It may seem incredible they've lasted for so long, but Cold Chisel have been at the absolute forefront of the Australian music industry for more than 50 years.
The band, seen as highly volatile and unpredictable in their early decades, has always been famed for their live performances, and a back catalogue of beautifully crafted music. Hailing from Adelaide in 1973, and having split and reformed a number of times subsequent to this, their music has played a significant role in growing up for so many Australians; so the chance to hear them play their music live is a chance not to be missed.
This is more the case given the widely-reported health concerns faced by singer Jimmy Barnes over the past year with heart and hip problems – neither held him back tonight (8 October). Nonetheless, the Chisels are aware they cannot tour forever, yet they love playing their old hits, which is not the case for some bands, so we were in for a treat.
Cold Chisel - image © Gaby Barns
It was always going to be fascinating to see how the boys interacted with each other. By all accounts there were fisticuffs between band members, and many reports highlighted the smouldering relationships between members at various times.
I was confident that relationships would have healed with time and things would be much smoother as the band members have aged, and raised families. On a recent television special, Phil Small (bassist) stated that they were like brothers.
Barnesy was slightly less committal, noting "sometimes we don't like each other but we always love each other". Ian Moss talked of the "highs and lows" of the past, and Don Walker noted hopefully that "the bad mutual history tends to fade".
Years of fights, sudden departures, drunkenness, missing band members, financial problems, and general dramas have taken a toll, yet all seem open to ensuring the tour is a success, and more than that, they actually want to enjoy the experience.
The tour itself covers more than 25 individual shows in Australia and New Zealand, with an expectation that more will be announced, given the huge interest in seeing the boys.
Cold Chisel - image © Gaby Barns
The music itself has literally woven its way into peoples' lives, remembering concerts where they saw the Chisels, specific events or certain periods of their lives (the latter is certainly the case for me, with the Chisels being a feature of my university years).
Tonight the Chisels played Gold Coast Convention Centre, and while I imagine seeing them in a small, crowded pub is best-suited to their music, I can't wait for the show to begin.
First thing I noticed is the boys have aged very well, and they each carried a strong and unmistakable stage presence. They came out onto the stunningly-lit stage as individual silhouettes, and launched straight into the song they have used for so many years to open, 'Standing On The Outside'.
'Letter To Alan' is one of the lesser-known hits off 1982's 'Circus Animals', but is an absolute belter; admittedly not the most joyous lyrics, but Walker's piano introduction was sublime.
Barnesy, despite the health issues, was looking in prime condition, and was at times leaning up against Moss, as they have done for so many years, really giving the impression of a strong affection between the two.
Cold Chisel - image © Gaby Barns
'Letter To Alan' was a wild, early-set piece and really had the capacity audience confident the band would be at their very best! The much slower 'Four Walls' followed, one of the few ballads of the evening.
Barnsey was shortly using some very fruity language at the crowd, who were by now fully engaged, and launched into what he surprisingly indicated was one of his Chisel favourites, 'Mr. Crown Prosecutor'.
'You've Got To Move' was up next, the only new song on their 2024 #1 album, '50 Years - The Best Of'. As so often happens on the Chisels' catalogue, Mossy introduced the piece in great voice, joined by the wailing Barnsey as the song progresses.
They have made this such a great effect over the years; Mossy's voice hasn't lost any of its clarity or smoothness, and Barnsey's sounded as good as ever, occasionally winding up in a different key, but that has never held back their music and probably added to the overall effect!
Jimmy briefly talked about their infamous tour of the US, joking the only good thing that came of it was writing the next song: 'You Got Nothing I Want'. 'Cheap Wine' had the audience in full voice, of course knowing every single lyric (each having a meaning to people's lives, so many years ago).
Andy Bickers joined onstage with a massive baritone saxophone for 'Rising Sun', and a sax solo was the feature of 'My Baby', again with Mossy singing lead, and Jimmy lurking in the shadows at the back of the stage, chipping in small vocal pieces as required.
'All For You' followed, reportedly the last song recorded by the band before original drummer Steve Prestwich passed away, and it was beautiful, with a spotlight on each of Barnsey and Don Walker.
'Wild Colonial Boy' is not one of their best-known songs, but Charley Drayton was great on this piece, perfectly playing the constant drum lick, standing out as the only band member not wearing all black.
Cold Chisel - image © Gaby Barns
A brief interlude followed, where only Mossy, Walker and Bickers remained onstage, playing the beautiful cover of 'Georgia On My Mind'. The Chisels' original live version is quite incredible; tonight I felt Mossy was a little less explosive on the guitar, but his voice was the feature, and was perfect.
'Merry-Go-Round' followed, and the standout was again Drayton. In a recent interview ahed of the tour, the boys noted this had been a difficulty for Charley in replacing Steve, knowing when the band would speed up or slow down the pieces relative to the recorded versions, but Charley drove this perfectly, as he did in the show finale.
'Shipping Steel' was one where Barnesy was really able to let loose, and I could hear his scream at various points – ten rows back from the stage – without the magnification of the sound system.
Barnesy then talked about a dream he'd had when the band had agreed so readily to touring again, where Steve Prestwich appeared to him, and he just wanted to savour the moment; the band launched into the lovely 'Flame Trees', penned by Steve.
'Khe Sanh' followed and the crowd was out of their seats by now, before an absolute highlight, 'Bow River', which Mossy was completely warmed up on the guitar; I really felt his playing improved through the evening, and this run of three consecutive classics – from 'Flame Trees' through to 'Bow River' – was probably the greatest crowd-pleasing moment for the evening (prior to the encores, that is!).
The first encore was led by one of the finest songs of the evening, 'Saturday Night'. So much of their music is quintessentially Australian, perhaps highlighting the difficulty of translating their music for an American audience.
Mossy again introduced the lyrics perfectly, but there was a palpable anticipation for the spot where Barnesy joins in. This was probably one of my two or three favourites for the evening, really displaying the Cold Chisel energy at its best.
As always, there was a stunning reggae effect to the opening chops and keyboards for 'Breakfast At Sweethearts', before 'Forever Now' and another standout of the evening, 'Painted Doll'.
Cold Chisel - image © Gaby Barns
Returning for a second encore, Barnesy noted how fabulous it was to be playing tonight, and it felt like he really meant it; there were smiles all round, and the band seemed genuinely pleased to be playing together.
'When The War Is Over' was yet another stunning example of Mossy's clear vocals, leading into Barnesy's wild parts. 'Choir Girl' again featured huge grins for Mossy and Barnesy, and the wild wind-up – as usual – was 'Goodbye (Astrid, Goodbye)', which turned into a bit of a jam. At one point during the song, the audience could see Don Walker yelling at Barnesy during his singing of the chorus; it was apparent he was indicating he was about to play a solo piece.
On the evening, it was great to see Charley Drayton, who has stepped into Steve Prestwich's boots. The four other members have talked very fondly of Drayton, his abilities, and how well he has fit into the role.
A review online of who he has played and collaborated with is a complete who's who of modern music. He is one of the rare Americans who have built a significant place in Australian music history through the decade-plus experience of playing with the Chisels.
Warming the crowd up for the Chisels was Karen Lee Andrews, who formerly went under the stage name Ms Murphy. She came to fame as a finalist in 'The Voice' in 2013, not the source of a lot of music to which I listen, but she was fantastic.
Appearing as a trio, Andrews played a great 30-minute set, in which she showed her musical dexterity, playing guitar and singing, more than just simple music. She has a rich voice, and a couple of times I picked up hints of Chaka Khan in her voice, although with less power.
Karen Lee Andrews - image © Gaby Barns
From her set, I thought the picks were the very bluesy introduction, the second song 'Digging Up Graves', and the wind up, 'I'm Yours', released only last week and produced by Jimmy Barnes' son-in-law, Ben Rogers.
Andrews was obviously very appreciative of touring with the Chisels, and made the humorous point that she was so nervous on the first evening of the tour, she wound up her set five minutes early, such was the accelerated pace of her playing.
More photos from the concert.
