[4] The group won a record number of ten ARIA Music Awards in 1997 for their debut album and its related singles.

They disbanded at the end of 2001 with Hayes continuing as a solo artist and Jones moving into record production before becoming a real estate agent.

[5] Their set included the group's renditions of "Hurts So Good" (originally by John Cougar, 1982), "Let's Stick Together" (in the style of Bryan Ferry, 1976), "Khe Sanh" (Cold Chisel, 1978) and "Don't Change" (INXS, 1982).

[5] The five-piece version of Red Edge played pubs and clubs from southern Queensland to northern New South Wales, while Hayes and Jones started to write original material.

[8] John Woodruff (The Angels, Baby Animals, Diesel) provided a positive response;[5] he became their talent manager and negotiated a contract with Roadshow Music/Warner Music.

[1][6] In 1995 they entered the studio to work on their debut album with producer Charles Fisher (Air Supply, Moving Pictures, 1927).

[14] Their local success drew interest from international labels and they were signed for overseas releases with Columbia Records in late November.

[5] The label's executives had Woodruff arrange for Hayes and Jones to reside in a Kings Cross hotel for 8 months, where they wrote songs for a debut album to be released in 1997.

4 on the United States Billboard Hot 100 and by April had achieved gold status according to Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

[11] According to rock music historian Ian McFarlane, "[It] revealed the influence of 1980s UK pop on Hayes and Jones' songwriting.

Tears for Fears and Roxette melodies blended seamlessly with Eurythmics-like arrangements, while Cure-styled guitar provided the icing on the cake.

In November, "Santa Monica"—their final single from the album—was released exclusively in Japan, accompanied by a video of a live performance at the Hard Rock Cafe.

[1][6] According to Australian music journalist Ed Nimmervoll, it was "basically written by phone and computer from their separate corners of the world" with Hayes in New York and Jones in Brisbane.

Affirmation displayed the development of Savage Garden's sound—it was mainstream pop leaning towards adult contemporary music.

[30] At the end of 2001, there was media speculation that the band would break up due to Hayes starting his solo album project.

After the announcement, the band's website posted a statement: We are extremely grateful to our fans all around the world for their incredible support over the years.

We just hope that you all understand our individual needs to continue growing.In an interview on the musicMAX network, Hayes said that a few weeks before the release of their second album, Jones did not like the fame that the band was receiving and was not happy.

Hayes said of the recording; "It's a long time ago, but my recollection is I was writing about the relationship that I have, and continue to have, with the women in my life.

[33] It accompanies a major re-release of their two studio albums with bonus tracks and live performances, the first time their catalogue has received such treatment.

The show was the beginning of Hayes' collaboration with Willie Williams, having a stage set consisting of a game-show-like backdrop of multicoloured neon lights.

During the Australian leg, a camera crew filmed both on-stage and backstage, the footage of which was issued as the Superstars and Cannonballs video album in March 2001.

[35] In December 2020, Savage Garden was listed at number 28 in Rolling Stone Australia's "50 Greatest Australian Artists of All Time" issue.