Brian Timothy “Tim” Finn, OBE (born 25 June 1952) is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Finn is most known for his music with New Zealand 1970s and 1980s rock group Split Enz, and later for his solo work, a temporary membership in Crowded House and his joint effort with younger brother Neil Finn as the Finn Brothers.

Biography

Tim Finn was born in Te Awamutu, New Zealand. He went to Sacred Heart College, Auckland, a Catholic boarding school. In 1971 he went on to study Philosophy and Politics for a Bachelor of Arts degree at the Auckland University. The music practice room 129 (later featured in one of the Split Enz hits) appealed to him, where he jammed with friends Mike Chunn, Robert Gillies, Philip Judd and Noel Crombie. Music soon became more important to Brian than his studies and in mid-1972 he quit University. A few months later, Phil and Tim (beginning to use his middle name as a stage name) formed a group called Split Ends (renamed Split Enz on the first trip to Australia a year later). The music style is best described as eclectic and wildly original, incorporating influences from art rock, vaudeville, swing, punk, glam rock, rock and pop. Between 1972 and 1977 Tim and Judd alternated as frontman for the band. Once Judd permanently left the band, Tim Finn’s younger brother Neil Finn took his place.

Finn was married to English dancer Liz Malam in January 1981, but the marriage fell apart in October that year (providing material for Six Months In A Leaky Boat).^[1]

For much of the 1980s Finn was very publicly romantically involved with Italian-born, Australian actress Greta Scacchi, who in 1989 married American actor Vincent D’Onofrio.^[2]

Finn is currently married to television presenter Marie Azcona, formerly of MTV and TVNZ One‘s Music Week,^[3] who shares a talent for songwriting. They have collaborated together on several songs, some of which are featured on Steel City, the soundtrack that Finn wrote and co-wrote on two tracks with Azcona, and collaborated on one more with Mike Chunn. Finn and Azcona have two children; a son, Harper, and a daughter, Elliott.

Crowded House

In late 1989, he was back living in Melbourne recording his eponymous third album, Tim Finn, with a contract with Capitol Records. In early 1990, he reconciled with his younger brother Neil, intending a collaboration on a Finn brothers record. Instead, he found his brother had formed a promising band on his own, and joined as an additional member of Crowded House, the group Neil had formed after Split Enz dissolved. He performed with the band and recorded on the band’s album Woodface, but both realised that Crowded House was not built to support two leading personalities and parted ways amicably, with Tim Finn returning to pursue his solo career. Riding on their past achievements, and Crowded House’s successful third album, Woodface, both Tim Finn and Neil Finn were made OBE for services to New Zealand music in the 1993 Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

The collaborative effort was repeated in 1995, and a low key album entitled Finn was released as a Finn Brothers release instead of a Crowded House release. In support of this album, the brothers toured Europe, Australia and the USA. Also in 1995, Finn collaborated with singers Andy White and Liam Ó Maonlaí, forming the band ALT (the name being the initial letters of their names). ALT toured in the UK, New Zealand and Australia and released the album Altitude.

5 June 2000 was proclaimed “Tim Finn Day” by the Mayor of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the USA during Finn’s tour of the United States that year.

In 2000, the album Together in Concert: Live was recorded featuring Finn, Bic Runga, and Dave Dobbyn. Recorded in the months of August and September 2000 in venues around New Zealand, the three performers are each equitably showcased. Both the concerts and album feature all three performers providing vocal and instrumental backing on each other’s songs. The album was not released in the UK until the 29th of May, 2007. Unfortunately, iTunes lists Tim Finn’s as “Tim Funn”.

In 2004, the Finn brothers released their second album together, titled, Everyone Is Here. The album originally was intended to be produced by Tony Visconti but the final release shows most production credits going to long-time Finn producer Mitchell Froom.

Finn also contributed a song to the soundtrack of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe entitled “Winter Light,” which later appeared on Finn’s Imaginary Kingdom album.

Finn has also guested recently on Peter Gabriel‘s song “Whole Thing” from the 2008 album Big Blue Ball.