John Farnham has been devastated by the sudden death of great mate and legendary Australian music producer Glenn Wheatley, who died of complications from Covid-19 at the age of 74.
Wheatley had masterminded the rise of Farnham, now aged 72, in the early 80s at a time when the singer was struggling to feed his family.
On Wednesday, Farnham’s wife Jillian told Daily Mail Australia her husband was ‘too unwell’ to publicly discuss the grief he was experiencing from the death of Wheatley.
Beside himself: John Farnham is too distraught to address his grief at the loss of his great mate Glenn Wheatley
Distraught: John Farnham’s wife Jillian leaves the family property on Wednesday, while John grieves for his friend and manager Glenn Wheatley
Best mates: John Farnham, pictured in 2002, was best mates with Wheatley (right)
‘He won’t speak to anybody. He’s just beside himself,’ she said from outside the megastar’s Wonga Park compound, northeast of Melbourne.
Farnham’s fans can also rule out seeing the beloved singer hit the stage anytime soon.
Jillian said Farnham had no plans to perform any kind of tribute performance to Wheatley.
Hi son Rob later posted a statement saying the family was ‘heartbroken and lost for words’.
Wheatley, who was the man behind other Australian success stories from Little River Band to Delta Goodrem, died in Melbourne on Tuesday.
It is understood he had contracted Covid-19 over the Christmas period and had been in intensive care over recent weeks.
He leaves behind wife Gaynor Martin, and their three children, Tim, 37, Samantha, 35, and Kara, 35.
Under Wheatley’s guidance, Farnham made a massive comeback in the 1980s, leading to his biggest hit album, the 1986 release, Whispering Jack.
The album went 24-times platinum, selling 1.7 million copies and topping the charts for an astonishing 25 weeks.
Whispering Jack went on to become one of the biggest-selling Australian albums of all time.
The last song added to the album, You’re The Voice was a chart-topping hit and remains an Australian pop anthem to this day.
‘We were broke and had to sell our house,’ Farnham told the Daily Telegraph about the album.
‘I had made some bad decisions, got into a restaurant which was something I didn’t know anything about and it cost me my savings. I didn’t have a car and we were renting this house where Ross Fraser and I were working on the record.’
Speaking to 60 Minutes after the success, Farnham paid tribute to Wheatley for bringing him back from the brink of obscurity.
Farnham’s son Rob later posted a statement saying the family was ‘heartbroken and lost for words’.
Success: Wheatley and his protege John Farnham produced the hit album Whispering Jack which was a phenomenal worldwide hit. Pictured together in 2002
Family: He leaves behind wife Gaynor Martin, and their three children, Tim, 37, Samantha, 35, and Kara, 35. Pictured with his wife and son in 1998
History: Glenn Wheatley and wife Gaynor were married in 1982. Pictured in 2003
Wheatley had remained Farnham’s manager until his death this week
Wheatley had initially suggested Farnham join The Little River Band in an effort to relaunch his career. The idea tanked despite the previous success of the band.
‘I don’t think I could do what I’m doing now if it wasn’t for my time with Little River Band,’ Farnham told 60 Minutes at the time.
Asked why Farnham continued to back Wheatley, Farnham said: ‘I believed in him’.
‘And mostly because he’s my friend,’ Farnham said.
Wheatley mortgaged his own family home to fund the production of Whispering Jack. The phenomenal success of the album set Wheatley and Farnham up for life.
‘When we finished the album, I was on the couch in the foetal position for the next two weeks. What have I done? What if Wheatley loses his house, what if I can’t make a living?’ Farnham said of the album.
Wheatley (left) Jillian Farnham (centre) and John Farnham (left) were like family
The Voice: Farnham became known as ‘The Voice’ after skyrocketing to success in the 1980s
Hero: Farnham had been struggling after finding fame in the 1970s. It was Wheatley who ensured Farnham’s ‘Your The Voice’ cast him back into the hearts and minds of the world
Wheatley had remained Farnham’s manager until his death this week.
Born in Queensland, Wheatley began as musician himself, playing in The Masters Apprentices who became a chart-topping band with hits such as Turn Up Your Radio and Because I Love You.
However it was as a producer where he made his biggest mark.
Some failed investments saw the producer lose almost all his money and even serve a term in jail.
In 2007, he was sentenced to a 15-month sentence for tax evasion, after an Australian Taxation Office investigation into Swiss trust accounts. He spent 10 months behind bars.
‘I’m ashamed of what I have done’, Wheatley told the court at the time.
‘It was something that I have regretted for a long, long time and I’m ashamed of what I’ve brought on my family, who have had to suffer a lot.’
An earlier blow came in the form of his $12million investment in The Ivy nightclub in Melbourne – a deal he lost $5million on in 1990.
History: Wheatley began as musician himself, playing in The Masters Apprentices (pictured) who became a chart-topping band with hits such as Because I Love You
Wins: Wheatley had some wins in radio – he took over Sydney’s 2CH in 2017, selling it to Pacific Star Network’s SEN for $11.2 million last year. Pictured with Little Pattie in 2002
Patchy: In 2007, he was sentenced to a 15-month sentence for tax evasion, after an Australian Taxation Office investigation into Swiss trust accounts
Whispering Jack went on to become one of the biggest-selling Australian albums of all time
‘This would prove to be a disastrous decision. I had a premonition that storm clouds were brewing over my life. What I didn’t know was that it would be a full-force cyclone,’ he wrote in Paper Paradise, his 1999 autobiography.
Wheatley had better success as a manager for singer Delta Goodrem, and was behind her smash hit 2003 debut Innocent Eyes.
It became one of the highest-selling albums in ARIA chart history, however the pair split under acrimonious circumstances in 2003.
Wheatley had some wins in radio – he took over Sydney’s 2CH in 2017, selling it to Pacific Star Network’s SEN for $11.2 million last year.
He only recently sold two more of his radio acquisitions, 91.9 Sea FM and 92.7 Mix FM on the Sunshine Coast, in September last year.
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