Respected as one of Australia’s iconic musicians, Ian Moss delivers an unforgettable sound – not only as a master guitarist but especially with his silken voice, ringing with clarity and resonating with pure soul. While recognised as an axeman of tenacity and melodic sensibility, Ian’s distinctive vocal has always been the defining signature of his soulful, bluesy muse – a voice that has captivated audiences since his earliest forays into music in the early 1970s.
Born and raised in Alice Springs, NT, Ian began playing guitar in local teenage bands before moving to Adelaide after failing one of his high school years, planning to repeat in the city. Fate intervened when he answered an advertisement for a guitarist in a shop window in 1973, joining the band that would become a legend in Australian music and is now forever etched in the nation’s psyche: Cold Chisel.
As a solo artist, Moss has released seven dynamic studio albums – including the #1, multi-platinum debut Matchbook, along with Worlds Away, Petrolhead, Let’s All Get Together, Soul on West 53rd, the self-titled Ian Moss, and most recently Rivers Run Dry.
2019 marked the 30th anniversary of Matchbook, which was released on August 1, 1989. The album debuted at #1 on the ARIA Albums Chart, remained in the Top 10 for 14 weeks, and sold more than 200,000 copies in its first year. At the 1990 ARIA Awards it won Album of the Year, Best Male Artist, Breakthrough Artist – Album, Breakthrough Artist – Single, and Song of the Year (shared with Don Walker) for Tucker’s Daughter.
In 2022, Ian hit the road with Troy Cassar-Daley for the Together Alone Tour, playing over 50 sold-out dates and festival appearances. The partnership continued in 2023 with the Red Hot Summer Tour alongside Paul Kelly, Missy Higgins and Bernard Fanning, adding another 26 performances. Later that year Ian embarked on his first-ever UK tour, which included a sold-out London show.
July 2023 saw the release of his seventh studio album Rivers Run Dry, co-produced with Brent Clark. Recorded over ten days at Rancom St Studios in Sydney with additional work at Oceanic and Point Blank Studios, the album is a musical feast that once again showcases Moss’s guitar genius – and that voice. Yes… that voice. Floating like a butterfly and stinging like a bee.
The album’s release was followed by extensive touring across Australia and performances at Airlie Beach Music Festival, This Is Livin’ Fest, Queenscliff Music Festival, and a knockout set at Mushroom 50 Live at Rod Laver Arena.
In 2024 Moss released his first live album, Live at the Enmore, captured during the Rivers Run Dry Tour. The record highlights Moss at the top of his game, with a mix of Cold Chisel classics and solo favourites including Rivers Run Dry, Bow River, My Baby, Open Your Eyes, Never Before, Nullarbor Plain, Tucker’s Daughter, Choir Girl, Telephone Booth, and the first-ever Ian Moss live band recording of Georgia on My Mind.
That same year he returned to London and Glasgow with his band, earning rave reviews: “This was a cracking show from a superb musician and storyteller… Ian’s voice is so strong and expressive, the riffs are flawless and the music is just magical” (Maximum Volume Music).
In 2025 Moss released Live at Anita’s, praised by STACK Magazine: “The new live album shows that Mossy’s voice is still a thing of beauty, while his guitar work remains instinctive and inventive.” The album included first-time live recordings of solo performances of Flame Trees, Cry Me a River, I’m Going Back, and Green Green Grass of Home, alongside debut acoustic renditions of Rivers Run Dry and Nullarbor Plain.
May 2025 saw Ian embark on the National Capital City Ian Moss + Trio Tour, which sold out all 10 dates and earned ★★★★★ reviews. “Moss is still one of Australia’s great performers and this concert was a testament to that. A fabulous night of the highest-quality music.” – musicaltheatre.au
As Cold Chisel’s biographer Anthony O’Grady observed: “When Moss goes into guitar dream world he pulls out chords and notes and sounds that do not fit the plot as such, but which create new dimensions – astounding stuff that can never be reached through intellectual process, only through a quantum leap of intuition and imagination.”
“Watching him on Wednesday night was a revelation; he was the embodiment of an archetypal guitar hero,
to the extent that applying that term to any other player but him feels wrong” – The Australian
“The most gifted musician I’ve ever seen” – Don Walker, Cold Chisel
“… his playing is intuitive and inventive, refusing to follow a script … Mossy’s guitar work is as expressive as ever, and his vocal remains pure and fresh.
Rarely has a rocker aged so gracefully” – STACK Magazine
“Rivers Run Dry … his most complete solo album to date. The record oozes class ….”
This is one of the best crafted albums I’ve heard in quite some time” – Fireworks Magazine (UK)
“It’s undeniable that both his voice and guitar playing remain in mint condition” 4 Stars – The Australian
“One of Australia’s best guitarists with a gorgeous, soulful voice.” – Sydney Morning Herald, May 2018
“This self-titled album record delivers precisely what you’d expect. Top shelf Mossy.” – The West Australian, 2018
“Soulful and supple of voice and a deft, romantic songwriter.” – Tim Rogers, You Am I