by Cameron Adams
The solo album INXS singer Michael Hutchence was working on before his death will be released in June, it has been revealed. The album which Hutchence recorded between 1995 and 1997, has been the subject of an intensive bidding war between several record companies.
And the surviving members of INXS have re-signed their own recording deal with Mercury Records in New York, it was announced today.
The original deal with the label, signed in 1995 and reportedly worth approximately $40 million for six new albums, was frozen following Hutchence's death.
No replacement for Hutchence was discussed during negotiations. INXS spent three weeks in a Sydney studio late last year remixing unreleased material recorded prior to his death.
Hutchence's 12 track album will be released by V2 records, the new label for Virgin Records founder Richard Branson. Producer Danny Saber, who co-wrote most of the songs with Hutchence, has been finishing the album since the singer's death in November, 1997.
Saber is best known for his work with rock / funk act Black Grape, of which was a big fan. Andy Gill, formerly of the UK band Gang of Four, also worked on the album.
DJ Tim Simenon (Bomb the Bass) is also said to be involved.
Hutchence said of the project, "I was working with this crew, none of them could write music. They decided everything on the basis of whether it was 'wicked or not wicked'."
It is said to include Put the Pieces Back Together, a song about the fued between Hutchence, his partner Paula Yates and her ex-husband Bob Geldof.
Music industry rumours suggest some big name artists recorded contributions for the album after Hutchence's death. Bono from U2 is one of the names being bandied about.
Hutchence's manager Martha Troup said, "the album meant a great deal to him and I personally see it as a looking glass into Michael's soul. Some of the material was recorded a matter of days before his death and the album is his final legacy to us.