In the world of entertainment, many artists come and go. They are front and centre for a few years, then fade into obscurity, to be forever referred to with the precursor of “Whatever happened to..?”
And there are some that are relentless, driven by a passion for their craft that won’t allow them to stop moving or creating.

One such artist is Kevin Borich.

Born in Collinsville and growing up in Huapai, north west of Auckland on the north island of New Zealand, Kevin was the son of Croatian parents who worked as tirelessly as fruit farmers on a small orchard that they had built up for themselves. This upbringing had an influence on Kevin’s approach to music.

“Where I grew up we saw a lot of black and white movies. I loved the Marx brothers movies. They were crazy, but amongst the chaos, Harpo would pull out a harp, and play the most beautiful music, and the theatre would just go silent. That’s when I realised the power of music. I was into Hank Marvin and the shadows, Max Merritt and the Meteors, Elvis..Rock n Roll was new back then. My Aunt had a radio. In those days, that was really the only way we had access to new music where I was.”

“As a kid, my first ‘instrument’was a tennis racket. I would pretend to play along to songs on the radio. My Mum eventually bought me a Ukulele, but my heart was set on guitar. We had some American friends who had a lot of Blues records.. I got to listen to those as well, and I think that really stuck with me. Guys like John Lee Hooker and Ray Charles had a real impact. It wasn’t like anything on the radio.”

Eventually, Kevin’s parents purchased a 3 in one radio, turntable and tape recorder, which allowed Kevin to make recordings and play them back. This made fine tuning their sound a lot easier, and made learning songs much more streamlined.

It has often been suggested that simplicity or accessibility of a performer’s work is something that carries its popularity. If a kid can pick up a guitar and learn a song relatively easily, that has power.

“That’s what Hank (Marvin) did for me. They were great songs , but they weren’t hard. When you can play a song that’s on the radio, people love it.”

Kevin’s first serious band was “The La De Da’s” in 1964. This band endured until 1975. After forming in New Zealand, the band moved to Australia in 1968, the definitive line up being Kevin on lead guitar and vocals, Bill Key on rhythm guitar, and Trevor Wilson on bass. He has shared the stage with some of the world’s most iconic musicians, including Deep Purple’s Richie Blackmore and Carlos Santana, and has received accolades for his musicianship. A big part of Kevin’s sound is his open tune slide playing. I asked what his favourite or go-to tunings were.

“I love to tune to open A. That’s the main one I use, or there’s open D. As I’ve gotten older, my voice isn’t as strong as it once was, so now we tend to tune a half step down, so I guess its G# or C# now.”

“Ive never really been stuck on one style. On my albums there’s a bit of everything. There’s Blues, R n B (Old style R’n’B, not what they call R’n’B now) , even Latin and country influences. It’s good to be able to branch out and try new things, and not be limited or boxed in.”

The Kevin Borich Express was formed in 1975, and produced 4 albums, a number of compilations and several hit singles, and the album “Celebration”, which charted at no 48 on the Aussie charts in 1979.
They were a huge part of the Aussie pub rock scene throughout the 70s, and when Kevin joined supergroup “The Party Boys, he became well known overseas as well, sharing the stage with the likes of Joe Walsh of Eagles fame. Joe more recently featured on Kevin’s ‘Duets’album, which also features industry stalwarts like Kate Ceberano, Suzie DiMarchio, Ella Hooper, Russell Morris, Leo Sayer, Ian Moss and many more .
Kevin has also has a history with Cairns.

“Back in the day, we used to tour every year. We played in Cairns a whole bunch of times. We loved playing at ‘Johno’s’ We played there back in the 80’s when it was on Sheridan Street., and then later when it was above McDonalds on the esplanade. We called it ‘McJohno’s.”

“I’m excited to come up that way. We’re doing a whole bunch of gigs on the way up, so it’ll be like the old days. Ive just got to get fit, you know. Every show is special. You have to get up there and play and give it your best every time. It’s hard work, but its a lot of fun.”

To have been part of the history of Australian rock and blues music in every decade since the 1960s is no small achievement, and there are few artists world wide who can lay claim to this. Now Kevin lives in bushland in QLD, and enjoys a more relaxed lifestyle, although he is still very active in the music scene. He has a new album in the pre-production stage, and a book in the works, Kevin is still very much present.

The Kevin Borich Express will be playing at The Tanks on Saturday March 14th, with Jon Carson on drums and Chris Gilbert on bass.

If you are familiar with his work, I need say no more, but if you like guitar driven rock / blues and you haven’t heard The Kevin Borich Express before now, don’t miss this chance to witness one of Australia’s longest running performers doing what he does best.

Tickets are available through TicketLink until sold out.

Noel Keid

© Copyright 2026 | NQ Music Press