"You just want them to be in touch all the time," says Neil. They released their self-titled debut album in September 2011.[30]. It's 2021 and there’s plenty to be hopeful about, but for now, dreamers are waiting. When it came time to release the first two singles, Tell Me What You Want and From a Friend to A Friend, Neil was reluctant for radio announcers to mention the line-up, hoping the band would earn its stripes rather than be sold off the back of his name. Finn has recorded four solo albums, Try Whistling This (1998), One Nil (2001), Dizzy Heights (2014), and Out of Silence (2017). And now Neil’s wife Sharon is joining in. I was on drums and Sharon on bass. The group's new album Time on Earth was released in June 2007; in the pre-release build up, they headlined a show at Coachella in April 2007, then commenced a world tour. "Oh yeah, we're talking really late," says Neil Finn, sitting with his wife, Sharon, at the Finns' Roundhead Studios in Auckland. Finn has also produced and recorded with various New Zealand acts such as Bic Runga, The Mutton Birds and Dave Dobbyn. It's all right, Mum! [29] The Rock Party released a 12" single "Everything To Live For", which was produced by Joe Wissert, Phil Rigger and Phil Beazley.[29]. Neil and Sharon, too, have a rhythm that you only get from spending years in each other's company. She has also provided the backing vocals on numerous albums such as ‘Crowded House’ and ‘Watching Angels Mend.’ The album Afterglow was released in 1999, which contained previously unreleased Crowded House recordings. By 1980, he was sharing lead singer duties and wrote their first international hit, "I Got You". Records reveal Finn and longtime wife Sharon paid $4.3 million for the property, which was sold by Emmy-winning “Simpsons” writer Tim Long, former head writer for “The David Letterman Show.” "Fix [her] up.". While his brother Tim left for England, Neil was the founder of Crowded House with Split Enz's last drummer Paul Hester in 1985. According to Variety, Finn … I think you're blessed, really, to be brought up with some kind of weird dogma like t… It was very much part of our upbringing.... That was the first inkling of the seduction of live performance. In 1995, he and brother Tim released their first album together as a duo, a breathtaking, loose, more fervently percussive album than many were used to from Finn. The Split Enz era is represented by ‘Message To My Girl’, written for Neil’s wife Sharon whom he married in 1982, ‘One Step Ahead’ which he was surprised was a hit (it “hasn’t got a proper chorus”), and ‘Hello Sandy Allen’ about the time he met Sandra Elaine Allen, “the tallest woman in the world” (she was seven feet seven inches, or 231 cms) at a talk show in New York. Music being an integral part of the Finn’s family life, with sons Liam and Elroy also forging their own successful careers, it was only natural that for their new project, Pajama Club , the paternal Finns looked to each other for inspiration. You'd imagine this has as much to do with respecting Sharon's involvement, despite her modesty over the creative process. He decided to become a musician at the age of 12 and throughout his school years performed in prisons and hospitals, as well as at home gatherings.[17]. ", Adds Neil: "The live thing was scary because I can be a hard taskmaster when comes to rehearsals and I didn't want to be in the uncomfortable situation of having to ... ", "Drill Sharon," finishes Neil. [There's] lots of good stuff going on in there, good rituals and imagery and lots of guilt. I don't like being in that situation.". [21] The two decided to repair the music room in their Auckland home and begin making music of their own: "We've had a bit more time on our hands since the boys left home, and we just decided to make a record. Liam Finn Finn at the world premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - November 2012 Wellington, New Zealand. [8] His parents instilled an "inspiring admiration of music" in young Finn; the family would often engage in sing-alongs around the family piano. The iconic Crowded House musician and his wife of … That song did creep the kids out.". [25][26] One of their performances at the Sydney Opera House was recorded for the live album, Goin' Your Way (8 November 2013). Pajama Club decided they didn't want to find themselves scrambling to form a live band once the album was released, so they went out on the road early, to gel. In 2012, Finn recorded the song "Song of the Lonely Mountain", which was featured in the end credits of Peter Jackson's film adaptation The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.[23]. Neil Finn has released an acoustic cover of 'When Doves Cry' by Prince. "Oh yeah, we're talking really late," says Neil Finn, sitting with his wife, Sharon, at the Finns' Roundhead Studios in Auckland. When he came home, he played them to Donnelly, a producer and multi-instrumentalist, who liked them immediately and came up with a few ideas. The song "I Love You Dawn", available on Afterglow (an album of unreleased Crowded House tracks and B-sides) was penned in her honour. Sharon just holds herself really well. Liam Finn played drums on a rendition of the Crowded House song "Weather With You".[20]. After Split Enz broke up in 1984, Neil and Australian Enz drummer, Paul Hester, formed a band called The Mullanes with Australians Nick Seymour and Craig Hooper. Singer-songwriter Neli Finn and his wife Sharon are selling their Auckland home. In March 2009, Finn joined Tim Finn on stage, with his son Liam, at Melbourne's charity Sound Relief concert at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, in support of the 2009 Victorian Bushfires. On 27 February 2015 Tim, Neil and Liam performed a sellout show at the Auckland Zoo. Steely Dan. Watch the heartwarming performance in the video above “We have longed … For the football player, see, 2006–present: reformation of Crowded House and family collaborations, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Officers of the Order of the British Empire, Andrew Denton's Musical Challenge Volume 2: Even More Challenged, Live at the World Café: Vol. "You'll have to join another band. Finn rose to international fame after Split Enz broke up in 1984. In 2010, Finn commenced another world tour with Crowded House in support of their 2010 release, Intriguer. "Sharon has a certain poise and serenity on stage that belies her anxiety underneath that kind of blows me away. As a 19-year-old, she'd toyed with the idea of becoming a musician, asking Nigel Griggs from Split Enz to give her a few bass lessons and buying a Gibson SG guitar.