I began life as a Wainuiomartian; that is, I was raised in Wainui-o-mata, a working class, dormitory suburb of New Zealand's Capital City, Wellington.
My Dad was a Fitter for NZ Railways and my Mum, a home-based, Seamstress/Pattern Maker for the rag trade. My older sister is now a Pharmacist.

My maternal grandfather was my most direct, personal musical influence. He taught me to play Hawaiian Lap-Steel Guitar and to sing close harmony. My first performances were as a toddler, standing beside the piano, singing for Matchbox cars; if I sang for family gatherings, I would get another car for my collection. I must have sung a lot: I still have a huge collection of Matchbox cars.

I inherited a combination of my father's, and my maternal grandfather's, voices; lucky me. From my childhood, I recall Dad singing, while working in the garage. He sang in the style of Mario Lanza - and did it very well. These days, when I listen to a recording of Lanza, I hear the voice of my father, as a younger man. It is odd to me that Dad was never a professional vocalist; he was a natural orator however.
My grandfather's voice was unique; I've never heard anyone who sounds even remotely like him; he had a certain timbre, which appeared to be enhanced by Park Drive roll-your-owns, and the contents of tall, dark bottles, labeled 'DB Bitter'. His high harmonies were a gift to barbershop; they were perfect.

My earliest commercial musical influences were provided by [the only] three contemporary albums my parents owned: The Seekers Greatest Hits, The Kingston Trio's Greatest Hits, and The Howard Morrison Quartet's Greatest Hits. Radio was ever-present in the Darkins household, so that too provided many early influences that were later to provide the foundation of a multi-media career in entertainment.

The first band I ever played in, was run by Wellington musical identities, Denny Mahon and Johnny Douglas. Their bass player was the father of a schoolmate of mine. He asked Marty and I to perform in the band's breaks. We were both into the album 'An Evening with John Denver'. We'd learned every song on it! It was Denny who came up with our name: The Denver Boys; I didn't like that name. It was Johnny Douglas who gave me the foot in the door to a radio career.

The only other regular public performances were to my neighbourhood - whether they wanted them or not - as I sat on our backyard swing, playing guitar and singing at the top of my voice. Occasionally I received requests from the neighbours. I shall leave it to your imagination as to what the most frequent request was. Actually, they were incredibly tolerant. Some of them still remember me doing that - hopefully in a fond way.

My professional musical career started with a shopping mall talent show, then a TV talent show, 'Opportunity Knocks'. I made it through to the final and received invitations to play on some subsequent TV shows.

Then I was invited to become a regular performer of ballads on the hit TV show, "That's Country!". That was fun; watching professional entertainers from all over the world, performing in their own styles. I learned a lot about showbiz from 'ancient' artists like Johnny Tillotson, Jade Hurley, Tompall & the Glaser Brothers, Gray Bartlett, Ray Columbus, Margo Smith, and Frank Ifield. These were people who had been right up to the top and down the other side; they spoke truthfully about the rigours of a tough industry.

The music industry was always a mystery to me. I also met all sorts of dodgy characters that I didn't really care for, so instead of heading down that road, I chose to pursue a broadcasting career, in Radio, where the people are generally more pleasant and laid back - well, most of the time.

Over the years, I've played in a variety of cover bands: 'Free Drinx' was a Christchurch trio, including Liz Braggins and Simon Gomez. The name was created by Simon so that he could put ads in the paper that said, "Free Drinx at The Grenadier Tavern"! :) Ha! I still smile at that. 'Shaken, Not Stirred' was a band name I came up with, for a trio in Geelong, Australia; '4 On the Floor' was a Wellington quartet. Each of those names were ripped off by bands in other cities. 'S.L.A.P.' was a one-time TV act that stood for, "Squeal Like A Pig". See? I really do not take this business seriously.

I have been writing songs since 1976 but very rarely did I perform any of them. We did a few in '4 On The Floor', to some small acclaim.

Music has always been something I do for fun; on the side. I'm just as happy singing by myself in our tiled entranceway (lovely vocal acoustics there), as I would be on stage, in front of an audience of thousands. To me, as long as it's fun, I do it. When it isn't, I stop. My favourite gigs are the intimate variety, where the punters have come to listen. The ultimate would be to play only concerts, to folks who've invested in listening to my stuff. Pub gigs can be fun but only sparingly; I've played plenty.

For me, music has always been about people getting together to entertain one another; there's a little bit of show-off, a little bit of "Aw shucks, ta.", a little slice of sentiment, and whole lot of emotional truth. That's how my family introduced me to it. I see no reason why that would change. As an example, just recently Nick Tansley, Gina Mills and I sang together, at an informal after-work bash; Nick on guitar and lead vocals, Gina and me doing the harmonies; it was sensational fun; we and our colleagues all had a great time together. No egos; just musical people, having fun, doing what they do best. YES! That's why I love being able to sing.

I'm very aware that it's a gift - and I want to share it with anyone who cares to listen - or any other vocalists who want to join in - as long as it's fun.