INXS

INXS (a phonetic play on "in excess") were an Australian rock band formed in 1977 in Sydney. Originally called the Farriss Brothers, the band's founding members were bassist Garry Gary Beers, main composer and keyboardist Andrew Farriss, drummer Jon Farriss, guitarist Tim Farriss, lead singer and main lyricist Michael Hutchence, and guitarist and saxophonist Kirk Pengilly. For 20 years, INXS were fronted by Hutchence, whose stage presence made him the focal point of the band.

In 1984, INXS had their first number-one hit in Australia with "Original Sin". The band achieved international success in the mid-to-late 1980s and early 1990s with the hit albums Listen Like Thieves, Kick, and X and the singles "What You Need" (1985), "Need You Tonight" (1987) (the band's only US number-one single), "New Sensation" (1987), "Devil Inside" (1988), "Never Tear Us Apart" (1988), and "Suicide Blonde" (1990).

After Hutchence's death on 22 November 1997, INXS made appearances with several guest singers. Beginning in 2000, the band toured and recorded with Jon Stevens as lead singer. In 2005, members of INXS participated in Rock Star: INXS, a reality television series that culminated in the selection of Canadian J.D. Fortune as their new lead singer. Irish singer-songwriter Ciaran Gribbin replaced Fortune as lead singer in 2011. INXS performed their final concert on 11 November 2012.

INXS won six Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) awards, including the award for "Best Group" in 1987, 1989 and 1992, respectively. In addition, the band were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2001. They have sold over 50 million records worldwide.

History

Early years

The origins of the band began with Andrew Farriss convincing his Davidson High School classmate, Michael Hutchence, to join his band, Doctor Dolphin. The band contained two further classmates, Kent Kerny and Neil Sanders, as well as Garry Beers and Geoff Kennely, both from the nearby Forest High School. In 1977, Tim Farriss, Andrew's older brother, invited Andrew, Hutchence and Beers to join him and his schoolmate Kirk Pengilly. Tim and Pengilly had been playing together since 1971 as either an acoustic duo known as Kirk and Tim or as a four-piece band called Guinness (named after their bass player's dog). Together with younger brother Jon Farriss, they formed "The Farriss Brothers", which consisted of Garry Beers on bass guitar, Andrew Farriss on keyboards, Jon Farriss on drums, Tim Farriss on lead guitar, Michael Hutchence on lead vocals and Kirk Pengilly on guitar and saxophone. The band made their debut on 16 August 1977 at Whale Beach, 40 km (25 mi) north of Sydney.

The parents of the Farriss boys relocated to Perth, Western Australia in 1978, taking Jon to continue his schooling and as soon as Hutchence and Andrew finished school, the rest of the band followed. They briefly performed as The Vegetables before returning to Sydney ten months later and recording a set of demos. At a chance meeting in the car park of the Royal Antler, a pub in Narrabeen, Tim was approached by Midnight Oil manager Gary Morris.