R.I.P. Paul Hester

Paul Hester's gone forever

by Paul Cashmere

26 March 2005

Former Split Enz/Crowded House drummer Paul Hester has taken his own life.

Peter Green, President of the Split Enz and Crowded House fanclubs broke the news to fans. "Everyone, sitting here in the office trying to figure out what to write, we are a bit messed up at the moment" his letter reads.

"Last night, our mate, and Crowded House drummer Paul Hester took his own life."

"Over the years Paul has swung the extremes of happiness and sadness, but none of us ever thought this would happen. He loved life too much, and it really seems like a bad dream that we hope we'll wake up from tomorrow."

"At the moment we are trying to look after Paul's family, he leaves behind two beautiful girls, so if people could not email us that would be appreciated during this incredibly sad time."

"It doesn't seem real, but (sadly) it is."

"I'll post more on this later on, we are all just getting our heads around this loss of one of our family."

Paul Newell Hester was born in Melbourne on January 8, 1959. His mother Ann was a jazz drummer.

Hester joined Split Enz in 1983 fresh from Deckchairs Overboard. He was recruited into the band with a reference from Midnight Oil's Rob Hirst. His first album with The Enz was 'Conflicting Emotions'. He played on the hits 'Message To My Girl' and 'Strait Old Line.

When Split Enz broke up one album later after 'See Ya Round', Hester stayed with singer/songwriter Neil Finn and together with bass player Nick Seymour, was a founding member of Crowded House.

Crowded House was an international success. 'Don't Dream It's Over' became a major hit in the USA.

Hester recently played with Tarmac Adam, a band featuring his Crowded House band-mate Nick Seymour.

He also hosted The Music Max Sessions for Australia's cable music news channel Music Max.


Crowded House Members To Pay Tribute To Paul Hester

by Paul Cashmere

29 March 2005

Crowded House bass player Nick Seymour will join fellow Crowded House members Neil and Tim Finn at the Royal Albert Hall this week to pay tribute to their late drummer Paul Hester.

In a statement at the Finn Brothers website Neil says "It was with deepest sadness and shock that I learned yesterday of the passing away of one of my closest friends, Paul Hester."

"Nick Seymour will be joining Tim and me here in London today to share our grief. The Finn Brothers shows this week at the Royal Albert Hall will go ahead as we don't know what else to do at this time other than to be with those closest to us and Paul and to play music to remember him by."

"Our hearts go out to Mardi, Sunday, Olive and all of Paul's family."

Paul Hester took his own life in at Elsternwick Park in the Melbourne suburb of Brighton on Saturday. He was 46.

News reports today suggest Hester suffered from depression and had been seeing a therapist for the last 8 years.

In recent times he had split with his long-time girlfriend Mardi Sommerfield, who was the mother of his two daughters Olive (8) and Sunday (10).

In December he had broken up with fiancée Kashan, a singer from New Zealand.

Hester was the host of the Foxtel cable show Music Max Sessions. In November 2004, he compared a program featuring his former bandmates Tim and Neil Finn. The show featured Hester reuniting with the Finn's on drums and performing their Crowded House hit 'Weather With You'. It was the last time they played together.