When you get the chance to have a chat with a bonafide Australian rock legend to talk about his upcoming shows in Cairns next March, the 20th anniversary of his debut Solo album Tea and Sympathy and what his favourite bird is you just gotta do it.
Nathan Kelly
Uh, hello, it says you're there, Bernard. How you going?
Bernard Fanning
I'm early, by the way, are you in Cairns?
NK
Yes, it's about 32 degrees up here and sunny, but it's about 80% humidity. It's a bit crazy up here at the moment.
BF
Yeah, that'll be right up until we get up there.
NK
Yes, It probably will still be warm when you get up here. Where are you today at home? How's that going?
BF
Good. Haven't been here that much lately, but it's nice to be working from home.
NK
Yes. Same for me today. I didn't have time to change my background. So you get to see all the crap in the background.
BF
And neither did I, you can see all the shit I've got around my studio as well, it's not very organized. Still got all the gear from the show the other night.
NK
Now, I want to talk about the show the other night, but first, there's only eight tickets left for your Cairns show.
BF
Oh, really?
NK
I just checked just before you got on, so thanks so much for taking the time, because normally artists are like, hey, we want to sell tickets to the show. Oh, well, there's only eight left, there was about 100 yesterday, so they've moved pretty quick.
BF
Yeah they've kind of been going a bit nuts all over the place so it's been it's been an awesome surprise to be honest we didn't we didn't think it would go that that quickly, no way.
NK
When I looked at your show that you played in Brisbane on Friday night and the tickets for that just flew out the door. So is that where the idea of, “Hey, people might want to see this show” came from ?
BF
Kind of, yeah, and all, because it sold out so quickly, there were lots of people coming back to us on social media saying, can you do this show around the country? And it was kind of coming from everywhere. So we just thought why not, that's why it's taken us a while to get it organised because we were only really planning to do one show. But now, now we're doing about 15.
NK
Well that's what happens you know when you when you put it out there and then people go, man this record means so much to me not just me but to everybody so it's a real beautiful gift for you to share that with people.
BF
Thanks, man. I'm so happy to be doing it. The show that we played the other night in Brisbane was just one of the best that I've done. It was just the atmosphere around it. People are very attached to this record. They feel like it's theirs, which is awesome for me. I love that, that people take it into their lives and, you know, still listening to it 20 years later.
NK
So 20 years is a long time and a lot has happened in that time. So when I try to think back 20 years ago, I was 29. I was living in Sydney at the time. Um, you know, what do you think about back about that time? Because since then you've got married, you've had kids, you've had other albums, the Fanning Dempsey album, which I love by the way. You know, what's happened in that time. So when you think back on that time, how do you connect to those songs in that time now?
BF
Well, from about the beginning of October, I started really kind of learning all the tunings and the finger picking and stuff for this record, because there's songs that I haven't played for a long time, you know, and there's one song actually that we had never played, we didn't even play at the time, because I wasn’t able to play it and sing it at the same time, So I have been trying to work out how to do it. But I mean, they're pretty good memories overall, like going to it was a very serious burst of creativity that happened. It all kind of fell out of me in in about six months, those songs. And you know, there was more than what ended up on the record. And then having the opportunity to go to the UK to Real World Studios, which is Peter Gabriel's studio in Bath. That was just incredible with an amazing producer, Chad Blake, and great band and everything.
It was just it was a kind of once in a lifetime experience. So I just had the most fond memories. And then the touring was incredible, because I think, you know, Wish You Well, took us all by surprise as well, how how people took that song on. And, and it kind of just catapulted the whole record.
NK
Yeah, massive, massive song. And I have told you this story in person, but when Cyclone Yasi came through Cairns and kind of wiped out Innisfail, the ABC went off air. It came back on at about three or four a.m. And the first song they played was Wish You Well. So that's my core memory of that song. And that was in about March of 2006.
That kind of really tied me to that record, because I just moved to Cairns that year. And that was a really scary time. And then that's come on. And I'm like, wow, who thought to play that as a song? So that was really great.
I just want to take you back to that time, because, you know, you were the lead singer of a very popular band at the time called Powderfinger. And many lead singers of popular bands have tried to go solo, you know, some more successfully than others. So, you know, obviously, 20 years later, you have been very successful as a solo artist. But what was your thoughts going into that at the time?
BF
Yeah, like I said, the expectations were really low for it because we were on a break, Powderfinger was on a break. That was my real job. I was never intending to not go back or anything like that. That was always going to be the case. We'd said, let's get back together in February 2007, whatever it was. I can't even remember. Anyway, none of us expected what happened with the record. But I think it's one of those things where I think a lot of singers of bands do make solo records. A lot of them aren't really capable of writing songs by themselves. They kind of rely on everybody in the band. And in Powderfinger, that's effectively how we did it. But I was able to complete songs myself as well. So I guess that makes a pretty big difference, being able to understand how to put a record together without everybody. I mean, one thing you will notice is that the songs are a lot shorter than Powderfinger songs, and that's because it's not guitar solos. And that's just my inability. Because we had two great guitar players in Powderfinger, but no one needed me to play guitar solo. So I never really and still haven't developed that skill.
NK
Yeah, you know, Powderfinger did ultimately end up, I think you're broken up or on Hiatus or whatever you want to call it, a few years after that. Do you think your success of the solo album kind of allowed for you to think about, Hey, I could wind this band up if I wanted to, because like your solo career has just killed it afterwards.
BF
Yeah. I mean, it was, it's nothing compared to powder finger. I think, I think on this tour, we'll end up playing to, you know, 15 or 20,000 people, maybe with all of the shows powder finger played to 300,000 people on our last tour. It's a, it's a whole different realm, you know? So I wouldn't say it contributed directly.
It was more a case of we kind of got to the point where we didn't really, we weren't really inspired to keep making records and we didn't want to be a band that just sat there and played, sat around for years on the material that we'd already made. So that was kind of the main catalyst for it. Everyone was pretty restless to be doing other things. And you know, everyone is now. I mean, everyone has been for ages. Haugie plays guitar in the church, the band, the church. His brother lives in Cairns, has for many, many years. There's lots of powder finger connections to North Queensland, actually. Both my parents are from North Queensland, so mum was born in Innisfail and dad in Townsville. So we spent a lot of time up there. Everyone's got stuff going on now Darren makes his own records. JC he's the commissioner of the nighttime economy or whatever it is for Queensland. Yeah, I saw that, yeah. Cogsey's making films and podcasts and all that stuff. So everyone's busy, you know?
NK
And you all have children and families now.
BF
Yeah, I think there's like 12 or 13 kids, so yeah, there's that.
NK
And that changes dynamics of bands and where people are in their lives as well.
Bernard Fanning
Absolutely and relationships change you know so we'd been in the band for 1989 the band formed and and we stopped in 2010. 21 years is a pretty good run. It's a good effort of guys traveling around in a van together um so yeah.
NK
The last tour you're in a plane, you know, with Powderfinger painted on the side.
Bernard Fanning
Yeah, that's right.
NK
Don't try to downplay it.
BF
I think a lot of people thought that was our plane, but it wasn't. It was just a Jetstar with the name written on the side. But yeah, yeah, I mean, look, we we had such amazing support from people around Australia for such a long time. We were very, very spoiled. We are so we're really proud of the fact that people still love the band and still love the idea of the band. You know, that that means a lot to us.
NK
Now, I took my children to your Paul Dempsey Fanning Dempsey National Park show at the Tnaks and I got to say, I've never seen two performers having so much fun. Like, oh, man, it just looked like you were having so much fun at that show in particular. So like, in one sense, you've done your songs, you did this Fanning Dempsey, which is an amazing album, and the recording of that album sounded like a good time, too. So what made you kind of want to revisit this album? Like, you did that show in Brisbane, initially? Was it initially, hey, we'll just play one show, celebrate the anniversary of the album?
BF
Yeah, that was kind of the idea. It's like QPAC, which is Queensland Performing Arts Centre, like CPAC up there, actually came to us and said, look, it's our 40th anniversary. And we would like Queensland musicians to do shows during the anniversary.
We were like, okay, that sounds cool. And then it kind of turned out that it was going to be around the 20th anniversary of the record, plus the 20th anniversary of Young Care, which was a charity that I had kind of helped with shows and benefits and all that stuff.
NK
I was gonna ask you about Young Care because it's important.
BF
It is. So, you know, it just kind of seemed to fit. It was a good idea to celebrate all those things at once. And like I said, it was going to be a one off show. And then when the tickets went and the demand was sort of crazy, = then we sort of looked into doing a tour and it's just been amazing, the response.
It's just so flattering how much people love this record. I'm still amazed by it because, you know, as an artist, you make a record and you tour it and whatever. And this was certainly the case because I went back to Powderfinger and we made two more albums and did, the Cross the Great Divide Tour and the Sunsets Tour, which were the two biggest things that we ever did. And you don't forget what you've done, but you're just not focused on it, you know? And then I came to do shows, but I was always making records on the way. So I was playing new music all the time. So you kind of lose focus on the impact that it had, I guess is the thing, and this is just a bit of a chance for people to focus on an album, like on a collection of songs.
I mean, we're so stuck in this period now of just songs being streamed and play listed and people rarely take the time to sit down and listen to what one artist is trying to say with a project, you know? Because of the convenience of streaming.
NK
I do get a sense, because my children are 15, 16 that this is changing.
Bernard Fanning
It's starting to come back now, yeah. Mine are too. Mine are 15 and 13 and they, you know, they will listen to Billie Eilish albums front to back, which is unreal. They're great records, you know, and I'm so glad that they've taken up Billie Eilish as their favorite artist because I love her music as well. You know, it could have been a lot worse.
NK
We got the radiohead happening in our house. Yeah, right.
Bernard Fanning
Yeah, right. Yeah, well, that's just starting to happen to here so
NK
I never played it to my kids and suddenly they're like, Oh, we love Radiohead, and then I'm pulling out the records and I'm like, Oh, you like Radiohead? So it's very interesting. Like my son bought a CD player from lifeline, and I'm like, wow, what's going on here?
I do want to go back to one thing cause you touched on it and I think it's really important. And I was hoping you could just share a little bit about your connection with Young Care, who they are and what they do and why you're involved, if that's all right.
BF
Yeah, sure. Um, keep in mind, this is 2005. So this is well before the NDIS was in place as well. So one of my best mates that I went to school with his wife at the time had MS. And her condition deteriorated to the point where she couldn't be looked after at home, she needed full time care. And there was absolutely no option for her other than aged care. And she was 29. So that was a massive wake up call for all of us because none of us had ever been come across that sort of scenario. And so they were launching that idea of Young Care, which was to raise money to build facilities for younger people so that they could have a lifestyle that was relevant to their age, not sitting in a nursing home, you know, an aged care home. So that's where it came from. They're still going strong, they have built lots of facilities and have got people living in those facilities. But they also have a grants program now where they help people that have disabilities to modify their homes, their bathrooms, build ramps, all that sort of stuff. So we when it launched, we did a benefit concert at City Hall. And we did one every year, I think we did four or five, actually, every year. And they were just awesome, really fun parties. You know, the idea was, it wasn't supposed to be a sombre event. It was about celebrating being young. Which disqualifies me now. Being 56.
NK
We could live in elderly retirement villages now for 50 pluses now.
BF
Yeah, I think I can get free internet at the Byron library actually.
NK
That's funny. I've just got two more questions. One's kind of two questions. What do you love most about this album? And what, looking back on it after 20 years, do you think, oh, could it change that? Could I have put this song in?
BF
Yeah, well, I'll answer the second question first. We recorded 16 songs in the studio. Well, mixed 16 songs. We recorded 12 songs and four of the demos that I had made ended up being mixed for the record because Chad Blake, who is the producer was like, we're not going to get a better performance than that. They sound great. Let's just tidy them up kind of thing. Yeah. So that so the album ended up being 14 songs long. And so we had to leave a couple off. There's a song called Weekend of Mystery, which is on the on the bonus album that comes with the 20th anniversary version.
That's one of my favourite songs that I've written actually, and it hasn't really had much attention because it was released on a UK version or something like that. But a lot of people haven't heard it. At the time, I think we left it off just because it's a piano driven song with band, but it just sounded slightly different. The mix that we did of it was a bit different to the record. So that's why it ended up not making it. And For You and I, which is another song that's on there as well was the same. So it just we didn't quite nail it how we exactly wanted it, which you kind of never do anyway, with a recording, you're always even a few weeks later, you're like, Oh, man, I could have sung that better or could have arranged this better. But that's the whole point, isn't it? You're not trying to make things that are perfect. Yeah, you try your best to make them as good as they can be.
how do I look back on it? I would say, I love the way it sounds. It's so warm. It's such a warm sounding record, you know, and especially as this is right when home recording was really in its kind of advent, it was just really starting, people were starting to be able to record at home with computers. But we still did this one the old fashioned way and and there's something about that that there's a particular sound or something about it.
I mean, the the audio is Chad Blake's glory. The guy's an absolute weapon. And the way that he mixed it. There's a place for everything. There's a lot of space on the record. And that's, that's kind of what I wanted. I guess we'd be making rock records with Powderfinger and, and they were full of information. There's a lot of information on those albums there's two guitar players all the time almost and stuff like that. So I just wanted to make things that were a bit emptier and and with acoustic guitars, because I just absolutely love the sound of timber, all acoustic instruments, drums, pianos, things that made of wood, you know, that was kind of the big attraction for me, because I grew up loving folk music, James Taylor and Cat Stevens and Neil Young, Bob Dylan, all those things. And Powderfinger didn't really match, there wasn't much avenue for that. In the few years before I'd really started writing a lot of that stuff. And it really appealed to me a lot, because of what I was listening to as well.
NK
The flow of this album is amazing. I bought one of the original records from your website and just to sit down and play the whole record is a beautiful thing. Translating this into a live show. You just played the first live show, you know, obviously people are going to want to hear other songs and I haven't looked at the setlist intentionally. So how do you see the show unfolding? Do you just start from track one and go through?
BF
No, I didn't want to do it like that. I didn't want to make it too much of a glory session for the record. I'm treating it like a show where you have all the dynamics and kind of stuff that you would normally do to make a show flow well. And a record flows differently to a show, and also, Wish You Well is the second song. So people would be walking out. So.
NK
Get home, we've got a babysitter, we can go.
BF
Yeah, exactly. So, no. I mean, the songs we're playing are all the songs from the record plus a couple of B-sides and a couple of covers, a couple of those ones that are on the anniversary version. But that may mutate as we go on. We've kind of got a collection of songs that we love playing that are covers. So we might change them in and out a bit. But, I mean, the main thrust of it is that it's that record plus the songs that were around it. There's also a new song on the bonus disc, which I wrote just a few years ago called Steady Job, which I think out of all the songs I've written in those 20 years kind of fits into Tea and Sympathy world more than anything else. So I'm playing that, that as well.
NK
Now you have to remember, Cairn's crowd's are rowdy. In one of your shows I was at, you had to stop and shush the crowd, tell them to stop talking and shouting at you.
BF
Crowd feedback was it ?
NK
Yeah, you're at the piano and you're like, someone was shouting something and you're like, “Hey, you know, when you're at work, and you're really concentrating on something. And you know, people are just causing chaos around you.” Because it was that one song you would just buy yourself on the piano. And you're like, Come on, guys.
BF
Look, there's nothing more powerful than a crowd staying silent, actually, you know, that's more powerful than the heaviest rock riff you can imagine, because the tension and the energy that it creates is huge, and it also gets people to really focus on what's going on. I mean, there's, it's a bit easier to do that in a theater as well, because people are there. It's not music on while I'm drinking at Rum and Coke. It's, it's like the music, that's kind of the focus. So hopefully, there's not too many ratbags.
NK
Well, they just get overexcited, you know, I think. Yeah, yeah. That's the Cairns way.
BF
Yeah, yeah. That's the Cairns way.
There were people yelling out all night the other night. And most of what was being said. But generally, they're not insulting you. So I don't know.
NK
Yeah. Now, when I told my son I was interviewing you, he said, I must ask you what your favourite bird is, if that's okay.
BF
I would say it's a Kookaburra, but it's a tough one, isn't it? Because, I mean, I just love butcher birds and magpies, just the sound that they make is so incredible. I've always kind of been tempted by the idea of recording one and just lifting the melody, because the melodies are so interesting, you know, they make such unusual sounds. But, yeah, I think the Kookaburra, because they're fucking cool, man.
NK
They're so cool. And they're so big.
BF
And they're very emblematic of, you know, all of Australia, I think. You know, they have that thing that immediately, they're Australian. And, you know, they were very important for Aboriginal people as well for all sorts of reasons, but I love them.
NK
I love them laughing. Hey, I got to ask you one more question. You did your album with Paul Dempsey. I've seen you play with Kasey Chambers at Bluesfest.
BF
Yeah. She sings on this album.
Nathan Kelly
Yeah. What do you think? Uh, Bernard Fanning and Kasey Chambers album.
BF
You never know, I would never rule it out because we're really, really good friends.
NK
You're both great songwriters.
BF
She's an amazing songwriter. People don't realize what an incredible singer she is.
NK
Oh, she's just getting better.
BF
She is, her voice is getting better. Even with Claire and I singing with her the other night and just being in the band room, just practicing, it's like, okay, I'll sing my verse, Claire sings hers. Claire, absolutely stunning voice, incredible. And then the little pixie comes out of the corner and this just, it's like this giant foghorn coming out of her. It's incredible how much volume comes out of her. She's an absolute natural, you know.
NK
Yeah, so I look forward to that album, 2027, probably have to be a country record.
BF
Yeah, okay.
NK
Thanks so much for your time today, Bernard. And I will see you in Cairns. I bought a ticket. I'll be in the third row, so I'll be there. I'm looking forward to it. Eight tickets left. You better tell your person.
BF
Yeah, yeah, I guess. Yeah. Okay. Have a great day. Thank you. Thanks, buddy. See ya.
Bernard Fanning Plays Cairns Performing Arts Centre on Saturday 7th (SOLD OUT) and Sunday 8th of March buy tix HERE
Find out all about the new releases of Tea and Sympathy HERE
