10 Best Paul Kelly Songs: Part 2, 1994-present

As I wrote in Part 1 of this Paul Kelly series, he’s barely known outside of his native Australia. But he’s one of his country’s most beloved musicians. His literate songs are plain and unadorned, often with a rock band or with touches of country and folk.

Kelly broke up his backing band The Messengers in 1992. This list covers the years between 1994 and now, from his 1994 solo album Wanted Man to his 2024 cover of Taylor Swift’s ‘Anti-Hero’.

Most of these songs are taken from the 1990s, but there are also selections from the late 2010s. In this era, Kelly embraced his status as an elder statesman of Australian music, enjoying his first #1 albums.

In my opinion, this list is a little weaker than Kelly’s work with The Messengers. But it’s headed by my favourite Kelly song.

10 Best Paul Kelly Songs, Part 2

#10 Rising Moon

from Life Is Fine, 2017
‘Rising Moon’ works beautifully as the opening track of Life Is Fine. It builds from a gentle piano introduction to an energetic slice of pop/rock.

Kelly embraced nature imagery on Life Is Fine – other songs include ‘Firewood and Candles’ and ‘Letter in the Rain’.

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#9 I’ve Been A Fool

from Deeper Water, 1995
‘I’ve Been A Fool’ is an underappreciated Kelly deep cut. Unlike much of Kelly’s work, it’s not a weighty lyric. But it’s a lovely tune, with its pretty guitar and organ, and a tender vocal from Kelly.

Like the title track (also on this list), ‘I’ve Been A Fool’ was written with Randy Jacobs of Was (Not Was). I assume Jacobs also plays the melodic guitar solo.

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#8 Little Kings

from Words and Music, 1998
Kelly’s music has often advocated Indigenous rights. ‘Little Kings’ is like Paul Simon‘s ‘American Tune’, a lament for a country that’s become greedy and short-sighted. He sings “I was born in a lucky country/Every day I hear the warning bells”.

Kelly sings in a higher register than usual, making ‘Little Kings’ sound heartfelt and vulnerable.

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#7 A Bastard Like Me

from Nature, 2018
Kelly wrote ‘A Bastard Like Me’ about Aboriginal activist Charles Perkins. The title is taken from Perkins’ autobiography. Perkins was the first Indigenous Australian to graduate with a tertiary qualification. He also enjoyed a promising football career and organised the 1965 Freedom Ride.

It’s a simple folk-based tune, but it’s a fascinating story. There’s a great opening couplet – “I was born in the bush near old Alice Springs/As far as you can get from the sea”.

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#6 Song From The Sixteenth Floor

from Wanted Man, 1994
Kelly’s first post-Messengers single has a poppy, mainstream sheen. There are slick backing vocals and a warm, soulful feel. It’s a straightforward declaration of devotion from Kelly, singing “I would jump from the sixteenth floor if I could only get next to you/Put my head in a lion’s jaw if I only could get next to you”

‘Song From The Sixteenth Floor’ was written with John Clifforth of Deckchairs Overboard, a 1980s Sydney band. The band also featured future Crowded House drummer Paul Hester.

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#5 Petrichor

from Life Is Fine, 2016

Petrichor – a pleasant smell that frequently accompanies the first rain after a long period of warm, dry weather.

Oxford Dictionary

Dylan influenced Kelly’s entire career, but ‘Petrichor’ is one of Kelly’s most Dylanesque moments. The verse melody sounds like something Dylan could have written in the mid-1960s. The chorus is simple but heartfelt.

I don’t need you
I don’t need you
I don’t need you, but I sure want you

Paul Kelly

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#4 God’s Hotel

from Wanted Man, 1994
Kelly drew on the work of a couple of Australian contemporaries for the final single from Wanted Man. He found the lyrics to ‘God’s Hotel’ in Nick Cave’s book of lyrics King Ink. He loved the words and asked Cave how the tune went. It was a blues progression, but Cave said that Kelly could write his own music. Kelly based his music on the chord sequence to Hoodoo Gurus’ ‘Bittersweet’.

Cave’s vision of heaven is inclusive, if a little unconventional – “Thou shalt not blaspheme, curse, holler or bawl/Everybody’s deaf and dumb in God’s Hotel”.

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#3 Love Letter

from Professor Ratbaggy, 1999
Kelly formed the band Professor Ratbaggy with three fellow Melbourne musicians. They released a single album in 1999, sharing writing and vocals. Kelly used the band to explore more groove-based, dub material. But ‘Love Letter’ feels more like a long-lost 1960s pop song, hooky and earnest.

Bruce Haymes plays some great keyboard parts – a rhythmic Fender Rhodes and a pretty organ.

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#2 Deeper Water

from Deeper Water, 1995
The title track to Kelly’s 1995 album is about growing up. He explained “My father taught me to swim. Four of my brothers and sisters were older than me and three younger. I couldn’t wait to learn so I could join the older ones who would all rush straight up to the deep end. Deeper water to me meant danger, meant power, meant growing up … Everytime you move through the big rituals in life it’s like a move into deeper water.”

With the changing dynamics and heavy guitars, the 1990s alternative-rock sound works well for Kelly.

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#1 How To Make Gravy

non-album single, 1996
‘How To Make A Gravy’ is written from the same character’s perspective as previous Kelly songs ‘To Her Door’ and ‘Love Never Runs in Time’. It even includes a gravy recipe (“Just add flour, salt, a little red wine and don’t forget a dollop of tomato sauce”), which Kelly learned from his former father-in-law.

In a celebrated career, ‘How To Make Gravy’ might be Kelly’s most celebrated song. 21st of December has unofficially been christened as “Gravy Day”. An unofficial Twitter account was dedicated to the song using the handle @itsthegravyman.

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