With her long flowing hair, Allison Durbin was NZ's late 60s Queen of Pop. A recording artist from the age of 14, she had her biggest hit with 'I Have Loved Me a Man' in 1968. It spent two weeks at the top of the local charts and was the year's Loxene Golden Disc winner. By 1969, Durbin was based permanently in Melbourne where she won Australia's best female artist award for three years running. As the 70s progressed, she moved into country and western but her singing career was derailed by drug addiction and a 12 month prison sentence in 2007.

Sixties teen sensation Allison Durbin featured on an episode of this early music show, shortly after her version of 'I Have Loved Me a Man' topped the Kiwi charts. Durbin sings ballad 'Looking Through a Tear', before swapping the dress, probably reluctantly, for a polka-dot pantaloon ensemble. As she sings the hip-swinging 'Eso Besso' (That Kiss), a small group of pseudo-Mexicans attempt to show a sombrero can make a viable dance prop. Durbin relocated to Melbourne around the time this was shot, where she would be triple crowned 'Queen of Pop'.

This collection rounds up almost every music video for a number one hit by a Kiwi artist; everything from ballads to hip hop to glam rock. Press on the images below to find the hits for each decade  — plus try this backgrounder by Michael Higgins, whose high speed history of local hits touches on the sometimes questionable ways past charts were created.  

This Janice Weaver song was originally recorded by American singer Morgana King (who played Mama Corleone in the first two Godfather films). Allison Durbin's epic version featured backing from Quincy Conserve and was produced by Howard Gable (who she later married). The biggest selling release by a New Zealand artist in 1968, it topped the local singles chart and won the Loxene Golden Disc. Durbin's performances from the televised Loxene awards show and a TV special have long since been lost but this grainy Australian TV clip of her finest moment survives.

This edition of Prime TV’s history of New Zealand television looks at 50 years of entertainment. The smorgasbord of music, comedy and variety shows ranges from 60s pop stars to Popstars, from the anarchy of Blerta to the anarchy of Telethon, from Radio with Pictures to Dancing with the Stars. Music television moves from C’mon and country, to punk and hip hop videos. Comedy follows the formative Fred Dagg and Billy T, through to Eating Media Lunch and 7 Days. A roll call of New Zealand entertainers muse on seeing Kiwis laugh, sing and shimmy on the small screen.

DJ Neville (“Cham the Man”) Chamberlain hosts this episode from the first series of the NZBC’s nationwide search for stars. Judges Nick Karavias and Jim McNaught and guest Allison (“Queen of Pop”) Durbin preside over entries in the original song competition (all sung by Yolande Gibson); and the New Faces segment features vocal trio The Shevelles, a saxaphone quartet and 16-year-old country singer Brendan Dugan (the eventual winner of the series). A film clip of Wellington band The Avengers’ classic ‘Love Hate Revenge’ shows as the judges convene.

A Girl to Watch Music By was a six-part series, with each episode showcasing a popular female singer or singing act. Among those featured were recent chart-topper Allison Durbin, perennial Pat McMinn, Yolande Gibson, Eliza Keil from the Keil Isles, and The Chicks. Hosted by Ray Columbus — by 1969, already well on the way to becoming a television veteran — the series also featured a fondly remembered sketch where Columbus played puppet to a much taller Max Cryer. The show's title was likely a variation on 60s instrumental hit 'Music to Watch Girls By'.