“If it was five
years ago and
somebody said,
‘You’re going to
spend quite a
bit of time
doing acoustic’,
I would have
said, ‘I don’t
think so’.
Twenty years ago
I would have
said ‘No way,
f--- off’.
So says Ian
Moss, six string
extraordinaire,
singer/songwriter
and co-founding
member of one of
the greatest
Australian rock
bands in
history, Cold
Chisel. His
reputation was
carved from the
blood, sweat and
tears of his
electric work
but as fate
would have it,
“Mossy” changed
his mind and
slowed things
down. He found
the “nerve” to
unplug and
that’s bloody
well our good
fortune. We can
now savour the
best of both
worlds - cherish
the fast,
furious and
sublime that is
forever etched
on our eardrums
from days gone
by and embrace
the sweet calm
after the storm
of the here and
now.
Following on
seamlessly from
the live
acoustic
revelations
spawned by Six
Strings in
2005 begins an
exciting new
chapter, Let’s
All Get
Together. Never
has there been a
more intriguing
and satisfying
fusion of rock,
soul, jazz and
blues and it’s
all delivered in
Mossy’s
trademark
laid-back style.
But this doesn’t
mean he hasn’t
raised a sweat -
quite the
contrary. Let’s
All Get Together
pushes
boundaries and
goes beyond the
solo acoustic
thing. There’s
an injection of
more live
material,
special friends
– including
James Morrison,
Margaret Urlich,
Glenn Rhodes and
producer/engineer
George Gorga -
have heeded his
call to “get
together” and
contribute.
And there’s a
heavy dose of
Jess Ciampa’s
percussion that
promises
something truly
special when
Mossy tours the
album later in
the year. Think
theatres, a new
platform from
which Mossy will
unleash his new
bag of tricks
like a skilled
magician weaving
his magic.
With Let’s All
Get Together
Mossy weaves
that magic into
studio
re-workings of
classics – from
the dark,
somber,
emotion-charged
spirit of Choir
Girl, the
“bare-foot-on-a-stomp-box”
allure and
infectious
rhythm driving
Beautiful Thing
to the smooth,
blues-tinged
breath of fresh
air that
breathes new
life into Chisel
gem Red Sand.
Lay back and
absorb the
dreamy, haunting
reinvention of
Flame Trees.
Listen closely
enough and you
can almost smell
the Cajun
chicken
simmering away
to the New
Orleans-esque
jazz blues of
Janelle (just
listen to James
Morrison
transform his
trumpet into a
musical
temptress in the
background).
Try to sit still
– and fail in
the process – as
you fall for the
percussive
bounce and funk
that is
delivered with
gusto in Mr Rain
and, for sheer
spellbinding
musicianship and
lyrics delivered
with ethereal
grace, When the
War Is Over has
never sounded
better.
And Mossy brings
with him a
little more gold
from those live
Six Strings
sessions, songs
that simply
refused to be
shelved: the
blues and soul
punch that
commands
audience
singalong in
irresistible Out
Of The Fire and
the sheer
heartfelt
precision and
mesmerizing
interpretation
of one of his
personal
favourites,
Georgia.
Let’s all get
together, folks,
it’s time to
join Mossy and
indulge in the
next chapter of
what is a
fascinating
musical career.
Ian Moss
Timeline
1973
1973 Moss
founds Orange in
Adelaide with
songwriter Don
Walker
1974
Orange becomes
Cold Chisel
1978
Ian sings lead
on One Long Day,
B-side of debut
single Khe Sanh
Cold Chisel
album goes gold
Ian’s version of
Georgia On My
Mind is a
highlight of
Chisel shows
1979
Breakfast at
Sweethearts LP
hits #4, sells
double platinum
1980
East album
features three
of Ian’s lead
vocals,
including single
My Baby and
self-penned
Never Before
Ian plays on
debut Icehouse
LP
1981
My Baby is
Chisel’s first
US single
Swingshift live
album hits #2,
sells triple
platinum
1982
#1 album Circus
Animals features
Ian’s signature
tune, Bow River
Ian plays on
Richard Clapton
LP, The Great
Escape
1983 Chisel
play
record-breaking
Last Stand tour
1984
Posthumous
Twentieth
Century LP is
another double
platinum #1
1986
The Ian Moss
Band hits the
pubs
Sessions with
Marc Hunter,
Jenny Morris
1989
Debut solo
single Tucker’s
Daughter hits #1
Matchbook album
is instant
classic: #1,
triple platinum,
four singles and
five ARIA
Awards: Best
Male Artist,
Best Album, Best
Debut Album,
Best Debut
Single and Song
of the Year
1991
Worlds Away
album, Ian’s
last for five
years
Plays on Don
Walker’s Catfish
LP, Ruby
1992
Worlds Away
released
Germany,
Austria,
Switzerland,
Scandinavia
Ian plays on
Black Sorrows LP
1993
Plays on Jimmy
Barnes’s Heat;
Richard
Clapton’s
Distant Thunder
1995 Plays on
Don Walker’s
We’re All Gunna
Die
1996
Hard-edged
Petrolhead album
critically
acclaimed
1997
Ian Moss Live
album issued
1998
Chisel reunite
for Last Wave of
Summer tour &
LP, a hugely
successful
project that
occupies best
part of three
years
2001 A Night
Out Live at the
Basement DVD
features Ian
singing Georgia
2003
Second Chisel
reformation for
Ringside DVD and
album
2004
Ian plays on
Richard
Clapton’s
Diamond Mine LP
2005 Appears
on Jimmy
Barnes’s Double
Happiness duets
album
Chisel play
Tsunami Benefit
in Melbourne
Ian Moss
releases Six
Strings through
Liberation Blue
Acoustic label
2007
Ian Moss
releases Let's
All Get Together
through
Liberation Blue
Acoustic label
