Comeback Queen
Two years ago she was contemplating retirement. But just as Australia’s pop darling Olivia Newton-John began to think about putting her feet up, she became swept up in a fever of Olivia-mania that has even taken the blonde beauty herself by surprise.
Prompted by her triumphant performance with John Farnham at the Sydney 2000 Olympics, our ‘Livvy’ is enjoying a career revival she never imagined or planned. And the much loved singer is about to put the icing on the cake with her induction into the ARIA Hall of Fame, the launch of a new album, a TV special and a concert tour.
“I’m really having a great time and I’m enjoying performing now more than ever because the pressure’s off and I don’t have to prove myself any more,’ she says humbly.
Sipping iced tea in an Atlanta restaurant, Olivia is in the final stages of a sell-out American tour and preparing for her return to Australia. She’s taking a well-earned break to reflect on her achievements.
‘When I first started out, one critic wrote that I should have been an air hostess, Olivia says, laughing. ‘It’s so silly that I even remember those things. I think it’s quite funny now.’ At 54, Olivia is clearly comfortable in her own skin, and so she should be. With more than 30 hit albums to her credit and a string of awards gracing her mantlepiece, she has proved her early critics wrong.
Ironically, despite performing for the likes of the Pope and Bill Clinton, Olivia admits she still has fears about taking to the stage in her home country.
“I haven’t toured Australia on my own for a very long time. It’s so important to me and I want it to be perfect. Doing The Main Event [with John Farnham and Anthony Warlow) was a big step in getting me back out there and now we’re talking about bringing my show home to tour.”
“I used to be very nervous about being on stage-I was terrified of speaking and terrified of making a mistake. But now I’ve let go of it all, I go out and have a good time. My voice is holding up well and I can make up a whole show of hit songs and for that I am very lucky. It’s a blessing that I’m still going after 38 years and a blessing that people still show up!” she laughs.
Her latest album, 2, is yet another triumph and something of a dream come true. Olivia promised herself after the Olympics she would come back and record with Tina Arena and Vanessa Amorosi, with whom she’d formed friendships during preparations for the opening ceremony. It’s taken two years, but she’s now seeing the realisation of that private promise.
“When I did the Olympics, I shared a dressing room with Tina and Vanessa and I said then I wanted to do a song with them because they’re both so amazing.”
On the duet album, Olivia also pairs up with Savage Garden’s Darren Hayes, Billy Thorpe, Human Nature, David Campbell, Keith Urban and Jimmy Little, and performs Natalie Cole style beyond-the-grave duets with Peter Allen and Johnny O’Keefe.
“There’s so much talent in Australia and I want to show it off to the rest of the world,” Olivia says. “I love doing duets because every person you sing with brings out a different element of you.”
It's a blessing that I'm still going after 38 years
But her first priority is to soak up the moment of achieving her induction into the ARIA Hall of Fame.
“It’s such a big honour, it’s not something I’ve ever thought much about, and I certainly never expected it. I suppose you have to crack 50 to make the grade and I’m well there!” she laughs.
One project we won’t be seeing in the near future is Olivia’s autobiography. She says she shelved plans for the tell-all book, feeling the time wasn’t right for the world to share her most personal secrets.
“I found it really invasive and I thought I was ready but I’m not. Also, I don’t want to tell stories about other people unless they’re good-spirited, so there was a lot I had to leave out and I wasn’t comfortable about it. Maybe I’ll take it up again when I’m older and feel I have something more important to talk about.”
The one side of her life she is happy to talk about is her battle with breast cancer, and particularly the new Olivia Newton-John Healing Centre she is establishing at the Austin Hospital in Melbourne.
“Breast cancer has been a huge part of my life and it’s my way of giving back a little to the people who helped me. I had reservations about naming the centre after myself, but my daughter Chloe said: “If it’s going to help people, why not?” which makes sense.”
“It sounds really trite I know, but these are the things that touch me and make everything worthwhile. There are not many jobs you can do that you enjoy as much now as you did the first day you began. and for that I feel very spoilt. I look at my life and think I’m totally blessed.”
By Sue Smethurst. Main picture: Michelle Day