Now for
#31 of the Countdown...
Good Times by Australian rock collaboration
INXS and Jimmy Barnes.
INXS were a bigtime 80's rock band that arose out of Sydney, Australia in 1977 and who would achieve international success with many albums and songs in the 1980's and 90's.
INXS as they were in the 80's consisted of members Garry Gary Beers (bass guitar), Andrew Farriss (guitar/keyboards), Jon Farriss (drums), Tim Farriss (lead guitar), and Kirk Pengilly on (guitar/saxophone). For twenty years,
INXS was lead by Michael Hutchence as their lead vocals, and no doubt the icon INXS's rock star image. On Novemeber 22nd, 1997 Hutchence was found dead in his Sydney hotel room, later to be ruled by the coroner's and autopsy reports as a suicide whilst under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Following the death of Hutchence the band didn't play publicly for a year or so, but then they started up again and continue to play to this day, although never quite the same. Jimmy Barnes on the other hand, was a Scottish born-Australian rock-singer and songwriter. According to his
Wikipedia page, Barnes currently holds the title of the Australian rock artist with the highest number of hit albums. In 1973 Jimmy Barnes joined a band named
Cold Chisel, until the early 1980's when he began his solo career. In 1986 Jimmy Barnes and
INXS recorded 2 songs together,
Good Times (which was a cover of the original 1968 release-song by the
Easybeats), and
Laying Down the Law, both of which would appear on the 1987 teen horror film soundtrack of a true 80's-movie classic (one of my personal favorite 80's movies), a little Joel Schumacher film called
The Lost Boys. Good Times would reach #2 on the
ARIA charts, #16 on the
UK Singles chart, and #47 on the
US Billboard Hot 100.
Good Times was also used to to promote the national Australia Made series of concerts that took place between Boxing Day 1986 and Australia Day 1987. This is one of those pub favorites that simply cannot be left off of this countdown, and it is most definitely dance-able. So there is #31, now we are getting down to it folks, #30 is next and then the 20's is in...stay tuned.
