Renée Geyer: Australia’s finest white soul singer was ambitious, unapologetic and too often overlooked

Difficult Woman, a song written for Renée Geyer by Paul Kelly, relaunched her career in Australia after nearly a decade living in Los Angeles. Photograph: Premier Artisits

Renée Geyer was many things in a career that spanned 15 studio albums and 50 years, and she continued singing to packed houses up to only a month ago. She was surely the finest white soul singer, male or female, that Australia has produced, but to speak only of her immense talent does not capture what she was about; her real greatness.

Geyer was, above all, unapologetic. It was this attitude that defined her, as much as her singing. Paul Kelly, who became a close friend, recognised it when he wrote Difficult Woman for her, knowing full well how she would respond. Women, after all, are always the ones thought to be difficult, never men.