New Zealand native and ARIA Hall of Fame Inductee, Tim Finn, has earned his reputation as one of the great singer/songwriters of his generation. His all-inclusive creative spirit still shines brightly, underlying a career based on exceptional musicianship and uncompromising creativity.
Having established himself in the early 1970s as a founding member of the much-celebrated Split Enz and later as a co-writer of Crowded House’s classic album Woodface (alongside brother Neil), Finn has penned and co-written some of the most treasured songs in contemporary music. The likes of I See Red, Poor Boy, My Mistake, Dirty Creature, I Hope I Never, Six Months In A Leaky Boat and Weather With You immediately come to mind.
Finn’s successful solo career (and highly acclaimed albums) has delivered songs such as Fraction Too Much Friction, Made My Day, Persuasion and Not Even Close in addition to his work as Finn Brothers (again, with brother Neil).
In recent years Finn has been developing new work for theatre. For the musical ‘Ladies in Black’, he received a Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work. Finn also co-wrote and performed in the one-man show ‘White Cloud’, a poetic examination of his NZ family and pakeha identity. ‘The Fiery Maze’, a raw and provocative song cycle written with the late Australian poet Dorothy Porter, had its premiere at Malthouse Theatre in 2016, and was picked up for inclusion in the 2017 Sydney Festival.
More recently Finn developed ‘Ihitai ‘Avei’a – Star Navigator’, an ambitious work commissioned by West Australian Opera and New Zealand Opera, which had seasons in Auckland and Wellington and was recorded by the Western Australian Symphony orchestra and broadcast on the ABC.
His collaborative spirit ignited, in 2020/22 Finn worked with Roxy’s Music’s Phil Manzanera (who produced the Split Enz album Second Thoughts back in 1976), recording two albums Caught By The Heart and The Ghost of Santiago. He also worked with Split Enz bandmate Eddie Rayner on the acclaimed Forenzics LP, and Northern Irishman Andy White on their album Attitude.
And just last year, after 50 years of making records, Finn released Long Live Music his first commercially released EP.
In 2025 Tim Finn will embark on a series of exclusive celebrating 40 Years of his debut solo album + other classics from across Finn’s remarkable career.
And while it is fitting at this stage in his career to pause and reflect with fond memories, one thing is for certain. The fire in Finn’s belly to continue to collaborate, create and push forward remains as strong as ever. There’s always more work to be done!