Rick Steele, an accomplished bluesman who was inducted into the WAM Hall of Fame, and whose children Luke and Katy Steele followed in his footsteps and carved out their own music careers, died Monday evening, March 10th, following a health battle.
According to published reports, he was 77.
Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Steele had appeared on TV and had a recording chart in his homeland before he relocated to Perth in 1971.
Music was in the family DNA. He was signed to a record contract decades before any of his own kids.
According to NZ’s Audioculture, Rick Steele’s mother played the pipe organ in the church and led the choir, but refused to buy her son a guitar for fear he would turn out like Elvis Presley.
In time, he would master the guitar, the harmonica and other instruments.
The elder Steele toured and performed with the likes of Split Enz, Dragon, and the Little River Band, and imparted his gift for storytelling and music to his children. A bluesman, Rick “spent his life soothing the souls of so many through his incredible gift of music,” reads a message from Luke Steele, posted on the official Empire of the Sun Instagram.
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Luke Steele remembers his dad as a legendary figure, a family man with a knack for sharing stories and songs, who loved Empire of the Sun, and was in possession of “warrior spirit.”
“His own musical career spanned more than 60 years, a repertoire of thousands of songs. I’d often wonder how he’d remember them all,” he writes.
The elder Steele left an impression with his son as “an eccentric, an artist with a beautiful flair.” Also, recounts Luke, “he loved his family, garden and his castle, and he sure loved a good song. He always said you only have three minutes to tell the world what you want to say. That always said so much to me.”
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That respect was mutual, and the father-son tandem travelled the world. Luke Steele’s alternative rock act The Sleepy Jackson tapped Rick Steele as opening act at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City in 2006, and Steele supported Empire Of The Sun in Las Vegas, Reno and Arizona in 2017, travelling on Dolly Parton’s old tour bus. Luke Steele also produced his father’s solo album Through My Eyes, released independently in 2008, Audioculture reports.
“He loved the Empire,” writes Luke. “He loved everything about it. He loved the empyreans. Especially hearing from you all across the world while fielding questions on what the band was up to.”
The leader of the Hot Biscuit Band, named for the King Biscuit Time radio show that broadcast from Arkansas in the 1920s and 30s, Rick Steele was inducted into the WAM Awards Hall of Fame in 2016.
In a separate post, Liz Steele remembers her husband of 49 years as an advocate for charity, “he always wanted to give, give and give a little more. A father figure and mentor to many.”
He passed away peacefully with his family by his side after a brave battle with ill health, she remarks.
“I’ll miss that unmistakable voice and that classic sense of humor.”
A tribute from WAM, the West Australian music industry trade body, notes that Rick’s influence “extended beyond his performances—he was a mentor to many and an unwavering supporter of his family, including his talented children, who have each made their own mark in the music world.” The late artist’s “energy, passion and mastery of the blues left a lasting impression on audiences across the country.”
Steele is survived by his wife, four children and their partners, plus nine grandchildren.
