Concert Review: John Farnham & Olivia Newton-John – Two Strong Hearts

When: Sunday April 19, 2015

Where: Qantas Credit Union Arena, Sydney 

Kitch’s Rating: 9.5/10

So John Farnham is touring again. Cue the tired old jokes about this being his 497^th farewell tour if you must, but he isn’t alone in un-retiring. Remember KISS had their farewell tour in 1996, got rid of Ace Frehley and Peter Criss and have been touring constantly ever since. The Eagles visited Australia as part of their Farwell I tour a few years ago and filmed a DVD in Melbourne. They were back last month, It seems, though, that Farnham always cops a bigger rap over the knuckles for it than anyone else.

Walking away from the adoration I assume you’d get from an arena-sized crowd night after night must be tough, so I don’t blame Farnham, and, anyway, why retire when you’re still killing it on a nightly basis? And believe you me, Farnham is killing it on a nightly basis. I’ve seen him a few times over the last few years, and every time I walk into the room, I wonder if this is the year that The Voice’s voice loses it’s power. 

Well, I can happily report that, as of April 2015, Farnham is still going strong. He sings now the way he sang twenty years ago – and it’s damn impressive! There’s no vocal drop-off, Meatloaf- or Paul Stanley-style. When Farnham reaches for the high notes, he gets them with effortless ease.

It might’ve been the John Farnham & Olivia Newton John Two Strong Hearts Tour, but the night belonged to Whispering Jack. Behind a sixty-piece orchestra and the powerful Farnham Band, led by the pint-sized maestro Chong Lim, all of the classic songs from his days with the Little River Band (a bombastic “Playing to Win”) through more recent hits like “Man of the Hour” were improved upon by the increased musical depth that an only an orchestra can provide. The string-supported duet rendition of Peter Allen’s “Tenterfield Saddler” was a highlight.

Don’t get me wrong, watching ONJ do her thing was impressive, but I barely knew any of her songs – the three cuts from Grease (including “You’re The One That I Want”, Xanadu, the horribly dated “Let’s Get Physical” and an unexpected “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” excepted – and found myself wishing that Farnham would come back out. Newton-John’s vocals were impressive, but compared to those of her friend and sometime duet partner, she was something of a distant second. It’s hard to go up against Farnham, who, in fairness to ONJ and others, can out-sing most people on the planet.

Like when I saw The Eagles a few weeks back, watching Farnham on stage roll through his songs made me realise just how many big hits he has had over the years. “Age of Reason”, “Chain Reaction”, “Pressure Down”, “Two Strong Hearts“ (a duet with ONJ to open proceedings), “Burn For You” (another duet) and one of my personal favourites, “Hearts on Fire” all got a run, as did two deep cuts from the ‘Whispering Jack’ album, though “Chain Reaction” was a notable omission, and, a disappointing one. It’s absence is the only reason I didn’t give the show a perfect ten. Thankfully, we were spared the awkward “Sadie” rendition, though there were many in the audience asking for it.

What I loved was the obvious affection and friendship Farnham and Newton-John had. It was clear to everyone inside Qantas Credit Union Arena – what a mouthful! – and even though we all knew that most of the jokes are pre-planned, it was satisfying to see Newton-John really lose it when Farnham was hamming up the Grease classic “Summer Nights”.

Seeing two of Australia’s greatest-ever vocalists – and history will certainly adjudge them as such – on one stage, seemingly having the time of their live was infectious, and no wonder the crowd, drawn from so many generations, young and old, seemed in such high spirits. For many people, the songs performed Sunday night are the soundtrack to people’s lives.

And, when it comes down to the end, and the familiar clap-clap-clap intro to “You’re The Voice” rings out through the arena, seconds before Angus Burchall’s ferocious bass drum rhythm drives the song, you realise what an epic anthem it is, and how great it sounds when belted out at the top of everyone’s voice. How that must feel on stage!

Bagpipes and guitar solos, an orchestra, Farnham and ONJ trading verses, people dancing in the aisles, crowing the front of the stage – “You’re the Voice” threatened to pop the roof off the joint. How do you top that? By playing what Farnham rightly calls the greatest rock and roll song ever, and suddenly that crunching, familiar riff that everyone knows so well in Australia is coming at us, and although they aren’t ever going to hold a candle to the late, great Bon Scott, AC/DC’s “It’s A Long Way To The Top” was a suitably epic ending to a very impressive evening.

Based on Sunday night’s performance, here’s hoping Farnham spends a little more time un-retiring!