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Dean Turner (6 January 1972 – 21 August 2009) was an Australian rock musician and record producer. He was best known as a founding member and bass player of Australian rock band
Magic Dirt Magic Dirt are an Australian rock band, which formed in 1991 in Geelong, Victoria, with Daniel Herring on guitar, Adam Robertson on drums, Adalita Srsen on vocals and guitar, and Dean Turner (musician), Dean Turner on bass guitar. Initially for ...
.


Career

Turner began playing the bass guitar in 1989 and in 1990 he formed Deer Bubbles with
Adalita Srsen Adalita Srsen (, born 25 February 1971) is an Australian rock musician who is a founding member of the rock band Magic Dirt and a solo artist. She released her first solo album, ''Adalita'' in 2011 and her second solo album, ''All Day Venus'', ...
. In 1991 the pair, along with guitarist Daniel Herring, started a new band, briefly known as The Jim Jims. With the addition of drummer Adam Robertson, they became known as "Magic Dirt". Under the name Dean Dirt, Turner also produced recordings for a number of Australian bands, including two albums for
theredsunband The Red Sun Band (styled as theredsunband) were a rock band from Sydney, Australia. For most of the band's run, it was composed of sisters Sarah (guitar, lead vocals) and Lizzie Kelly (keyboards, tambourine, backing vocals), as well as drummer ...
plus releases for
Gersey Gersey is an Australian rock band based in Melbourne, which formed in 1997. Since its debut album, the band has featured the core membership of Craig Jackson (vocals, bass), Daryl Bradie (guitar), Matt Davis (guitar) & Danny Tulen (drums). Hist ...
and Sons Of The Sun. In the period up until his death, he was acting as the manager for Brisbane band
Violent Soho Violent Soho were an Australian alternative rock band that was formed in 2004 in the Brisbane suburb of Mansfield, Queensland originally under the name of "showroom". For the majority of the band's existence, the line-up was composed of Luke Bo ...
.


Personal life

Growing up in
Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...
,
Breamlea Breamlea, Victoria, Australia, is a secluded seaside hamlet located on the south coast of the Bellarine Peninsula, 18 kilometres south of Geelong, and halfway between Barwon Heads and Torquay. It is divided between the City of Greater Geelong ...
and
Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignton ...
with his parents, two brothers and two sisters. In the early 1980s Dean was racing BMX bikes, as well as riding dirt bikes. In the mid 1980s Dean turned to skateboarding and became quite popular at an indoor skatepark in Geelong. Turner subsequently married Linda Bosidis and in 2004 became a father. The birth of his daughter Charlie was followed by the birth of his second daughter Evie.


Illness

After Turner died, the band released a statement that partially detailed the circumstances of his condition:
...For nine years, Dean battled an extremely rare form of soft tissue cancer called
dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans (DFSP) is a rare locally aggressive malignant cutaneous soft-tissue sarcoma. DFSP develops in the connective tissue cells in the middle layer of the skin (dermis). Estimates of the overall occurrence of DFSP in the ...
or (DFSP)... This cancer became life threatening after it began to metastasize and cause various fatal tumours ... Being a very private man, Dean chose to fight the cancer in a quiet and dignified manner ... displayed great courage and incredible stoicism ... ndabove all else he had an unshakeable positive attitude throughout his long ordeal ... s composure and grace during this time will never be forgotten and is an inspiration to us all ...
Although Turner had been ill for some time, it was only in 2008 that the band began using a substitute bass player on tour. Turner is survived by two daughters.


Legacy

In September 2011, the organisers of the
Laneway Festival The St. Jerome's Laneway Festival, commonly referred to as Laneway, began in Caledonian Lane, Melbourne, Australia, in 2005. Beginning as predominantly an indie music event, the festival grew in popularity and expanded to five Australian citie ...
, in collaboration with Turner’s wife Bosidis and their two daughters, announced the launch of the "Dean Turner" stage at the Melbourne leg of the 2012 round of the annual event. The press release of the "ongoing collaboration" stated:
As bass player and co-founder of Magic Dirt, Dean was deeply devoted to and passionate about music which was always evident in his energetic and enthusiastic stage presence. He was a unique individual with a beautiful soul and is a huge inspiration to many musicians. He provided his vast knowledge and support with humility, grace and integrity throughout his role as a songwriter, musician and producer. Dean worked tirelessly because music was one of the greatest joys in his life; he selflessly championed Australian music, was focused on encouraging young bands and hosted music workshops for secondary schools nationally. He was particularly generous with his time and advice and had a profound effect on people, always leaving a warm and inspired feeling.
At the 2013 Laneway Festival, the "Dean Turner Project" was launched as an expansion of the collaboration and was also featured at the 2014 event. The addition to the collaboration includes financial support for the "Yiriman Project", an organisation that supports young indigenous people in the south-west Kimberley region of
Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
, where suicide rates have been high.


References


External links


Yiriman ProjectLaneway FestivalOfficial website of collaborator and close friend Adalita Srsen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, Dean 1972 births 2009 deaths Australian rock bass guitarists Deaths from cancer in Victoria (Australia) Male bass guitarists Musicians from Victoria (Australia) 20th-century Australian musicians 20th-century bass guitarists 20th-century Australian male musicians Australian male guitarists Musicians from Geelong