Nick Cave the rock god gets up close and personal with his fans in unique songs and chat show

Nick Cave has opened up about Russell Crowe’s priceless reaction to the musician’s rejected screenplay for the follow-up to Gladiator, described as the strangest sequel never made.

Nick Cave is a brave man.

This towering force of music and words has embarked on a quest to reignite the “terror” of an unpredictable live experience with his A Conversation with Nick Cave shows in Australia this month.

And it proved to be dramatically unpredictable within the first half hour of his Sydney Opera House performance.

After a couple of songwriting-related questions, a courageous fan stood, took the mic and asked Cave how to beat his heroin addiction.

Having conquered his own addiction in the 1990s, Cave — who could never have imagined himself as some self-help guru — carefully suggested the man try Narcotics Anonymous which had worked for the musician.

Nick Cave in conversation at the Sydney Opera House. Pictures: Supplied/Daniel Boud

For the remainder of the two-hour plus songs and chat show, this fierce rocker stripped away that revered and occasionally menacing persona to share intimate insights not only into his creative process but also the fears and ambitions that drive him.

Perhaps the biggest clue as to why he has undertaken this non-scripted, freewheeling conversation with his ardent admirers, interspersed with truly mesmerising and unique performances of his songs at the piano, came when he was asked about how he was able to find beauty out of the tragedy of his son Arthur’s death in 2015.

Cave shared an emotional and revelatory letter about dealing with grief with fans late last year and he briefly expounded on that from the Concert Hall stage, watched by his wife Susie, by saying he and his family had come to a “deeper understanding of connection.”

Simply, these shows are about the 61-year-old composer and writer seeking connection with fans and connecting them to each other through a shared experience. And it works, even if he fears he wouldn’t because “I don’t know what I am doing.”

Nick Cave revealed a sweetness in his voice. Pictures: Supplied/Daniel Boud

The segues into songs after his answers were seamless. And the solo performances of them, particularly Into My Arms, Love Letter and his cover of Leonard Cohen’s Avalanche, revealed a sweetness to his voice which never comes to the fore when he is growling in front of his band the Bad Seeds in full rock assault mode.

But perhaps the greatest surprise of this show, particularly for those fans who confessed their nervousness before delivering their question, is just how damn funny Nick Cave is. And he smiled a lot during this show.

He bantered easily with the audience when they shouted out interjections. And his story behind the shelving of his script for a Gladiator sequel was pure comedic gold.

Wife Susie was watching the show from the audience. Picture: Dave Bennett/Matchesfashion.com

Russell Crowe approached the writer to have a crack at a sequel screenplay. With most of the leading characters killed off in the original film, Cave imagined a supernatural time-travelling epic which returns Maximus to Earth as Christians are gaining popularity. It was called Christ Killer.

Cave said director Ridley Scott loved it but Hollywood would never make a film called Christ Killer. Crowe’s response was allegedly “no, mate.”

To give you the blow by blow of the gospel according to Cave could be a spoiler for those attending his other performances around the country.

But to do this unique live experience justice, perhaps Cave should consider alternative titles such as An Audience With God, or Life Lessons According to Nick Cave for the rest of the tour. It is so much more than a conversation. It is indeed striking the connection he seeks.

He performs at the Sydney Opera House again on Wednesday and then the Gold Coast’s HOTA on January 11, Brisbane City Hall on January 12, Melbourne Town Hall on January 19 and 20, Adelaide Town Hall on January 22 and Perth Concert Hall on January 23.