If you are under thirty, then the name John Farnham, much like the ‘80s era boombox, probably doesn’t mean much to you. The same can be said for anyone outside of Australia, New Zealand, the UK and a few mainland European countries. But for those of you who are familiar with the former teen pop idol affectionately referred to as “Johnny Farnham” in the ‘60s and ‘70s, you will also know just how big of a star he went on to become in Australia and abroad. In fact, John Farnham is regarded as one of Australia’s greatest rock/pop artists of all time.

Kicking off his solo career in 1967 with a song that has become synonymous with Farnham throughout the years, “Sadie (The Cleaning Lady)” was also the singer’s first #1 single, a feat that he would replicate in each of the five decades since, making him the only Australian artist to have achieved this. But it was in 1986 that the singer, after a hiatus from music, returned with one of the best albums of his career: Whispering Jack.

The quest to Whispering Jack’s completion was one fraught with frustration and uncertainty. Having come off a somewhat uneventful stint as the lead singer for the Little River Band, Farnham was evidently not in a position to financially bankroll the funding needed for a new album. Relying on his manager at the time, Glenn Wheatley, to mortgage his home (estimates have suggested that Wheatley invested over $150,000 in the album) in order to provide the funding, along with converting Farnham’s garage into a makeshift recording studio. Probably the best investment either one has ever made.