Michael Hutchence

Michael Kelland John Hutchence (22 January 1960 – 22 November 1997) was an Australian singer and songwriter. He was the co-founder, lead singer and lyricist of the rock band INXS from 1977 until his death in 1997. The band sold over 50 million records worldwide, making them one of Australia's highest-selling music acts of all time. INXS were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2001.

Hutchence was also a member of the short-lived band Max Q. He recorded some solo material and acted in films such as Dogs in Space (1986) and Frankenstein Unbound (1990). Hutchence was known for his string of love affairs with actresses, models and singers, and his private life was often covered in the international press. He had a daughter, Tiger Hutchence-Geldof, with British television presenter Paula Yates. Hutchence died by suicide in a Sydney hotel room on 22 November 1997 at the age of 37.

Michael Hutchence was born in the Crows Nest suburb of Sydney on 22 January 1960, the son of make-up artist Patricia Glassop and businessman Kelland Frank "Kell" Hutchence. He had an elder half-sister named Tina. His paternal grandparents were an English couple who had relocated to Sydney in 1922, while his maternal grandfather was from County Cork, Ireland.

Following Kell's business interests, the Hutchence family moved to Brisbane, where Hutchence's younger brother Rhett was born. They later left Australia for Hong Kong. During the early years in Hong Kong, both boys attended Glenealy Junior School and Beacon Hill School. Hutchence showed promise as a swimmer before badly breaking his arm. He then began to show interest in poetry and performed his first song in a local toy store commercial. He later attended King George V School during his early teens. The family returned to Sydney in 1972, buying a house in Belrose.

Hutchence attended Davidson High School, where he met and befriended Andrew Farriss. Around this time, the two spent a lot of time jamming with Farriss's brothers Tim and Jon in the garage. Farriss convinced Hutchence to join his band, Doctor Dolphin, alongside their classmates Kent Kerny and Neil Sanders. Bassist Garry Beers and drummer Geoff Kennelly from nearby Forest High School completed the line-up.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.