National music treasure Paul Kelly unveils new collection of love songs on Fever Longing Still

Paul Kelly shares why love songs are his thing after almost 50 years as one of Australia’s finest songwriters and performers.

Paul Kelly conjures entire worlds of lovers and exes, families and foes within the space of a three minute love song.

He’s been writing them for almost 50 years; love songs are his thing, from Leaps and Bounds capturing his affection for Melbourne to Deeper Water and its lifetime of intimacy.

“I’ve always wanted to write all kinds of love songs. I think 90 per cent of pop songwriting would be love songs, I think, maybe more,” he says.

“I noticed my songs started to get crowded, they would have more than two people, so they weren’t just about the two peoplein love.

“Other people snuck in, which is just how it is in life. When you’re with someone, they have exes, they have siblings, they have parents, they might have children.”

Paul Kelly launches Fever Longing Still at the Espy this week. Picture: Tony Gough

Megan Washington calls those sonic worlds the KellyVerse.

The producer and co-writer of the upcoming Binge film How To Make Gravy has become well versed herself in the lore of Kelly songs and his profound and enduring influence on the Australian cultural landscape.

“Here comes the KellyVerse, all the films that could be based on Paul Kelly songs … To Her door, Deeper Water; the KellyVerse is very rich and interconnected. There are just so many Easter eggs to find in his songs,” she says.

Kelly’s music has educated Australia about its history and its heart. He has immortalised its heroes, like sports legends Don Bradman and Eddie Betts and First Nations leader Vincent Lingari, and villains like Ned Kelly, in song. He has captured the character of our cities and suburbs from Adelaide to St Kilda and Kings Cross.

The KellyVerse is set for another Big Bang moment with a new record, the biggest Australian tour of his five decades long career and the feature film inspired by his beloved carol about a prisoner Joe writing a letter to his family about missing Christmas.

Ahead of soundcheck for an intimate gig at Melbourne’s hallowed rock nursery The Espy earlier this week, the 69-year-old writer and performer reckons he has recorded about 400 songs.

With an average song length under four minutes, we calculate if someone was to fall down the rabbit hole of his entire repertoire, it would take them about 25 hours.

He’s just added another 12 tracks to his enviable catalogue with his 29th studio album Fever Longing Still, plucked from his “odd socks drawer” of songs waiting to be shared with the world.

Kelly plucks new songs from his “odd socks drawer”. Picture: Joe Brennan

“I was talking to guys who worked with Slim Dusty – he made 100 plus records – and every time he would come into the studio, the first thing he would say is ‘What offcuts do we have? Let’s have a listen to the offcuts.’ They were the songs from the last recording session,” Kelly says.

“You don’t waste stuff. If the offcuts are any good, you find a way to use them.”

Even with those 400 odd love songs behind him, Kelly doesn’t romanticise their creation. He says they come slowly to him, his works springing from “boredom” rather than genius or experience.

“Songwriting is you bore yourself until something happens; well, it is for me,” he says.

“I’m not that fluent as a musician, I don’t have a great range in how I play so I get sick of my own habits.

“It’s just playing until something happens; and most of the time nothing happens.”

Kelly and his gang about to take the stage at the Espy. Picture: Tony Gough

The magic happens in the studio. Kelly is old school in that he likes to record live, surrounded by the musicians who have played with him for decades now.

The oldest serving member of the Kelly gang is drummer Pete Luscombe who has a tenure of more than 30 years. Bassist Bill McDonald and nephew Dan Kelly have flanked him on stage for more than two decades while guitarist Ash Naylor and keyboardist Cameron Bruce are the “newbies” with almost 20 years in the band.

Vika and Linda Bull are a constant presence on backing vocals and duets while Jess Hitchcock is the latest singer to join the ranks, blowing minds with her powerful, soulful voice on Every Day My Mother’s Voice at the Espy gig last week.

Kelly “treated” his players to a working holiday in New Zealand for one of the Fever Longing Still recording sessions at Roundhouse Studios, owned by his mate Neil Finn.

He says the band is a “living, breathing encyclopaedia of 20th and 21st century music.”

Kelly flanked by Dan Kelly and Jess Hitchcock at his album launch. Picture: Tony Gough

“They’re all voracious listeners of everything, new music, old music, so I can throw anything at them and they bring all the colours,” he says.

“We just don’t get sick of being with each other, we still find each other funny. I can’t believe it, being able to travel around with a group of people and most of the time it’s just kicking back and having a laugh.”

Kelly and his gang will embark on the biggest tour of Australia’s arenas next year. It’s not like they haven’t played those big gigs before – Kelly has opened for both Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen tours on those significant stages.

And if anyone is going to make those cavernous spaces feel like an intimate loungeroom gig, it’s him.

“I know it can be done,” he says. “I’ve seen Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan do it, so …”

As Fever Longing Still enters the world, Kelly is already thinking about the next one. He says half of the songs for his 30th record are already stored in the odd socks drawer. But he reckons he’s “slowing down” on his creative output.

“There’s the possibility it all might stop; I think I’m slowing down (writing) and it might just stop one day,” he said.

“And I’m OK with that; there’s enough songs in the world.”

Fever Longing Still is out now. Tickets are now on sale for his 2025 arena tour via https://www.frontiertouring.com/paulkelly

How To Make Gravy screens on Binge from December 1.

Originally published as National music treasure Paul Kelly unveils new collection of love songs on Fever Longing Still