APRIL 1984
Two weeks before the 1984 Cannes Film Festival, I get a phone call from a strange character by the name of Gary Grant from a rock & roll management and publishing company called MMA Management. An Australian band called “INXS” had seen and loved one of my music videos for another band called Hunters & Collectors and were wondering if I would do one for them.

I begin to say that I’d never heard any of their records, hadn’t liked what I’d seen and since I was leaving for Cannes in four days time, we wouldn’t have the time for pre-production more or less shooting and editing time. He butts in with, “But, we’re ready now! Just grab your camera and catch the next plane for Queensland and you can finish the rest in London after Cannes.” It is this sort of naivety that you just can’t contend with. And so three pale skinny little figures in black from the drizzle and rain of Melbourne, Lynn-Maree, Troy and myself, end up coming face to face, under the Queensland sun, with six bronzed males and girlfriends round the pool wearing Raybans, Hawaiian shirts and board shorts… The most effusive of these males stood up and loped over, shaking our hands with an eager puppy-dog gleam in his eye and a smile to die for… He said his name was Michael…

22 November, 1997 12:33 PM
Emma rings up and says “have I heard the news about Michael?”… I say, “no, what..?” She says, “Bella rang me to say she’d heard on the radio that he’d committed suicide in his hotel room.. But she can’t confirm it..” I ring Lynn-Maree and tell her. I turn on the TV and wait for the news flashes. I take the phone off the hook, while I watch and think. I don’t really feel anything. I’m just numb.

22 November, 1997 6:28:22 PM
I somehow feel that a part of me has slipped away… Michael was the part of me that I didn’t follow.. the kid that played air guitar in front of the mirror… the sex machine rock star all the girls loved… a guy that encompassed the feminine and the masculine sides of sexuality in one cat-like package.. he was the yin to my yan.. Castor to my Pollux.. the wild to my calm… the rich to my poor… he loved my girl friends and I loved his… he of course, ended up having a lot more than me… something I’ll never forgive him for… I first met Michael reclining on a banana lounge in a cheap motel in MacKay, Queensland… the three of us Troy, Lynn and myself, had been persuaded to leave our black-clad, rain-soaked Melbourne to make a video in the absurdly sunny and tropical clime of North Queensland… when they finally dragged us out of the dark confines of our motel room, we walked our black clad gothic bodies over to the pool to see five bronzed males wearing Raybans, Hawaiian shirts and board shorts… One of these (the most effusive) was Michael with his eager puppy-dog gleam and a smile to die for… this was to be my role model.. I managed to imitate it quite well for the next ten years…

A few days later, I go to the funeral home with Ali and Lian. I get a little sprig of those little white flowers (baby blossom?) and tie it together with a ribbon. I touch his forehead. He seems so cold and stiff. I write him a note and tuck it under his suit coat. I write, “Mikeee…!! Love Rickybaby” . When he’d call or meet up, he’s opening line would always be, “Rickybaby!!!” and I’d always respond “Mikeeee..!”

Richard Lowenstein, 7 October 1999.

To Michael,

I will light a candle
To show you the way
Just one of many, but it will shine brightly
So you can see
Follow the Love that shines from it
And the Respect that makes it burn
It comes from me

I will light the incense
That will make you calm
And take you messages of Peace
So you will know that no one judges
And that all is well

Go on your way
You Great Explorer
With your gentle, searching Gracious Heart
And take with you your
Courage and passion
Slay those dragons and
Rescue your maiden with Love songs
Like the true Hero that you are

I honour you and am blessed
To have known you
Albeit for such a short time
And I look forward to hearing
Of your tales and adventures
When next we meet, my Friend
Until then I will miss you

With love from my heart,
Jimmy

In the very early eighties a group of us caroused around Sydney and often times Melbourne… it was a tight knit group and the group that had the most fun. Michael and Michele, joined at the hip, Nick Conroy, Marty Plaza and his beloved Kate, Terry Serio, James and Sally Freud, Jenny Morris and of course sometimes the rest of INXS.

Those days were filled with so much laughing… stupid things we would just laugh at for days on end. For a while, there would be a particular word or phrase that would keep us going. At one particular time it was the name of my great Grandmothers Pekinese… Lofan. That particular one held for nearly twenty years. I can’t tell you how many places I would be with Michael worldwide where that word would communicate so much. We would just say… “Lofan” and somehow that would always size up the situation. It seemed to hold it’s own particularly in LA…

I always looked at my friend with awe at how he always landed on his feet… how easy it all seemed for him. Now I realize that sometimes when things comes so easy when one is young… how much more difficult it is trying to work things out later.

I nagged Michael Hutchence most of his life…I don’t know how he stood it. Not in the very early years, but oh so much later on. One of the main things I nagged him about was that he never called me enough. I’d get particularly bad when he would come to LA and try to get some partying out of the way… knowing I’d give him a hard time… he’d try to get a couple of days in before I knew he was here. In the last 6 months of his life… he called a lot. Sadly I had stopped nagging him by then… I had sort of given up… I didn’t see him that much so I didn’t want to nag him when I did.

Michael’s presence when he was alive need not be explained… all of us experienced that… His presence became hard to deal with upon his death. The confusion and feeling of aloneness that filled Michele Bennet’s house in the days following his death is something I will never forget. Was it us or him… both…

As Michele and I sat somewhat dazed at Michael’s funeral.. .(how weird it is to write that). I could not take my eyes of this young boy perhaps seventeen years old. He was sitting with three friends up to the right of us. I had never seen a young man weep so uncontrollably before. He wept openly, loudly and stayed that way through the whole service. Afterward I introduced myself and told him how moved I had been by his grief. He said that he was a fan and that Michael had always taken the time to talk to him and that he had always made him feel so special…

When I returned from Australia… I was only home a few days and had been expressing my feelings of sadness out loud to my lost friend. I heard a telephone ringing very faintly and no one seemed to be answering it. I then heard that American telephone voice say “If you’d like to make a call please hang up”. This sound continued and I realized that somehow my telephone was dialing itself over and over. This went on until I finally pulled it out of the wall.

During that first year ironically whenever I would feel Michael somehow…there would go my phone again. The phone company said it was impossible that my phone would do that… oh well…

I think of him everyday, I miss his laughter, I miss his sense of humor I miss those conversations where he would always surprise me by having intricate details of a certain piece of history, like he’d just read the Encyclopedia.

I pray to God that he is at peace… I pray everyday.

Lian Lunson, 8 October 1999

It seems so long ago now, back in 1984 working in the USA with my best friend Ian, where we became familiar with an Australian band who were getting considerable airplay with a new album entitled “The Swing” . The band, of course, was INXS. Around that time we were fortunate enough to hear that INXS were going to open for the English group, Adam and the Ants, so we went along the show and later introduced ourselves to the band. It was a great occasion being able to tell the guys how much we loved their music. Back in the U.K. one year later, on the release of “Listen Like Thieves”, we met up with the band again and it was wonderful how we all recognized each other from our first meeting a year before. That night was the beginning of an amazing 15 year friendship with the greatest band we had ever heard, INXS!

From that night on we began to travel with them all over the U.K., including Europe, and as we did our friendship blossomed, particularly with Michael as we traveled with him, often staying in the same hotels. We had some fantastic evenings with him and the band and we always told them how much we appreciated them. Ian and I by now realized that the guys were destined to massive success (and we told them so) particularly when the “Kick” album was first released.

I remember so much about Michael and what he was like back then. All the world seemed to be talking about INXS, yet he was so calm and collected. Back stage you would always find him in a corner out of the limelight, listening with interest to others, just like he listened to us. He had so much time for us, always just as pleased to see us as were to see him. We still say to this day that the reason our friendship continued over the years was because we were two off-shore riggers, normal working boys with a sense of humor, who used to go crazy back stage. I recall a number of times Ian and I had to apologize to Hutch for going nuts the night before. As always, he laughed it off.

As the massive “Kick” tour came to an end we became more than casual friends, often writing and faxing messages to Michael and the band to keep in touch. Some of my most precious photographs are from this period. My memories of Michael back then are also very precious and are perhaps amongst my favorite. He was so softly spoken, so shy and reserved, yet a fantastic night owl too. Some of my memories I can’t share as they are… well… hush, hush!

In the early 90’s the X tour also holds beautiful memories, whether it by crew bus or Daimlers we traveled to hotels and shows with Michael. We sure drank a lot of booze on this tour, especially the day the lads played London’s Wembley Stadium in front of 72,000 fans. For us this day said it all for we had seen our friends struggle into England in the mid 80’s and now they were about to play the finest show of their career. We were with Michael that afternoon, when around 5:00 pm he came up and handed us an envelope. Our first reaction was, “What is this”? We were already with the band so we didn’t need back stage passes. Inside were tickets for the Royal Box! To us the lads had recognized our loyalty over the years, especially Hutch, who was always making sure others were OK, always putting others before himself.

After the show I recall being at the buffet table with Michael eating our seafood, when he turned around and said, “Hell, Gary! What shall I do?”

I said, “Do about what?”

Hutch replied, “I’m with Helena… look who just walked through the door!” Of course it was Kylie!

I said, “See you next gig, Mike!” As she was fast approaching him, Gary and Ian made a quick exit!

The pubs and club tours were such a success in Europe and we had such great times. One such time was in Chelsea, London. At the Conrad Hotel we had drinks with Michael before we traveled to the show. As always the band asked us if we had transport and this time we said yes. Michael replied, “Well I’ll come with you two.” All we had was our work’s old, clapped-out transit van. Michael nearly passed out when he saw it, as the other guys drove off in their black Mercedes. I’m not kidding you, the only time we caught up to them was at a red traffic light. INXS were screaming with laughter through their car windows as we caught up with them. And here we were with Hutch in a clapped out old transit van going to the gig. Street credibility don’t you think? This had to be one of our most precious moments with Michael and the band. It was a unique and very funny experience.

It is hard to cram over 15 years of experience with Michael and INXS in to such a short space. Whenever the band came to Europe we had such good times and Hutch was so hospitable, as were all the band. This brings me to the last time I saw Michael in July, 1997. We had such a good afternoon and an even better evening filled with great conversation. I left the arena that night with Michael and I carried his bag for him to the crew bus. It was then he put his arms around me and kissed me on the cheek… it was his way of thanking me for all the times I had been there for the band, back in the early days, when they had nothing. I was so proud at that moment and I still am proud. It was a farewell I will treasure forever!

Man of the world for all the good reasons. Yes, Michael Kelland Hutchence there is not a single day passed when I have not thought about you. I can still hear your softly spoken voice. I miss your talent so very much. Others have tried to convince me that “IT IS BETTER TO HAVE HAD A FRIEND AND LOST HIM THAN NEVER TO HAVE HAD THAT FRIEND AT ALL”.

Gary Lilley and Ian Rylance, Newcastle, England.

Writers note:

To all who read this I hope you have enjoyed it. I was so honoured when Kell invited me to be part of this memorial site. Kell and I have grown close since early 1998. Kell, you made me feel happy again when I was so down, by telling me to dwell on the great memories I had of your son. I thank you so very much for this advice.

As Kell is aware, on November 22, 1999, we will hold our second annual tribute evening honouring Michael with my tribute band performing once again a host of INXS songs. As last year, all money raised will go to a recognized charity. If you are reading this and wish to send a message to be read on that night please email it to this web site.