Adelaide Festival Centre and The Music House Present THE WHITLAMS 25th ANNIVERSARY TOUR

Australian musical institution The Whitlams will mark their 25th anniversary with a national orchestral tour in April and May 2017, playing at Adelaide's Festival Theatre on Saturday 6 May.

Adding an air of aural sophistication to lead singer-songwriter Tim Freedman's musical smarts, the Adelaide Pops Orchestra will give the full orchestral treatment to The Whitlams' classic hits including 'Blow Up the Pokies', 'No Aphrodisiac', 'Thank You (For Loving Me At My Worst)' and many more, under the baton of multi-talented conductor Guy Noble.

The beautifully crafted and textured arrangements were commissioned over a decade dating from the first symphonic collaboration with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra in 2004. Composers of the calibre of Peter Sculthorpe, Brett Dean and James Ledger have contributed scores, and the repertoire has been critically lauded as the most successful union of classical and pop music this country has seen. The brilliant musicianship of Jak Housden (guitar), Warwick Hornby (bass) and Terepai Richmond (drums) is enhanced by a 50 piece orchestra, and is sure to impress fans and music lovers alike.

Playing for one night only in Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Canberra and Adelaide, the tour follows on from The Whitlams' immensely successful collaborations with our state symphony orchestras over many years. This will be the 11th Sydney Opera House Concert Hall show for Sydney Symphony and The Whitlams.

Tim Freedman said, "It is an honour to play with these musicians who in some cases have been playing their instruments since they were in the womb. I particularly look forward to hearing Peter Sculthorpe¹s beautiful string interlude to my song 'Out the Back' for the first time since he passed away two years ago."

The Whitlams have been a fixture on the Australian music scene since 1992. Their achievements include seven albums (three multi-Platinum and three Gold) and three ARIA Awards, including a Best Group gong presented by Gough Whitlam in 1998. In 2011 Eternal Nightcap was voted 27th on the ABC My Favourite Album poll, and more recently was voted no. 17 in Triple J's Hottest Australian Albums of All Time.

Superbly orchestrated with a sophistication of sound rare in a pop performance, this is a show full of wit, risk and flair.