CHRIS MURPHY,
1954-2021

Longtime INXS manager Christopher “CM” Mark Murphy died Saturday in Sydney, Australia, following a battle with Mantle Cell Lymphoma. Aged 66, he passed peacefully at his Ballina property, Sugar Beach Ranch, surrounded by his family.

Murphy managed INXS from 1979 until 1995 and again in the 2000s when the group reunited, replacing late lead singer Michael Hutchence with a vocalist selected in a televised competition.

Members of INXS— Garry Gary Beers, Andrew Farriss, Jon Farriss, Tim Farriss and Kirk Pengilly—said, “It is with great sadness that the remaining members of INXS mourn the passing of our brother Chris Murphy. Without Chris’ vision, passion and hard work, the INXS story would be totally different. Chris’s star burned very bright and we celebrate a life well lived and send all our love to his family.”

Murphy famously negotiated INXS’s record deal directly in the U.S. with Atco and Atlantic, resulting in their breaking out in the mid- to late-1980s with Listen Like Thieves and Kick, multiplatinum albums that made them one of the most commercially successful rock bands in the world.

He started an independent label, rooART, in 1988 with a roster of a half-dozen Australian acts, then took a decade-long hiatus from music in the ‘90s. He formed Petrol Electric Records in 2001 and Murphy Rights Management in 2014. His biggest success with these later ventures was sister act The Buckleys.

“Chris has been our guardian angel from the day we met him and he will continue to be for the rest of our lives,” Sarah, Lachlan and Molly Buckley said in a statement. “The strength, passion, guidance and love he ignites is forever-lasting. We are so grateful to have walked this earth with him, our best friend, greatest champion and mentor. His spirit and light will forever live within and around us.”

In addition to music and the entertainment business, CM was passionate about agriculture, horse breeding, pigeon racing, surfing and rugby.