Australian Music Archives

About Australian Music Archives

Building on the work of many others, this series of podcasts charts the development of Australian Music. The Chart series commences at 1957 with the introduction of Top 40 charts. Other series will focus on Singers and Groups. Whilst 1957 is the starting-point, we will also be moving back in time to chart the rich history of Australian Music in many forms, before the beginning of the Top 40 era. The general principle in the development of these podcasts is 'let the music do the talking'. Thus, there will be a premium on musical content, with less emphasis on the narrative. Occasionally, when there is a good story to be told (and there are many!), I may wax a touch lyrical, more so in the Singers and Groups series. The key reference work is David Kent's "Australian Chart Chronicles 1940-2008", a truly monumental work in its breadth of detail. Many people/sites have contributed to the research for the podcasts; too many to name them all but special thanks to the History of Aussie Music Blogspot, the Milesago Facebook page, the Best of Bandstand Facebook page and the Pop Archives site, where you can answer the question, "Where did they get that song from?". Many video contributors on You Tube have been a great resource in finding obscure songs including Folk Rock Australian Rock More! sallie6 and Clem Viney and there are many others! The podcasts are designed to be a permanent record and as such this is a 'labour of love' and strictly not-for-profit. I have attempted to partner with a major Australian organisation but, alas, no interest! Thus, as my late Father would have said, I am the "chief cook and bottle-washer" which means that I'm researcher, scriptwriter, digitiser, narrator and producer. As such, especially in terms of digitising vinyl records, there may appear to the ear of the listener, to be less-than-optimal sound. I work all music through Audacity, vinyl or otherwise, but, at times with old vinyl, "you can only do so much"! So, please enjoy the podcasts and let me know what you think.

Publisher

rock61

Category

music

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

5 Jul 2021

Latest episode

20 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

116 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   20 Oct 2026

   Australian Singers Ep.24 Patty Markham

   The Patty Markham Story is both a mystery and a tragedy. A mystery because so much of her early life, and her life post-1964, is unknown. A tragedy because here was a young woman with a beautiful voice and the prospect of a long and successful career who it seems just vanished. Patty Markham had three 45 singles on the Rex label, followed by four on the Festival label, in the years 1960 to 1962. There was also an EP which comprised two of her Festival label 45s, including her biggest hit, “Blue Star”.  Media references, particularly the Teenager’s Weekly (a supplement of The Australian Women’s Weekly), detail that Patty was in high demand for Club and TV appearances. One column in December of 1962, reports that Patty was to marry a Sydney singer, Len Taylor in February of 1963. Both planned to continue their singing careers. I like several others, have no idea as to what happened post-1964. Except for “Blue Star”, I’ve used my copies of the original 45s. There will be some ‘crackling’.

2. 

   12 Oct 2026

   Australian Singers Ep23 Diana Trask

   In this episode, we focus on the first phase of Diana Trask’s career; the years 1958-1965. In this episode, all tracks have been taken from my original vinyl copies. Hence, you will hear more ‘crackle’ than usual. And what a momentous period this was for Diana Trask! The story begins in Melbourne, shifts to New York, and includes numerous trips back-and-forth to/from USA-Australia. From a recording viewpoint, this wasn’t a particularly fruitful time for Diana, bar the success of her biggest Australian hit, “Long Ago Last Summer”. Along the journey of the first phase of Diana’s career, we’ll come across Lee Gordon, Frank Sinatra, Mitch Miller and others. There are even versions of “Waltzing Matilda” and “The Road to Gundagai”! As I mention in the Podcast, I’ve used Diana’s semi-autobiography, “What Ever Happened to Diana Trask?” to flesh out details of her career. It’s a great read! Enjoy: Diana Trask’s Career, Phase One

3. 

   5 Oct 2026

   Australian Singers Ep.22 Judy Jacques

   In the title of a Bruce Springsteen song, this episode has been “A Long Time Comin’”! About five weeks ago, I acquired a virus with sore throat, coughing, fatigue etc. Whatever it is, I’ve still got about 15% left. So in a real sense this episode has been a “labour of love”. The episode features the work of a truly wonderful Australian singer, JUDY JACQUES. As you will discover, Judy Jacques is much more than “the singer who turned down The Seekers”. Judy’s recording career spans the years 1962-2012, across many musical styles, ranging from Gospel to Avant Garde. Detailed information in this podcast has come from a published Journal article by Robyn Ryan, “‘You’re Messin’ Up My Mind’: Why Judy Jacques Avoided the Path of the Pop Diva”. It’s freely available on the internet. I encourage you to search it out.