Russell Morris to draw the final curtain – it’s a real thing!
After a lifetime of touring, Aussie music legend Russell Morris is calling ‘time’ on touring, but not before one last lap around the country.
The great Australian singer-songwriter Russell Morris has decided it’s time to draw stumps on his life as a touring musician. With thousands of gigs under his belt, Morris has opted to have one final lap around the country and go out on top.
The artist first entered the public consciousness in 1966 as an 18-year-old fronting Melbourne outfit Somebody’s Image. The band had a hit with a cover of Joe South’s Hush. Shortly afterwards Morris embarked on a career as a solo artist.
Then, Morris was almost at the finish line for a diploma in economics and accountancy, but found the allure of live music too powerful to resist. Opting out of his then student life, Morris took to performing like a duck to water.
“My friends asked me to join their band for the Christmas break,” Morris, who turns 77 in July, explains on the line from the Gold Coast. “I had always loved music but never thought of it as a career. I ended up spending more time with the band and, ultimately, I told my parents that I needed to pursue this path.”
Becoming one of the biggest live draws in the country, Morris’ hits included Sweet Sweet Love, Wings of an Eagle and his signature tune, The Real Thing.
His reputation was further buoyed with his famed blues trilogy that began with the release of Sharkmouth in 2012 and went on to include the albums Van Diemen’s Land (2014) and Red Dirt – Red Heart (2015). (His Ghosts & Legends: The Complete Blues Trilogy was ultimately released in 2017.)
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Not surprisingly, when he hangs up his touring boots – he plays Adelaide’s Festival Theatre on August 3 and Brisbane’s QPAC Concert Hall on August 22 – Morris won’t be going back to finish that diploma he started in the mid-1960s.
Today he’s more concerned about the current state of the music business than tax returns. In particular, Morris, laments the decline of physical record stores, which he likens to “dinosaurs” in the wake of streaming’s dominance.
“These days, it feels like the music business has been devastated,” he believes. “Streaming is biased toward a younger audience, and while I may still get a decent amount of hits, it’s just not the same.
“The fish rots from the head down,” he continues, comparing his decision to withdraw from the touring circuit to that odd yet relatable feeling one gets when guests overstay their welcome.
“I don’t want to be that artist who is everywhere all the time. It takes away the specialness of the event. It’s great to have a loyal audience, but too much of a good thing can become tedious.”
Morris’s willingness to take risks and evolve creatively has defined his career. He recounts the initial resistance he faced when testing the waters for his blues trilogy: “Every record company in Australia turned it down, except for one.”
‘I’m looking forward to … tapping into new creative ideas without the pressure of deadlines or performances’
He pressed a limited run of 500 copies at his own expense, driven by an unwavering belief in his vision.
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“I stood firmly behind my roots. It wasn’t about imitating blues legends. It was about embracing my own narrative and identity. I’m from Melbourne, not the Delta.”
Once he’s had time to unpack his gig bag for the final time, Morris will return to one of his greatest loves, song writing.
“I’ll probably sit and do nothing for a while, but I’ll definitely explore and try to create different textures. I’m looking forward to spending more time with friends and family and tapping into new creative ideas without the pressure of deadlines or performances.
“‘I’ll just probably write songs for the pure pleasure of it and maybe record an album, but I won’t tour or anything like that. This is just a new chapter. Music will always be a part of my life.”
A music fan first, Morris seems to derive as much joy from listening to other artists’ work as he does in creating his own.
“Oh, I love everything,” he says of his eclectic taste. “I can listen to Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra all night or venture into the realms of Pink Floyd and Oasis. Post Malone or Chris Stapleton. Each style is like traveling to a new country — each brings a unique flavour and emotion.”
Seeing Morris perform for the last time will be pretty special for anyone lucky enough to secure a ticket. It doesn’t matter how many times Morris has played a particular song, whenever he picks up a guitar and there’s an audience, whether it be one person or 3000 people, something unique happens.
“Every time I perform a song, it feels like a dance with a new partner,” he says. “The audience infuses each note with new energy, and even if I’ve played it a thousand times, that moment in time shapes the experience. It’s never monotonous. It’s an evolving conversation between me and the crowd.”
Anyone who saw Morris on his last tour, with a full orchestra in tow, will attest that the man has lost none of his gifts.
“Those shows were incredible,” reflects Morris. “But they also signalled a shift. You see, you can’t perform at that level all the time. I’ve worked every venue across Australia multiple times, and repetition just doesn’t suit me. For me, music is a smorgasbord of different tastes. I want to swim in new waters.
“I’ve done my time in the sun, and I’ve loved it. It feels right to finish while I still feel strong and capable. I’d rather bow out while I’m still performing at my best than continue until the music lacks the vibrancy it once had.”
The Farewell Tour: Russell Morris & His All Star Band kicks off in Bendigo on July 31, playing Adelaide’s Festival Theatre on August 3, Brisbane’s QPAC Concert Hall on August 22 and Tweed Heads’ Twin Towns on August 23.