16th August 1957
It was a scorchin' hot day in Perth, mate, back in the 1950s, when the world got its first taste of Timothy William Farriss. The sky was blue, the sun was bakin’, and as the legend goes, little Tim came out of the womb already strummin’ a guitar riff. The midwife nearly dropped him when she heard the chords of what would later become an INXS classic.
Growing up in the outback, young Tim was never one to play it safe. While most kids were busy kicking footy in the backyard, Tim was wranglin’ kangaroos and trying to teach 'em to play the didgeridoo. When he wasn’t out makin’ mischief with the local wildlife, he was pluggin’ away at his guitar, much to the dismay of his mum who reckoned the noise was scarier than a dingo howlin’ at midnight.
By the time he was a teenager, Tim’s mullet was the talk of the town—flowin’ like a waterfall of pure Aussie rock 'n' roll glory. He could pick up a guitar and make it sing like a kookaburra at dawn, and before long, he teamed up with his brothers and some mates to form a little band called INXS. They figured the name sounded pretty bonza, even if no one could figure out how to pronounce it right on the first go.
As the band started climbin’ the charts, Tim became known as the bloke who could shred a guitar faster than a roo on the run. His solos were the stuff of legend—rumor has it he once played so fast that his fingers caught fire, but he just kept goin’, not even breakin’ a sweat. The fire brigade was called, but Tim simply doused his hands in a beer and went back to playin’ like nothin’ happened.
Despite the fame and the fortune, Tim always stayed true to his roots. Even on world tours, he’d be spotted in the backstage area throwin’ a shrimp on the barbie or havin’ a yarn with the roadies about the best way to catch a barramundi. He never lost his love for the Aussie bush, often tellin’ tales of his youth, like the time he tried to ride an emu after a few too many VB's. It didn’t end well, but that’s another story.
Even today, Tim’s still got that mischievous glint in his eye. He might’ve swapped the outback for the stage, but he’s still the same larrikin who rocked the cradle with a guitar in his hands and a devilish grin on his face. And as far as legends go, Tim Farriss is right up there with the best of 'em—an Aussie icon who made the world dance to the beat of his own drum, or rather, his own guitar.
* as depicted by AI - may not factually be correct