From the minute my husband Greg overheard that I was going to be interviewing Little Pattie, our home was filled with the dulcet tones of him singing “He’s My Blonde Haired, Stompie Wompie Real Gone Surfer Boy.”  It’s a bit of a tongue twister but very catchy – yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah!

Little Pattie, who made the song famous, burst on to the Australian charts with it just over 60 years ago! 

Patricia Amphlett (Thompson) was just 14 years old when the song hit the charts. Born and bred in Sydney’s eastern suburbs,  she had won talent quests and performed in local surf clubs. Her popularity soared and by 1965 she was voted Australian Female Singer of the Year. 

Dubbed Little Pattie, due to her petite stature, her name has been a household Australian name ever since.  She has never stopped performing, has had many hits, released many albums, won several coveted awards and was the youngest person to entertain our troops in Vietnam. 

Next month Little Pattie will be joining some fellow pioneers of Rock n Roll; Lucky Starr, Digger Revell, Jade Hurley and Dinah Lee on stage at Panthers! Bob McKinnon’s Good Old Days of Rock n Roll is a show not to be missed on June 2.

What a line-up!  Can you imagine how many years combined experience will be on that stage?

“At 75, I’m the baby of the show!” Little Pattie laughed. 

The other four performers are all 80 plus. 

“We thoroughly enjoy being on stage together.  None of us are young, none of us have stopped. We really enjoy performing together as much as the audience enjoy watching it.

“The five of us have known each other forever, cared about each other and still like each other, now that doesn’t happen very often!”

And what about the Wompie Stompie Surfer song, does she still remember the words?

“I could sing it in my sleep,” Little Pattie said. 

Don’t miss the opportunity to see this magnificent line-up at Panthers on June 2.  Details below! Oh, and watch Nepean News Facebook for a chance to win a double pass!