At long last INXS have revealed November 8 as the release date for their hotly-anticipated all-star Greatest Hits album, Original Sin.
Two years in the making, Original Sin revisits all their best-loved tracks with the help of stars like Ben Harper, Rob Thomas, Tricky and on-again, off-again singer JD Fortune, who reinterprets The Stairs.
"We've re-invented these songs. Some have been done by an orchestra, some [are] stripped down and some tracks may take you [a while] to recognise what it is," Jon Farriss told Triple M's Home Brew earlier this year.
It's INXS' unique way to pay tribute to songwriter Andrew Farriss and their legendary frontman, the late and great Michael Hutchence.
"We wanted to celebrate the songs, they're such great songs," drummer Jon Farriss says.
"I think initially there was a mixed bag of emotions and feelings, which was probably a good thing because we realized how much the songs meant to us," Farriss continued. "But at the end of the day we started to realize that this is actually cathartic for us and it might be for everyone else as well."
The music world were equally moved. "INXS's material, specifically INXS's songs, set the table for singers," said Ben Harper.
"In my opinion, they're any singer's dream songs to sing," Harper added. Covering, 'Never Tear Us Apart' is like covering 'Dock Of The Bay.' That is one of the greatest soul songs ever written."
Because the songs are so precious to the band, many of the artists who bravely stepped into Hutchence's shoes in the studio didn't make the cut.
Harper did a version of Devil Inside that was shelved over Never Tear Us Apart, and Brandon Flowers' and Vanessa Amorosi's INXS interpretations were recorded, but didn't make the album. The outtakes may one day surface on a second volume, but that remains to be seen.
Young Aussie singer/songwriter Dan Sultan will not only be sharing the stage with the band at this year's ARIAs, he also sings his version of Just Keep Walking with the band.
“We put the track down between shows in London. The producer saw our last show and asked if [his songwriting partner/guitarist] Scott [Wilson] could play guitar on it," Dan says.
"[Dan Sultan guitarist] Scott was blown away as he played a Telecaster that was apparently owned by the great Carl Perkins and later by Ray Davies of The Kinks. So, it was an INXS song, [played on] Carl Perkins’ guitar and recorded in a studio owned by Robbie Williams’ producer," Sultan says. The unique stories behind each track will be revealed in due course.
INXS' Original Sin tracklist as follows:
1. Drum Opera - Jon Farriss
2. Mediate - INXS feat. Tricky
3. Original Sin feat. Rob Thomas
4. Never Tear Us Apart - INXS feat. Ben Harper & Mylene Farmer
5. Beautiful Girl - INXS feat. Pat Monahan
6. New Sensation - INXS featu. Deborah de Corral
7. Just Keep Walking - INXS feat. Dan Sultan
8. To Look At You - INS feat. Kav Temperly
9. Mystify - INXS feat. Loane
10. Kick - Nikka Costa
11. Don't Change - Andrew Farriss & Kirk Pengilly
12. The Stairs - INXS feat. JD Fortune
