Allison Durbin
Allison Ann Giles, who performed as Allison Ann Durbin[1] (born 24 May 1950), is a former New Zealand Australian pop 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) | Pop singer |
Biography
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 had became interested in singing, and has been 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
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]
Discography
Studio albums
| 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 |
Charting singles
| 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
Go-Set Pop Poll
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
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]
References
- Hodgson, Shelley (1 June 2007). "Allison Durbin jailed for drugs". PerthNow News Corp Australia. Archived from the original on 25 May 2018. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
- Herkt, David (1 July 2013). "Allison Durbin Profile". Audio Culture. Archived from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
- Elder, John (4 June 2007). "Friends, family rally behind Durbin". Brisbane Times. Archived from the original on 8 July 2018. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
- Sergent, Bruce. "Allison Durbin". New Zealand Music of the 60's, 70's and a bit of 80's. Archived from the original on 11 August 2020. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
- Tippet, Gary (5 February 2006). "Fall of a pop royal - In Depth". The Age. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. 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.
- "ABC News Australia Pop queen Durbin jailed for cannabis trafficking". Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 1 June 2007.
- 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.
- "Australian Music Awards". Ron Jeff. Retrieved 16 December 2010.
- "Love is in the Air Episode 2: "She's Leaving Home"". Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). 19 October 2003. Archived from the original on 3 June 2008. Retrieved 6 December 2008.
Works cited
- Noel McGrath's Australian Encyclopedia of Rock & Pop - Rigby Publishers - 1978
- The Who's Who of Australian Rock - Chris Spencer - Moonlight Publishing