Famous Australian Rock Musicians

Vote for Your Favourite Australian Rock Musicians

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 1 
Nick Cave
(Singer-songwriter)
Nick Cave
4
Birthdate: September 22, 1957
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Warracknabeal
Nick Cave is best known as the lead singer of the rock band Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds. The ARIA Hall of Fame inductee is known for the intense themes of his songs, such as death. He has also written several books, including novels and anthologies of his poetry. 
 2 
Orianthi
(Australian Musician and Guitarist Known for His Association With Alice Cooper and Michael Jackson)
Orianthi
3
Birthdate: January 22, 1985
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Adelaide, Australia

Named one among the 12 Greatest Female Electric Guitarists by Elle magazine, Australian musician, singer and songwriter Orianthi Penny Panagaris began playing the guitar at the age of three and moved to acoustic by six. At fifteen, she began her professional career, concurrently focusing on songwriting and released her debut independent album at the age of 20. 

 3 
Leo Sayer
(singer-songwriter)
Leo Sayer
3
Birthdate: May 21, 1948
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Shoreham-by-Sea, Sussex, England
Height: 5'4" (163 cm)
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 4 
Daniel Johns
(Best Known as the Former Frontman, Guitarist, and Primary Songwriter of the Rock Band ‘Silverchair')
Daniel Johns
3
Birthdate: April 22, 1979
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia

Daniel Johns is an Australian singer, songwriter, and musician best known for his association with Silverchair where he was the former frontman and lyricist. Renowned for his guitaring skills, Daniel Johns was ranked 18th on Rolling Stone magazine's 25 Most Underrated Guitarists list in 2007.

 5 
Tammin Sursok
(Australian Actress and Singer)
Tammin Sursok
4
Birthdate: August 19, 1983
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa

Tammin Sursok is an actress and singer whose portrayal of Dani Sutherland earned her the Logie Award for Most Popular New Female Talent in 2001. Sursok is also known for her singing skills; her debut studio album Whatever Will Be peaked at number 13 on the ARIA Charts. Apart from acting and singing, Sursok has also been campaigning against bullying.

 6 
Paul Hester
(Former Drummer and Co-founder of Crowded House)
Paul Hester
2
Birthdate: January 8, 1959
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Melbourne, Australia
Died: March 26, 2005
 7 
Missy Higgins
(Singer-songwriter, Musician)
Missy Higgins
2
Birthdate: August 19, 1983
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Melbourne, Australia

Australian singer-songwriter Missy Higgins is known for her chartbusting singles such as Scar and Where I Stood. She has also performed at international events such as TEDx. Her hit album The Sound of White made it to the top 5 of the End of Decade Top 100 Albums Chart in 2010.

 8 
Russell Hitchcock
(Australian Musician)
Russell Hitchcock
2
Birthdate: June 15, 1949
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Melbourne, Australia
 9 
Daryl Braithwaite
(Singer)
Daryl Braithwaite
2
Birthdate: January 11, 1949
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Melbourne
 10 
Xavier Rudd
(Songs incorporate socially conscious themes of Indigenous Australian)
Xavier Rudd
2
Birthdate: May 29, 1978
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Torquay, Australia
 11 
Colin Petersen
(Actor, Film actor)
Colin Petersen
1
Birthdate: March 24, 1946
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Kingaroy
 12 
Andrew Farriss
(Composer, Guitarist, Pianist)
Andrew Farriss
1
Birthdate: March 27, 1959
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Perth

The cofounder of the Australia’s iconic rock band, INXS, Andrew Farriss also serves as its main songwriter, keyboardist, guitarist, and backing vocalist. Opening his first band, Doctor Dolphin, while in high school, he later joined The Farriss Brothers before cofounding The Vegetables, which later became INXS. Winner of many awards, he released his debut album at the age of 62.

 13 
Laura Imbruglia
(Singer, Songwriter)
Laura Imbruglia
1
Birthdate: June 15, 1983
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Sydney

Australian indie singer Laura Imbruglia is better known as the sister of popstar Natalie Imbruglia, who once rocked the charts with her global hit Torn. Known for tracks such as Looking for a Rabbit, Laura has also written the web series Amateur Hour and appeared in the TV series Crash Palace.

 14 
John Butler
(Frontman for the Australian roots jam band, John Butler Trio, which released three #1 albums, including Sunrise Over Sea)
John Butler
2
Birthdate: April 1, 1975
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Torrance, California, United States
 15 
Rowland S. Howard
(Australian Rock Musician Best Known for His Work With the Post-Punk Group ‘The Birthday Party')
Rowland S. Howard
1
Birthdate: October 24, 1959
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Died: December 30, 2009

Rowland S. Howard began his career playing the guitar and writing songs as a teenager. A significant name in the rock, punk, and post-punk scene, he later gained fame with the band The Birthday Party. He was working on the album Pop Crimes when he lost his battle with liver cancer.

 16 
Anita Lane
Anita Lane
1
Birthplace: Melbourne
 17 
Nick Littlemore
(Australian Singer, Record Producer, Musician, and Songwriter)
Nick Littlemore
1
Birthdate: May 6, 1978
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Sydney
 18 
Ben Gillies
(Musician)
Ben Gillies
1
Birthdate: October 24, 1979
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Newcastle
 19 
James Reyne
(Singer, Songwriter)
James Reyne
1
Birthdate: May 19, 1957
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Lagos
 20 
Archie Roach
(Australian Aboriginal Activist, Singer, and Songwriter)
Archie Roach
1
Birthdate: January 8, 1956
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Mooroopna
 21 
Iva Davies
(Singer-songwriter)
Iva Davies
1
Birthdate: May 22, 1955
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Wauchope
 22 
Glenn Shorrock
(Australian Singer-Songwriter)
Glenn Shorrock
1
Birthdate: June 30, 1944
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Chatham, Kent, England
 23 
Megan Washington
(Singer, Songwriter)
Megan Washington
1
Birthdate: January 7, 1986
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Port Moresby
 24 
Katie Noonan
(Singer, Songwriter)
Katie Noonan
1
Birthdate: May 2, 1977
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Brisbane
 25 
Steve Kilbey
(Poet, Painter, Singer, Singer-songwriter, Guitarist, Record producer)
Steve Kilbey
1
Birthdate: September 13, 1954
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Welwyn Garden City

Steve Kilbey is an English-Australian singer-songwriter and bass guitarist best known for his association with the rock band The Church. He performs as a solo artist as well and has 14 solo albums to his name. A multi-talented personality, he is also a poet, painter, and music producer. As an artist, he has had at least two exhibits in US. 

 26 
Nic Cester
(Singer-songwriter, Singer, Guitarist)
Nic Cester
1
Birthdate: July 6, 1979
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Melbourne
 27 
Russell Morris
(Singer, Songwriter)
Russell Morris
1
Birthdate: July 31, 1948
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Australia
 28 
Craig Nicholls
(Singer, Composer, Painter, Guitarist, Songwriter)
Craig Nicholls
1
Birthdate: August 31, 1977
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Sydney

Best known as lead singer and solo continues member of the Australian alternative rock band The Vines, Craig Nicholls developed an early interest in music. He opened his band, then called Rishikesh, in 1994. Later he changed the name to Vines and as it started playing gigs he began writing songs for it, also painting covers for several of its album.

 29 
Sarah Blasko
(Singer-songwriter)
Sarah Blasko
0
Birthdate: September 23, 1976
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Sydney, Australia
 30 
Frank Gambale
(Guitarist, Jazz musician, Jazz guitarist)
Frank Gambale
1
Birthdate: December 22, 1958
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Canberra

Australian jazz fusion guitarist Frank Gambale has released twenty albums over a period of three decades. After graduating from the Guitar Institute of Technology in Hollywood, Gambale taught there from 1984 to 1986. He is known for his use of sweep picking and economy picking techniques. Gambale has also been head of the guitar department at the LA Music Academy.


 
 31 
Mandawuy Yunupingu
(Musician)
Mandawuy Yunupingu
1
Birthdate: September 17, 1956
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Yirrkala, Australia
Died: June 2, 2013
 32 
Rob Bailey
(Musician)
Rob Bailey
1
Birthplace: Australia

Australian rock musician, singer and songwriter, Rob Bailey began his music career at the age of 13. He played bass guitar for various rock bands such as Flake, Acid Road, Natural Gas, Rudy and the Aardvarks and Company of Men. From April 1974 to January 1975, he was also associated with the hard rock band AC/DC.

 33 
Colin Burgess
(Australian Musician and Drummer)
Colin Burgess
1
Birthdate: November 16, 1946
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Sydney, Australia
 34 
Grant McLennan
(Singer-songwriter)
Grant McLennan
1
Birthdate: February 12, 1958
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Rockhampton, Australia
Died: May 6, 2006
 35 
Conway Savage
(Australian Musician, Pianist, and Organist)
Conway Savage
0
Birthdate: July 27, 1960
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Victoria, Australia
Died: September 2, 2018
 36 
Gareth Liddiard
(Musician)
Gareth Liddiard
0
Birthdate: November 20, 1975
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Port Hedland, Australia
 37 
Dave Faulkner
(Musician)
Dave Faulkner
0
Birthdate: October 2, 1957
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Perth, Australia
 38 
Adalita Srsen
(Musician)
Adalita Srsen
0
Birthdate: February 25, 1971
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Geelong, Victoria, Australia
 39 
George Rrurrambu Burarrwanga
(Australian Singer and Musician Who the Frontman of 'Warumpi Band')
George Rrurrambu Burarrwanga
0
Birthdate: 1957 AD
Birthplace: Elcho Island, Australia
Died: June 10, 2007

George Rrurrambu Burarrwanga is best remembered as the lead singer of the Aboriginal rock band Warumpi Band. Part of the Yolngu tribe, he specialized in the rock-reggae-country genre. He and his band released the first Australian rock single in the Aboriginal language, Jailanguru Pakarnu, or Out of Jail.