This is a hard one for me. Twenty-eight years ago, the world lost one of its greatest frontmen — and one of my biggest inspirations — when Michael Hutchence, founding member, lyricist, and lead singer of INXS, passed away.
I grew up on INXS, as far back as Shabooh Shoobah, when the videos for “The One Thing” and “Don’t Change” came crashing into my living room via MTV in 1982. And after the world-shaking success of 1987’s Kick, the band found themselves on top of the music world. So what did they do after the wildly successful Calling All Nations Tour wrapped? They took a breather, pursued some side projects, then regrouped in Sydney to begin work on the follow-up — an album that arrived in 1990, X.
It wasn’t as massive in the U.S. as Kick, but it still went double-platinum, and it’s an album I hold very close. That’s why I’m honoring this band, and the late Mr. Hutchence, with this week’s Classic Albums feature.
“Suicide Blonde” opens the record with a charge that instantly recalls the attitude of Kick. Charlie Musselwhite’s harmonica brings a seductive edge, and Michael delivers that sultry “Everything you wanna be, everything you are… are…” with the kind of effortless cool only he possessed. “Disappear” shows Hutchence crooning with a soul-singer vibe in the verses, leading to those “do-do, do-do, do-do-do” hooks that lodged themselves in your brain for years.
But my greatest memory from X — the track that will forever stay with me — is “The Stairs.” It’s an ambitious slow build, brick by brick, an ode to the rhythm of city life as we go “story to story, building to building, street to street, we pass each other on the stairs.” It still gives me goosebumps as I type this. In 1993, it lived on constant repeat in my ’88 Sundance and in my Walkman as I roamed the streets of Philadelphia.
“Faith in Each Other” brings a mid-’80s funk feel, with Kirk Pengilly’s sax finally getting a prominent spotlight. “By My Side” follows — a piano- and strings-driven ballad that remains another favorite, especially the version from 1991’s Live Baby Live. “Lately” finds Hutchence once again leaning into that come-hither vocal he could summon at will, and hearing it takes me right back to that Sundance, my girlfriend Holly beside me.
This whole record was a Friday and Saturday night staple during my pizza-delivery days. Working till 11 p.m. was always easier with six of my closest Australian friends blasting through the car speakers.
“Who Pays the Price” carries a gritty, blues-inflected funk, and pairing it live with “Know the Difference” — as they did on February 18, 1991, at Nassau Coliseum, my first INXS show — was a perfect matchup, the musical equivalent of finding just the right wine for dinner.
“Bitter Tears” again shows off Hutchence’s magnetism, while the band sounds incredibly tight, with the Farriss brothers (Jon, Tim, and Andrew), Pengilly, and bassist Garry Gary Beers giving the song an extra jolt of swagger. And if sass is what you’re after, “On My Way” has it in abundance, with Musselwhite’s harmonica slicing straight through the mix.
Closer “Hear That Sound” remains a personal favorite — a perfect melody with a chorus you can’t help but shout along to. It also hits differently now, serving as a reminder that we won’t hear that sound again. As we all know, the band’s fortunes shifted after 1991, though I still blast every album they released afterward.
Then came November 22, 1997, when Michael Hutchence was found dead in his Sydney hotel room. His loss is something I’ve never gotten over, and I know I’m not alone. Every year, this day hurts. And as I write this, the tears come just like they always do because it’s still not fair.
X by INXS is an album too often overlooked, and that’s simply wrong. It was, is, and always will be a Classic Album from an iconic band.
Thank you for the memories, Michael. Rest in peace.
For Paula
~DC
In Loving Memory of Michael Kelland John Hutchence
(January 22, 1960 – November 22, 1997)
