Stevie Plunder

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Stevie Plunder
Stevie Plunder c. 1994
Background information
Birth name	Anthony Hayes
Born	1963 Canberra, ACT, Australia
Died	January 26, 1996 Wentworth Falls, New South Wales, Australia
Genres	Pop, Rock
Occupations	Musician Songwriter
Instruments	Guitar, vocals
Years active	1982 - 1995
Labels	Phantom Black Yak
Associated acts	The Whitlams The Plunderers
Website	The Whitlams official website

Stevie Plunder (born Anthony Hayes) (1963 – January 26, 1996) was an Australian guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known as founding member and guitarist for Australian piano-based rock band The Whitlams,

Biography

Early years

Born in Canberra, ACT in 1963, Stevie played in bands from his late teens, most notably forming The Plunderers with Nic Dalton, as well as playing with other acts such as The Shouties and Hippy Dribble.

The Whitlams

In 1992, while outside the Hordern Pavilion where Nirvana were playing the first Big Day Out, Stevie and Tim Freedman decided to form a band to go against the current local music scene, which neither were happy with.

Adding Andy Lewis on Double Bass, The Whitlams began developing their songs acoustically on Saturday afternoons at The Sandringham Hotel in Newtown. In 1993, The Whitlams released their debut album, Introducing The Whitlams.

With Stuart Eadie on drums, The Whitlams toured extensively up and down the east coast of Australia, before returning to the studio in 1994 to record their follow up album, Undeniably The Whitlams.

Death

On January 26 (Australia Day), 1996, exactly four years since The Whitlams were formed, and as their single I Make Hamburgers was breaking into the Triple J Hottest 100 chart, Stevie Plunder was found dead at the bottom of Wentworth Falls in the Blue Mountains, apparently a suicide.^[1]

Plunder's memorial service, held at St Stephen's Church, Newtown in February 1996, was attended by hundreds of friends and fans. The Whitlams first album after Plunder's death, Eternal Nightcap, was dedicated to his memory.

References

1. ^ Buchanan, Matt (November 26, 1999). "It's Time:The Whitlams Chart New Waters". Sydney Morning Herald. http://www.thewhitlams.com/PRESS/default.asp?Mode=SINGLE&PressID=31. Retrieved 20 May 2009.