Linn Lorkin
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June Lynette Williamson MNZM (born c. 1942), known professionally as Linn Lorkin,[1][2] is a New Zealand jazz and cabaret singer, songwriter and pianist who has been performing since the 1960s. In the 2023 King's Birthday and Coronation Honours, Lorkin was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit.[3]
Early life
Lorkin was born June Lynette Williamson in Arapuni, a small settlement near Tokoroa in New Zealand's Waikato region. She grew up on a nearby dairy farm. Both of her parents had musical backgrounds, and she learned piano and sang from a young age. When Lorkin was aged 12, her father became ill and the family was forced to sell the farm, moving to Otahuhu in south Auckland, a move Lorkin had difficulty adjusting to. Among her classmates at Otahuhu College was future New Zealand Prime Minister David Lange, with whom she maintained a lifelong friendship. Academically gifted particularly in languages, she became Dux of the college and received a scholarship to the University of Auckland. After completing an M.A. with honours in French, she was offered a scholarship by the French government at the Marie and Louis Pasteur University in Besançon, France. Lorkin gained a degree in piano studies from Trinity College in London around 1970.[4]
Lorkin adopted her stage name from her paternal grandmother Daisy Lorkin.
Career
Lorkin spent many years working overseas. She went to Naples in April 1970, performing in a seafront nightclub there with an Italian with whom she was in a relationship. The pair were arrested for possession of hashish and Lorkin spent over seven months in prison in Naples awaiting trial.[4]
She performed in Europe and sang in New York piano bars. She returned to New Zealand in 1986 and in 1989 toured the South Island with an "autobiographical musical comedy" about her time in New York. Lorkin's husband Hershal Herscher, a New Yorker, was part of the show. He was a jazz pianist with his own group, the Nairobi Trio.[5]
Lorkin was known for her covers of French songs, and in the 1990s was dubbed 'the Piaf of the Pacific'.[6][7] In 1996 Lorkin and Herscher formed a group named The Jews Brothers, playing Jewish jazz and klezmer music.[8] The band was based in New Zealand but toured New Zealand, Australia and Europe.[9][10]
In 2022 she published her memoir The redhead gets the gig.[11]
Personal life
Lorkin and her husband Herschal Herscher have a son Joseph Herscher, a kinetic artist with a popular YouTube channel.[12]
References
- ↑ Tolerton, Jane (1997). 60s Chicks Hit the Nineties. Auckland, New Zealand: Penguin books. p. 101-118. ISBN 0-140-27243-7. Retrieved 27 December 2025. Search this book on
- ↑ "At 82, Kiwiana songwriter Linn Lorkin is as joyful and jazzy as ever". rnz.co.nz. RNZ. 9 August 2025. Retrieved 27 December 2025.
- ↑ "The King's Birthday and Coronation Honours List 2023 – Citations for Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit". Department of Internal Affairs. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 27 December 2025.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "N.Z. woman held for year in Naples gaol". The Press. 7 May 1971.
- ↑ "'Magicomical Kiwi Show' on S.I tour". The Press. 30 August 1989.
- ↑ "The unexplained proves popular". The Press. 25 February 1995.
- ↑ "Christchurch Arts Festival". The Press. 4 August 1995.
- ↑ "Klezmer explosion at Harbourside Brasserie". Australian Jewish News. 6 March 1998. p. 34. Retrieved 29 December 2025.
- ↑ "Klezmer in the Blue Mountains". Australian Jewish News. 18 March 2005. p. 21. Retrieved 29 December 2025.
- ↑ "Jews Brothers are back". Australian Jewish News. 25 February 2000. p. 33. Retrieved 29 December 2025.
- ↑ Lorkin, Linn (2022). The redhead gets the gig: a musical memoir. Paraparaumu: Steele Roberts Aotearoa. ISBN 9781991153852. Search this book on
- ↑ Langdon-Pole, Georgina (6 November 2015). "Machines of Seamless Chaos: On Joseph Herscher". Pantograph Punch. New Zealand. Retrieved 27 December 2015.
Further reading
- Baysting, A. (1992). Linn Lorkin : songwriter. Music in New Zealand, Win 1992; n.17, 42–47.
- Dart, W. (2002). She’s a treasure. New Zealand Listener (1994), 2 Mar 2002; v.182 n.3225, 53.
- Watt, L. (2022). The fascinating career of Linn Lorkin. Sunday Star Times, 4 Dec 2022, 26–27.
- RNZ (2025) At 82, Kiwiana songwriter Linn Lorkin is as joyful and jazzy as ever
- Arthur Baysting, Michael Colonna, and Chris Bourke (2020-2023) Audioculture profile of Linn Lorkin
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