Michael Hutchence
Michael Kelland John Hutchence (
January 22,
1960 –
November 22,
1997) was the lead singer of the
Australian rock band,
INXS.
Michael was born in
Sydney, but was subsequently raised in
Hong Kong. He began performing at the age of eight in a local toy store commercial. He attended
King George V School. The Hutchence family eventually returned to Sydney in Michael's late teens, and it was there that Hutchence befriended
Andrew Farriss at
Davidson High School on Sydney's Northern Beaches. Shortly, Michael and
Andrew joined with Andrew's brothers
Tim and
Jon, as well as friends
Garry Gary Beers and
Kirk Pengilly to form their first band,
The Farris Brothers which would ultimately become INXS. When in 1979 the Farriss family moved to
Perth, Western Australia, the rest of the band followed, returning to Sydney soon after. In 1980, the group released their first album,
INXS, and put out their first single,
Simple Simon, which was soon followed by their first moderate Australian hit,
Wishy Washy.
By virtue of his role as the band's lead singer, Hutchence became the main spokesperson for the band, and gained a reputation as a confident, sexy frontman, although his close friends and family always maintained he was much more introverted than his on-stage persona. A talented lyricist, he co-wrote almost all of INXS's songs with Andrew Farriss, who has attributed his own success as a songwriter to Hutchence's 'genius'.
In 1987, following several increasingly successful
INXS albums, Hutchence appeared in the Australian movie
Dogs in Space, directed by long-time INXS music video collaborator,
Richard Lowenstein. In the film, some events are from Lowenstein's life when sharing a home with friend
Sam Sejavka, played by Hutchence. This was followed by the album
Max Q, a collaboration with Australian
post-punk pioneer
Ollie Olsen. In 1990, he played
Percy Shelley in
Roger Corman's
Frankenstein Unbound.
Hutchence's private life was often reported in the Australian and international press, with a string of love affairs with prominent models and singers. In 1990, he began a highly publicised relationship with
Kylie Minogue, helping to transform her image from girl-next-door (a hang-over of her
soap opera "
Neighbours" fame), into a sexy, edgy pop diva.
INXS spent the mid-1990s trying to develop a successful new album after a series of less-than-spectacular releases.
During this time, Hutchence's relationship with
Kylie Minogue ended, and for a time he dated supermodel
Helena Christensen before meeting
Paula Yates. Paula and Michael's affair was soon discovered by the
English press. The pressure from the media was so intense that Hutchence once assaulted a photographerhounding him. Around this time, Yates' separation from husband
Bob Geldof became official, sparking an at-times bitter custody battle over their three daughters, Fifi Trixibelle, Peaches Honeyblossom and Little Pixie. In 1996 Yates gave birth to Hutchence's only child, daughter
Heavenly Hiraani Tiger Lily Hutchence.
A new
INXS release, 1997's
Elegantly Wasted, had just been released when Hutchence, aged 37, was found dead in his room at the
Ritz-Carlton hotel in
Double Bay,
Sydney (now the
Sir Stamford). A belt found at the 'scene of crime' suggested that he had hanged. The New South Wales
coroner determined his death was
suicide but analysis of the witness statements in the report, the lack of a suicide note and other evidence has since been interpreted to suggest that the cause of death may have been accidental, resulting from
autoerotic asphyxiation (strangling himself while masturbating). The full Coroner's Report can be read from an external link below.
* note it is not substantiated that this is the actual Official Coroner's Report Hutchence's long-in-the-works solo album,
Michael Hutchence, was finally released in 1999, as was his third movie,
Limp.
In July to September 2005, a television show featured the members of INXS looking for a new singer to replace the late Hutchence. The show, which aired on
CBS, was called
Rock Star: INXS. The winner was
Canadian singer
J.D. Fortune.
Earlier this year (2006) it was announced that a biopic focusing on the life and times of Michael Hutchence was going forward, to be directed by a friend of Michael's, music promo director Nick Egan.
Albums
With INXS
*
INXS (1980)
*
Underneath The Colours (1981)
*
INXSive - compilation album (1982)
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Shabooh Shoobah (1983)
*
The Swing (1984)
*
Listen Like Thieves (1985)
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Kick (1987)
*
X (1990)
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Live Baby Live — recorded live at Wembley Stadium (1991)
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Welcome to Wherever You Are (1992)
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Full Moon, Dirty Hearts (1993)
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Elegantly Wasted (1997)
Other albums
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Max Q, self-titled album with Hutchence's short-lived band
Max Q (1989)
*
Michael Hutchence (1999)
Collaborations / Soundtracks
* "Speed Kills" and "Forest Theme" on Freedom Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1982)
* "Sex Symbol" and "Jungle Boy" on Flame Fortune album (1985)
* "Dogs In Space", "Golf Course", "The Green Dragon", and "Rooms For The Memory" on the
Dogs In Space Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1987)
* "Under My Thumb" on Symphonic Music of the Rolling Stones (1994)
* "Baby Let's Play House" on It's Now or Never: The Tribute The Elvis (1994)
* "The Passenger" on Batman Forever Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1995)
* "Spill the Wine" on Barb Wire Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1996)
* "Red Hill" on One Voice: The Songs of
Chage & Aska (1996)
* "The King Is Gone" on The Heads - No Talking Just Head (1996)
The 2000
U2 album
All That You Can't Leave Behind includes a song titled "
Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of", which Hutchence's friend
Bono wrote about his
suicide. The song is written in the form of an argument about suicide in which Bono tries to convince Hutch of the act's foolishness. Bono characterized the song as a good old row between friends which he felt guilty that he never got to have with Hutch. Bono also dedicated an emotional performance of "One" to Hutchence on the live video
Popmart: Live From Mexico City.
Singer
Simon Le Bon of
Duran Duran, a friend of both Hutchence and Yates (and Geldof's best man at his wedding to Yates), also wrote a song for him. It was recorded in 1996 and released on the album
Medazzaland only a month before Hutchence's death. "Michael, You've Got A Lot To Answer For" included these lyrics:
Trust you to get caught up in somebody's war; you'll come out of it all intact, I'm sure.Just remember what friends were put here for;Michael, you've got a lot to answer for, and I know that you're gonna call... if you need me.On INXS' last tour, they dedicated "Never Tear Us Apart" to Michael and had a screen which showed pictures of him throughout his life.
A song on INXS' new album
Switch called "God's Top Ten" pays tribute to Michael and his daughter, Heavenly Hiraani Tiger Lily. Another song, "
Afterglow", pays tribute to Michael alone.
Strange occurrences have been reputedly documented since Michael's death.
It has been reported that, at the end of his funeral service, there was a huge thunderstorm -- many took this as a sign showing that Michael "was there," at least in a spiritual sense.
A similar, an rather eerily coincidental occurrence, was documented during that first time INXS was to play the first gig of their new worldwide tour that featured their new lead singer,
J.D. Fortune. The show was cancelled due to heavy rain caused by a huge thunderstorm -- it has been since noted that the sudden weather change was attributal to "Michael's spirit" being present once again.
*
Official Michael Hutchence Memorial Website a tribute from his family, created by Kelland Hutchence, Michael's father
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The official Michael Hutchence Tribute website maintained by his sister, Tina
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Polish Michael Hutchence & INXS Website*
A small tribute to M.K.H. at Images And Words*
The official coroner's report, regarding Hutchence's death*
Another memorial site*
MICHAEL HUTCHENCE FAN FORUM Tribute site created for fans by fans
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Michael Hutchence at h2g2*
Michael Hutchence's Photo & Gravesite
