The Kiwi music and pop culture scene during 1966 was a continuation of the steady progress that had been made since 1963. There were approx 170 singles released by local artists during the year across all genres, this was an increase of 17.5% over the previous 2 years. Once again, it was up to a small group of independents who were responsible for the majority of local releases. HMV, the only local major International label in the country acquired a new stereo recorder and moved into a new studio, which saw them take a more active role in local recordings in both quality and quantity and by year’s end they would become a dominant part of the scene.

The younger set’s penchant for British styled R’n’B was a dominant genre throughout the year with a plethora of local groups recording and playing their own unique brand of this popular trend. Folk music was another dominant force on the local scene with local acts such as The Yeomen, The Convairs, The Newfolk, Val Murphy, The Tunespinners, Rod McKinnon all enjoying continued support from their labels and fans, with many achieving overseas releases.

In the space of a year, we seemed to catch up with the rest of the world. By years end we had our own pirate radio station ‘Radio Hauraki’ broadcasting off - shore, by March 1966 we had our very own National Top 20 (one of the only civilised Western world countries without one), our very own Pop musical film ‘Don’t Let It Get You’ hit the big screen in August to mixed reviews, but at least it was fun and more importantly..it was us. Local television accommodated all local musical tastes, Folk music had ‘Just Folk’, Jazz purists were treated to numerous local productions including ‘Duo’ with Tommy Adderley. Pop music had always been a staple of local television and 1966 would would be a benchmark year for local productions. Studio size had always been a handicap for the fast and furious pace of a pop music show, to alleviate this problem, producer Bryan Easte took his cameras, crew and an assortment of the biggest local stars to a domestic front garden in the Auckland suburb of Remuera (14 Westbury Cres) to be exact and shot a series called ‘Swinging Safari’ in April. During 1966 a new studio came into operation at AKTV2, with a high stud which gave shows like Kevan Moore’s series ‘C’mon’ a more expansive look and a feeling of space when it debuted on our screens in November.

Another lasting legacy was the three - pronged attack of the Loxene Gold Disc (a public vote to pick the most popular local record). The APRA songwriting award for the best local composition. And the NEOBA Entertainer of the year award. All three of these awards started in late 1965 and grew in popularity over the ensuing years.

Promoting local music could be fraught with danger. Keith Richardson under the guise of preparing for his weekly Top 40 show for 2ZC in Napier, recorded a series of 20 minute programmes of local new releases for overseas stations, If caught by management this would have led to dismissal or banishment to a remote station. Extracts from Keith’s shows are included in this CD collection.

1966 also saw the rise of four groups who would shape the group scene for the duration of the 60s and beyond. Both The La De Da’s and Larry’s Rebels were on the