Age of Reason (song)

"Age of Reason" is a song by Australian pop rock singer John Farnham. Written by Todd Hunter and Johanna Pigott, it was released as the first single from Farnham's 1988 album of the same name. The song topped Australia's ARIA Singles Chart for four weeks and became a hit in New Zealand, where it peaked at number four. At the APRA Music Awards of 1990, the song won the Most Performed Australasian Popular Work award.^[2]

"Age of Reason"
Single by John Farnham
from the album Age of Reason
Released	4 July 1988 (1988-07-04)[1]
Length	5:08
Label	Sony BMG, RCA, Wheatley
Songwriter(s)	Todd Hunter, Johanna Pigott
Producer(s)	Ross Fraser
John Farnham singles chronology
"Reasons" (1987) "Age of Reason" (1988) "Two Strong Hearts" (1988)

Composition

"Age of Reason" was composed by Todd Hunter and partner Johanna Pigott, who had previously written the song "Rain" for Dragon and played together in the XL Capris. Pigott said, "You write songs and you're surprised at what you wrote sometimes, and you think, goodness, is that me, did I do that? It's not something you consider of perfect taste or anything, and someone records them and you think that's fantastic. It's a really exciting and thrilling thing."^[3]

Music video

The music video for "Age of Reason" was filmed in 1988 and included six key scenes, with the Victorian Children's Choir in three of the sequences: running through a scrap metal yard, running down a hill behind Farnham, and standing in a warehouse as Farnham walks between them.

In the "making of" feature included on the One Voice: The Greatest Clips DVD, Farnham can be seen singing with the children after the film clip wraps shooting in the warehouse. They each received a copy of the track on vinyl.

Track listing

1. "Age of Reason" (Extended mix) – 7:42
2. "Age of Reason" (album) – 5:08
3. "When the War Is Over" – 4:49

Personnel

• John Farnham – vocals
• David Hirschfelder – keyboards, piano
• Brett Garsed – guitars
• Angus Burchall – drums and percussion
• Wayne Nelson – bass
• Venetta Fields – vocals
• Lindsay Field – vocals
• Thomas Metropouli – mandolin and piano accordion
• Lisa Edwards – additional vocals
• Ross Hannaford – additional vocals
• Joe Creighton – additional vocals

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1988–1989) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[4] 1 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[5] 25 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[6] 28 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[7] 43 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[8] 4 South Africa (Springbok Radio)[9] 22 UK Singles (OCC)[10] 87 West Germany (Official German Charts)[11] 20 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[12] 63

Year-end charts Chart (1988) Position Australia (ARIA)[13] 9 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[14] 41

See also

• List of number-one singles in Australia during the 1980s

References

1. "Australian Music Report No 727 – 4 July 1988 > Singles: New Releases". Australian Music Report. Retrieved 26 March 2019 – via Imgur.
2. "1990 APRA MUSIC AWARD WINNERS". APRA AMCOs. Archived from the original on 5 July 2019. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
3. Tracee Hutchison (1992). Your Name's On The Door. Sydney: ABC Enterprises. p. 176. ISBN 0-7333-0115-0.
4. "John Farnham – Age of Reason". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
5. "RPM 100 Singles". RPM. Vol. 49, no. 7. 3 December 1988. p. 6.
6. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 41, 1988" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
7. "John Farnham – Age of Reason" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
8. "John Farnham – Age of Reason". Top 40 Singles.
9. "SA Charts 1969 – 1989". Retrieved 17 January 2018.
10. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
11. "Offiziellecharts.de – John Farnham – Age of Reason" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
12. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 5, no. 42. 15 October 1988. p. 27. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
13. "ARIA Top 50 Singles for 1989". ARIA. Retrieved 13 February 2020.
14. "End of Year Charts 1988". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 28 July 2022.