THE 1960S MAY be a distant memory, but there's something about British culture and the music of that time that makes it seem - typically, to those who weren't there - a halcyon era of pill-popping, bra-burning and free loving.
The music of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones was breaking down barriers and terrifying the establishment. Bright young things were converging on swinging London. And at the heart of it all was music: the soundtrack for the social revolution. So it may come as a surprise to learn who was the biggest act of 1965. Elvis Presley? No. The Beatles? Wrong again. It was The Seekers, a quartet from Australia who played inspirational folksy pop such as I'll Never Find Another You and A World of Our Own.
Judith Durham, 61, whose trademark voice was the sound of The Seekers, admits their music isn't appreciated by everyone - but it's proved so durable that the band has gone back on the road this year, spreading their message of peace and love. 'I know it's not everybody's cup of tea - but the people who love the music are passionate about it,' Durham says from her Melbourne home, during a break between a recent tour of Australia and New Zealand and the show scheduled for Hong Kong next Friday.
Listening to tracks such as All Over the World and Emerald City, it's hard not to think of the recent spoof documentary A Mighty Wind, which made fun of the folk world in much the same way as Spinal Tap mocked stadium rock. But Durham says The Seekers represent more than easy listening. 'The way the world has gone now, with all the terrible problems there are, it's so lovely to be involved in music that can have this healing and uplifting quality,' she says.
The Seekers formed in Melbourne in 1962, when Durham, a young jazz and classical singer, joined Athol Guy (upright bass and vocals), Keith Potger (guitar and vocals) and Bruce Woodley (guitar and vocals), and added gospel and jazz harmonies. The band had a record deal and released an album, Introducing The Seekers, before trying their luck in Britain. Durham says the band actually went to London as tourists.
'We worked our passage on one of the many boats that used to take Australians to England,' she says. 'When we got there, our tapes were given to an agency in London. They found we were very bookable in terms of club work, concert work and on television. By the time six months had gone by, we took the chance and recorded a song Tom Springfield - Dusty Springfield's brother - wrote for us, I'll Never Find Another You. And that's the one that made us international stars.'
As a result of their success, the band faced a dilemma. They'd planned to be away from Australia for only 10 weeks, but their first single had gone to No1 (and No3 on the US charts). They decided to test the water with another Tom Springfield song, A World of Our Own. Again, it took them to No1 in Britain. The same year, their third No1 single, The Carnival is Over was selling more than 90,000 copies a day at one stage.