John Farnham reveals his former manager secretly drugged him for years as a young man struggling to come to terms with newfound fame.
The Australian singer, 75, made the shocking claim about Darryl Sambell in his new memoir, The Voice Inside.
Farnham claims Sambell slipped substances into his coffee during an early period of his career when he held tight control over nearly every aspect of his life and career.
‘He drugged me for years and I had no f**king idea,’ Farnham writes.
The singer first became alarmed when he found a half-dissolved pill at the bottom of his coffee cup.
When confronted, Sambell allegedly downplayed the situation, telling him: ‘That’s just something to help you stay awake.’
Sambell ‘controlled where and when I worked, what I sang, what I wore, what I ate,’ Farnham says.
‘He isolated me from friends and family, he tried to keep me away from [my wife] Jill, he drugged me, and he made me believe that all my success, everything I had, was because of him.’
John Farnham has revealed that his former manager secretly drugged him for years. Pictured in 1987
The Australian singer, 75, made the shocking claim about Darryl Sambell in his new memoir, The Voice Inside. Both pictured together
He said the manager’s influence was so pervasive he didn’t recognise the manipulation at the time.
Reflecting on the deceit and its effects, Farnham admits feeling a deep sense of regret and self-blame.
‘I feel so ashamed of myself for not realising what Darryl was up to or speaking up more often to put him back in his place.’
He continued: ‘I didn’t question any of it, I just went along as if nothing was off key. I still don’t know why I didn’t react more.
‘I put it down to being young, under stress, tired and feeling unsure and insecure about my own instincts.’
‘He drugged me for years and I had no f**king idea,’ Farnham writes in his memoir, according to a new excerpts published by The Australian . The discovery came one day when the singer noticed a half-dissolved pill at the bottom of his coffee cup
Farnham also describes how Sambell, who was openly gay during an era when homosexuality was illegal in Australia, made unwanted advances towards him.
‘At the time, in the early years, he was aggressively sexual toward me,’ Farnham writes.
‘He would “try it on” and I would say, “Darryl, no. Just leave me alone”, or, “It’s not going to happen”.
‘I said it often enough that I can see now that this rejection turned his attraction into jealousy, hatred and a desire for control.’
Farnham finally cut ties with Sambell in 1976, ending a decade-long professional relationship.
Despite this, the emotional scars lingered, and it took years for Farnham to come to terms with what had happened.
Farnham says he feels ‘sorrow’ about the early part of his career
‘Many years have passed since then and, up until now, I’ve found it very hard to unpick what happened to me,’ he shares.
‘But now that I’ve confronted it, I look back on that time with sorrow. I’m annoyed at myself for being so gullible and trusting.’
Sambell died in 2001.
Elsewhere in the book Farnham opened up about his terrifying cancer battle, which has left him unable to fully open his mouth.
He revealed he has been left unable to sing or fully open his mouth after extensive surgery to remove a cancerous tumour from his mouth, including one 12-hour operation.
‘My facial disfigurement from the surgery means I can’t open my mouth wide enough for a strip of spaghetti, let alone to sing,’ John detailed in an extract published in the Sydney Morning Herald.
‘I can’t get the movement to make the sounds I want to make, that’s where the vibrations and my voice come from. It’s a very disconcerting thing. And trying hurts.’
He said while he is still not yet able to belt out his trademark voice, he still has high hopes that he will one day be able to sing again.
‘I was given a gift and to be able to get out there and affect people in some way was special, I would like to continue doing that. Though I am not putting all my hopes into it, we’ll see,’ he shared.
John also said he believes the tumour came about as a result of his long-term smoking habit, which he eventually managed to kick.
‘Cancer doesn’t discriminate, but as soon as I was told the results, I couldn’t help thinking it was my own fault, I smoked very heavily all my life,’ he said.
Elsewhere in the book, Farnham opened up about his terrifying cancer battle, which has left him unable to fully open his mouth. Pictured in 2015
He said he started smoking at the age of 14 and would do so in secret after his disapproving parents once caught him.
His memoir has been co-written with Poppy Stockwell and will see Farnham tell his story in his own words and with his signature humour.
The book, slated for release on October 30, documents Farnham’s early life and stardom growing up in Melbourne in the 1960s, to his comeback 1986 album Whispering Jack.
His voice was heard for the first time since the surgery earlier this month in an extract of Farnham narrating his upcoming memoir.
Publisher Hachette Australia released a snippet of the book, with Farnham sounding a little more gravelly than before his marathon 12-hour procedure.
‘I don’t enjoy talking about myself, I really don’t,’ he said in the teaser.
‘Don’t get me wrong, I’m an egomaniac, but dredging up the past is just not something I’ve ever really enjoyed.
‘I’ll try and share as much as I can, but that’s not easy because I’ve never really been that open. I guess there are reasons for that. Reasons for my reluctance.’