Love Stories: Inside the 42-year marriage of Neil Finn and musician wife Sharon
Crowded House was one of the most loved Aussie bands of the '80s and '90s.
During the band's heyday, Neil Finn, Paul Hester and Nick Seymour found commercial success in the US before disbanding, only to re-form twice, most recently in 2020.
By Finn's side throughout his career has been devoted wife of 42 years, Sharon, who is also his long-time musical collaborator and mum to the couple's two sons, Liam and Elroy.
Sharon and Neil Finn, pictured in November 2012, have been married 42 years.
Famed singer-songwriter Finn was born in Te Awamutu, New Zealand, on May 27, 1958.
One of four children of Dick and Mary Finn, he wanted to be a musician from childhood and first started performing at 12 with older brother Tim.
When Neil was 18, Tim asked Neil to travel to London to join his band Split Enz, replacing the original singer-songwriter.
Within a few years, he was sharing lead singer duties with his brother and had written the band's first international hit, I Got You.
In 1982, Finn married Sharon, a fellow musician.
A photo of Split Enz showing Tim Finn, second from left, and Neil Finn, third from left.
It is thought they met in musical circles, with Sharon credited on a 1979 album by New Zealand new wave group Citizen Band, which included Mike Chunn, who was part of the original Split Enz line-up.
According to a 2011 New Zealand Herald article, the then 19-year-old Sharon had wanted to pursue her own musical career. She bought a Gibson SG guitar and asked Split Enz member Nigel Griggs to give her bass lessons.
But with Neil busy establishing his musical career, her own aspirations took a back seat while she looked after their family.
Their first son Liam was born in 1983 while another son, Elroy, arrived in 1989.
By 1984, Paul Hester had joined Split Enz on drums and Tim Finn had left to pursue a solo career.
Sharon and Neil Finn married in 1982.
Split Enz broke up in 1984 and a year later, Neil Finn, Hester and Nick Seymour decided to form a new band in Melbourne.
They were first known as the Mullanes but changed their name to Crowded House before they released their first self-titled album in 1986.
It produced the hits Don't Dream It's Over, Something So Strong, World Where You Live and Now We're Getting Somewhere.
Their second album, 1988's Temple of Low Men, spawned the hit Better Be Home Soon.
At first, Sharon stayed behind the scenes. A skilled artist, she runs a New Zealand-based company that designs and makes chandeliers.
Neil later recalled that during the height of the band's fame in the '90s, Sharon and their boys often accompanied Crowded House on tour.
Sharon Finn also became an integral part of the band.
She has numerous credits for vocals and music on Crowded House albums as far back as the 1991's Woodface, which included hits, Fall At Your Feet and Weather With You.
She also performed live during at least one Crowded House tour, co-wrote a number of songs with Neil and appeared on his solo albums.
When Crowded House got back together and released a new album, 2007's Time on Earth, she sang harmonies on the track, English Trees.
She was also credited numerous times on their 2010 album, Intriguer.
After Crowded House broke up again, the couple formed Auckland-based rock band Pajama Club, alongside Sean Donnelly and Alana Skyring, with Neil on drums and Sharon on bass in 2011.
They told The New Zealand Herald that year the band started as a lark after their sons left home.
Sharon and Neil Finn in Hollywood with son Liam in September 2018.
"We just had a good time and it developed," Sharon said.
Neil revealed in the interview what he had learned from collaborating with his wife.
"We've got a more well-rounded appreciation of each other," he said.
"Sharon has a certain poise and serenity on stage that belies her anxiety underneath that kind of blows me away. I don't look that poised on stage. Sharon just holds herself really well. She looks really purposeful, soulful and concentrated. She's a natural."
After an album and tour of New Zealand, Australia and the US, the band went on hiatus.
The couple pictured with Sheryl Crow and Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac fame in 2019.
Sharon performed on her husband's 2014 album Dizzy Heights, as well as his 2018 collaboration with brother Tim, Lightsleepper.
In 2018, Neil joined the band Fleetwood Mac before Crowded House announced it would reunite again with a new line-up.
The band has released two new albums, 2021's Dreamers are Waiting, and 2024's Gravity Stairs, with Sharon credited on both.
Both Liam and Elroy Finn are now members of Crowded House, which is currently on a world tour.
Neil, now 66, is thought to have a net worth of $45 million. He and Sharon are based in Auckland but holiday in Greece each year with their sons.