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As featured in the June issue of "Mil
Mania" (to coincide with a review of The Escape Club, which group's
lead singer is mentioned herein), the following is a letter I sent to Casey
Kasem as a potential long distance dedication for his radio show, "American
Top 40" (I actually listened to the condensed version, "American Top
20" at the time; hence the notation regarding both in the address). (P.S. A few additional notes can be found at the bottom of this page) --------- July 7, 1998 Casey Kasem Dear Casey: I am writing with something of an unusual request in that my dedication is for a group of people I have never met, and whom, quite frankly, I never expect to. Despite this, however, they have, through their music, undoubtedly made a very positive contribution to my life. Individually, they are Tim, Jon, Kirk, Garry and Andrew, but collectively their names spell quite simply INXS. One spring evening last year, the [radio] station [my husband and I were listening to at the time] debuted the title track from “Elegantly Wasted” as its new music feature of that day. Shortly thereafter we purchased the CD and added it to a collection which already included every INXS album released since “Listen Like Thieves”. And, as with each of those, by it we were in no way disappointed. Having become accustomed to the voice of Michael Hutchence as one of the best parts of the soundtrack to our lives for so long, I guess (to quote one of his lyrics) it might be said we’d “got the feeling the gift [he] gave was gonna last forever”. It wasn’t something we really thought about – or something we can adequately explain here. As author Stephen King wrote about one of his favorite artists, “I’m always startled by the inability of words to express how good really good rock and roll music can be, but I always know when I hear it.” In the music of INXS, we simple knew we’d heard it, and you can therefore imagine how stunned, how utterly heartsick we were when we flipped on the radio that Saturday morning last November just as the DJ announced the news of Michael Hutchence’s death. Naturally, like so many other fans, we soon began to need somehow to understand – to find some more reasonable answer to the question “why” than the clichéd speculation surrounding the death of any rock star – blaming drugs, alcohol or any of the dozen other assumedly spoiled tendencies of the rich and famous as the “easy” explanation. Contrary to this image, Michael sang on one of his last recorded songs, “I’m Just A Man”, and as the days passed following his death, we read various articles on his life, on bits of conversations and occurrences supposed to have taken place just prior to the tragedy, and tried to consider him as he apparently wished to be considered – as just a man – subject to the same pressures of career, family, disappointments, and dreams as all the rest of us. With this in mind, I’ve come to find my answer to the question “why” in the lyrics to the song, “Biting Bullets” in which he sings, “I lose myself
like anybody else, As I’ve said, I never met him, never knew him as his band members and loved ones did, and they may find my conclusion somehow lacking. If so, for this I sincerely apologize to them. But, to me, it makes a lot of sense. And, to us as fans, all we have to help us make sense of Michael’s life and death – not to mention where to go from here – is the music, and the expression of himself contained within it – and thankfully, we have a lot of it. Of course, once past they “why”, for many months now my thoughts have turned instead to what happens next – does it all end here? What would Michael say? What would he want? Needless to say, I don’t know. And as for what the other members of INXS want, I don’t know this either. But as for me, more than anything else in considering this, I’ve come back time and again to all the lyrics in their music that speak of “change”. From the youthful perspective of “Don’t Change” to the more mature acceptance of it in lines such as “Kiss the changes that shape my life” and “Change – it keeps us moving on”, I’ve ended up at the belief that an INXS with a new lead singer would indeed represent monumental change, but a change that might allow Michael’s legacy to continue to shape our lives in a positive way for many years to come. I read somewhere that at Michael’s funeral, Andrew Farriss urged fans not to attempt to copy Michael by cutting their own lives short, saying simply, “He wouldn’t want that.” Is it really possible, then, that he could want all of the life he left behind in the music to follow him in death, either? Somehow, I think not. Of course, without him here, another voice must carry on what he began – but not to “replace” him as some might callously think, for to call such a person a replacement is something I consider a term unfair to all concerned. Instead, I prefer a comparison to a monarchy’s acceptance of the need for a successor following the passing of a king – a step which represents a necessary change to keep the country moving on, as I believe a successor to Michael’s throne might be – the inevitable change all of us as fans and the other members of INXS as Michael’s friends need to keep moving on. The next question, of course, is who could possible fill such a position – and this is something I’m sure I’m also not alone in having given a lot of thought. And, while my suggestion here, too, may be proved unacceptable for many reasons, the name which keeps coming to mind is The Escape Club’s Trevor Steel. Not only did he sport a similar style when he was last spotted on the American music scene, with his shoulder-length dark hair, and distinctive fashion sense, but he, too, has been a contributor of some excellent rock and roll -- including a song sung from the perspective of one who has passed on, a song which would now make for a hugely meaningful addition to every future INXS concert as not only a reminder of Michael’s presence in every note of every show, but also as a means of establishing his own identity as a positive addition to the group. After all, this song was a bit hit for his own band, and in fairness must be credited as a representation of great ability in his own right – ability which, incidentally, I believe has in the past few years quite unjustly been forgotten – or, by many, never even discovered in the first place… Be that as it may, to quote Stephan King once more, “what
rock and roll music has always been about [is] upping the emotional ante until
it hurts and heals in equal measure”, and I can think of no more accurate way
to describe what it would be like should INXS return, with a successor, to the
stage. For as hard as this would
surely be, to think of Tim, Jon, Kirk, Garry and Andrew never again sharing with
fans the music undoubtedly still alive within them seems to much harder, and
would seem ultimately to leave both them and us with only the “hurt” side of
that equation. As an example of
this, I must mention here that a few months ago, I purchased a CD of INXS’s
last ever live performance at that Starlake Arena in I don’t know. I guess in the final analysis I somehow just feel most importantly that we all owe something to Michael in return for giving us so much of his heart and mind and soul for so many years – that all of the positive words of encouragement he so often sang must now be carried on as an encouragement to others – for no matter how he died, it seems the motto of his life will ever remain, “Live, baby, live…” Maybe, finally, after all the grief and all the questions, it’s time at last to once more take Michael’s advice and “live” – and maybe it’s time as well to rediscover Michael’s spirit [via lyrics sung by Trevor Steel] “in a whisper on the wind, on the smile” – and in the voice – “of a new friend…” Which brings me back at last to my request and dedication. Could you please play, “I’ll Be There” by The Escape Club for Tim, Jon, Kirk, Garry and Andrew of INXS to remind them that wherever their music is played, indeed Michael will always be there, and to let them know as well that should the day come – as I so hope it does – when a new INXS CD hits a local music store – beyond question, I’ll be there… Sincerely, Mildred Scott P.S. I think the service you do for so many in helping them to reach others through letters and music is truly wonderful and I could certainly think of no better way of getting what is to me a very important message from New Jersey to Australia – indeed this is a long-distance dedication in the truest sense of the word! Thanks so much.
A couple of final notes I'd like to add in conclusion: first, I still haven't played the CD of Michael Hutchence's last live performance as referenced above. Maybe someday....maybe not. Second, only about three years after Michael Hutchence's death, his fiance, who had (before dating him) been married to Bob Geldof (with whom she had three daughters) died as well, leaving behind her and Michael's daughter Tiger as an orphan. I read that a custody battle subsequently ensued -- and was a bit surprised to learn that on one side of that fight was Geldof himself, who indeed was ultimately awarded guardianship of the (then 5-year-old) girl. I remember thinking at the time how appropriate that outcome seemed (not to mention how generous it proved Geldof's spirit in exercising forgiveness so completely as to allow this small person many men might view as a symbol of a great blow to their ego, as the offspring of "the other man", to become "family" to him). Matters of legal "rights" aside, however, it just seemed "right" to me that the two surviving people most strongly affected by both the events that brought Tiger into the world, and the two suffering the most from her parents' deaths, should be permitted to grow together, to heal together, and to negotiate the foreign waters of such unthinkable circumstances together. A bittersweet ending to a sad tale, to be sure...but something truly good on which to build -- or "re-build"...and indeed, "Live, baby, live". And, finally, I have to confess that due to the mixed feelings
regarding the current lead singer of INXS as expressed in the opening of this
page, I am yet to keep my promise to indeed "be there" now that a new
INXS album has hit stores. Maybe someday...oh, who am I kidding. Of
course, I'm going to buy it -- eventually.
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