Singer, songwriter and guitarist Neil Finn OBE (b. 1958) was born in Te Awamutu, Aotearoa New Zealand. The youngest of four children, Finn took piano lessons and often performed as a child with his older brother Tim. After playing in his brother's band Split Enz, he co-founded Crowded House with Paul Hester and Nick Seymour. Their self-titled debut album was a critical and commercial success in Australia and around the world. The band enjoyed a string of hits before playing their final concert, on the steps of the Sydney Opera House before an estimated crowd of 150,000, in November 1996. Following the death of Hester in 2005, Finn and Seymour reformed the band and released the critically acclaimed album Time on Earth. The band now also includes Finn's two sons, Liam (guitar, vocals) and Elroy (drums), and Mitchell Froom on keyboard.
Photographer Alan Mitchell took this image of Finn on the stylised set for Crowded House's music video for 'World where you live'. Shot in dramatic black and white, Finn holds a flying dollhouse in his hands just before he lets it go, which features in the opening scene of the video. 'World where you live' was shot in a warehouse at the Melbourne Showgrounds and is the second single from the band's debut album Crowded House.
Gift of the artist 2021
© Alan Mitchell
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