NZ music champion Bernie Griffen remembered as a ‘wild and free spirit’

Independent music champion Bernie Griffen may have been a country singer, but he was also once known as Aotearoa’s “Godfather of punk”, thanks largely to his distribution label Global Records.

He was a long-time host of 95bFM’s Border Radio show, and was instrumental in setting up Independent Music NZ, which works to get more local music played. He also worked on the well-known Gunslingers Ball shows, was a musician himself and in 2019 was awarded the Independent Spirit Award at the Taite Music Prize.

The 72-year-old was also a recovering addict, a family man and a “wild and free spirit”, said his partner of 42 years, Kirsten Warner.

But when asked about the legacy of Griffen, who died on Wednesday of complications from COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), Warner told Stuff he’s left one of “generosity”.

“That’s not always evident in the music business,” she said, adding that Griffen was “generous and warm, loving and kind to other people”.

“He never closed doors, even if he disagreed with someone.”

Younger women in the music industry, in particular, “always felt safe with him”. It’s something that she says has been echoed by tributes online since news of his death was made public.

“Bernie just loved music, and he loved musicians, and they all felt loved by him.”

As well as supporting and encouraging local artists, Griffen played bass in the early 1980s with the Pleasure Boys and later played in band The Grifters as well as releasing solo material. He also “insisted” Warner became a musician, too, and the pair played together with Bernie Griffen and the Thin Men.

“They [found] their love of singing together” his sister Angela told Stuff.

She recalls her brother living a “colourful life” but said Griffen, “faced up to everything he had to face up to bravely, and with honesty and with an open heart”.

“If you listen to his songs, they tell such stories about his life and loves and loss and happiness.”

And at the time of his death, Warner said he’d been clean and sober for 34 years after a “terrible history of drug addiction from his teen years”. Though after going into treatment almost four decades ago he, “never looked back”.

“[But] he was a determined smoker and wouldn’t give up,” she said, adding that it was rare to see a photo of Griffen without a cigarette. And while he quit them a decade ago, it was the smokes, Warner said, that, “killed him, in a way”.

Griffen’s death was due to complications with COPD, which became increasingly worse over the past 10 years. There were a few contributing factors, including giving up cigarettes “too late”, asthma from childhood and scarring on his lungs from damage in a fire more than 30 years ago.

He was running a timber yard for his brother at the time of the blaze. When cleaning up one Friday afternoon, he threw petrol on a fire which ultimately, “covered him in flames”.

He spent weeks at Middlemore’s burns unit and Warner said at the time the medical profession was, “quite punitive to addicts” and he was withheld pain medication.

Then, four years ago, Griffen went deaf. Which Warner admitted was a “cruel and unusual punishment” for someone whose life revolved around music for many years.

The family survived on writing on a whiteboard for about a year before he had a cochlea implant, which aided his hearing and removed the need to write everything down, but didn’t “restore music” for the man whose career revolved around it.

“He was an incredible survivor. He never complained, he never felt sorry for himself – even though he lived with many afflictions,” said Warner, but while New Zealand loved Griffen the independent music champion, he was a, “very loving partner to me”.

“He encouraged me, and admired me as a writer and loved me as a person … He’s been a wonderful father and partner and family man.”

Angela echoed Warner’s comments on Griffen as a family man, adding that Griffen faced his health issues with, “great courage and humanity”.

“He was an old soul in many ways. He was extremely loyal and much loved by his family,” she says.

“He had nine lives, so I thought he would live forever, and he will through his music.”