Behind Dark Eyes

Book excerpt: He was the pop star with the raccoon eyes who sang ‘Hollywood Seven’ and ‘Six Ribbons’; the swashbuckling Pirate King in The Pirates of Penzance; the rocker who packed beer barns across Australia; and, in the words of Tim Rice, ‘a brilliantly judged and truly exciting’ Judas in Jesus Christ Superstar. On the small screen he was as comfortable portraying Bobby Rivers in All Together Now as he was Jonathan Garrett in Against the Wind. But there was a lot more to Jon English. He was a proud father of four who married his high school sweetheart. He was so devoted to the Parramatta Eels that he wrote one of their team songs. And he was also a composer whose rock opera, Paris, proved to be the biggest challenge of his life. Written with the full support of Jon’s family, friends and peers, Behind Dark Eyes swings from the massive highs of Jesus Christ Superstar and pop stardom to the turmoil brought about by creative frustration and depression - and Jon’s tragic death in 2016 at the age of 66.