Friday, September 11

Illawarra Performing Arts Centre 

For Aussie music icon James Reyne, touring isn't just about playing shows, the screaming fans, the long drives or the late nights - it is a rare chance to watch Australia grow as a country.

"I get to travel to new places all the time, and I've almost watched Australia as it developed from coast to coast and how the people developed with the place too," the former leader of Australian Crawl said.

"To me, it's really interesting, like a sociological adventure. It's fascinating watching the trends in how cities grow and develop. In the outback towns, watching how people are doing it tough, see the towns developing or not developing, industries coming and going. I'm lucky I get to see that first hand."

With endless hours on the road travelling between towns and shows, it's little doubt Reyne has found such a way to occupy his time in the passenger seat. Australian Crawl disbanded in 1986, but Reyne has hardly been idle. Criss-crossing the country on his own, playing his own solo tunes as well as the old faithful Crawl tracks, Reyne's legacy has only grown since the days of the band.

The man with one of the most distinctive - and famously hard to decipher - voices in Aussie rock'n'roll has since delivered 10 solo albums, which have been collected together in The Anthology, a two-disc release released in August.

The big tunes are there: Hammerhead, Motor's Too Fast, Way Out West. However, Reyne's favourite is the second disc, with mostly new, unheard tunes.

"That stuff went a bit unrecognised, radio don't tend to play current stuff by people like me any more," he laughed.

"It's not to say I don't like the hits, but it's good because some people might have not heard the newer stuff."

Up to 50 songs were whittled down to just 35 on the final release.

He does have the luxury of a long, distinguished and celebrated career to look back on and from which to cherrypick the best parts. However, Reyne said he is not one to look too deeply into the past.

"I don't tend to think about the past too much, maybe I'm not sentimental enough.

"I don't necessarily look back at those old songs," he said.

The old songs, however, are what Reyne is best known for. Still touring the nation on his own or with a small band, he plays a smattering of Crawl tracks alongside his own solo work. A recent run of Australian Crawl concerts sold out "in a matter of seconds", he said, but he is always happy to slot in some old hits into a tour of his own.

"These shows for the Anthology release are an hour and a half long, with a good cross-section of stuff," he said.

"We always throw in some Crawl, because people want to hear it.

"I'm lucky people respond well wherever I am."