It’s difficult to write appropriately about someone who you realize that you know nothing about, yet who has had the minutiae of their too short life dissected frequently by fans and media over many years. You see their face daily on social media. You chat with other fans and are sometimes fortunate enough to hear precious anecdotes from family members or friends who knew them well. But you really don’t know the person. You don’t know what they thought, how they truly felt, nor did you get to experience the various subtle nuances of serious conversation with them. In short, you just don’t have a clue as to who they really were.
I wish I had known Michael Hutchence now that I have read so many books about him, and watched so many interviews, movies, and tv specials about him. There is obviously so very much more to the man than what you can share on paper or video. To have known him, befriended him, or just to have shared space in this world with this remarkably beautiful, sensitive, brilliant, unfettered, sensual, and compassionate human being, would have been a blessed thing for me.
He was so much more than what I first saw and listened to in the mid-‘80’s, when my jaw dropped to the floor the first time I experienced the “Need You Tonight” video on MTV. It was so easy to be captivated by this man who looked and moved unlike any person I had ever seen before, and his come hither grin in that video, still to this day, sets my old heart on fire. There was something about him that was so incredibly different. As I discovered more INXS music and more videos, Michael’s charisma, sensuality, and youthful exuberance were uplifting, and breathed life into my otherwise dull existence. He was a captivating man and when he was on my TV screen I couldn’t look away. I listened to my INXS cd’s non stop and still have the various mixed tapes that I made for my car and my Walkman.
I was lucky enough to see INXS in concert in Philadelphia, March 1991 for the X Factor tour and am proud to say that at least I was in the same building one time in my life with this remarkable man. It was by far the best concert I ever attended both because of the incredible integrity and professionalism of INXS and Michael’s unmatchable stage presence. I was completely swept off of my feet along with everyone else in the audience, and by the end of the concert my usually restrained self had screamed herself hoarse, unable to resist Michael’s charms, tossing hair, and sexy vocals. He was sex on legs and I swear he had every girl and woman firmly in his pocket that night.
When I heard that Michael had died and read about the circumstances surrounding his death, I turned away. I didn’t know what we know now about his terrible struggles. I didn’t know who he truly was besides a gloriously talented rock God blessed with a unique voice and the most gorgeous hair I had ever seen on any human being, and who was now deceased at a young age like so many other rock personalities. I hadn’t even scraped the surface of the deep waters the made up Michael’s inner self. How could I, a mere fan, do so? With Michael’s death, INXS and their music sadly faded away into the background of my life.
With the publication of Tina Hutchence’s books and Richard Lowenstein’s movie “Mystify”, I was reunited with my love of INXS’s music and was introduced to the “real” Michael, or as close as I could get through books, a movie, and videos. With the acquisition of Richard Simpkin’s book I gained another perspective about Michael, presented lovingly by a true and dear fan. This Michael Hutchence was a person, just like you and me, who although he could probably have walked on water, was still humble, sometimes insecure, and experienced all of the typical emotions that we do. He wasn’t a god up on a pedestal or a pretty face on a Rolling Stone magazine cover. He was a real person and fame and fortune often obscure this. The media paints their own picture. Fans paint their own picture. The man himself gets blurred and becomes a figment of our imagination. Without these loving tributes by those who knew him best, the true man is lost.
I am so glad that people who knew Michael intimately have shared him with the world. I am so grateful for their candid photos, their retelling of personal stories and conversations, and their setting the record straight regarding Michael’s last few years and moments here with us. Without their sharing these precious memories, I would never have had a glimpse into the soul of this marvelously talented and beautiful man.
I am so grateful for these tribute pages and the people who share everything “Michael” on a daily basis. Although I can never really know Michael, this is as close as I will get, and for that , I will be eternally grateful. He was just so much more of everything and I am so fortunate to have been able to share this earth even for a short time, with a man like Michael Hutchence.
RIP dear Michael.You will never be forgotten.
I wish I had known Michael Hutchence now that I have read so many books about him, and watched so many interviews, movies, and tv specials about him. There is obviously so very much more to the man than what you can share on paper or video. To have known him, befriended him, or just to have shared space in this world with this remarkably beautiful, sensitive, brilliant, unfettered, sensual, and compassionate human being, would have been a blessed thing for me.
He was so much more than what I first saw and listened to in the mid-‘80’s, when my jaw dropped to the floor the first time I experienced the “Need You Tonight” video on MTV. It was so easy to be captivated by this man who looked and moved unlike any person I had ever seen before, and his come hither grin in that video, still to this day, sets my old heart on fire. There was something about him that was so incredibly different. As I discovered more INXS music and more videos, Michael’s charisma, sensuality, and youthful exuberance were uplifting, and breathed life into my otherwise dull existence. He was a captivating man and when he was on my TV screen I couldn’t look away. I listened to my INXS cd’s non stop and still have the various mixed tapes that I made for my car and my Walkman.
I was lucky enough to see INXS in concert in Philadelphia, March 1991 for the X Factor tour and am proud to say that at least I was in the same building one time in my life with this remarkable man. It was by far the best concert I ever attended both because of the incredible integrity and professionalism of INXS and Michael’s unmatchable stage presence. I was completely swept off of my feet along with everyone else in the audience, and by the end of the concert my usually restrained self had screamed herself hoarse, unable to resist Michael’s charms, tossing hair, and sexy vocals. He was sex on legs and I swear he had every girl and woman firmly in his pocket that night.
When I heard that Michael had died and read about the circumstances surrounding his death, I turned away. I didn’t know what we know now about his terrible struggles. I didn’t know who he truly was besides a gloriously talented rock God blessed with a unique voice and the most gorgeous hair I had ever seen on any human being, and who was now deceased at a young age like so many other rock personalities. I hadn’t even scraped the surface of the deep waters the made up Michael’s inner self. How could I, a mere fan, do so? With Michael’s death, INXS and their music sadly faded away into the background of my life.
With the publication of Tina Hutchence’s books and Richard Lowenstein’s movie “Mystify”, I was reunited with my love of INXS’s music and was introduced to the “real” Michael, or as close as I could get through books, a movie, and videos. With the acquisition of Richard Simpkin’s book I gained another perspective about Michael, presented lovingly by a true and dear fan. This Michael Hutchence was a person, just like you and me, who although he could probably have walked on water, was still humble, sometimes insecure, and experienced all of the typical emotions that we do. He wasn’t a god up on a pedestal or a pretty face on a Rolling Stone magazine cover. He was a real person and fame and fortune often obscure this. The media paints their own picture. Fans paint their own picture. The man himself gets blurred and becomes a figment of our imagination. Without these loving tributes by those who knew him best, the true man is lost.
I am so glad that people who knew Michael intimately have shared him with the world. I am so grateful for their candid photos, their retelling of personal stories and conversations, and their setting the record straight regarding Michael’s last few years and moments here with us. Without their sharing these precious memories, I would never have had a glimpse into the soul of this marvelously talented and beautiful man.
I am so grateful for these tribute pages and the people who share everything “Michael” on a daily basis. Although I can never really know Michael, this is as close as I will get, and for that , I will be eternally grateful. He was just so much more of everything and I am so fortunate to have been able to share this earth even for a short time, with a man like Michael Hutchence.
RIP dear Michael.You will never be forgotten.