From a childhood in London and Melbourne through to pop stardom in the 1960s, the critical success enjoyed with the release of the highest-selling Australian album of all time, Whispering Jack, and a decades-long touring career, the John Farnham story is, at first glance, one filled with remarkable highlights.
It is, however, so much more than that. It is the story of the resilience John found as his stellar career stalled, record companies turned their backs, and he faced financial ruin. It is the story of triumph over adversity after a devastating diagnosis of mouth cancer in 2022, only months after the death of his long-time friend and manager, Glenn Wheatley. Throughout a lifetime filled with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, John has remained steadfast, never losing his unique musical talent, creative strength nor his powerful ability to make human connections through his music.
The Voice Inside is like sitting down with an old friend sharing stories that are both deeply personal and wildly entertaining. Captivating and powerfully honest, it is an unfettered insight into the man whose music is the soundtrack to so many of our lives.
Author Biography
JOHN FARNHAM is an Australian national treasure, one of
Australia's top performing artists and the greatest singer Australia has ever
produced. His career spans more than five decades.
Born in London, John immigrated to Australia with his family in 1959 at the age of ten. From high school he played in local bands around Melbourne and in 1967 John left a plumbing apprenticeship to pursue a full-time career in entertainment. And what a career it has been.
For five years, from 1969 to 1973, John was voted the King of Pop and his success brought him screaming fans and recording contracts, won him starring roles in stage shows and musicals and delivered twelve singles and six albums that all achieved gold status. The fickle nature of pop saw his pop career wane in the late seventies, but John's talent continued to develop. In 1980 he formed his own band and with them he performed the Beatles classic ‘Help’ to critical acclaim. In 1982, he was invited to front the Little River Band (LRB) and he toured extensively with the band in the US. But it was after leaving LRB that John truly came into his own. In 1986 he released his first solo album in six years, called Whispering Jack.
This phenomenal album was No. 1 on the Australian music charts for 25 weeks and topped the charts throughout Europe, England and Canada. It is still Australia's highest- selling album of all time by a local artist and the album won John numerous ARIA awards.
More chart-topping albums would follow. Throughout his career John has regularly toured both Australian and overseas markets. At home, his tours are renowned for breaking attendance records at major entertainment venues.
There are so many accolades to list so here are just a few. In 1987 John Farnham was named Australian of the Year and on Australia Day in 1996 he was honoured with the Order of Australia for Services to Music and Charity. In 1997 he was recognised as the Most Broadcast Australian Recording Artist of all time by the Phonographic Performance Company of Australia. In 2000, John performed with Olivia Newton-John for the Opening Ceremony of the Sydney Olympic Games. In 2003, John was inducted into the Australian music industry's ARIA Hall of Fame. John continued to record and tour and has collaborated and toured with some of Australia's and the world's best performers. He is acknowledged by artists like Celine Dion, Tom Jones, Chris Martin and Jimmy Barnes as ‘the Voice’.
In August 2022, John was diagnosed with mouth cancer and retreated with his wife of over fifty years, Jill, to fight this cancer battle. In 2023 the documentary called Finding the Voice, that looked at John's career and the creation of Whispering Jack, was released. It became the highest-grossing Australian-made film in 2023. The soundtrack received an ARIA Award and it was awarded an ACCTA Award for Best Documentary. Following the release of the documentary John had three albums in the ARIA Charts. Over his career he has won twenty ARIA Awards. Twelve months on from his diagnosis and subsequent surgery John remains cancer free. Whilst he continues on the road to recovery he is writing his memoir, which will be released by Hachette Australia in November 2024. Poppy Stockell (Author)
POPPY STOCKELL is an award-winning writer, director and producer with a penchant for stories exploring human identity, humour and the inherent contradictions of existence. She has written and directed for all the major networks and her independent projects have played to big audiences at the world's most prestigious festivals including SXSW, Hot Docs, Sheffield Doc/Fest, New Orleans Film Festival, and the Sydney Film Festival. Her work has been recognised by an AACTA, a Walkley Award, a UN Media Peace Prize, two Logie nominations and the Audience Award at the Sydney Film Festival.
Poppy's debut feature, John Farnham Finding the Voice, recently became the highest box office grossing Australian documentary of all time and her scripted comedy series Triple Oh! won the coveted Luna De Valencia Grand Jury Prize and is currently on SBS On Demand. Poppy is currently working with John Farnham on his memoir The Voice Inside.
