
1422
01:23:31,346 --> 01:23:33,932
in tribute to Olivia Newton-John.
1423
01:23:34,015 --> 01:23:37,602
Australia's darling of the '70s and '80s
is being remembered
1424
01:23:37,685 --> 01:23:40,730
for her talent
and equally her charity work
1425
01:23:40,813 --> 01:23:43,066
and brave fight against cancer.
1426
01:23:43,149 --> 01:23:49,948
Jill said he just cried uncontrollably,
which I completely understand.
1427
01:23:50,031 --> 01:23:53,117
I think that really,
really kicked Dad in the guts.
1428
01:23:53,743 --> 01:23:55,370
He loved and respected her.
1429
01:23:56,996 --> 01:23:58,665
We all knew it was coming.
1430
01:23:59,207 --> 01:24:02,585
I reached out to her 'cause I thought,
you know, she's a tonic...
1431
01:24:04,087 --> 01:24:05,880
and she was a tonic.
1432
01:24:06,881 --> 01:24:12,345
She knew all the right things to say
and was, you know, very comforting.
1433
01:24:12,428 --> 01:24:15,098
And a week later she was gone.
1434
01:24:15,640 --> 01:24:17,183
I'll treasure that.
1435
01:24:17,267 --> 01:24:21,646
Yeah, she's a warm,
wonderful, beautiful lady.
1436
01:24:27,402 --> 01:24:30,363
I remember when Glenn was
in the ICU with COVID,
1437
01:24:30,446 --> 01:24:33,741
one of the nurses came in and said,
"When we get these people home,
1438
01:24:33,825 --> 01:24:37,662
how are they going
to actually live with COVID
1439
01:24:37,745 --> 01:24:39,956
and the destruction to their bodies?"
1440
01:24:40,039 --> 01:24:43,835
And I remember thinking,
"Why is she telling me this?" You know.
1441
01:24:43,918 --> 01:24:45,587
"I'm just gonna take Glenn home.
1442
01:24:45,670 --> 01:24:51,259
It's Glenn, he's indestructible
and he just keeps going."
1443
01:24:51,342 --> 01:24:55,221
But I think she was telling me
to prepare me.
1444
01:24:55,305 --> 01:24:58,641
It was definitely for a reason.
I just didn't hear it.
1445
01:24:58,725 --> 01:25:02,854
The Australian music industry is
paying tribute to Glenn Wheatley.
1446
01:25:02,937 --> 01:25:05,857
The celebrated promoter
and manager died yesterday
1447
01:25:05,940 --> 01:25:08,026
from complications caused by COVID.
1448
01:25:08,109 --> 01:25:09,152
He was 74.
1449
01:25:09,235 --> 01:25:13,615
The death of Glenn Wheatley has broken
the man known as The Voice.
1450
01:25:13,698 --> 01:25:17,619
Last night, John Farnham had
the dreaded task of informing friends
1451
01:25:17,702 --> 01:25:18,828
their mate had died.
1452
01:25:18,912 --> 01:25:22,415
He didn't really cope for a while,
which is understandable.
1453
01:25:22,498 --> 01:25:23,708
The loss of your best friend
1454
01:25:23,791 --> 01:25:26,586
and someone that's been there
his whole life, basically.
1455
01:25:28,505 --> 01:25:30,173
I'm still feeling the grief.
1456
01:25:30,924 --> 01:25:32,634
We were very, very close.
1457
01:25:32,717 --> 01:25:34,177
Very, very close indeed.
1458
01:25:35,303 --> 01:25:38,431
And I didn't want that to happen.
1459
01:25:44,562 --> 01:25:49,108
Glenn was so responsible for John,
took care of him so well.
1460
01:25:49,192 --> 01:25:51,444
Oh, boy, like brothers, you know?
1461
01:25:52,195 --> 01:25:53,238
Sorry.
1462
01:25:55,448 --> 01:25:58,535
I don't think that'll ever heal properly,
which is sad,
1463
01:25:58,618 --> 01:26:00,703
but that's what love is, really.
1464
01:26:00,787 --> 01:26:04,999
I was on the phone to John to say that
Glenn wasn't gonna be with us much longer,
1465
01:26:05,083 --> 01:26:11,047
so I had the phone up to Glenn's ear,
and one of the last voices he heard
1466
01:26:11,130 --> 01:26:12,590
was John's.
1467
01:26:13,842 --> 01:26:14,926
And I'm very...
1468
01:26:15,635 --> 01:26:17,637
I'm glad about that.
1469
01:26:18,888 --> 01:26:21,850
I've gotta be able to say to him,
"You're a legend.
1470
01:26:22,684 --> 01:26:26,980
You don't like to think of yourself
as a legend, but you are."
1471
01:26:30,817 --> 01:26:33,152
His career's had so many ups and downs,
1472
01:26:33,236 --> 01:26:36,197
and he had to fight
through so much to keep going,
1473
01:26:36,281 --> 01:26:39,200
and then to have success,
great success again--
1474
01:26:39,284 --> 01:26:42,996
Well, that's why
the public love him so much too.
1475
01:26:44,706 --> 01:26:46,207
It is a heroic story.
1476
01:26:50,211 --> 01:26:52,463
Flamingos walk
1477
01:26:52,547 --> 01:26:55,175
And sway in peace
1478
01:26:56,926 --> 01:27:00,430
Seeing this
It makes my troubles cease
1479
01:27:00,513 --> 01:27:02,265
There's definitely some great artists,
1480
01:27:02,348 --> 01:27:05,185
but I think that there's not too many
that's had a career like that.
1481
01:27:05,268 --> 01:27:07,812
Leaving a pink scar
1482
01:27:07,896 --> 01:27:12,317
I have been very privileged
in being afforded a front-row seat
1483
01:27:12,400 --> 01:27:15,486
to not only watching
Glenn and John perform,
1484
01:27:15,570 --> 01:27:17,572
but watching John sing.
1485
01:27:17,655 --> 01:27:22,327
And all I do is look into your eyes
1486
01:27:23,286 --> 01:27:28,791
John invited us in, the band in, crew in,
ultimately all his fans in.
1487
01:27:28,875 --> 01:27:33,046
And I think everyone in his audience felt
they had a front-row seat.
1488
01:27:33,129 --> 01:27:34,839
Paradise
1489
01:27:36,508 --> 01:27:42,639
Just a special touch of paradise
1490
01:27:42,722 --> 01:27:46,434
You hold my hand
That's when we kiss
1491
01:27:46,518 --> 01:27:48,436
Music is so important to us.
1492
01:27:48,520 --> 01:27:51,564
And it doesn't take long, no, no, no
1493
01:27:51,648 --> 01:27:53,983
It can go straight to somebody's heart.
1494
01:27:55,235 --> 01:27:56,361
You feel their voice.
1495
01:27:56,444 --> 01:27:59,155
Of this love that stretches out...
1496
01:27:59,239 --> 01:28:01,324
It can heal you, it can help you...
1497
01:28:02,700 --> 01:28:04,702
and it can reach so many people.
1498
01:28:04,786 --> 01:28:07,038
As we're walking in the sand
1499
01:28:07,121 --> 01:28:10,041
I feel very lucky
to have worked with him so much.
1500
01:28:10,124 --> 01:28:13,002
And all I do is look into your eyes
1501
01:28:13,086 --> 01:28:16,714
The 73-year-old Australian legend is
believed to have only been diagnosed
1502
01:28:16,798 --> 01:28:19,634
as recently as two weeks ago.
The family decided to go...
1503
01:28:19,717 --> 01:28:23,680
It's kind of a sick joke
that The Voice gets mouth cancer.
1504
01:28:23,763 --> 01:28:25,974
It's just brutal.
1505
01:28:26,057 --> 01:28:28,768
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese
himself has been leading
1506
01:28:28,852 --> 01:28:31,646
the outpouring of support,
saying the nation's thoughts
1507
01:28:31,729 --> 01:28:33,690
are with Farnham and his family.
1508
01:28:34,440 --> 01:28:38,069
Lucky for us, John found his voice,
he shared it with us,
1509
01:28:38,152 --> 01:28:41,072
and whether he sings or not,
1510
01:28:41,155 --> 01:28:45,451
that music will be part of people's lives
for-- I wanna say forever.
1511
01:28:45,535 --> 01:28:48,496
When our eyes meet
1512
01:28:49,289 --> 01:28:52,250
I don't know what else he'd wanna do.
I think he's done it.
1513
01:28:53,001 --> 01:28:56,880
He climbed the mountain, that's for sure,
and his flag's still on the top.
1514
01:28:57,881 --> 01:29:01,676
And I walk off shaking
1515
01:29:01,759 --> 01:29:05,972
I don't think he will ever be forgotten,
and I think that there will always be
1516
01:29:06,055 --> 01:29:07,640
an audience for John Farnham.
1517
01:29:09,809 --> 01:29:10,977
Pretty incredible.
1518
01:29:11,060 --> 01:29:13,354
I'm glad to have affected
people's lives with music.
1519
01:29:14,606 --> 01:29:16,482
It's nice that you can do
that sort of thing.
1520
01:29:16,566 --> 01:29:22,655
It affected me greatly, so I would hope
that it affected other people great too.
1521
01:29:22,739 --> 01:29:27,118
And all I do is look into your eyes
1522
01:29:28,494 --> 01:29:32,999
For that special touch of paradise
1523
01:29:33,082 --> 01:29:35,001
Oh, darling
1524
01:29:35,084 --> 01:29:39,881
Just a touch
A touch of paradise
1525
01:29:41,591 --> 01:29:46,137
Just a special touch of paradise
1526
01:29:46,221 --> 01:29:48,097
Show me, show me
1527
01:29:48,181 --> 01:29:52,936
Just a touch
A touch of paradise
1528
01:29:53,019 --> 01:29:54,729
Yeah, yeah, yeah
1529
01:29:54,812 --> 01:29:59,567
Just a special touch of paradise
1530
01:30:00,109 --> 01:30:01,236
Oh, show me
1531
01:30:01,319 --> 01:30:06,824
Just a touch
A touch of paradise
1532
01:30:07,909 --> 01:30:12,372
Just a touch
A touch of paradise
1533
01:30:12,455 --> 01:30:14,624
Yeah, yeah, yeah
1534
01:30:14,707 --> 01:30:18,253
Just a special touch of paradise
1535
01:30:18,336 --> 01:30:21,047
Show me, show me
Show me, show me
1536
01:30:21,130 --> 01:30:26,636
Just a touch
A touch of paradise
1537
01:30:39,858 --> 01:30:41,025
Oh, you're nice. Thank you.
1538
01:30:42,360 --> 01:30:43,820
I like that song, I really do.