INXS manager who led the legendary Australian band to international fame suddenly dies aged 66 just DAYS after being told he had cancer - leaving his shattered wife behind
Visionary INXS manager Chris Murphy has died aged 66 after a short battle with cancer, as tributes pour in to mourn the sudden loss.
The legendary music manager, who helped steer INXS to global success, was surrounded by family when he died at home in Ballina, northern NSW, on Saturday.
'It is with great sadness that the remaining members of INXS mourn the passing of our brother, Chris Murphy,' band members Tim, Jon and Andrew Farriss, Kirk Pengilly and Garry Beers said in a statement.
Talented music manager Chris Murphy, pictured in 2017, helped INXS to global stardom. Mr Murphy died at home in Ballina on Saturday, surrounded by family, after a battle with cancer
Left to right: Andrew Farriss, Chris 'CM' Murphy and Garry Gary Beers pictured in 2017 at the launch of the INXS Kick 30-year anniversary in Sydney. CM was intensely proud of the band
INXS music manager Chris Murphy pictured with his wife Caroline on the Gold Coast in 2018. The pair are said to have been 'blissfully happy' together
INXS pictured in 1990 including original frontman Michael Hutchence (centre, coloured shirt)
'Without Chris's vision, passion and hard work, the INXS story would be totally different.'
Daily Mail Australia managing director, a former publisher of music industry bible Rolling Stone Australia, Peter Holder said it was a great loss to the industry.
'Chris was a very clever operator, a marketing maverick - and there is no way INXS would have been as big as they were had it not been for his vision which extended well beyond Australian borders.'
Mr Holder said he had known Chris through his work at Rolling Stone.
'He could be ruthless and relentless - without apology - but he was loyal and terribly funny. I will miss his manic giggle,' he said on Saturday.
INXS in 1988 at the height of their fame, after releasing the album Kick which went platinum six times in the U.S. and spawned four Top Ten U.S. singles. Clockwise from top left: Michael Hutchence, Andrew Farriss, Tim Farriss, Garry Gary Beers, Kirk Pengilly and Jon Farriss
Over a career spanning 40 years, the talented manager made a huge impact on the global music and entertainment industry, also becoming a record-label owner and TV producer.
Christopher Mark Murphy was born in 1954 and grew up in Sydney's inner city suburb of Darlinghurst.
His father, Mark Murphy had run a theatrical booking agency called Mark Murphy & Associates.
When Mark died in 1969, his 16-year-old son, nicknamed 'CM', took over the business alongside his mother, renaming it Murphy Media Academy and pivoting it to book tours for rock acts.
He pioneered a contract called the 'door deal' which gives more earnings to artists by guaranteeing them a percentage of the cover charge.
Murphy took on INXS as manager from 1979 to 1995, and again in the 2000s, guiding the famous band to international stardom in their early break-through years.
INXS first started with Andrew, Tim, and Jon Farriss, and their first ever name was 'The Farriss Brothers'.
INXS pictured in 2005 with new lead singer JD Fortune (centre left), who replaced charismatic front-man Michael Hutchence who died unexpectedly in 1997
Chris Murphy pictured with his wife Caroline zipping about on a quad bike at their Sugar Beach Ranch home in Ballina, northern NSW
In 1978 three more members joined: charismatic frontman Michael Hutchence, bass player Garry Gary Beers and saxophonist Kirk Pengilly - and CM Murphy was there from the very next year.
Murphy guided them all through their early years, with their debut album INXS in 1980 which spawned their first Australian Top 40 hit with 'Just Keep Walking'.
When the ambitious Murphy first took them on, he told them it was only on the basis that they would do it internationally, as he told the documentary Mystify: Michael Hutchence.
Their first performance was on Australian children's TV show Simon Townsend's Wonder World.
The band's performance soon grew, however, with their third album Shabooh Shoobah peaking at number 5 on the ARIA album charts, and nominated for Best Australian Album at the 1982 Countdown Australia Music Awards.
Chris 'CM' Murphy was a talented music manager but he also cared for his artists making sure they got a fair deal. He was an entrepreneur and owned a record label and was a TV producer
That album propelled INXS to their first taste of real stardom with huge singles such as Don't Change, The One Thing and Black and White.
Murphy was there to guide them as they hit the big time, moving from Australian fame to global superstar status over their next four albums: The Swing, Listen Like Thieves, Kick and X.
They became one of the most successful bands Australia has ever produced, their name and their hits still echo round the world.
Kick, released in 1987, sold more than seven million copies and spawned four Top Ten singles in the coveted US market: New Sensation, Never Tear Us Apart, Devil Inside and Need You Tonight.
The brilliant album had so many disparate styles it was a challenge for Chris to market it.
'Kick sounds like four different bands playing. There were big ballads, riffy rock, funk… Kick is brilliant, but it's all over the place and I thought, 'How am I going to pull this together into any kind of campaign?' he said.
Record label Atlantic was originally reluctant to release Kick and offered the band $1 million to re-record it.
Journalists joined music industry greats to mourn the loss of Chris Murphy (second from right), pictured here by Brenden Wood with football star Mark Geyer
Tributes began pouring in on Saturday after news of the brilliant music manager's loss. PR agency executive Angie Young joined those to tweet their sadness at the news
It was Murphy's genius that convinced them, when he suggested combining the lead single Need You Tonight with Mediate. It was that song that became one of the band's greatest successes, hitting number one on the Billboard Hot 100.
The band had reached international super-stardom and iconic status in Australia, but Murphy described them fondly as his 'band of brothers' - and he was immensely proud of their success.
He also managed The Models and launched rooART records, an independent label that was home to Ratcat, You Am I, Wendy Matthews and The Screaming Jets.
Most recently, he had been developing a retirement community for musicians and music industry professionals in New South Wales.
One friend who spoke to Daily Mail Australia said he was always working on new projects for INXS, however, and was intensely interested in their legacy.
Murphy had many loves throughout his life including model Mimi McPherson, the bombshell sister of supermodel Elle McPherson, the friend said.
ANU School of Music lecturer Naomi Dinnen tweeted her sadness at the loss of a music great
He was, however, a family man at heart, and in his later years he met one of the greatest loves of his life, his wife Caroline.
They were 'blissfully happy together', the friend said, however their love was cut short too soon.
Murphy was diagnosed before Christmas with a fast-moving cancer called mantle cell lymphoma which affects the white blood cells.
He died at his home, the Sugar Beach Ranch, in Ballina, Northern NSW, on Saturday.
Murphy is survived by his wife Caroline; children Stevey, Jeri, Jack, Louis and Charlie; and grandchildren Asher, Samantha, Bella, Axel, Harley and Reuben; his mother Janice; and sisters Charne and Tanya.
'It is with great sadness that Caroline Murphy and family confirm that Christopher Mark Murphy, chairman of Murphy Petrol Group has today passed away peacefully at his beloved Ballina property 'Sugar Beach Ranch' surrounded by his family,' his management company, Murphy Petrol Group, said in a statement.
'CM celebrated an illustrious career over 40 years and made an incredible impact on the global music and entertainment industry. Best known for taking his 'band of brothers' INXS to worldwide stardom, CM Murphy influenced the lives of many around the globe with his endless passion and drive. He will be greatly missed.'
Tributes began pouring in as word spread of the loss of one of Australia's best-loved and most successful music industry leaders on Saturday with voices as varied as academics, PR agency moguls and ordinary fans who still love the music he helped create.