Adalita On The Give Peace A Chance, The Words Of John Lennon In Concert

To celebrate the words and music of John Lennon and to draw attention to the need for peace in our time, we’ve gathered some of Australia’s most loved musicians to perform some of Lennon’s biggest hits from his solo career and The Beatles. This month five electrifying Australian singer-songwriters — Adalita (Magic Dirt), Diesel, Steve Kilbey (the church), Isabella Manfredi (The Preatures) and Kevin Mitchell (Jebediah/Bob Evans) — join forces to perform the songs that defined a generation. This is more than a tribute. It’s a celebration of Lennon the songwriter, the radical, the dreamer. Backed by an all-star band lead by Ashley Naylor (Even/the church/Paul Kelly), Give Peace a Chance will bring new energy and reverence to Lennon’s most iconic works, from the raw power of Instant Karma! to the intimate heartbreak of Jealous Guy. Adalita talks to Hi Fi Way about the show.

So much happening for yourself, but the Give Peace a Chance concert, you must be really looking forward to the challenge of learning, playing, performing the songs of John Lennon?
Oh, I can’t wait. I’ve been learning the songs all year. Started very early, learning all the lyrics. There’s quite a few numbers I’m on. Everyone’s got a lot to do. I’ve been watching some John Lennon documentaries and things like that. Yeah, I’ve loved John Lennon since I was a kid.

Are the songs a lot harder to learn than they appear at face value?
I’ve done quite a few tribute shows now, and I find John Lennon’s songs the easiest to learn. Something about his lyrics for me, and the way things flow into each other, it’s just so well crafted, and it makes so much sense. He’s got a real knack. It’s been refreshingly easy. Still not easy to memorise lyrics by any artist, really. When you’re doing other people’s songs, that’s really tough no matter who you’re celebrating. But John’s, for some reason, are really sticking with me. It’s been really smooth.

Do you have a favorite album or particular time period for John Lennon?
I like everything, but I really like Mind Games, that era. And I really love Double Fantasy. I think that’s just amazing. That era of his songwriting just had a real clarity, a very sparkly kind of sharpness. It was just a really big step, that record. The Beatles stuff is really cool too, there’s so much to love, and it spans such a long time. But I think the first song I ever heard from John Lennon was Mind Games, actually. I thought, “Whoa, what is that?” That guitar line. Amazing.

So how does the opportunity come about? Do you get tapped on the shoulder like, “You’d be really awesome at this,” or is it more a group idea like, “This would be a really fun project”?
Just a tap on the shoulder. A lot of people say to me, “Oh, I couldn’t do this,” and I feel that too. I’m not good enough to do this. I’m just a rough-around-the-edges rocker from Geelong. I’m not classically trained, I don’t even know how to work out the key of a song. Taught myself guitar, never had singing lessons, and I can sing a little off-key. I have to really concentrate to sing in tune. So, I’m always a bit surprised when I get asked to do these massive shows, huge theatre shows, you’ve got to be on point, you can’t mess up. And that’s me, I mess up all the time! But I work a bit extra hard to polish myself up, and still be me. You just kind of play around with it. Peter Rix approached me and asked. He’s a nice guy, haven’t met him in person yet, but he’s lovely on email. I just want to do a good job for him. Thanks for asking me. And yeah, if you’re going to do a tribute show, John Lennon? Big honor!

There are some massive personalities and elite talent involved. Have you worked with most of them before?
Yeah, pretty much. I haven’t worked with Diesel live, did a little TV thing together. Kev, I’ve worked with many times. Steve Kilbey, we’ve done a couple of tribute shows, like the Bowie one. Izzy, we did a special Oils tribute with Suze DeMarchi at an awards ceremony. That’s the only time I’ve worked with Izzy. I’m such a fan of hers, really looking forward to duetting with her. It’s going to be great. Ash Naylor, I’ve worked with, I love him. The band, I’ll be meeting some new people, though I probably know their faces. I’m terrible with names!

Do the songs gravitate to particular individuals, or do you rock-paper-scissors it out for who gets what? The Lennon playbook is massive with so many possibilities.
Yeah, I’m very go-with-the-flow. Whatever you give me, that’s what I’ll do, and I’ll give it my best. I did want to do Mind Games, but it was already snatched up. I reckon the person doing it will smash it, so that’s cool. I asked to do Dear Prudence, and I’m doing that one definitely. The others, they just surprised me, and I’m happy with the ones I got. There are a couple I’ll need to work extra hard on to remember the lyrics, but they’re all great. I’m stoked with my songs, yeah.

I know you mentioned that you’ve done your own practicing and rehearsals, but has it come together as a big group yet, or is that happening later?
Well, the show’s coming up this week.

Oh, wow!
Yeah. So we’ve all been rehearsing individually, and the band’s been rehearsing too. But we’re coming together very shortly to actually be in the same room with each other and do those rehearsals. I can’t wait, I’m just like, get me in there. We’ve all been working behind the scenes, but now we get to do it together.

Do you get more nervous with these types of shows? Or is it just fun with others?
It’s definitely more fun in a group, it takes the edge off, for sure. I get nervous. It’s a funny business, putting yourself in front of people and performing. But it’s an excitement too. There’s a lot of adrenaline and with these shows in particular, it’s a really big deal. Everything’s really exposed in a theatre. You have to be more expressive to get the message across. You really have to be present. It’s a big space to fill, so there’s definitely expectation and pressure. But there’s something about it, it’s like taking yourself into the lion’s den. You just get thrown out there and have to survive. That’s what I’ll do tonight. It’s fun.

As a group, it must have been difficult to narrow down the set list. There are so many songs you could do. Must be hard to put a full stop and say, “Yep, these are the twenty for the evening?”
Yeah, I reckon it would have been really hard for the producers. I just received the repertoire, and it’s substantial. Of course, there are songs that aren’t on there, you can’t fit everything in. But we’re doing a lot of the classics, and some lesser-known ones too. There are some huge songs in there.

Fast-forwarding a bit, when I heard the new Bleak Squad single last week, I thought, “Holy shit, this is incredible.” Must be great to be doing that project with such a lineup?
Thanks, man. I’m pinching myself. What am I doing with these guys? They’re total pros, smart, awesome, cool. Mick Harvey, Mick Thomas, it feels amazing. Marty just tapped me on the shoulder again and said, “Do you want to do this?” And I was like, “Fuckin’ oath I want to do this.” But we didn’t know how it would go, you just chuck us in a room, and who knows? It was a gamble, but it worked. Suddenly we were making an album, and then suddenly we had a tour. We’re just living in the moment and doing what feels like the next logical step. It’s very natural and it feels really good.

To call that a side project feels like underselling it. It is its own thing. The possibilities seem huge.
Wow, thanks. I’m trying not to think too far ahead, because who knows? But it does feel like it was meant to be. It’s nice to have a platform for songs that might not have had a voice otherwise. I’ve got suitcases of songs that may never see the light of day, and they feel like little entities to me. It’s kind of melancholic that some songs might never be heard. So it’s nice that these ten, or maybe more, will be out there. I hope people enjoy them.

Do you feel a sense of satisfaction being pushed and pulled in different creative directions? Maybe that even feeds back into Magic Dirt?
Totally. Magic Dirt are writing a new record, just throw that in the mix. We started seriously writing again mid to late last year, and we’re deep into it now. I’m rehearsing with the band now. We’ve been working on new material all year. So between that, the Lennon tribute, and Bleak Squad, it’s all happening at once. The Magic Dirt record is super important, and I’m really excited about it. It’s not how I would’ve envisioned my creative life, having lots of things on at once. I usually prefer focusing on one thing. But that’s how it is now. Most musicians wear lots of hats. You have to do your own admin too, it wasn’t like that back in the day. But you roll with it. You don’t question it too much or overthink it. If it feels good, you say yes and work around it. And you’re right, as time goes on, everything starts to complement everything else. If I’m stressed about one thing, jumping into another can help take that pressure away. Then I can come back and look at the first thing with fresh eyes. It’s like an interplay, different layers and angles of interaction. It’s really cool.

I guess as long as you’re not forgetting what gig you’re rocking up at, or what songs you’re meant to be playing.
I know. Where am I? Who are you? What’s this one? Yeah. No, they’re all so different that it’s hard to confuse it!

It’s great to have that level of excitement and to be juggling so many things at once. We look forward to seeing whatever else the year brings for you and hopefully Magic Dirt will be back here in Adelaide. There’s a lot of love for the band here.
I know. There are always the diehards. I’ve noticed that the last few times, very dedicated group of fans.
Oh mate, we absolutely love playing Adelaide. We’ve got a strong connection with all the cities and towns we’ve played over the years, but every place is different. Adelaide has a very special place in our hearts. We’ve got so many cool fans who’ve become good friends. Great bands, great scene, great venues. It’s chill, but it’s got this vibe. I really like going there because I always de-stress. You know, stress levels come down. It’s like, “Ah, Adelaide, cool.” It’s like that. You can just have fun and party a bit. It’s one of those kinds of places and it’s such a lovely city too. It’s nice to drive into through the hills, I love driving to Adelaide. So yeah, we can’t wait to come back. We’ll be back.

Interview By Rob Lyon

Tickets available from givepeaceachance.com.au