His voice may have been silenced, but the songs that made him famous will ring out again this Sunday when an all-star cast of performers unite for a special tribute performance, The Songs of John Farnham: The Celebration Concert.
Rod Laver Arena, the iconic Melbourne stage Farnham once made his own, performing there 94 times to over a million people, will host over 120 musicians for the charity extravaganza, including Tina Arena, Jimmy Barnes, Kate Ceberano, Human Nature, Richard Marx, Jessica Mauboy and Keith Urban, with superstars Celine Dion and Hugh Jackman performing via satellite. Tickets are still available and on sale here.
Billed as a once-in-a-generation concert, the star-studded concert spectacular will also help raise vital funds for Head and Neck Cancer, the scourge illness that struck down Farnham in 2022 and forced him into retirement after a storied 50-year career.
“I’ve loved John’s voice since the day I first heard him on the radio,” old friend Jimmy Barnes told the Weekly. “His tone, his delivery, his feel, have always been excellent. Over the years I listened, he seemed to get better and better with every recording.
“The day I heard ‘You’re the Voice’ coming through the radio I was completely blown away,” Jimmy recalls. “John had well and truly arrived. The singer I had watched grow over the years was now right up there amongst the best singers in the world.
“I was lucky enough to get the chance to work with him when we sang a duet ‘When Something is Wrong with my Baby’ for my album Soul Deep. We have been friends ever since. John is funny and talented. I can’t wait to sing for him in Melbourne.”
Neck and Head Cancer Australia, who provide support to 5600 people diagnosed with the insidious disease each year, will benefit from every ticket sold. “We’re very grateful to John for sharing his story and choosing our charity,” CEO Nadia Rosin told the Weekly. “It’s truly a once-in-a-generation opportunity to raise awareness.”
Head and Neck Cancer includes more than 10 different cancers that can affect a person’s mouth, tongue, throat, salivary glands, skin or voice box. The Human Papillomavirus (HPV) – the same virus that causes cervical cancer – is increasingly a factor. And there has also been an alarming increase in the incidence of tongue cancer in young, healthy, non-smoking women. The cause remains unknown.
“John’s story is typical of so many H&NC patients,” Nadia says. “His wife told him to get the lump in his mouth checked out even though he thought it was just an ulcer. It’s a story we hear often. A neck lump, a hoarse voice, pain the ears, a lesion that doesn’t go away…. they might seem benign symptoms, but if they persist for a few weeks, get it checked by a dentist or doctor and push them to conduct a biopsy.”
This weekend’s concert also lights the fuse for Whispering Jack: The John Farnham Musical, which is being staged by Sydney Theatre Company from November. The show is timed to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the highest-selling Australian album of all time, an opus spearheaded by the iconic anthem ‘You’re the Voice ’, which the Jonas Brothers this month rekindled for over 100,000 NFL fans at the MCG.
“The central story is the creation of Whispering Jack from a garage in Bulleen in the outer suburbs of Melbourne,” explains the show’s director Mitchell Butel. “It’s a real Australian underdog story. John was kind of on the scrap heap. His solo career had stalled, his stint singing for the Little River Band period hadn’t panned out, and a lot of people had given up on him. He was a middle-aged Dad fighting to prove himself.”
F. Scott Fitzgerald famously believed “there are no second acts in American lives.” But John’s second coming as Whispering Jack proved Australians are more forgiving. “In some ways John’s journey is the ultimate Australian story and powerful proof a little bit of luck, and a lot of talent can go a long way,” says singer Michael Paynter, who plays John in the production. “Growing up in Australia, he’s the ultimate singer.”
Whispering Jack produced ‘You’re the Voice’ but also the hits ‘Pressure Down’ and ‘A Touch of Paradise’ (not, alas, ‘We Built This City’, which Farnham rejected only for Starship to make it a mega hit the same year). It was the first Australian record to sell over one million copies and spent 25 weeks at No. 1.
The theatre show is produced by Gaynor Wheatley, whose husband Glen managed John and who famously mortgaged their house to finance his 1986 comeback. “Glenn Wheatley always said he’d put his money where John’s mouth was,” smiles Michael. “So, the story is of a man from humble beginnings who surrounded himself with good, wise people who believed in his talent and were willing to back it.”
Plenty more will share that sentiment by celebrating the songs (and the singer) on Sunday.
The Songs of John Farnham: The Celebration Concert is at Rod Laver Arena on Sunday 20th September from 7pm. Buy tickets here.
Whispering Jack: The John Farnham Musical plays the Roslyn Packer Theatre from Sunday 15 November to Sunday 3 January.
Help Head and Neck Cancer Australia raise $1 million to support people affected by the disease. Donate at lendyourvoice.org.au
