Wayne Stevens (7 May 1958 – 7 November 2020), known by the

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Bones Hillman, was a New Zealand musician best known as the bass guitarist for the Australian rock band

Midnight Oil Midnight Oil (known informally as "The Oils") are an Australian rock band composed of Peter Garrett (vocals, harmonica), Rob Hirst (drums), Jim Moginie (guitar, keyboard) and Martin Rotsey (guitar). The group was formed in Sydney in 1972 by H ...

, which he joined in 1987 and remained with until his death in 2020.

Career

Hillman played

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

in his first band the Masochists, an early New Zealand

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

act, formed with Kevin Gray (vocals), Spike Nasty (drums) and Jimmy Sex (guitar), from the

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

suburb of Avondale. They were alternatively known as The Metal Masochists, MM, Vandals, and The Avondale Spiders. In late 1977 he joined the Suburban Reptiles and appeared on their first single, "Megaton" (Vertigo, 1978). The name ''

Hillman Hillman was a British automobile marque created by the Hillman-Coatalen Company, founded in 1907, renamed the Hillman Motor Car Company in 1910. The company was based in Ryton-on-Dunsmore, near Coventry, England. Before 1907 the company had ...

'' was coined by the make of car he drove. He left the band in early 1978 and joined the former Masochists in the Rednecks, a mainstay of the legendary Zwines punk scene in Auckland. In late 1979, Hillman joined the New Zealand band the Swingers with

Phil Judd Philip Raymond Judd (born 20 March 1953) is a New Zealand singer-songwriter known for being one of the founders of the bands Split Enz and The Swingers. Split Enz In 1972, Judd and Tim Finn founded the arty folk band Split Enz. In its early d ...

(ex-

Split Enz Split Enz were a New Zealand band formed in 1972. Regarded as the first New Zealand band to gain significant recognition outside of Australasia, they were initially noted for their progressive rock, progressive/art rock sound, flamboyant visua ...

) and Mark Hough (a.k.a. Buster Stiggs, ex-Suburban Reptiles). Their single " Counting the Beat" was a trans-Tasman number one hit before the band disintegrated in 1983. He appeared in the 1982 film ''Starstruck'', as one of the Swingers.Starstruck (1982)
at IMDb He was credited as Dwayne Hillman. Moving to Australia as part of The Swingers in 1980 and living there until 2002, Hillman was a member of internationally known Australian rock band

, replacing

Peter Gifford Peter Gifford (born 6 April 1955), sometimes known as "Giffo," is an Australian musician. From 1980 until 1987, he played bass guitar, Chapman Stick and sang backing vocals for Australian rock band Midnight Oil. Midnight Oil Gifford is cred ...

in 1987 as bass player. During the hiatus of Midnight Oil, Hillman returned to New Zealand, working as a studio and live musician with

Dave Dobbyn Sir David Joseph Dobbyn (born 3 January 1957) is a New Zealand musician, singer–songwriter and record producer. In his early career he was a member of the rock group Th' Dudes and was the main creative force in pop band DD Smash. Since then h ...

and recorded the album ''

Available Light In photography and cinematography, available light (also called ambient light or practical light) refers to any source of light that is not explicitly supplied by the photographer for the purpose of taking pictures. The term usually refers to ...

''. Hillman moved with his family to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, in early 2007 to participate in the more active musical scene there. In 2009, Hillman recorded albums for Anne McCue ('' Broken Promise Land'') and

Elizabeth Cook Elizabeth Cook (born July 18, 1972) is an American country music singer and radio host. She has made over 400 appearances on the Grand Ole Opry since her debut on March 17, 2000, despite not being a member. Cook, "the daughter of a hillbilly s ...

(''

Welder A welder is a person or equipment that fuses materials together. The term welder refers to the operator, the machine is referred to as the welding power supply. The materials to be joined can be metals (such as steel, aluminum, brass, stainles ...

'', produced by

Don Was Don Edward Fagenson (born September 13, 1952), known professionally as Don Was (), is an American musician, record producer, music director, film composer, documentary filmmaker and radio host. Since 2011, he has also served as president of the ...

). Two years later he worked on the Musical adaptation of ''

Diner A diner is a type of restaurant found across the United States and Canada, as well as parts of Western Europe and Australia. Diners offer a wide range of cuisine, mostly American cuisine, a casual atmosphere, and, characteristically, a comb ...

'', recording tracks for

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and actress. She is noted for her Optimism, optimistic and Idealism, idealistic subject matter, and incorporation of genres including Rock music, rock, Po ...

. In 2014, Hillman reunited with Midnight Oil producer

Warne Livesey Warne Livesey (born 12 February 1959) is a British/Canadian music producer, mixing engineer, songwriter and musician. He has produced Midnight Oil, The The, Matthew Good Band and Deacon Blue. Life and career Warne Livesey started his career in L ...

to record songs for his new musical project the Graysmiths. The following year, Hillman recorded and toured with

Matthew Good Matthew Frederick Robert Good (born June 29, 1971) is a Canadian musician. He was the lead singer and songwriter for the Matthew Good Band, one of the most successful alternative rock bands in Canada during the 1990s and early 2000s. Since the ...

. In 2017, Hillman participated in a Midnight Oil reunion and tour.

Death

Hillman died on 7 November 2020 in

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

, from

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

at the age of 62. Hillman had kept his bandmates unaware of his health problems until very shortly before his death, according to an interview with Midnight Oil's drummer

Rob Hirst Robert George Hirst (born 3 September 1955) is an Australian musician from Camden, New South Wales. He is a founding member of rock band Midnight Oil on drums, percussion and backing vocals (sometimes lead vocals) from the 1970s until the band ...

shortly after Hillman's death.

References

External links

Hillman's website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hillman, Bones 1958 births 2020 deaths Australian rock bass guitarists Australian male guitarists New Zealand male bass guitarists Midnight Oil members New Zealand bass guitarists New Zealand guitarists Australian double-bassists Male double-bassists New Zealand expatriates in Australia Australian male songwriters Australian expatriates in the United States New Zealand expatriates in the United States 21st-century double-bassists Deaths from cancer in Wisconsin