Billy Thorpe

Billy Thorpe is one of the enigmas of Australian music, a man of many careers. It began in Brisbane when the young Thorpe was overheard by a television producer playing his guitar and singing at the back of his parents' Brisbane store. At the age of ten he was appearing regularly on Queensland television and appearing on the same stage as many of the top artists of the day.



When he was 17 he moved to Sydney as a solo country/pop singer just as The Beatles were breaking. Always one to recognize opportunity knocking, Thorpe teamed up with instrumental band The Aztecs and together they became one of the first Australian groups to contribute to the new '60s era of pop, in June 1964 scoring a huge national hit with their version of The Rolling Stones' version of "Poison Ivy." After a couple more era-influenced hits, Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs gravitated toward releasing songs that showed off Thorpe's fine singing voice and scored another major hit with a straight ballad version of "Over the Rainbow" from the film The Wizard of Oz, and in July 1965 a version of The Platters' "Twilight Time." By now the original Aztecs had been replaced by other musicians. Thorpe also became the star of his own national TV show, It's All Happening. In the space of two years he had scored nine major hits.

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