INXS’s legendary 1991 Wembley Stadium gig shown will be shown in cinemas for the very first time on November 27 2019 in cinemas nationwide.
The show has been fully restored from the original 35mm print to create a new widescreen 4K Ultra HD version, and the film also now includes a previously unseen ‘lost’ track and a brand new Dolby Atmos audio mix by the band’s Executive Music Producer Giles Martin and Sam Okell, created at Abbey Road Studios.
The movie recently opened the prestigious 13th annual Byron Bay Film Festival in Australia with a standing ovation for its global film festival premiere. Tickets and locations for the screenings in Dublin can be found at INXScinema.com.
The full live show will be also released across 3LP Deluxe, 2CD & all digital formats on 15 November and can be pre ordered HERE now. The stunning performance featuring hits ‘Need You Tonight‘, ‘New Sensation‘, ‘Devil Inside‘ and many more has been specifically remixed by Sam Okell at Abbey Road Studios for the new audio reissues. The vinyl & CD formats feature unseen imagery from the show, new essays from the band & more.
Just released from the album of Live Baby Live, ‘The Stairs’ is often cited by INXS fans as the best single the band never released and named by Sir Elton John as his favourite ever INXS song. The Stairs was only ever issued as a limited edition live single in Holland making it one of the most highly prized items in the INXS canon. It’s truly one of the band’s ‘lost classics’.
This new digital single of ‘The Stairs’ was recorded on Saturday 13th July 1991, when INXS, one of the world’s most revered and iconic bands, delivered the gig of their lives at London’s Wembley Stadium to 74,000 ecstatic fans. After a decade and a half on the road the group was at the peak of their live powers and the performance that day shows they were now indeed a world-class stadium band.
INXS’s Kirk Pengilly says of the song: “The Stairs’ was one of our favourites to perform live. It starts simply giving us a breather on stage and then builds & builds right to the end. I think this (LBL) version is more powerful than the studio recording. Definitely one of Michael’s finest, “social comment” lyrics’.
Twenty-eight years on, the film has been painstakingly restored over a six-month period from the original 35mm negative to 4K Ultra HD. The film is also now presented in glorious cinematic widescreen, which was created by going through the film shot by shot and repositioning every one to get the best out of the frame. To accompany the astonishing visual upgrade, the audio will now be presented in full Dolby Atmos, created by the band’s Executive Music Producer Giles Martin and Sam Okell, at Abbey Road Studios. Even better, the restoration process unveiled a ‘lost’ performance which was not included in the original releases – ‘Lately’ from the ‘X’ album. It is now returned to its rightful position in the concert setlist.
INXS has sold over 50 million records worldwide including number ones in 4 different continents and performed over 4,000 live shows to over 25 million people in almost 50 countries.
The band had 23 hits in the UK, 18 in the US (7 top ten) and 36 Australian hits (13 top ten). They had 6 consecutive top ten UK and US albums and 13 Australian top 10 albums. The band won countless awards including seven Arias, two Brits, a dozen Countdown Awards, five MTV Awards and in 2001 were inducted into the Aria Hall of Fame.
INXS’ long-time manager Chris M. Murphy had spent a decade scouring the world trying to locate the original 35mm film cans to produce this result. With the search becoming increasingly desperate and just when (almost) everyone had given up hope, the missing canisters were miraculously found in Australia.
With the upcoming release of the already critically acclaimed ‘Mystify: Michael Hutchence’ documentary, Murphy said “When you’re working on a project for so long, there’s the fear ‘What’s everyone going to think?’ That turns into astonishment. Watching it back Michael is better than even I thought he was – how he managed the stage. His voice became more powerful as the gig went along. It was extraordinary to watch – the crowd and band were as one”.
“We were just six blokes from Australia that treated Wembley Stadium like just another pub gig, we went it in with a PA and a few lights and played our asses off. No ego ramps, no back-up singers, no props, no grand pianos etc, just the six of us….and the audience went nuts! That’s all we needed!”, said Tim Farriss from INXS.
On returning to the original live multi-tracks to create the stunning new Dolby Atmos mix, Executive Music Producer Giles Martin said “This new mix of Live Baby Live captures one of the biggest global sensations at the height of their powers. INXS are one of the greatest bands to have graced the Wembley Stadium stage. The sheer scale of seeing an audience moving as one to the music is mesmerising. Working on the film took me back to a time where an audience completely connects with a band without holding up any phones, and the energy in the stadium is mind blowing”.
The recording of this legendary show almost didn’t happen. With only days to go before the band were due to play the stadium, Murphy came up with the grand plan to film the special event. Having discovered the group a dozen years previously, he intuitively knew this was INXS’ and Michael Hutchence’s ‘moment’. This show would be their defining document.
Murphy rallied all of his contacts in London like a 1991 version of ‘The Greatest Showman’ trying to raise the money to film the Wembley show. Legendary director David Mallet, who had worked with the likes of Pink Floyd and David Bowie, accepted the task but needed 17 cameras and a helicopter to shoot this special moment in time, all on expensive 35mm film.
As Chris Murphy and Michael Hutchence stood together side of stage gazing at the sold-out crowd, the INXS musicians were already on stage jamming into ‘Guns in the Sky.’ Michael peered way out into the crowd, then with a smile looked back at his mentor and trusted friend Murphy “So how much are we making for this”? Murphy, without flinching, rolled two of his fingers into a zero. Then said “17 cameras and a helicopter mate”. Michael responded, “You m**********r!” then ran onto the stage to deliver the performance of his lifetime.
Murphy had taken the very bold decision to contribute INXS’ income from the sold-out show to capture what Murphy believed would be the highlight of INXS’ career. Geoff Kempin, who would later co-found Eagle Rock, was at the time head of PolyGram Video, and he came to the rescue to assist in the funding the filming of Live Baby Live. Who would have known 28 years later that ‘Live Baby Live’ would be held up as one of the best live shows ever put to film. A special edition of the Live Baby Live Wembley 1991 soundtrack will be announced in the coming weeks.
All these years later, people still ask the question is it LIVE BABY LIVE? or LIVE BABY LIVE LIVE? Murphy, who came up with the title, will always smile and respond, “just listen to the opening lines of ‘New Sensation”.
