Veteran entertainer Austen Tayshus not slowing down ahead of Toowoomba show, marking nearly 40 years in comedy

The legend of Australian comedy and performer of hit single Australiana is coming to Toowoomba early next year, and he lifts the lid on what audiences can expect.

Comedian Austen Tayshus.

After being cooped up at home for much of this year, Austen Tayshus is excited about 2021.

Not just because he’s coming back to Toowoomba for the first time in an eon, but also because he’ll be celebrating nearly 40 years in the entertainment industry.

The veteran comedian, who opened for the likes of Cold Chisel and INXS, had one of best-selling Australian singles of all time and was arrested several times for “obscenity” during his career, still feels his act resonates with audiences four decades on.

Not that everyone can sometimes get the irony or subtext of some of his humour, he admits.

“(The new show) is about what’s going on in the world right now, it’s about this very unusual year, (and) it’s about politics and intolerance,” Austen, real name Sandy Gutman, explained.

“It’s about everything that’s happening to us, and it’s up to date.

“I think it’s pretty funny too.”

Austen, the son of Jewish immigrants and whose father was a Holocaust survivor, is no stranger to including controversial elements in his act.

He demonstrates an Aboriginal character that is part of his routine over the phone, while explaining the joke’s context as part of a wider commentary on the genocide and persecution committed by Europeans on this country’s First Nations people.

“The point of it was the white men came in and stole their land,” Austen said.

“I know what it is to be persecuted, so I know what it’s like and I don’t like it and I try to bring people’s attention to that.

“Anti-semitism is rampant across the world, and it’s not viewed as racism at the moment.

“I try to point out with irony all these issues, and (with a) social consciousness — (sometimes) they just didn’t understand my motivation.

“That’s the problem with irony, because some people take it at face value.”

Austen’s career began in the pubs and clubs of the 1980s, and after scoring a massive hit single in 1983 with the spoken-word classic Australiana, he quickly found himself as the opening act for some of the country’s biggest bands.

It was there where he said he forged his confrontational onstage persona, all while focusing of the abuse of institutional power and racism.

“At the beginning, I was doing five pubs in the one night — I was a rock and roll entertainer then, I would do the warm-up at a giant pub, and I’d introduce the band, so I learnt very quickly how to stay alive,” he said.

“I was the host for two years in a row at the Narara Music Festival, and there were all these big Australian bands — I was basically the host and warm-up act.

“I’ve done shows with Mental as Anything, INXS. One time I was in between Barnsey (Jimmy Barnes) and Farnsey (John Farnham) on the bill.

“(At shows) people were throwing s--- and screaming at each other and at you, but it was a fun time.

“When I do a lot of these RSL clubs, the audience is completely s----faced, so you have to grab their attention somehow.”

Ahead of his shows in Toowoomba next month, which are part of a run of shows to commemorate the 39th anniversary of his National Australiana Tour, Austen said there was no getting away from the single that put him on the map.

“I always do Australiana – that’s the crowd favourite, but I have made 20 records,” he said. “I’ve just covered a lot of topics, so Australiana has been a gift to me, but there’s a lot more to my show than that.”

Austen said he also plans to launch a new podcast soon showcasing people involved in the creative arts, and a documentary on his career will also be released in the middle of next year.

Austen Tayshus will perform two shows at Bar Wunder in Toowoomba on January 16.

For tickets, head to the TryBooking website.

You can follow him on Facebook and on his own website.