World Transplant Games: The music behind the message

The three musical artists who will perform at the Parade of Nations & Opening Ceremony of the World Transplant Games at Optus Stadium on Sunday, April 16 are doing so knowing how important and life-changing organ donation can be. Dan Riches and Jim Fisher strum along in the latter’s lounge room as Rose Parker (pictured above) sings her specially-written Transplant Games song, Because Of You. The three individuals may come to the cause from varying angles, but as BOB GORDON learnt, they are all unified by empathy, hope and song.

A beloved WA musician for some 50 years in outfits such as Roadband, The Sensitive New Age Cowboys and his own bands, Jim Fisher was once the recipient of a liver transplant and is now on the waiting list for a new kidney. He is living proof of how transplantation changes lives.

“At the time I had my liver transplant I was 44 years-old,” he says. “I’d been given six months to live. And I lasted nine months and the liver became available. I had been very sick, and I nearly died three times. I received my liver transplant not really knowing the future, or how long one was expected to live with a new liver. I had three sons who were teenagers so basically, I was gone at 45 years-old without an organ donation.”

“Basically, it transformed my life. I had a whole new life. I went back to work; I went back to touring Australia and the world with a comedy show. And at a certain point, after the hysteria and the happiness of having a liver, I realised that my day of happiness was the same day that somebody lost someone and that took a while to sink in for me. Now I find myself having lost a kidney to cancer about 12 years ago doing dialysis and needing a kidney transplant. And all I know is this time around I understand that very differently.”

“I’m very grateful to this country for looking after an old rocker like me who doesn’t necessarily deserve it. So if I get it, I hope to have another bout of life with full energy, but I just feel very fortunate that I’m even considered for it. I’m 69 years-old and I regard myself as extremely fortunate. My liver’s been a great match since I got well. When I had it, I wasn’t sure that I’d get one year, two years, six months or so. I might get another 23 years and everyone will be really sick of me! I might live to 93 with a kidney, but I’m just so grateful that I have the opportunity be helped again.”

“In terms of playing the Opening Ceremony I’m just really excited to be amongst a big crowd of people who’ve experienced what I’ve experienced, because you don’t meet too many people in your day-to-day life who have. And it’s always a bit of a brotherhood and sisterhood thing. It’s great, I’m very pleased that I was contacted and I’m excited to be amongst a bunch of people like me and people whose families have donated. My donor family, I know, had to stand around while he was on life support and make the decision… that’s not for the faint hearted.”

Rose Parker is one of WA’s most beloved entertainers, going back to the ‘90s with The Velvet Janes and then numerous solo releases and multiple appearances at concerts and community events. When her beloved brother Tim passed his organs saved the lives of two recipients.

“It was great hearing Jim talk then because I’ve been in the other family, in the other room, with a loved one on life support,” Rose states. “We didn’t have to make the decision because our brother Tim was an organ donor. He ticked all the boxes and all the preparation we had was when he said, ‘I’m an organ donor, because where I’m going I’m not going to need them. So someone here may as well have them.'”

“It was that simple for him. And then we found ourselves having to navigate that with honour and respect for him. And my sister Julie said at the time, ‘while there’s a family here mourning and shedding tears, there’s another family about to get a phone call and they’re going to be crying tears of joy.’”

“All of our lives are touched by this. So I’ve written a song called Because Of You to honour my brother Tim, and his amazing gift of life and all the people that will be coming into that stadium celebrating life like Jim here, doing things they thought they’d never ever get to do. I actually have a friend who’s a heart transplant recipient. She’s 70 years-old, and she’s been training for these games, she’s going to run a race!”

“So I wanted to put that joy into this song, understanding that there’s recipient and donor people – participating families and loved ones and recipients – and to honour the two sides of the story. And to raise awareness of the absolute seriously new chance at life that people like Jim get. And my brother Tim was a part of that journey. So I hope I don’t get too emotional, I’m glad I’ve got two good, strong men beside me (laughs), but it’ll be tears of gratitude. And I know Tim will be looking down loving it because he loved rock’n’roll. So I’m really thrilled to be a part of it and do it with these two lovely men.”

Originally hailing from One Arm Point, a remote Aboriginal community north of Broome, Dan Riches and his band The Struggling Kings have made an amazing impact on the WA music scene in recent years. He is also an acclaimed documentary and film director. With Indigenous Australians being five times as likely to suffer End Stage Kidney Disease yet four times less likely to receive a transplant, raising awareness about organ donation is very important to him.

“For me, being a First Nations person, the big thing is just getting up and showing that indigenous people can do these things,” he says. “We’re welcomed and accepted now and as far as being able to perform at this event, it’s a privilege to be asked to do it. It’d be great to see more indigenous people signing up to be donors. I’m going to do it; I’ll sign up this week and my wife has already signed up as a donor. To be able to raise awareness in the community about getting more people on board for organ donation will be great.”

The Parade of Nations & Opening Ceremony of the World Transplant Games takes place at Optus Stadium on Sunday, April 16, 2023. Entry is free, but requires registration at raceroster.com