Sunday, May 5, 2013
Review of 'Thirty'
The review of Anthony Callea's latest top 20 album 'Thirty' published in the 5/5/13 edition of The Herald Sun...
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Anthony Callea - auspOp interview
INTERVIEW : Anthony Callea
Friday, April 26, 2013 -auspOp
Friday, April 26, 2013 -auspOp
Though his name might have been known throughout most of Australia only for the past nine years, the career of Melbourne singer songwriter Anthony Callea began long before he burst onto our screens via 'Australian Idol'.
He's done the hard yards - through singing schools and talent competitions, a record deal with Sony, songwriting, independent releases, musicals... and all before his 30th birthday back in December.
To celebrate the milestone, Anthony today releases 'Thirty' - a tribute to the songs and the performers who have inspired him across the past three decades. Naturally, we couldn't let such a momentous occasion slip without having a natter with the singer on the eve of its release. Anthony begins by telling us how the album came to be.
"It was an idea that I came up with last year and I basically wanted to do something that celebrated turning 30," he says. "I wanted to put an album together, but I didn’t want to try and remake certain songs, but to pay homage to the artists, the music and the lyrics that have inspired me over the last 30 years.
"A lot of these songs I’ve sung in a live environment, but I’ve never actually recorded. I wanted to have the opportunity to record them, call the album ‘Thirty’ and then put a couple of originals on it too. The new songs have been sitting in my iTunes folder for years and I’ve just been waiting for the right time to have them part of a body of work that I’m really proud of," he tells us.
'Thirty' sees Anthony forging a new relationship with the ABC label, part of the wider Universal Music conglomerate. He tells us he couldn't be happier with how the team there has embraced both his ideas and his music.
"I remember walking into ABC and told them my idea. I wanted to work with James Kempster. I’ve known him for nine years and we have a really good working relationship, so I wanted him to put this album together. I brought all my ideas to the table and they’ve just really embraced them all. It’s really bizarre to be in a situation where I don’t have to fight for anything. It's a really beautiful thing and I’m touching wood right now because I don’t want to jinx myself," Anthony says.
As mentioned earlier, Anthony's 30 years have been peppered with incredible achievements, awards and accolades. But with so many highlights, the singer struggles to choose just one that outshines all others.
"I don’t know if there’s one in particular," Anthony admits. "There are certain times in your life that you look back on as totally surreal and that you’ll remember forever. One of those was when I got to meet Whitney and Celine. That was just like… 'Hello!'. Then obviously winning an ARIA. As a kid, I used to watch the ARIAs all the time and all I wanted was to be there in the audience. To win one was pretty cool.
"And I suppose a highlight for me is being able to wake up every day and call myself a singer. When you go to the airport and you have to fill in the paper work, in the job description I put ‘singer’. And that for me, nine to ten years down the track after 'Idol' is a really beautiful thing. To be able to do what you love and not have to get a nine to five job just yet... Not many people can say that and I’m pretty fortunate to be able to say I can, so… I love it."
However, when it turns to a list of the artists who've inspired him across the past three decades, Anthony's quick to name names.
"There’s Rick Price, John Farnham, Jack Jones, Tina Arena… all those singers have influenced me growing up. I suppose it came from my parents as well, because that’s what we used to listen to. I wanted to sound like a cross between Rick Price and Jack Jones. I just loved their voices. I remember going to John Farnham and Tina Arena concerts as a kid and I was just in awe of what they were doing. I loved their music. I love a real singer. And those four people that I’ve just mentioned can sing the 'Yellow Pages' and make them sound brilliant."
Imagine the excitement in the Callea household, then, when Tina asked him to be part of her most recent Australian concert tours.
"It’s pretty cool when your phone rings and it’s Tina on the other end asking you to join her on her concert tour to sing a couple of duets," he enthuses. "We had so much fun on that tour. It was cool to be able to hang out with her and talk shit really. You know, wake up in Brisbane and go and have a coffee that ends up being a four hour coffee and a glass of wine before looking at each other and saying ‘should we go and do sound check?’."
'Thirty' diverts in a slightly different musical direction to Anthony's previous releases - the dance/pop 'Oh Oh Oh Oh' and 'Last To Go' EP - and finds the singer back in more familiar territory for his longer-term fans. Anthony explains the progression of his work.
"When I put that EP together, I was having such a great time in LA that I wasn’t going to put any restrictions on me – and that’s what came naturally musically," he tells us. "I was going out, having fun, doing stupid things – and I brought that into my music. Lyrically and melodically, that’s where I was at that moment. And I loved that EP and loved putting it together.
"But then it got to the middle of last year where I decided to do something that encapsulated the past 30 years of my life. I’m really proud of this album. The reaction has been great – I was so stoked to read the comments on the iTunes pre-order. It’s pretty cool that nine years down the track, people still care."
Perhaps one of the more intriguing inclusions on the new album is Anthony's cover of Will Young's altogether brilliant single 'Leave Right Now'... a former 'Idol' star covering a former 'Idol' star. But despite the obvious connection, Anthony tell us that when it came to the song, he was completely none the wiser.
"I’d never heard it before. True story," Anthony admits. "I could give you a made-up backstory about it, but I’m not going to lie. I was walking through Caesar’s Palace in Vegas and it came over the speakers. I stood there, I didn’t move. I tried to get my 'Shazam' working, but it wasn’t because I didn’t have wi-fi, so I tried to remember the lyrics in my head. I ran back to my room, Googled it and it came up with that song. I had it on repeat for the rest of the night.
"Not that I’ve been in that situation personally, but I just loved the whole premise of 'Leave Right Now', the honesty of the lyric and that it wasn’t an ‘I love you, you love me’ scenario. It was ridiculously complex. When I was recording that, James said to me that it felt like the song, where it sits in my voice, was basically written for me melodically. It’s just a great song to sing. It’s so honest and raw. Sometimes a song just hits you."
Thirty' also contains two original songs - 'My All' and 'I'll Be The One'. Anthony reveals that each of the tracks has been in his collection for a number of years, but were just waiting for the right project to be set free.
"These two songs mean a lot to me and I didn’t want them to be overlooked, so having them part of this album is really cool," he says. "‘My All’ is a song about giving love a second chance. Someone coming into your life and giving you a second chance at love. I remember being in James’ studio up in the bush and his wife came up with a bottle of champagne and a cheese platter and that’s how we wrote the song. Sitting there on the balcony.
"And ‘I’ll Be The One’ I did with Adam Reilly. I wrote that song straight after my second album. Basically it's honing in on those dark moments that hopefully not everyone goes through, but a lot of us do at one time or another. I didn’t want it to be a dark lyric, but a lyric that comes from a dark place but with a positive spin on it. It’s basically saying that there’s always going to be a person on the other end that you can rely on and talk to. It’s Tim’s favourite song on the album. He said, ‘I like that song because it’s basically just you. You and piano and no bells and whistles’."
There are a couple of Italian-language tracks, which Anthony hopes will appease his grandparents, who "keep telling me I need to record in Italian every time I go there for dinner" and a guest vocal by an artist who he clearly holds in extraordinarily high regard.
"If there’s one person that I’ve known since the age of 14 and nine months, or perhaps 15… that’s Susie Ahern. I love her dearly and she has one of the most phenomenal female voices in the country and I love it that every time we do a gig, she’s on stage with me. She’s just been so nurturing towards me over the years and has helped me out so much and I wanted her part of this album. I asked her to do the duet (Heart's 'Alone') with me and thankfully she said ‘yes’. She sounds shit hot on that track. Sometimes I put it on just to get inspired, because I love listening to her."
As for the next 30 years, Anthony's kicking it off by launching into a series of instore appearances (starting tomorrow in Melbourne), along with a number of live shows across the East Coast.
"To be honest, I can’t wait to get this album out and perform it live," he tells us. "You can stick me in a studio for however long, but after a while I start to go a little crazy and I need to get out of there and actually sing live. I suppose there have been moments, especially over the last few years, that you actually think it’s all a bit too much and too hard. But you walk out onto a stage and you have the audience in front of you and you remember what you’re doing it for."
And beyond the shows? According to a bio on his management's website earlier this year, there were to be two Anthony Callea album releases throughout 2013. Since then, that information has been changed. We dig a little deeper to get the dirt.
"Concentrating on ‘Thirty’ at the moment. But I have an idea up my sleeve. But I’m not giving it away just yet," he hints. "So let’s just see how ‘Thirty’ goes first. I don’t want anyone to take my idea." So there could be some truth to the rumour of a second Anthony Callea album this year? "Could," he teases.
And as for the next 30 years?
"In 30 years from now? At the rate it’s going… I’ll look like Joan Rivers," he explodes with laughter. "Who knows what’s going to be happening in 30 years!? I’d be happy to at least last that long. Seriously. If I got to 60 I’d be very happy. It’s good to aspire to have goals and so forth, but I just don’t think you should get so hung up on those goals and aspirations. Enjoy the moment you’re in, because who knows what’s going to happen."
Anthony's new album 'Thirty' is available digitally and physically from today.
Anthony will hit retailers around the country for in-store appearances (dates below).
Tickets for the 'Thirty' album tour (dates below) are on sale now.
INSTORE APPEARANCES
April 27 @ 1:00pm : Westfield Knox
May 02 @ 5:30pm : Westfield Liverpool
May 04 @ 1:00pm : Castle Towers
May 09 @ 5:00pm : Queen Street Mall
May 11 @ 1:00pm : Westfield Marion
May 15 @ 7:00pm : Chadstone Shopping Centre
'THIRTY' ALBUM TOUR
July 13 : Melbourne (The Palms At Crown)
July 26 : Bankstown (Sports Club)
July 27 : Dee Why (Dee Why RSL)
August 02 : South Sydney (South Sydney Juniors)
August 03 : Newcastle (Belmont 16 Footers)
August 09 : Brisbane (Broncos Leagues Club)
August 10 : Tweed Heads (Twin Towns)
He's done the hard yards - through singing schools and talent competitions, a record deal with Sony, songwriting, independent releases, musicals... and all before his 30th birthday back in December.
To celebrate the milestone, Anthony today releases 'Thirty' - a tribute to the songs and the performers who have inspired him across the past three decades. Naturally, we couldn't let such a momentous occasion slip without having a natter with the singer on the eve of its release. Anthony begins by telling us how the album came to be.
"It was an idea that I came up with last year and I basically wanted to do something that celebrated turning 30," he says. "I wanted to put an album together, but I didn’t want to try and remake certain songs, but to pay homage to the artists, the music and the lyrics that have inspired me over the last 30 years.
"A lot of these songs I’ve sung in a live environment, but I’ve never actually recorded. I wanted to have the opportunity to record them, call the album ‘Thirty’ and then put a couple of originals on it too. The new songs have been sitting in my iTunes folder for years and I’ve just been waiting for the right time to have them part of a body of work that I’m really proud of," he tells us.
'Thirty' sees Anthony forging a new relationship with the ABC label, part of the wider Universal Music conglomerate. He tells us he couldn't be happier with how the team there has embraced both his ideas and his music.
"I remember walking into ABC and told them my idea. I wanted to work with James Kempster. I’ve known him for nine years and we have a really good working relationship, so I wanted him to put this album together. I brought all my ideas to the table and they’ve just really embraced them all. It’s really bizarre to be in a situation where I don’t have to fight for anything. It's a really beautiful thing and I’m touching wood right now because I don’t want to jinx myself," Anthony says.
As mentioned earlier, Anthony's 30 years have been peppered with incredible achievements, awards and accolades. But with so many highlights, the singer struggles to choose just one that outshines all others.
"I don’t know if there’s one in particular," Anthony admits. "There are certain times in your life that you look back on as totally surreal and that you’ll remember forever. One of those was when I got to meet Whitney and Celine. That was just like… 'Hello!'. Then obviously winning an ARIA. As a kid, I used to watch the ARIAs all the time and all I wanted was to be there in the audience. To win one was pretty cool.
"And I suppose a highlight for me is being able to wake up every day and call myself a singer. When you go to the airport and you have to fill in the paper work, in the job description I put ‘singer’. And that for me, nine to ten years down the track after 'Idol' is a really beautiful thing. To be able to do what you love and not have to get a nine to five job just yet... Not many people can say that and I’m pretty fortunate to be able to say I can, so… I love it."
However, when it turns to a list of the artists who've inspired him across the past three decades, Anthony's quick to name names.
"There’s Rick Price, John Farnham, Jack Jones, Tina Arena… all those singers have influenced me growing up. I suppose it came from my parents as well, because that’s what we used to listen to. I wanted to sound like a cross between Rick Price and Jack Jones. I just loved their voices. I remember going to John Farnham and Tina Arena concerts as a kid and I was just in awe of what they were doing. I loved their music. I love a real singer. And those four people that I’ve just mentioned can sing the 'Yellow Pages' and make them sound brilliant."
Imagine the excitement in the Callea household, then, when Tina asked him to be part of her most recent Australian concert tours.
"It’s pretty cool when your phone rings and it’s Tina on the other end asking you to join her on her concert tour to sing a couple of duets," he enthuses. "We had so much fun on that tour. It was cool to be able to hang out with her and talk shit really. You know, wake up in Brisbane and go and have a coffee that ends up being a four hour coffee and a glass of wine before looking at each other and saying ‘should we go and do sound check?’."
'Thirty' diverts in a slightly different musical direction to Anthony's previous releases - the dance/pop 'Oh Oh Oh Oh' and 'Last To Go' EP - and finds the singer back in more familiar territory for his longer-term fans. Anthony explains the progression of his work.
"When I put that EP together, I was having such a great time in LA that I wasn’t going to put any restrictions on me – and that’s what came naturally musically," he tells us. "I was going out, having fun, doing stupid things – and I brought that into my music. Lyrically and melodically, that’s where I was at that moment. And I loved that EP and loved putting it together.
"But then it got to the middle of last year where I decided to do something that encapsulated the past 30 years of my life. I’m really proud of this album. The reaction has been great – I was so stoked to read the comments on the iTunes pre-order. It’s pretty cool that nine years down the track, people still care."
Perhaps one of the more intriguing inclusions on the new album is Anthony's cover of Will Young's altogether brilliant single 'Leave Right Now'... a former 'Idol' star covering a former 'Idol' star. But despite the obvious connection, Anthony tell us that when it came to the song, he was completely none the wiser.
"I’d never heard it before. True story," Anthony admits. "I could give you a made-up backstory about it, but I’m not going to lie. I was walking through Caesar’s Palace in Vegas and it came over the speakers. I stood there, I didn’t move. I tried to get my 'Shazam' working, but it wasn’t because I didn’t have wi-fi, so I tried to remember the lyrics in my head. I ran back to my room, Googled it and it came up with that song. I had it on repeat for the rest of the night.
"Not that I’ve been in that situation personally, but I just loved the whole premise of 'Leave Right Now', the honesty of the lyric and that it wasn’t an ‘I love you, you love me’ scenario. It was ridiculously complex. When I was recording that, James said to me that it felt like the song, where it sits in my voice, was basically written for me melodically. It’s just a great song to sing. It’s so honest and raw. Sometimes a song just hits you."
Thirty' also contains two original songs - 'My All' and 'I'll Be The One'. Anthony reveals that each of the tracks has been in his collection for a number of years, but were just waiting for the right project to be set free.
"These two songs mean a lot to me and I didn’t want them to be overlooked, so having them part of this album is really cool," he says. "‘My All’ is a song about giving love a second chance. Someone coming into your life and giving you a second chance at love. I remember being in James’ studio up in the bush and his wife came up with a bottle of champagne and a cheese platter and that’s how we wrote the song. Sitting there on the balcony.
"And ‘I’ll Be The One’ I did with Adam Reilly. I wrote that song straight after my second album. Basically it's honing in on those dark moments that hopefully not everyone goes through, but a lot of us do at one time or another. I didn’t want it to be a dark lyric, but a lyric that comes from a dark place but with a positive spin on it. It’s basically saying that there’s always going to be a person on the other end that you can rely on and talk to. It’s Tim’s favourite song on the album. He said, ‘I like that song because it’s basically just you. You and piano and no bells and whistles’."
There are a couple of Italian-language tracks, which Anthony hopes will appease his grandparents, who "keep telling me I need to record in Italian every time I go there for dinner" and a guest vocal by an artist who he clearly holds in extraordinarily high regard.
"If there’s one person that I’ve known since the age of 14 and nine months, or perhaps 15… that’s Susie Ahern. I love her dearly and she has one of the most phenomenal female voices in the country and I love it that every time we do a gig, she’s on stage with me. She’s just been so nurturing towards me over the years and has helped me out so much and I wanted her part of this album. I asked her to do the duet (Heart's 'Alone') with me and thankfully she said ‘yes’. She sounds shit hot on that track. Sometimes I put it on just to get inspired, because I love listening to her."
As for the next 30 years, Anthony's kicking it off by launching into a series of instore appearances (starting tomorrow in Melbourne), along with a number of live shows across the East Coast.
"To be honest, I can’t wait to get this album out and perform it live," he tells us. "You can stick me in a studio for however long, but after a while I start to go a little crazy and I need to get out of there and actually sing live. I suppose there have been moments, especially over the last few years, that you actually think it’s all a bit too much and too hard. But you walk out onto a stage and you have the audience in front of you and you remember what you’re doing it for."
And beyond the shows? According to a bio on his management's website earlier this year, there were to be two Anthony Callea album releases throughout 2013. Since then, that information has been changed. We dig a little deeper to get the dirt.
"Concentrating on ‘Thirty’ at the moment. But I have an idea up my sleeve. But I’m not giving it away just yet," he hints. "So let’s just see how ‘Thirty’ goes first. I don’t want anyone to take my idea." So there could be some truth to the rumour of a second Anthony Callea album this year? "Could," he teases.
And as for the next 30 years?
"In 30 years from now? At the rate it’s going… I’ll look like Joan Rivers," he explodes with laughter. "Who knows what’s going to be happening in 30 years!? I’d be happy to at least last that long. Seriously. If I got to 60 I’d be very happy. It’s good to aspire to have goals and so forth, but I just don’t think you should get so hung up on those goals and aspirations. Enjoy the moment you’re in, because who knows what’s going to happen."
Anthony's new album 'Thirty' is available digitally and physically from today.
Anthony will hit retailers around the country for in-store appearances (dates below).
Tickets for the 'Thirty' album tour (dates below) are on sale now.
INSTORE APPEARANCES
April 27 @ 1:00pm : Westfield Knox
May 02 @ 5:30pm : Westfield Liverpool
May 04 @ 1:00pm : Castle Towers
May 09 @ 5:00pm : Queen Street Mall
May 11 @ 1:00pm : Westfield Marion
May 15 @ 7:00pm : Chadstone Shopping Centre
'THIRTY' ALBUM TOUR
July 13 : Melbourne (The Palms At Crown)
July 26 : Bankstown (Sports Club)
July 27 : Dee Why (Dee Why RSL)
August 02 : South Sydney (South Sydney Juniors)
August 03 : Newcastle (Belmont 16 Footers)
August 09 : Brisbane (Broncos Leagues Club)
August 10 : Tweed Heads (Twin Towns)
Callea's Prayer Is Answered
Callea's Prayer Is Answered
Suzanne Carbone
The Age
May 2, 2013
Suzanne Carbone
The Age
May 2, 2013
Anthony Callea will have the audience in the palm of his hand during his Thirty concert.
Buying a ticket to see Anthony Callea in concert is like the gift-with-purchase scenario. You not only get his richly timbred voice and wicked laugh but the special guest is his partner, actor and entertainer Tim Campbell.
The baby-faced Australian Idol runner-up from 2004 is all grown up at 30 and has called his third album Thirty to mark his coming of age.
Bursting with effervescence like a glass of chinotto drunk by his Italian compatriots, Callea is pinching himself that he's performing at his favourite showroom, the Palms at Crown, on July 13, with Campbell as his support act. ''To do what we do and integrate it with work, it's a beautiful thing,'' Callea said. He loves the Palms so much that he'll be there on June 8 with friend Ann Peacock to see 1980s bombshell Taylor Dayne.
Blissfully in love with Campbell, his real-life House Husband, and sharing a cosy house equipped with a TV room, Callea entered the gay-marriage debate by saying the duo weren't ready to set a date but believed in the concept as a human-rights issue. ''In a country that you would like to think is progressive and educated, it's a shame that in 2013 it hasn't been legalised. The issue is about equality and having the choice to marry.''
After his tour, Callea will get into Grease mode to play Rydell High School spunk Johnny Casino and is super-excited that he'll be on stage again with Bert Newton as dance-show host Vince Fontaine. In Wicked, Newton, the wizard, and Callea, the munchkin, shared a dressing room with much hilarity. ''Bert is so cheeky. I love him to death.''
Grease has electrified Callea for two reasons: he'll be cavorting with Moonface in several scenes and he has graduated from a munchkin to a heart-throb.
Original Here
Buying a ticket to see Anthony Callea in concert is like the gift-with-purchase scenario. You not only get his richly timbred voice and wicked laugh but the special guest is his partner, actor and entertainer Tim Campbell.
The baby-faced Australian Idol runner-up from 2004 is all grown up at 30 and has called his third album Thirty to mark his coming of age.
Bursting with effervescence like a glass of chinotto drunk by his Italian compatriots, Callea is pinching himself that he's performing at his favourite showroom, the Palms at Crown, on July 13, with Campbell as his support act. ''To do what we do and integrate it with work, it's a beautiful thing,'' Callea said. He loves the Palms so much that he'll be there on June 8 with friend Ann Peacock to see 1980s bombshell Taylor Dayne.
Blissfully in love with Campbell, his real-life House Husband, and sharing a cosy house equipped with a TV room, Callea entered the gay-marriage debate by saying the duo weren't ready to set a date but believed in the concept as a human-rights issue. ''In a country that you would like to think is progressive and educated, it's a shame that in 2013 it hasn't been legalised. The issue is about equality and having the choice to marry.''
After his tour, Callea will get into Grease mode to play Rydell High School spunk Johnny Casino and is super-excited that he'll be on stage again with Bert Newton as dance-show host Vince Fontaine. In Wicked, Newton, the wizard, and Callea, the munchkin, shared a dressing room with much hilarity. ''Bert is so cheeky. I love him to death.''
Grease has electrified Callea for two reasons: he'll be cavorting with Moonface in several scenes and he has graduated from a munchkin to a heart-throb.
Original Here
Callea, Campbell joint interview
Scans of the joint interview with Anthony Callea and Tim Campbell in New Idea Magazine...
click on scans to read in new window
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Anthony Callea has past covered
Cameron Adams
April 24, 2013
TURNING 30 may mean earning a few wrinkles, but for Anthony Callea it also means an awareness that comes with age.
His new album, Thirty, not only celebrates his milestone birthday, but reaching a point where he can make a record on his terms.
It has covers he grew up singing - Oleta Adams' Get Here, Luther Vandross' Dance With My Father, Cheap Trick's The Flame, Backstreet Boys' The Perfect Fan, Will Young's Leave Right Now and Whitney & Mariah's When You Believe.
Throw in a Michael Bolton song and two Italian covers, and it's a major shift from Callea's last release, a dance pop EP.
"I threw the concept of being cool out of the window making this record," Callea says.
"With age, you know your strengths and weaknesses. I didn't set out to make a record that's commercially cool or worry about what people think I should do. I did what I wanted. Yes, there's some ballads on there, and some songs in Italian, but it's not just an album full of The Prayer again; I won't do that again, it's been done."
The album opts for vocal emotion over sonic perfection, as well as live strings.
"People have already said, 'Oh you've left commercial dance pop behind for this', but I don't regret anything," Callea says.
"I paid for that (dance) EP myself. I'm not going to throw thousands of dollars away on something I didn't feel was right. I had to get it out of my system.
"With this album, when you love a song and it means something to you, it's not difficult. There were no rules, no fighting. I wasn't worried about getting songs on radio or which demographic they were for."
Callea has included two originals, My All and I'll Be the One. Both were written four years ago near the start of his relationship with actor and singer Tim Campbell.
"The premise of My All is someone coming into your life and giving love a second chance. The first time I recorded I'll Be the One a few years ago, I played it to Tim and he started crying. When I played him the new version for this album, he bawled as well. I'm not good with emotion. I didn't know what to do. Do I hand him a tissue? I can communicate much better in song than in a conversation. But that's a beautiful sign when someone so close to you has that reaction to a song you wrote."
The video for My All also features a cameo from Campbell, now starring in House Husbands. "I said, 'It's written about you, why can't you be in the clip?'," Callea says. "It's a simple video, it's a really beautiful clip that captures what the song is about. And it's made a few people who've already seen it cry - for the right reasons - and that's the best compliment."
Thirty (ABC/Universal), out tomorrow.
ORIGINAL HERE
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Callea In Concert
THIRTY - LIVE IN CONCERT
Anthony Callea, one of Australia’s finest vocal talents, is thrilled to reveal details of his upcoming headline tour. The ‘THIRTY Live In Concert’ tour will see Anthony take the songs from his new album ‘THIRTY’ to audiences across the East Coast, kicking off July 13 at The Palms at Melbourne’s Crown Casino and continuing through NSW and QLD for seven dates in July and August. To book, see dates and tickeing info below
THIRTY LIVE IN CONCERT Tour Dates & Ticketing Information
Saturday 13 July – The Palms, Crown Casino Melbourne – VIC
www.crownmelbourne.com.au/events 1300 795 012
http://premier.ticke...13#.UXhdwaXA7Gw
Friday 26 July – Bankstown Sports Club – NSW
http://www.bankstownsports.com/page/entertainment.html
02 9722 9888
Saturday 27 July – Dee Why RSL – NSW
http://www.deewhyrsl...nt/ticketed.cfm02 9454 4000
Friday 2 August – South Sydney Juniors – NSW
http://www.thejuniors.com.au/1219103319:861:342:69173245.html
02 9349 7555
Saturday 3 August – Belmont 16 Foot Sailing Club (Newcastle) – NSW
http://www.16s.com.a...39&eventID=183602 4945 0888
Friday 9 August – Broncos Leagues Club – QLD
http://www.broncosleagues.com.au/default.asp?contentID=79007 3858 9000
Saturday 10 August – Twin Towns Resort – QLD
http://www.twintowns...u/showroom.html1800 014 014
Anthony Callea, one of Australia’s finest vocal talents, is thrilled to reveal details of his upcoming headline tour. The ‘THIRTY Live In Concert’ tour will see Anthony take the songs from his new album ‘THIRTY’ to audiences across the East Coast, kicking off July 13 at The Palms at Melbourne’s Crown Casino and continuing through NSW and QLD for seven dates in July and August. To book, see dates and tickeing info below
THIRTY LIVE IN CONCERT Tour Dates & Ticketing Information
Saturday 13 July – The Palms, Crown Casino Melbourne – VIC
www.crownmelbourne.com.au/events 1300 795 012
http://premier.ticke...13#.UXhdwaXA7Gw
Friday 26 July – Bankstown Sports Club – NSW
http://www.bankstownsports.com/page/entertainment.html
02 9722 9888
Saturday 27 July – Dee Why RSL – NSW
http://www.deewhyrsl...nt/ticketed.cfm02 9454 4000
Friday 2 August – South Sydney Juniors – NSW
http://www.thejuniors.com.au/1219103319:861:342:69173245.html
02 9349 7555
Saturday 3 August – Belmont 16 Foot Sailing Club (Newcastle) – NSW
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Saturday, April 20, 2013
Looking Forward - Looking Back
Anthony Callea: Looking Forward, Looking Back
18 April 2013
So, what was it about turning thirty that compelled you to dedicate an album to it? When you reach a certain milestone in your life, I think it’s important to celebrate it and the best way I knew how to celebrate turning thirty [apart from throwing a massive party, which I did…] was to pay homage to the artists, melodies, lyrics and writers that have influenced me in my thirty years. Some of these songs have been part of my musical landscape for years but have all played a part in my life and impacted me in one way or another. There are two songs on this album, which I also have written, one with Adam Riely and the other with James Kempster who I also asked to produce this album for me. These two songs have been with me for a couple of years and have just been waiting for the right time to release them and to be part of a body of work that I am truly proud of. My All, the song I wrote with Kempster, means a great deal to me and I am so happy we got to shoot the clip for it.
Are you somebody who fears getting older? Did the demise of your 20s cause you to reflect, freak out, or land somewhere between the two?
I’m not going to lie, I would say I freaked out for a while there and thought, 'Fuck, does this mean I need to grow up now and be responsible?' but then I realised it’s okay to embrace being 30, well that’s what everyone around me was saying: “they will be the best years of your life” and so far, four months into them, all is good! And let’s face it, I was an early bloomer. I had a mortgage by the age of 22, a car lease by the age of 24 and half a dozen credit cards in my 20s… so it can’t get anymore daunting, can it?
Career-wise you were thrown in the deep-end somewhat with Idol. Being thrust into the public eye so early in your career, what decisions would you have made differently with the benefit of hindsight?
I don’t really have many regrets and if I do, it’s all part of growing up. I wouldn’t change anything, otherwise I wouldn’t know what I know now. I don’t really look back and think, “Wow, I wish I didn’t do that” but definitely being older, wiser, more experienced and having the right people around me now, I do look at things differently and hopefully make more informed decisions. However, I’m sure if you ask me this same question in ten years time, I will say, “Yep, thought I knew what I was doing, but still stuffed up!” Ha!
Personally, what type of music do you listen to at the moment? Does it ever inform what you do professionally?
I don’t let what’s going on around influence me too much musically. I think the biggest mistake you can make is to try and “fit in”. Doing what feels right is what is believable and honest, which in return hopefully speaks to people. Of course music from many genres and artists inspire me, and I tend to listen to an eclectic mix. But once I get behind that mic in a studio, or write a song or even step onto a stage, I’ve learnt to just be me and do what comes naturally.
Cheap Trick's The Flame is an interesting choice for you. What made you arrive at doing that track?
I have loved this song from such a young age and have sung it with my band on many occasions. The melody and lyric is just so strong and honest and has been one of my favourite songs for a very long time. I know people immediately think of me as “the ballad singer”, but mid and up tempo pop/rock has been with me for years. For example, Addicted To You charted well in the past.
How hard is it to write personal material with the knowledge that so many people will be hearing it?
For me, and I suppose for many song writers, sometimes it’s easier to put what you are feeling into music and lyrics rather than just blurt them out. If I thought of people listening to these songs while I was writing them, I would probably freak out so I think the key is, just consume yourself within yourself and go with it - then deal with the freak out later!
Do you recall when you first realised, with Idol, that you were becoming nationally well-known? Was that an odd time for you?
I think it really hits you when you read a full on article about yourself or when that first person stops you in the street…. As a 21 year old, I can honestly say it was overwhelming and at times a bit hard to deal with. Idol was massive back then and the response was too. It did take me a while to adapt.
Were you concerned about backlash within the industry at all, coming from such a show and receiving success early in your career?
Many people have knocked Idol but if it wasn’t for Idol and that platform, I probably wouldn’t be able to do what I do now. I also think it gave a fresh injection for a younger generation to love pop music again. Nine years down the track, I am fortunate enough to do something that I love to do as a job and not many people can say that, so I am forever grateful. Having said that though, the hard work–and I don’t say that lightly–starts when that show finishes and it’s up to you!
Your private life was also dragged into the media when your relationship was made public. Was it hard to work out how to deal with that? Do you try to keep your private life out of the media, or do you accept that it is part of being a public figure?
I understand that it’s somewhat of interest, and I am very comfortable with who I am now. Initially, yes it was difficult as I was still finding myself and it was a process that I and nobody else had to go through. Having said that, I am now very lucky to be able to share my life and what I do with a supportive and loving partner.
So far, how have you found working with ABC Music?
They seem a good match for this record. They have been brilliant and the whole process has been such a team effort. Their support for me, and this project has been overwhelming and I know that Natalie, Laura and the whole team at ABC are just as excited about this album as I am.
Thirty is released April 26 through ABC/UMA
see article on original web page here...
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