STACK #217 November 2022

MUSIC FEATURE

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When I write music, I not only draw from my own experiences but from the experiences of my friends and family around me. These are real stories and real moments, moments many of us can relate to. Life and love is complicated. Our minds are complicated. People are complicated, and we all have the ability to love and hurt one another. This is what this song is about, and having to go to a really honest and deep place in my mind, I needed to feel comfortable writing it, and was really happy I was able to share that experience of writing this song with my friend John Foreman.

From releasing the fastest-selling single in Australian history at 22 years old, through myriad television appearances, hosting jags, an ARIA Award (amongst a slew of other accolades) and musical theatre runs, Anthony Callea now gifts us his most personal album of his career, FORTY LOVE .We put some questions to the effervescent singer-songwriter about this stirring collection of tracks; be sure to read the full, unedited Q&A online . Words Zoë Radas ANTHONY CALLEA

In a recent Insta story, you commented: “Yes, I jump from melodies to harmonies.” Is it one of the pleasures of singing classics you've heard (and/or performed) 100 times? Do you explore your own songs this way for fun, looking for new harmonies or melody lines? Absolutely! I love experimenting vocally and musically. One of the biggest joys I got from recording this album was being in total control of my vocals, my vocal parts, and all the harmonies and layers. I felt so comfortable in the studio behind the mic and Liam just let me do my thing. Vocal producing is one of my favourite things to do. One day I may even do it for other singers – I

time now - and new tracks I have recently written. It’s a body of work that is not only for me but for my fans, it encapsulates me as a singer-songwriter and I’ve brought this album to life on my terms... This is me through and through. I’m proud of FORTY LOVE and excited to finally share it with you all. Our New Love is a fascinating song about the evolution of a relationship: it begins with such melancholy but it is filled with

In the opening of your album statement, you write: “Words truly can’t explain how it feels to finally release MY album, FORTY LOVE .” Why have you capitalised the word ‘my’ here? It’s my eighth album, and it’s the first album I am releasing without a record label, which is totally independent. I’ve co-written 11 of the songs; these are my words, my melodies, my stories, and I co-produced this album with the talented Liam Quinn. It’s music that I have been sitting on for years - wanting to share for some

Anthony's great friend and co-writer for track Incomplete (whom he first met on the set of Australian Idol in 2004), the musician and television personality

John Foreman. Credit: Eva Rinaldi

honestly think I would get a lot of enjoyment out of that. The human voice is such a gift and to be able to use it not only to communicate in everyday dealings, but using it to create music, is something that I feel very fortunate about and don’t take for granted. This album includes a new version of The Prayer .Watching your first ever performance of this song, it’s so strange to know no one had ever witnessed you deliver this magnificent piece at the time. Do you remember it vividly, or has it become a misty memory? I definitely remember it vividly. That decision and moment shaped my life, and to have it resonate and connect with so many people not only then, but still to this day 18 years down the track, is something I’m beyond grateful for and proud of. It’s a stunning piece of music and I love it just as much today as I did then. We all evolve and change, and this reimagined take on The Prayer is me now, as a 40 year old, interpreting the song the way I feel it and hear it today...

hope.What prompted you to write about it? Because it’s real. There are no rules in music and there are no rules in love. Both love and music come from the heart. They can both be complicated. They can both make you feel emotions that bring joy and pain at the same time. This is one of my favourite songs on the album and I loved writing it with Andrew Lowden. It evolved naturally and honestly and captured the sentiments of hope, love, pain and gratitude all in one song. We know you are happily married at this point in your life, so where do you go to, in your mind, to deliver such compelling performance of a song with a message like Incomplete ?

FORTY LOVE by Anthony Callea is out now, via MGM.

Continue reading the full Q&A online at stack.com.au

Anthony Callea photographed by John Tsiavis

68 NOVEMBER 2022

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