Everywhere you go, you always take the weather with you
Paul "Hessie" Hester was born in Melbourne, Australia on January 8, 1959. In his early years he was encouraged by his mother, a jazz drummer herself, to take up the instrument that would be at his side through his entire life. Always the extrovert, Hessie was born to be on stage or in front of a camera. While he attempted a few jobs in his early years, it was music that was his calling.
Around 1992 Hessie became a part of the original lineup for Deckchairs Overboard, a band finding their sound in the days popular New Wave. A year later Hessie would move on to fill the position behind the kit for the reunion of popular New Zealand band Split Enz. Fortunately/Unfortunately he came onboard at the Enz of an era, as Tim Finn the groups founder decided to part ways one year and one album later to pursue a solo career. Somehow, someway, Hessie did manage to have his own song included on an album with writers like Neil & Tim Finn.
Fortunately for Hessie, Neil the younger brother of Tim wanted to continue on but with a new band, The Mullanes. Recruiting Nick Seymour and Craig Hooper (who left before they signed a contract with Capitol...wtf) they immediately took off with Neil's vocals and songwriting. One of the issues Capitol Records enforced was a change to the name, and the trio Crowded House was born.
Neil was the front man, vocalist, and song writer for the band but onstage Hessie was adored by the crowd for his acting out and stage antics. You can skip to 2:40 below during Sister Madly, but I recommend starting at 0:00. He was the energy of the band on stage everynight.
The song Italian Plastic was written by Hessie. Above Neil asks him to play the song during their reunion, and comically forgets the first line.
During one concert he even came out in a Santa suit, dropped it and streaked naked across the stage. Over the years Crowded House endured success, created countless hits, but Hessie inside was battling his own demons. The grueling tours, partying, and the difference in pay (Neil as the songwriter received a much larger amount) only added to his issues he was trying to deal with. After 10 years with the band he had enough and wanted to get away from life on the road.
Returning to Melbourne, he seemed to finally be turning his life around having two children, working on various business ventures, as well as trying to be a voice for the local music scene. His TV show "Hessie's Shed" allowed him the ability to perform in front of the camera, meet with other musicians/past band mates, as well as play with his new band at the time.
Unfortunately, it was all a facade and on March 26, 2005 he took his last walk into the park near his home and took his own life.
Never take anything you are going through for granted or brush it off no matter how small. If you are going through a tough time remember:
Everywhere you go, you always take the weather with you
Weather changes, there are good times and bad, but most importantly it changes. Never be afraid or ashamed to reach out for help.
