B=Brent Harbour
L=Lance Dunne
D=Darren Hayes
ML=Mrs Lansdown

B: This is the Afternoon breakfast with Brent and Lance on Aucklands 91.8 More FM and special in studio guest time, Darren from Savage Garden!!!!!

D: Oi, oi oi oi

L: Now, we have to excuse Darren, hes got a bit of larangitis, is it?

D: Yea, I dont know what it is but um, I think it kinda sounds sexy on the phone, I dont know, but in real life its killing me.

L: 0900 Darren, call now

D: (laugh)

L: How did the closing ceremony go?

D: Oh look, it was amazing. I dont think well ever top that. It was um, being Australian, travelling around the world so much I havent lived in Australia for three years so coming home and singing such a personal song to the world in that environment was, ah, it was amazing, yeah.

L: Any behind the scenes dramas that as viewers we dont get to see but

D: SO many!

(everyone laughs)

L: Give us a couple maybe your safety wire not on or something

D: First of all, first of all umm, Elle McPherson is still not speaking to me.

L: Oh-oh. Hang on, whats going on there?

D: (laughs) Actually, you know what happened is, I was supposed to in the closing part in the finale, I was supposed to help her on stage, she had this elaborate dress on and these high heels and ah, well they gave me the wrong cue didnt they. So me and my whole band were doing the 400m sprint to try to get there on stage. So during Waltzing Matilda shes whispering in my ear, Where were you? I thought you were going to help me? and Im going Elle, its ah, its not my fault. So I dont know if shes still annoyed at me or not but ah

L: But all in all just a fantastic event for the Australians

D: Yeah, yeah it was really cool, I loved it.

B: Excellent

L: Now take us back to your childhood, you grew up in

D: In Brisbane, Australia. Umm

L: What were you like at school there?

D: I was, ah, I was a freak. I still am. Um. I used to ah oh man I was in the school plays and musicals and the choir. I was quite artistic.

L: What school were you at? What was your college or high school?

D: It was calls Mabel Park State High School

L: Ohh okay. Good teachers?

D: (laughs) Great teachers (laughs)

L: Can you recall any of your teachers names? I can never recall teachers from school

B: No, neither can I

D: Yeah, I can

L: Give us some names

D: Ahh Mr Swadelo (sp?) umm I cant remember any other names actually Oh! I had a music teacher, umm

L: Yeah?!

D: Whos name I cant remember either

L: Do you mind just staying there for a moment

B: Just hang on there, Darren

D: Oh no

B: We dont like to do this sorry we just gotta get some business over and done with

*phone dial tone and buttons being pressed*

D: Youve got oh no!

L: Just bear with us here, Darren

D: Oh Mrs Wilson was one?

L: Yeah you better keep guessing!

phone ringing

L: Hope someones there

B: Should be

***Good morning Mabel Park High, Debbie speaking

L: Mabel Park High, hello Debbie, look, its Brent and Lance and Darren from Savage Garden here. Is Mrs Lansdown there please?

D: Oh no!

L: Shes expecting our call

***Okay one moment

B: Thank you very much

D: I remember Mrs Lansdown! You were talking high school; I was talking primary school. She was my music teacher all through high school.

L: Oh we thought you might remember her

B: Hang on! Whats this on hold music? This doesnt sound like Savage Garden!

D: Hmm yeah. You guys

L: Was she a good teacher?

D: She was great. She um, she loved my voice

L: Hmm, shell love it today then with you larangitis. (pause) Hello?? Mrs Lansdown??

ML: Thats me

L: Brent and Lance from More FM Auckland and Id like to introduce you, an ex-pupil, Darren from Savage Garden

D: How are you?

ML: Im going really well, how about you Darren?

D: Good. Im really, this is really quite freaky!

ML: Is it? Suprising you even

D: Do you, what I always think about when I think of music is, do you remember when um, I was really into synthesizers, and I couldnt really play, and I used to ask you how they made sounds like (weird noises) you know, all those drum sounds and you were trying to tell me that they sample the universe and do these things and ah.. and remember for some reason you convinced me to play the trombone!

(everyone laughs)

ML: Did I?! Oh, Im so sorry about that Darren. I apologise sincerely!

D: No, it was cool though, it was really, really good and um yeah but how are you?

ML: Im really good but I have a question to ask you and this is, can you tell me why you took chemistry instead of music in senior?

B & L: Ooooooohhhhh

D: Lets talk about it. You know what. This really bothers me. Umm, the guidance counsellor at Mabel Park High School, I told him I wanted to be an entertainer and they told me I was far too intelligent

ML: Oh righto!

D: And they told me to trop music

L: And theyre supposed to be guidance counsellors????

ML: Yeah well he obviously wasnt going to make a success out of music, was he?

D: Exactly, and they told me to drop music for math and ah, here I am today so

L: Was he a good student, Mrs Lansdown?

ML: Oh look he was fan call me Susan please, youre making me feel too old

D: I cant call you Susan

ML: Yes you can

D: Youre Mrs Lansdown

ML: Oh, I dont think so!

L: So a good student, Susan?

ML: Yeah no, he was fantastic. In fact I was just chatting to the other arts staff and he was a straight A student in art, very talented

B: Straight As???????

L: (whistles)

D: Yes, yes, yes

ML: Darren could have been anything he wanted to

D: Awww! Hey do you remember the first time I sang in the choir?

ML: I do!

D: Wasnt it funny?! I was the only boy in the choir

ML: Hundreds of girls auditioned and there was Darren

L: Was he popular with the girls at school there, Susan?

ML: Actually, Im not sure I could comment on that

D: I wasnt at all. I was such a geek.

B: But hes in a choir with hundreds of girls

D: Yeah no but I was kinda popular because Mrs oh Susan, should I call you Susan she um coordinated all our musicals so by the time people worked out I could sing I got the lead in musicals and I was quite popular then

ML: Oh look I tell you, the thing I dine out on all the time on is that in one of our musicals I got to sing a duet with Darren Hayes

D: I remember that. Ive got larangitis today, its so terrifying but

L: It wouldve been the perfect moment to rekindle

D: We couldve sung it. It was called Baby Talk To Me

ML: Yeah

D: (laughs)

ML: It was fantastic

D: Well thank you for inspiring me

ML: Oh look thank you Darren. You must come and visit us

D: Yeah Im going to

ML: Are you? Definitely?

D: Yeah Ive lived in America for a few years now so I havent been back for a while but Im coming

ML: Well there are lots of us that remember you really fondly

D: Cool. Is Mr Bullter (sp?) still there?

ML: Oh yes, and Mr Powell, the whole lot of us.

D: Cool. Well tell Ted I said hello.

ML: Okay, I will, I will.

D: Take care.

L: Susan, thank you very much for joining in the interview. Have a great day.

B: Cheers

ML: Okay, no problem.

B: Thanks

Everyone: Bye

D: That was so freaky!

L: She seemed like a good sort

D: She was really cool.

L: We did manage to track her down and apparently on of the last remaining teachers that remembers you, and boy she remembers you well, doesnt she?

(everyone laughs)

L: Shall we take a bit of a break here

B: Yeah, I think so.

L: And well come back and talk to Darren from Savage Garden.

B: Lets play, from the closing ceremony, its Affirmation on More FM.

***Affirmation

B: The Afternoon Breakfast with Brent and Lance on Aucklands 91.8 More FM, our special in studio guest whos writing a small novel as we speak

D: (laughs)

B: Darren from Savage Garden

D: What Im doing is youve um, youve got our biggest fan in this country here in studio and Im signing all her CDs, for Kiri.

B: Look how many shes got!!

D: (laughs) Yeah, shes got quite a few.

L: Question Ive got is, you know once you get a little bit famous

D: Yeah.

L: Does your autograph change? Like just to quicken things up a bit, because, you know, you must, a thousand times

D: Yes. Yes, you start to ah, write like a doctor (laughs) So you can read nothing however, um, you also start to realise that, um, your autograph when you were younger looks like your signature on your cheque account when you were younger. So then you have to change that so people cant withdraw cash. You know what I mean.

B: Oh, there goes that plan, mate!

L: Gotcha. Of course we ah, just played your song on the radio. Can you remember the first time you heard your song on the radio?

D: I do. And ah, it still gives me a similar buzz. I think, as a songwriter, you have to understand that really, with us, the only success weve ever had is because people play it on the radio people get to hear it and then they can make a decision. I was in a video store in Brisbane and um, I was working behind the counter and um, we had recorded the album but we didnt know if it was going to succeed or not, and a customer came in and ah, Id be, Id be humming sometimes and people would say stuff like Dont give up your day job and ah

L: Know how that feels

D: He walked in this day, he was kinda grumpy and I was trying to be friendly thinking uh, whatever and then our song came on the radio and then he said to me, well, How are you? and I said, you know, Im fantastic, thank you and then that was it, a week later I sort of left the job. Yeah.

L: Cos ah, like, Kiri, in her competition entry

D: Uh huh

L: Sent us the ad that you responded to, which Ive got it there on the computer

D: Can I have a look?

L: Ah, Serious lead vocalist wanted for commercial musical outfit presently financed by major publishing company.

D: Do you know whats really cool about that, cos Im looking at it, you can see, thats the original graffiti, like when Im on the phone I write and that was me writing all these notes about, you know, what Daniel wanted because he was in a band that wanted a certain kind of singer and I was writing all these notes on there. I even had his phone number on there but we scratched it out obviously when that was printed.

L: Did you ever consider going for the one thats under that

D: Which is

L: Which is Vocalist wanted to front covers/originals band. Ready for work. Give Andrew a call. Did you ever call him?

D: (laughs) You know what, its ah imagine my life if that would maybe that was Andrew Tierney from Human Nature. Could you imagine the kind of band I wouldve been in today?

L: Who knows! You could be the new Britney Spears of Australia.

D: (laughs) Oops. Hes done it again.

L: Did you do the covers gig, you did the covers gigs no doubt?

D: SO badly.

L: What sort of covers songs? Just give us some names that you did.

D: Oh, a little bit of Cold Chisel for ya

B: (laughing his head off) COLD CHISEL???!!!

D: Bit of Aussie Crawl

L: Oh yeah, Jimmy Barnes?

D: Bit of Doors there, you can imagine me singing the doors there, cant ya. Not.

B: Yeah.

L: Especially today..

D: Prrfft, yeah exactly! Very, very happening. Not.

L: And if we wanted you to come and play, we do these cruises where we take some listeners out, whats the

D: The answer would be no.

L: Yeah but (laughs)

B: Riiigggghhhttt. You obviously know us too well there, Darren. But what would be the rate, you know, would it be a couple hundred, a slab of beer or?

D: (really really quietly in the background) You know what

B: Oh wait, hello, your microphone has just gone

D: (still in the background) Oh really?

L: Youll have to come and speak on this one here we go.

D: Nothing but the best for me here at More FM. Biggest radio station in the country. Now, heres the deal. Um. The only corporate gig weve ever done we did last week at the Olympics and we did it for Lachlan Murdoch. So, you think you could match that?

B: Right. Hes got a bit of cash

D: A bit of money, yeah. I mean, his guests include people like Muhammed Ali, you know Bill Clinton

B: His father has a TV station or something, huh?

D: A few (laughs) I dunno. Actually, I made the comment, So this is what it feels like to sell out and ah, they didnt quite like that. (laughs)

B: Oh really

D: But ah, it was fun.

L: Geez, you made friends at the closing ceremony, not lifting Elle up and all that.

D: (laughs) I know

L: If youve got her number, well give her a call, we dont mind.

D: Yeah, in America its Im just kidding.

L: (laughs) Alright, so Affirmation is out, great album, did you record that from different sides of the globe there?

D: We wrote a lot of it from different sides of the globe. I was in New York and Daniel would send me emails with music attachments and ah, wed send zip disks back and forth and wed record stuff but um, it was all done in San Francisco um, ultimately. Together.

B: Okay.

D: He does exist (laughs)

B: He does?!

L: How is he? Is he alright?

D: You know what, how would you be if you didnt do any work and you just um, had to turn up on stage and throw guitar picks at good looking girls? He s fantastic, thanks for asking!

(everyone laughs)

B: Thats our dream job, aye mate.

L: Ill just walk around here thats mine mate

B: Thats Lances electric guitar. So if you ever need anybody to play

D: Nah, hes good man. Hes um, hes happy.

B: Is it not going there, mate? No, its blown up! Beautiful.

D: See, everything I touch, I destroy. It turns to a failure. Like the Elle McPherson thing.

B: Ah, its back, were going now.

D: Were back.

L: Whats the hardest thing about being Darren?

D: Not being you.

(everyone laughs)

L: Nice answer

D: Do you know what I mean? Oh hes

L: But it gets too much, yeah?

D: Hes just brought over my hot tea and everything to the new microphone does it get too much?! I honestly, if you saw me on any other day, I love my life. I feel really blessed and ah, I get paid to do something that I used to do for free. We just spoke to my teacher, I mean it was something that I never really designed, this career, its something that just happened and I love it. And when I dont have the flu, I love it even more.

(everyone laughs)

L: Yeah. Hey thanks very much, I know youve struggled with the old voice but thank you very much for coming in.

D: Thank you for having me, and thank you for playing our records. We appreciate it.

L: No problem. And thank you again t Kiri for being the number one Savage Garden fan!

D: Oh, she ROCKS!

B: So heres Hold Me

D: (speaking over Brent) Shes quite attractive too

B: Doing very well, on Aucklands More FM Hmm what about Lance and I?

D: Oh, ah, I think I have to go, theyre calling me

***Hold Me***

[Return to previous page..Interviews]

Thank you to Sharon for letting me use these two great pictures of Darren

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