1. John Peter Farnham was born on 1 July 1949 and is a British-born Australian singer.
49 Facts About John Farnham
1. 2.
John Farnham has since forged a career as an adult contemporary singer.
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John Farnham's career has mostly been as a solo artist, although he replaced Glenn Shorrock as lead singer of Little River Band from 1982 to 1985.
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John Farnham has been recognised by many honours and awards, including 1987 Australian of the Year, 1996 Officer of the Order of Australia, and 19 ARIA Awards, including his 2003 induction into the Hall of Fame.
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John Farnham starred in his own TV series and specials, including It's Magic, Bobby Dazzler, and Farnham and Byrne, and as a guest on numerous other popular shows such as The Don Lane Show, Countdown and Hey Hey It's Saturday.
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John Farnham's sisters are Jean and Jacqueline, and his younger brother is Steven.
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John Farnham spent his first ten years in the United Kingdom before his family emigrated to Australia in 1959 to live in Melbourne, Victoria.
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John Farnham attended school at Yarraman Park State School in Noble Park East, and Lyndale Primary School and Lyndale High School in Dandenong North.
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John Farnham's first commercially successful recording was a cover of American novelty song "Sadie "; Sambell had disliked it, as the lyrics were so persistent.
10.
In 1969, John Farnham released his album Everybody Oughta Sing a Song, which peaked at No 12 on the Australian albums charts.
11.
When TV Week sponsored the 'King of Pop' awards, readers would forward their votes from coupons; John Farnham won the most popular male award and was crowned 'King of Pop' five consecutive times from 1969 to 1973.
12.
Jillian Billman was one of the dancers, and John Farnham married her on 18 April 1973.
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John Farnham became familiar to viewers of Countdown when hosting its first colour transmission in early 1975 and introducing Skyhooks' performance of "Horror Movie".
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John Farnham was in financial trouble with unpaid taxes and the collapse of a restaurant venture with Hewett and Finley.
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John Farnham's singing career was now confined to the cabaret circuit and stage musicals.
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John Farnham met Glenn Wheatley, who was bass guitarist of 1960s rock group The Masters Apprentices, when both acts were managed by Sambell.
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Wheatley was now managing Little River Band, and John Farnham signed with Wheatley in 1980.
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In 1980, John Farnham appeared in a TV series entitled John Farnham and Byrne with former Young Talent Time teen star and 'Queen of Pop' Debra Byrne.
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In February 1982, after Glenn Shorrock had departed Little River Band, John Farnham became their lead vocalist after recommendations by Goble and Wheatley.
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John Farnham initially resisted the idea of joining LRB, but Wheatley convinced him that Shorrock approved of the replacement.
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The first studio album, The Net, was already written, and John Farnham had no say in the songs; he just had to record his lead vocals.
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John Farnham would leave the group following the completion of their short Australian tour in April 1986.
23.
Wheatley searched vainly for a producer and record label willing to work with John Farnham; Fraser took on the producer role, and Wheatley provided financial support after mortgaging his house.
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John Farnham had three tracks featured on the Rad movie soundtrack released in 1986.
25.
On 19 July 1987, TV series Countdown broadcast its last show, the 1986 Countdown Music and Video Awards with John Farnham winning the 'Best Album Award' for Whispering Jack.
26.
In March 1989, John Farnham was in Moscow, USSR to promote Greenpeace album Rainbow Warriors, as part of an international ensemble including David Byrne, Peter Gabriel, Chrissie Hynde, Annie Lennox, and The Edge.
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John Farnham found time to record a duet with Dannielle Gaha, "Communication", which peaked at No 13 in August 1989.
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John Farnham went on to say the pressures for him to relocate "come mainly from other people" but his manager, Glenn Wheatley, has never put this pressure on him.
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John Farnham collaborated with vocal group Human Nature to record "Every Time You Cry" which peaked at No 3 on the singles charts in October 1997.
30.
John Farnham appeared as himself in the final episode of the Australian television series The Games.
31.
On 1 January 2001, John Farnham was awarded a Centenary Medal, "for outstanding service to Australian music", as part of Australia's celebration of a centenary of federation.
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John Farnham won 'Best Adult Contemporary Album' for The Last Time.
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John Farnham made an appearance during the 2005 Melbourne Music Festival, raising funds for rebuilding after the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake at the Tsunami Benefit Concert.
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In February 2006, John Farnham performed four shows at the Sydney Opera House, with the Sydney Symphony, followed by shows at the Victorian Arts Centre's Hamer Hall, Melbourne.
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On 8 June 2011, it was announced that John Farnham intended to embark on a nationwide tour of Australia throughout October and November 2011 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the release of the Whispering Jack album.
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On 30 September 2011, John Farnham released The Acoustic Chapel Sessions live album, recorded in Melbourne in July 2011 at Chapel Off Chapel.
37.
The CD contains eleven previously released John Farnham songs recorded acoustically, while the DVD includes eight songs plus interviews with John Farnham and the band as well as additional behind-the-scenes footage.
38.
On 27 July 2012, John Farnham performed live for the Australian Olympic team in London during the lead up to the 2012 Olympic Games.
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John Farnham appeared in a special one-off show with the Seekers in 2014 as part of the "Decades Festival" commemorating the music, fashion and cars of specific era and coinciding with the Seekers' golden jubilee year.
40.
On 10 October 2023, John Farnham was one of 25 Australians of the Year who signed an open letter supporting the Yes vote.
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John Farnham has supported several charities over the years, including headlining the 2019 Hay Mate series of concert for Australia's farming community, which raised over 4.4 million dollars.
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John Farnham has won and been nominated for numerous Australian music and entertainment awards.
43.
Farnham is the subject of a biographical documentary film titled John Farnham: Finding the Voice, released in cinemas in May 2023.
44.
John Farnham married Jillian Billman, a dancer he met when performing the stage musical Charlie Girl, on 11 April 1973.
45.
John Farnham is a supporter of the North Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League.
46.
In 2019, John Farnham cancelled an Australian and New Zealand tour due to a severe kidney infection and dehydration.
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John Farnham subsequently gave up a lifetime habit of smoking, and reduced his alcohol intake.
48.
On 23 August 2022, John Farnham released a statement that he was to undergo immediate surgery after being diagnosed with cancer.
49.
John Farnham was transferred to an intensive care unit, in a stable condition.