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MOVIE FEATURE

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A RAD CLASSIC

Unsuspecting viewers of the movie Hot Rod (2007) are often shocked to hear John Farnham’s You’re the Voice appear in the rousing final act. It’s an unforgettable moment, which has a very strange origin. The creators of Hot Rod (Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer – AKA Lonely Island) were fans of the ’80s cult BMX movie Rad , and were obsessed with its soundtrack growing up. One song on that album was Farnham’s Break the Ice , which led them down a rabbit hole until they stumbled across You’re the Voice . Years later, while writing Hot Rod and looking for an epic song to elevate the finale, the trio instantly thought of the classic Aussie anthem.

The untold story of Australia’s favourite son has been told in the box office smash hit documentary John Farnham: Finding the Voice . STACK caught up with his son Rob Farnham, a gifted singer and musician in his own right who fronts the alt-rock band Rival Fire. Words Glenn Cochrane ”C ancer’s a brutal thing for anybody,” says Rob of his old man. ”As offices, and we loved it,” Rob reveals. ”Both he and I went in there, not to tear shreds off it, but to take notes

In the studio

[Dad] said before,a lot of people have walked it, and now it’s his turn.” He adds with relief, ”But he’s cancer-free now, and at home giving Mum grief. All things are positive!” The film chronicles John’s rags-to riches story, giving insight into his

and be prepared if it wasn’t going to be true to life. But after the first five minutes, I put my notes down and just enjoyed it. There’s no bullsh-t in there.” We were shocked to discover that John hasn’t actually seen the film yet, despite its runaway success and

every cinema screen in the country. ”I think it was the highest-grossing Australian music documentary of all time, by miles,” Rob says with a sense of disbelief. ”Our family didn’t want to do it,” he admits, when discussing the early stages of the film’s development. ”Dad, particularly, didn’t want to do it. He still gets shocked when people go to his shows, but Glenn talked him into it and here we are.” Most kids don’t know much about their parents while growing up, so it’s hard to

Rob Farnham

life’s various highs and lows along the way. It’s also a testament to the friendship Farnham held with his longtime manager and best mate, Glenn Wheatley. ”Myself and my brother got an early screening of the film in Sydney at the Sony

overwhelming reception. ”Dad hasn’t even seen the movie to this day,” Rob attests. ”It’s just not something that he can get across. He doesn’t like watching himself on TV, or reading any kind of article. We’ll have

to force him to watch it,” he says with a smirk. ”But I don’t think he’s quite ready yet, because Glenn passed away. That’s a hard watch for him. And Olivia [Newton-John] was really close to him, and he took her passing really, really hard. But we will get him to watch it at some point.” Upon its theatrical release, the film went gangbusters, playing to capacity on almost

comprehend what it would feel like seeing a warts-and-all film about them. We asked whether or not Rob and James learned anything new about their dad. ”I didn’t, because I’m a huge

fan anyway,” Rob smiles. ”When I got into music when I was 15, I went through his back catalogue and found out about all the things he did. My brother, on the other hand, didn’t realise how tough it was for dad to go from ’Johnny’ to ’John’.”

• John Farnham: Finding the Voice is out on Aug 23

John Farnham (R) with manager and best mate Glenn Wheatley

12 AUGUST 2023

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