Early years Williams was born in
Te Kopuru, in the
Northland region of
New Zealand. At the age of 16 he joined a band called 'Face' with classmates. In September 1970, The Face went on to win the Northland heat of the National Battle of the Bands competition, and finishing third overall in the national grand final held in
Auckland. In 1971, Face headed to Auckland where they got a gig at the
Ōtāhuhu Community Centre paying $20 a week. The other members of
Face were
Willie Hona, Mack Tane and Gregg Findlay. Lew Pryme of
Impact Records was one of the judges in the competition and became their manager. The band were signed to
Zodiac Records and released the single "Hangin' Around"/"Mr Postman". A national tour followed. When the television show
Happen Inn finished in 1973, it was replaced by
Free Ride, hosted by
Ray Columbus. In 1974 Pryme convinced Williams to leave Face (at the time featuring John Parker on guitar, Mark Fitt on bass and Paul Dunningham on drums) to pursue a solo career as
Free Ride was being launched. After a national tour, Williams finally departed from "Face" in September 1974. Williams was well suited for the television role, which allowed him to perform in front of a national audience, gaining exposure. Late in 1974, Williams was signed to
EMI Music by
Alan Galbraith. Record producer
Alan Galbraith became the new manager of Williams who signed with
CBS Records in Australia. He released the album
Life After Dark in 1979, which failed to chart. During the 1980s, Williams established himself as a session singer in
Sydney singing many radio and TV commercials and become a favoured back up vocalist on albums by major Australian talent including;
Eurogliders'
Absolutely,
The Church's
Heyday,
Renée Geyer's
Live at the Basement and
Jenny Morris's
Body and Soul. In 1985, Williams formed a band called 'Boy Rocking' with
Harry Brus and Mark Punch. The group were signed to CBS and released two singles without success. In 1987, Williams recorded the "
Home and Away" theme song with
Karen Boddington, which was released as a single in 1988. In 1988, Williams toured with
Ian Moss on the hugely successful 'Matchbook' tour.
1990–2005: Australian fame and Mark Williams ZNZ In 1989, Williams attempted to re-launch his music career and signed to
Albert Productions. He began working on new material with
Harry Vanda and
George Young of
The Easybeats. In May 1990, Williams released "
Show No Mercy" which peaked within the top ten in Australia and New Zealand. "Show No Mercy" was certified
ARIA platinum certification in Australia, and was chosen to launch the 1990
New South Wales Rugby League grand final. The second single "
Fix of Love" peaked at number 28 in Australia and Williams released his fifth studio album,
Mark Williams ZNZ in August 1990. Williams recorded and released his sixth studio album,
Mind over Matter in 1992, with none of the three singles released making the top 50. In 1993, Williams recorded a cover of "
Time After Time" with
Tara Morice for the
Strictly Ballroom soundtrack. In 1995 he starred in
Graham Murphy's dance show
Fornicon and featured on its soundtrack release. In 1999,
EMI Music released another greatest hits compilation titled,
The Very Best Of. Between 1999 and 2000, Williams worked as a vocal coach on the Australian
Popstars series on the
Seven Network, including the female pop group
Bardot.
2006–present: Dragon and ROCKONZ Hall of Fame In 2006, Williams was asked by
Todd Hunter of the New Zealand rock band
Dragon to join. In a 2013 interview, Williams recalls "Todd [Hunter] gave me a call out of the blue, flew me over, sat me at the kitchen table and said 'Hey, wanna join a rock and roll band?'". Williams said he agreed instantly. Since 2006, The band has toured Australia and New Zealand and has released four studio albums and two extended plays. In 2010, Williams was inducted into the ROCKONZ Hall of Fame. In 2024, Mark supported the Australian leg of the Boney M Farewell Tour. ==Discography==