Allison Durbin
Allison Ann Giles, who performed as Allison Durbin[1] (born 24 May 1950), is a former New Zealand Australian singer, known for her success in the late 1960s and 1970s as the "Queen of Pop". Durbin's visual trademark at that time was her lustrous waist-length auburn hair. She is a relative of Canadian-born actress and lyric soprano Deanna Durbin.[2]
Allison Durbin | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Allison Ann Durbin |
| Born | 24 May 1950 Auckland, New Zealand |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
Biography Edit
Allison Ann Durbin was born in 1950 in Auckland to Owen Durbin (born c. 1912/1913) and Agnes Durbin, the second eldest of seven children.[3] She attended school at Westlake High School, and performed for four years in a children's choir. She became interested in singing and was inspired by artists like Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone and Dionne Warwick,[2] and began performing in public in her early teens.
After winning a talent contest at an Auckland ballroom, she was signed to Eldred Stebbing's Zodiac Records at the age of 14 and issued a number of singles. Her third Zodiac single, a cover of Herman's Hermits "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat", out-sold the original in New Zealand and became her first charted hit.[4] She built up a following in New Zealand, recording and fronting the Mike Perjanik Group and travelled with them to Australia in 1966 for residencies in Sydney. After nine months in Sydney, she left the group to pursue a solo career, making numerous appearances on Australian TV pop and variety shows.[4]
Durbin's first single for New Zealand HMV, "I Have Loved Me a Man", (a cover version of the song by Morgana King) became a No. 1 hit in New Zealand and also a hit in Australia. The song won her a New Zealand music award, 1968 Loxene Golden Disc, and she was named New Zealand Entertainer of the Year in 1969.[4] For three years running (1969, 1970 and 1971), she won Australia's King of Pop Award for Best Female Artist, commonly called the "Queen of Pop".[5] In 1971, she recorded a duet album, Together, with Johnny Farnham, who had been voted Australia's "King of Pop" during the same years Durbin received her awards.[4]
Personal life Edit
In the late 1960s, Durbin began a relationship with expatriate New Zealand record producer Howard Gable, then a senior A&R manager and in-house producer for EMI Australia. They married in 1969 and started a family.[5] During the 1970s, as her career waned, Durbin began using heroin and her marriage to Gable ended. In 1985, she publicly acknowledged her battle with drugs and sought treatment at Odyssey House, a drug rehabilitation centre, but she was struck by a car two days after leaving the centre, which left her with serious injuries, including a broken jaw.[5] After she recovered, she worked as a country music singer in the late 1980s.[6] In 1986, she married for a second time to Ray Giles.[5]
On 1 June 2007, under her married name Allison Giles, she was sentenced to 12 months' jail for cannabis trafficking. One of her co-accused, Giuseppe "Joe" Barbaro, whom she allegedly supplied with marijuana was a previously convicted drug dealer.[7]
TELEVISION
| Year | Title | Performance | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | The NZ Music Awards | Herself - Winner "Most Promising Female" | TV special, NZ |
| 1969-1970 | In Melbourne Tonight | Herself - Singer | TV series, 7 episodes |
| 1969 | The Tommy Leonetti Show | Herself - Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1969-1971 | TV Week King of Pop | Herself - Winner "Queen Of Pop" | TV special |
| 1969;1970 | The Mike Walsh Show | Herself - Guest / Singer | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 1970 | Bandstand | Herself - Singer | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1970 | Sounds Like Us | Herself - Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1970 | The Weekend Starts Here | Herself | TV series |
| 1970 | TV Week King of Pop | Herself - Winner 'Queen Of Pop" | TV special |
| 1970 | Happening '70 | Herself - Singer | TV series |
| 1971 | TV Week King of Pop | Herself - Winner 'Queen Of Pop' | TV special |
| 1971 | Happening '71 | Herself - Singer | TV series |
| 1971 | Uptight | Herself - Singer | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1971 | Young Talent Time | Herself - Guest Singer | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1972 | The Graham Kennedy Show | Herself - Singer | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1974-1975 | The Ernie Sigley Show | Herself - Guest / Singer | TV series, 9 episodes |
| 1975 | O'Keefe at the Cathedral | Herself | TV special |
| 1979 | The Barry Crocker Show | Herself | TV special |
| 1980;1982 | The Don Lane Show | Herself - Singer sings "Some Girls" | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 1982 | Australian Music Stars of the 60s | Herself - Archive clip | TV special |
| 1987,1992 | Hey Hey It's Saturday | Herself | TV series, 1 episode "60s show" |
| 1992 | Hey Hey It's Saturday | Herself sings "Put The Hand In The Hand" | TV series, 1 episode "70's show" |
| 1992 | Hey Hey It's Saturday | Herself - Singer sings "Can't Get Over You" | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1994 | Good Morning Australia | Herself - Guest / Singer sings "Bright Eyes" | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1994;1995 | Good Morning Australia | Herself - Singer sings "Crazy" | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1995 | Good Morning Australia | Herself - Singer sings "River Deep, Mountain High" | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1996 | When Rock Was Young: The 70s | Herself - Archive clip | TV special |
| 1998 | Denise | Herself - Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2003 | Love Is In The Air | Herself | ABC TV series, 1 episode 2: "She's Leaving Home" |
| 2007 | Ten News | Herself | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2007 | Ten Late News | Herself | TV series, 1 episode |
Discography Edit
Studio albums Edit
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| AUS [8] | ||
| I Have Loved Me a Man |
| - |
| Soft and Soulful |
| - |
| Together (with Johnny Farnham) |
| 22 |
| Amerikan Music |
| - |
| Born a Woman |
| 75 |
| Are You Lonesome Tonight |
| 52 |
| Three Times a Lady |
| - |
| Bright Eyes |
| 34 |
| Shining Star |
| 43 |
| My Kind of Country |
| 97 |
| Nothing But the Very Best (with Diana Trask) |
| 88 |
| Country Love Songs |
| 79 |
| Reckless Girl |
| - |
Charting singles Edit
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| AUS [8] | ||
| 1968 | "Don't Come Any Closer" | 47 |
| "I Have Loved Me a Man" | 27 | |
| 1969 | "Games People Play" | 29 |
| "He's Bad Bad Bad" | 98 | |
| 1970 | "Golden Days" | 98 |
| 1971 | "Put Your Hand in the Hand" | 24 |
| "Baby, Without You" (with Johnny Farnham) | 27 | |
| 1972 | "Amerikan Music" | 33 |
Awards and nominations Edit
Go-Set Pop Poll Edit
The Go-Set Pop Poll was coordinated by teen-oriented pop music newspaper, Go-Set and was established in February 1966 and conducted an annual poll during 1966 to 1972 of its readers to determine the most popular personalities.[9]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | herself | Female Vocal | 1st |
| 1970 | herself | Best Girl | 1st |
| 1971 | herself | Best Girl Vocal | 1st |
| 1972 | herself | Best Female Vocal | 2nd |
King of Pop Awards Edit
The King of Pop Awards were voted by the readers of TV Week. The King of Pop award started in 1967 and ran through to 1978.[9]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | herself | Best Female Artist | Won |
| 1970 | herself | Best Female Artist | Won |
| 1971 | herself | Best Female Artist | Won |
| Best Dressed Female Performer | Won |
- Note: Durbin is often referred to as the 'Queen of Pop', but won Best Female Artist at the King of Pop Awards from 1969-71. The Queen of Pop award was introduced in 1972. In 2003, Durbin reiterated this saying, "I never in fact won a queen of pop award. The award was called The King of Pop awards."[10]
Mo Awards Edit
The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. Allison Durbin won two awards in that time.[11]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result (wins only) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Allison Durbin | Country Female Entertainer of the Year | Won |
| 1980 | Allison Durbin | Country Female of the Year | Won |
New Zealand Music Awards Edit
The New Zealand Music Awards are an annual awards night celebrating excellence in New Zealand music and have been presented annually since 1965.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | "I Have Loved Me a Man" | Most Promising Female | Won | [12] |
References Edit
- ^ Hodgson, Shelley (1 June 2007). . PerthNow News Corp Australia. Archived from the original on 25 May 2018. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
- ^ a b Herkt, David (1 July 2013). "Allison Durbin Profile". Audio Culture. from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
- ^ Elder, John (4 June 2007). . Brisbane Times. Archived from the original on 8 July 2018. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
- ^ a b c d Sergent, Bruce. "Allison Durbin". New Zealand Music of the 60's, 70's and a bit of 80's. from the original on 11 August 2020. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
- ^ a b c d Tippet, Gary (5 February 2006). . The Age. Archived from the original on 8 July 2018. Retrieved 18 October 2020. Note: archived version only shows first part of three; rest of article is not archived. Archived version includes photos, live version does not.
- ^ Milovanovic, Selma (13 March 2004). "Former Queen of Pop on drug traffic charges". The Age.
- ^ . Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 1 June 2007.
- ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 97. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ a b "Australian Music Awards". Ron Jeff. Archived from the original on 30 June 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2010.
- ^ . Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). 19 October 2003. Archived from the original on 3 June 2008. Retrieved 6 December 2008.
- ^ "MO Award Winners". Mo Awards. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ^ "Aotearoa Music Awards". aotearoamusicawards.nz. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
Works cited
- Noel McGrath's Australian Encyclopedia of Rock & Pop - Rigby Publishers - 1978
- The Who's Who of Australian Rock - Chris Spencer - Moonlight Publishing
External links Edit
- Amplifier NZ Music
- Pop Archives Feature – "Don't Come any Closer"
- Pop Archives Feature – "Put Your Hand in the Hand"