Cold Chisel will now play in Canberra after hearing fan 'outcry'

Guitarist Ian Moss said the iconic Aussie band added new tour locations where "the outcry was the loudest" - and that meant Canberra.

The Canberra concert for The Big Five-O tour will be held outside on Thursday, November 28 at the Patrick White Lawns, between the National Library and Lake Burley Griffin.

Support acts will be The Cruel Sea and Karen Lee Andrews.

After their first shows last week sold out in minutes, Cold Chisel has also added new gigs for Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, as well as adding Canberra and the Hunter Valley (Roche Estate, Saturday, November 30) to the tour.

Tickets for these new shows will be released exclusively for pre-sale to members of the Cold Chisel, Face-to-Face Touring and ticketing company mailing lists from Monday, June 17 at 1pm to Tuesday, 18 June at 12 noon unless sold out earlier.

Final tickets will then be released to the general public on Tuesday, June 18 at 1pm.

Cold Chisel last played in Canberra in January 2020, at Stage 88 in Commonwealth Park as smoke from the Black Summer bushfires choked the city.

Canberra fans were gutted when the city was not included on its 50^th anniversary tour when it was announced last month.

But Jimmy Barnes said they did hear the fans - and see the scramble for tickets last week, when 150,000 tickets to 16 shows were quickly snapped up.

"We were completely blown away by the response last week," Barnes said.

"The demand for tickets was bigger than anything we've ever seen before."

Ian Moss said they were looking forward to touring and getting to as many locations as possible.

"Unfortunately, we can't do gigs everywhere so we've tried to get to the places where the outcry was loudest. That's why we've added new shows in Canberra and the Hunter Valley, as well as additional gigs in Brisbane and Sydney plus two more in Melbourne," Moss said.

"The reaction of our fans has really fired us up - we can't wait to play for everyone."

In addition to The Big Five-0 Tour, Cold Chisel is also releasing 50 Years - The Best Of on Friday, August 23. It will be available on multiple double-vinyl formats, on double-CD and on download and streaming services.

The album, like the tour, covers all of their classic songs. It also features one new track - You've Got To Move. To pre-order the album, go here.

All shows are listed on the Cold Chisel website (coldchisel.com) and there's still time to join the Cold Chisel mailing list (sign up here) for preferred access to tickets.

Beginning in Adelaide in late 1973, it wasn't till January 1974 that the band began playing under their new and definitive moniker, Cold Chisel, bringing the band to its 50 anniversary.

The Cold Chisel lineup remains almost the same today - Jimmy Barnes (vocals), Ian Moss (guitar and vocal), Don Walker (piano and organ) and Phil Small (bass) are all original members. Charley Drayton replaced the late Steve Prestwich on drums in 2011.

Their anniversary shows will include all their classic songs - Khe Sanh, Bow River, Flame Trees, You Got Nothin' I Want, When The War Is Over, My Baby, Cheap Wine, All For You, Choir Girl, Last Wave Of Summer, Saturday Night, Breakfast At Sweethearts, Forever Now and more.

Jimmy Barnes, who suffered a near death experience last December when he underwent emergency open heart surgery, said during his recovery, a key priority was to get back onstage with Cold Chisel.

"The Big Five-0 is a landmark moment," he said.

"There have been plenty of times where I never thought I'd live to see this day so I'm going to make the most of it.

"I can't wait to celebrate with my mates and with all the fans who have been such a big part of our story. We're gonna smash it!"