John Farnham: Finding the Voice | |
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Directed by | Poppy Stockell |
Written by | Poppy Stockell |
Produced by | Mikael Borglund Paul Clarke Martin Fabinyi Olivia Hoopmann Elizabeth Daley |
Starring | John Farnham |
Cinematography | Aaron Smith |
Edited by | Scott Gray Steven Robinson |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Sony Pictures Releasing International |
Release date |
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Running time | 96 mins |
Country | Australia |
Language | English |
John Farnham: Finding the Voice is a 2023 Australian documentary film following recording artist John Farnham's career in an authorised biopic. [1] The film's trailer was released on 11 April 2023 whilst the film was released in Australian cinemas on 18 May 2023. [2] It was broadcast on the Seven Network on 24 July 2023. [3]
The film includes commentary from Jimmy Barnes, Daryl Braithwaite, Celine Dion, Tommy Emmanuel, Brett Garsed, Graeham Goble, Bev Harrell, Richard Marx, Olivia Newton-John, Robbie Williams and Glenn Wheatley. [2]
The film is the biggest theatrical Australian music documentary (excl. Imax), exceeding $2.57 million in its second weekend. [4]
The television premiere on 24 July 2023 had 866,000 viewers across the five city metro spread, and was the third most viewed program of the evening. [5]
At the 2023 ARIA Music Awards, the soundtrack won the ARIA Award for Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album. [6]
At the 2024 AACTA Awards, the documentary won the ACCTA Award for Best Documentary. [7]
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 92% based on twelve reviews. Reviewer Jim Schembri notes "A fitting, lovingly made tribute to a singer who evolved into the definitive Australian pop artist...a very good, richly detailed biographical documentary that chronicles Farnham's stellar, decidedly bumpy career." [8]
Sandra Hall from Sydney Morning Herald gave the film 4 out of 5 stars saying "Reality rarely produces biographies that fit neatly into three acts, but John Farnham's life so far is a stirring exception. Success came early to him, followed by a midlife slump and a triumphant comeback. It's a story with everything – laughter, tears, love and rock 'n' roll... [and the documentary] captures it all, with Farnham's large roster of friends taking an obvious delight in reminiscing about times spent with a man they both like and admire." [9]
Peter Gray from The AU Review gave the film 4 out of 5 stars saying "'Finding the Voice' finds the love for its subject and envelops his presence, and in a day and age where talent is fleeting and prominence is temporary, there's a warmth in being reminded of longevity and the facility behind it." [10]
David Michael Brown from Flicks said it "Traces the singer's life and career, his journey to find an artistic voice and become one of Australia's most beloved performers. It's an enthralling new doco that helps us try and understand 'The Voice' calling it "a must-see" for any Farnham fan". [11]
Graeham Goble, who produced Farnham's Uncovered album and recommended that Farnham replace Glenn Shorrock as lead singer of Little River Band, took issue with Wheatley's description in the film that managing Little River Band was like managing a war. Wheatley had been the manager of both Farnham and Little River Band. [12]
John Farnham: Finding the Voice: Music from the Feature Documentary | ||||
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Soundtrack album by John Farnham and various artists | ||||
Released | 19 May 2023 | |||
Label | Wheatley Records, Sony | |||
John Farnham albums chronology | ||||
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A double-disc soundtrack was released on 19 May 2023. It features live tracks from Farnham's career, as well as music that had an impact on his career. Opening and closing compositions were written by music producer/director and former Farnham band keyboardist David Hirschfelder. [13] The album debuted at number 2 on the ARIA Charts with 2520 sales. [5]
All songs performed by Farnham except where noted.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Lay Down Misère" (by David Hirschfelder) | ||
2. | "Age of Reason" (Live In Melbourne) | ||
3. | "In My Room" |
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4. | "Don't You Know It's Magic" | ||
5. | "You're the Voice" (Live in Germany) | ||
6. | "A Touch of Paradise" (Live in Melbourne) |
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7. | "Playing to Win" (Live in Melbourne) |
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8. | "Burn for You" (Live in Melbourne) |
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9. | "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby" (with Jimmy Barnes) | ||
10. | "One" | ||
11. | "When the War Is Over" (Live in Germany) | ||
12. | "Help" (Live in Melbourne) |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Amazing Grace" (Live in Melbourne) | ||
2. | "Sadie the Cleaning Lady" (Live In Melbourne) |
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3. | "Help Is on Its Way" (by Little River Band) | ||
4. | "Pressure Down" |
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5. | "Please Don't Ask Me" |
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6. | "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" | ||
7. | "As the Days Go By" (by Daryl Braithwaite) | ||
8. | "Because I Love You" (by Masters Apprentices) |
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9. | "Going Going Gone" |
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10. | "You're the Voice" |
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11. | "Finding the Voice (End Credit Suite)" (by David Hirschfelder) |
Chart (2023) | Peak position |
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Australian Albums (ARIA) [14] | 2 |
Chart (2023) | Position |
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Australian Artist Albums (ARIA) [15] | 12 |
John Peter Farnham AO is a British-born Australian singer. Farnham was a teen pop idol from 1967 until 1979, billed until then as Johnny Farnham. He has since forged a career as an adult contemporary singer. His career has mostly been as a solo artist, although he replaced Glenn Shorrock as lead singer of Little River Band from 1982 to 1985.
Little River Band (LRB) are a rock band formed in Melbourne, Australia, in March 1975. The band achieved commercial success in both Australia and the United States. They have sold more than 30 million records; six studio albums reached the top 10 on the Australian Kent Music Report albums chart including Diamantina Cocktail and First Under the Wire, which both peaked at No. 2. Nine singles appeared in the top 20 on the related singles chart, with "Help Is on Its Way" (1977) as their only number-one hit. Ten singles reached the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Reminiscing" their highest, peaking at No. 3.
The 18th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards were held on 17 October 2004 at the Sydney SuperDome within the Sydney Olympic Complex. The ceremony, hosted by Rove McManus and produced by Roving Enterprises for Network Ten, was held for the first time on a Sunday night and averaged 1.39 million viewers. The 2004 ARIA Fine Arts Awards had been presented at a ceremony weeks earlier.
John Farnham and Tom Jones – Together in Concert is an Australian tour featuring John Farnham and Tom Jones performing together for ten concerts throughout the capital cities of Perth, Sydney, Brisbane, and Melbourne. Jones sings his major hits, before Farnham performs his set including hits "One", "Pressure Down", "That's Freedom", "Heart's on Fire", "Playing to Win", "Everytime You Cry", "Man of the Hour", "Age of Reason" and "Burn for You". The pair then return to the stage together to perform four duets of soul classics: Sam and Dave's "Hold On I'm Coming", Otis Redding's "Try a Little Tenderness", Ray Charles's "What'd I Say", Arthur Conley's "Sweet Soul Music" and AC/DC's "It's a Long Way to the Top ".
Glenn Dawson Wheatley was an Australian musician, talent manager, tour promoter and radio entrepreneur. Wheatley was the founder and managing director of Talentworks.
Glenn Barrie Shorrock is an English-born Australian singer-songwriter. He was a founding member of rock bands the Twilights, Axiom, Little River Band and post LRB spin-off trio Birtles Shorrock Goble, as well as being a solo performer.
Beeb Birtles is an Australian musician, singer, songwriter and guitarist. He has been a member of various Australian groups including Zoot (1967–71), Mississippi (1972–74), Little River Band (1975–83) and Birtles Shorrock Goble (2002–07). He has also worked as a solo artist, including releasing an album, Driven by Dreams (2000). In 2004, Birtles and other members of the classic line-up of Little River Band were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame.
"You're the Voice" is a song recorded by the British-born Australian singer John Farnham released in 1986, which became an immediate hit in Australia as well as several European countries, his native country the United Kingdom, and Ireland. It was released as a single in September 1986 ahead of his album Whispering Jack, and was written by Andy Qunta, Keith Reid, Maggie Ryder, and Chris Thompson.
Stephen Edward Foster was an Australian singer-songwriter and musician from Murray Bridge, South Australia.
Graeham George Goble, is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter and record producer, best known as a founding member of Australian rock group Little River Band and Birtles Shorrock Goble.
Whispering Jack is the twelfth studio album by Australian adult contemporary pop singer John Farnham. It was produced by Ross Fraser and released on 29 September 1986, peaking at No. 1 on the Australian Kent Music Report albums chart. Whispering Jack became the second-best-selling album in Australia, behind only Meat Loaf's album Bat Out of Hell, and the highest-selling album in Australia by an Australian artist―24× platinum, indicating over 1.68 million copies sold; it remains the third-best-selling album of all time in Australia, as Shania Twain's Come On Over eventually eclipsed it. It spent 25 weeks at the No. 1 spot on the albums chart during 1986–1987, it was awarded the 1987 ARIA Award for Album of the Year, and it was the best-charting album for the decade of the 1980s in Australia. It was the first Australian-made album to be released on compact disc within Australia. One of Farnham's biggest hits, "You're the Voice", was issued as the lead single from the album and peaked at No. 1 on the Kent Music Report singles chart.
Birtles Shorrock Goble are an Australian pop/rock group composed of the three original singers and songwriters of Little River Band, namely Beeb Birtles, Glenn Shorrock and Graeham Goble. The members are known for their extensive writing and performance of hit songs and distinctive vocal harmonies. They are sometimes referred to by the initials BSG.
David Hirschfelder is an Australian musician, film score composer and performer. As a musician he has been a member of Little River Band and John Farnham Band. He has composed film scores for many films, including Strictly Ballroom, Australia, The Railway Man, The Water Diviner and The Dressmaker. He was nominated for Academy Awards for his scores for Shine and Elizabeth.
Monsoon is the tenth studio album by Australian group, Little River Band, with Glenn Shorrock returning as lead singer after John Farnham left the group to release his solo album Whispering Jack. The album was released in May 1988 and peaked at number nine on the Kent Music Report albums chart.
"Reminiscing" is a song by Australian soft rock music group Little River Band, released in June 1978 as the second single from their fourth studio album Sleeper Catcher. The song was written by the band's rhythm guitarist Graeham Goble, and sung by their lead singer Glenn Shorrock. "Reminiscing" peaked at number 35 on the Australian Kent Music Report and at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Full House is a live album by Australian singer John Farnham. The album was released in Australia on 4 November 1991, and is the first live album by Farnham since his comeback via the 1986 release of Whispering Jack. It peaked at No.2 on the ARIA Albums Chart.
Uncovered is a solo studio album by British-born Australian singer John Farnham, produced by Little River Band's Graeham Goble, and released on 3 July 1980, which peaked at No. 20 on the Australian Kent Music Report album chart and was certified gold in 1981.
Derek Allan Pellicci is an English-born Australian drummer. He is best known as a founding member of Little River Band. Pellicci lives in Melbourne with his wife, Anne and a son.
We Two Pty Ltd v Shorrock (2002) was presided by Justice Raymond Finkelstein of the Federal Court of Australia, Melbourne to determine the ownership of the name, Little River Band, its trademarks, logos and associated assets. We Two Pty Ltd, the applicant, was established in 1987 and had been solely owned by Stephen Housden of the music group, Little River Band since 1998. The respondents, Glenn Shorrock, Gerard Bertelkamp and Graeham Goble, were all founding members of the same group, in 1975. Housden had joined them in 1981.