An emotional John Farnham wants to help out the farmers with a big Bush Christmas charity show
John Farnham is staging another charity concert to raise money for drought-affected farmers in Australia, with some of our finest musical talents offering their services for free.
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An emotional John Farnham is hoping to raise millions for farmers by staging a charity concert for drought relief.
Hay Mate: A Bush Christmas Appeal will take place at Mornington Racecourse on Sunday December 15, featuring Farnham, Jon Stevens, Daryl Braithwaite, Vanessa Amorosi, The Black Sorrows with Vika and Linda Bull, Russell Morris, John Williamson, Tim Wheatley, All Our Exes Live in Texas and Little Georgia.
Tickets for the event will be $119 and go on sale Friday November 1 at 9am from Ticketmaster. It will also be screened on Channel 9 from 8pm.
“We’ve all seen the footage on the news,” Farnham said. “It’s an emotional time. We’re talking about generations of farmers losing their properties or animals because of drought, and in some cases losing their lives or hurting themselves. We have to try and make a dent in it and throw a lot of money at this thing.”
Farnham and his manager Glenn Wheatley staged a Hay Mate concert in Tamworth last year — their Buy a Bale program has so far distributed $3 million worth of hay to Australian farmers in areas such as Moree, Gunnedah and Tamworth, with Gippsland also in their sights.
“The last concert was in an area that was affected by the drought, so we were asking for money from people who didn’t have enough money to buy food for their cows,” Farnham said. “At least in Melbourne we’re not in such dire straits, it’s one hand helping the other.”
Wheatley has balanced the music business with the hay business in the last year, shipping lucerne from Perth to the eastern states via rail. He also plans to start distributing water.
“I’ve been reduced to tears,” Wheatley said. “When we were in Moree one farmer told me they’ve had to hand feed their cattle porridge and pasta they’d mixed into a paste because there’s nothing else to feed them. They have to keep them standing because if they drop they don’t get up, so they’re feeding them pasta and porridge.
“And these farmers are feeding the animals before they feed themselves. I had a couple who told me it’s been so dry they have a four year old who’s never seen rain in her whole life. I love the Government sentiment to help the farmers but 2020 is too late, these people need it now.”
For Farnham, the concert is a way to give back to the regional areas he’s been touring over his career.
“The more we do the better. The farmers are not going out to buy a Mercedes Benz with this money, they’re buying bloody bales of hay. Glenn was telling me about how these grown men with gnarly old hands were sobbing in front of him when they were getting this hay and saying ‘Thank you, I’m going to be able to feed my animals today’. It really is a great cause, I just truly wish we didn’t have to do it.”
Animal lover Vanessa Amorosi remembers rescuing Clydesdales from sale yards during a previous drought in Victoria.
“They were super-skinny and feed was crazy expensive. I was going through a bale and a half of hay a day, I had about 15 Clydesdales and a few ex-racehorses. The cost of hay was insane, it was very expensive, So I totally understand the situation they are going through, it’s heartbreaking and so stressful. What do you do when you’ve got animals who depend on you and they’re screaming for something you can’t get them? That’s when it really hits home.”
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For Daryl Braithwaite, performing at the concert was a no-brainer — all acts have waived their fees
“We all know the farmers are doing it tough, and as musicians we have the chance to do something like this to try and raise some money and really try and help them out.”