When Cold Chisel share their songwriting secrets, you listen closely.
In the latest episode of ‘Behind The Rolling Stone Cover’, sponsored by Shure, Rolling Stone AU/NZ Editor-in-Chief Poppy Reid sat down with Cold Chisel’s members – Jimmy Barnes, Ian Moss, Don Walker, and Phil Small – to look back at their Rolling Stone 2011 cover and share their thoughts on their last five decades.
During the episode, the four Aussie music legends reflected on what makes a great song and the stories behind their best hits.
Over the years, the pub-rock band have become known for massive hits like “Khe Sanh”, “Flame Trees”, and “Cheap Wine”. It’s safe to say, then, these guys know how to write a great song. In fact, they’re the only Australian band where every single member has written a hit.
According to Walker, the band’s lead songwriter, the key is having fun. “I’ll only be working on a song if I’m really enjoying it. That’s the whole point,” he told Reid.
“If you get me in the three weeks after I finished a song [and] I think it’s great, I could say then ‘that is a good song.’ But if you ask me about the same song six months later, I’d say, ‘Well, I don’t know, it’s a bit of a dog.’
“That’s everybody’s experience of songs. How many times have you heard a song? You think it’s the greatest song you’ve ever heard. And then three months later you’re thoroughly sick of it.”
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For Barnes, the best songs are ones that connect personally with the audience. “A good song is a song that, while I’m singing it, it feels like it’s my experience, I could connect to it. I think this is the same whether it’s Van Morrison or Metallica or whatever,” he said.
Elsewhere in the episode, Cold Chisel told Reid about Barnes’ emergency open heart surgery in 2023, the friendship formed through decades of performing together, and the devastation they felt when founding member Steve Prestwich suddenly passed away in 2011.
Cold Chisel are hitting the road for a special 50th anniversary later this year. The first 16 shows quickly sold out, but luckily the legendary rock band swiftly added six new dates, including first shows in Canberra and the Hunter Valley.
“We were completely blown away by the response,” Barnes said. “The demand for tickets was bigger than anything we’ve ever seen before.”
‘Behind The Rolling Stone Cover’ is sponsored by Shure, affordable, durable, and exceptional-sounding microphones you can rely on. Available to watch and listen on Rolling Stone AU/NZ, and to stream on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major podcast platforms.
