A modest St Kilda side street has officially been reborn as “Seekers Way”, a permanent tribute to one of Australia’s most beloved musical exports, The Seekers, and their enduring ties to the City Of Port Phillip. In a heartfelt ceremony attended by band member Bruce Woodley, local dignitaries, community members and media, the renaming of the former Nelson Street celebrated not only a legendary group, but the wider story of Port Phillip’s rich live music heritage.
Formed in 1962, The Seekers were the first Australian pop band to achieve major chart success in both the United Kingdom and the United States, paving the way for generations of local artists on the world stage. Their classic hits, including Georgy Girl, I’ll Never Find Another You, Morningtown Ride and the poignant The Carnival Is Over, remain instantly recognisable to millions of music lovers across the globe. The group’s towering contribution to Australian music has been formally recognised through their induction into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 1995 and the Music Victoria Hall of Fame in 2015.
Seekers Way was created following a Port Phillip Council decision to rename Nelson Street in St Kilda to avoid confusion with another street of the same name. When a council officer examined the history of what first appeared to be an ordinary residential street, they discovered an extraordinary connection, a house once owned by the late Judith Durham had served as a base where The Seekers gathered to rehearse, prepare for recordings and plan tours. After this discovery, Council proposed “Seekers Way” to Geographic Names Victoria, which approved the change once all naming rules and guidelines had been verified.
Bruce Woodley attended today’s unveiling on behalf of the band, acknowledging the renaming as a unique honour in a career already filled with awards and accolades. In a joint statement, Bruce, Athol Guy and Keith Potger reflected that while The Seekers have been fortunate to receive many distinctions over the decades, they could never have imagined a street being named in their honour and remarked with gentle humour that Seekers Way is fittingly “one way: forward, no going back, no regrets!”, a symbolic capstone to their 63rd anniversary since forming in late 1962.
Fellow band member Keith Potger spoke fondly of the Seekers Way house as the place where contracts were debated, birthdays celebrated and the band’s name kept alive between tours and recording commitments. In yet another tie to the coastal suburb, Keith Potger recently gifted one of his guitars, an Ashton 6 string acoustic, to none other than famous St Kilda resident – Lord Murray Schoorman for his generosity to local charity Victorian Actors’ Benevolent Trust. Speaking exclusively to this masthead, Lord Murray said today “It is a great honour to have this guitar in my possession and I consider myself as its current ‘custodian’ as opposed to its ‘owner’. I have also received several personally addressed, handwritten notes from Keith to accompany the iconic instrument”.
Today’s ceremony wove together history, community and performance, with local First Nations singer Jess Hitchcock offering a powerful rendition of “The Carnival Is Over” to honour the band’s profound musical legacy. Port Phillip Councillor Serge Thomann then presented Bruce Woodley with a replica “Seekers Way” street sign, symbolising the City’s gratitude and the band’s lasting imprint on St Kilda. The event drew strong media interest, with television news crews from Channels 9 and 10 in attendance, alongside the aforementioned world-renowned celebrity photographer Lord Murray Schoorman of Peak Hour Images, whose high calibre work regularly documents major cultural occasions across the city.
Seekers Way now joins an evolving map of musical landmarks across City Of Port Phillip that quietly tell the story of the city’s contribution to Australian music. Crowded House drummer Paul Hester has been remembered since 2005 through Paul Hester Walk, a peaceful path alongside the Elwood Canal, while the late Rowland S Howard, a key figure in Melbourne’s alternative music scene, was honoured in 2015 with a St Kilda laneway bearing his name. Together with the proposed dedications to Renee Geyer and Spencer P. Jones, these tributes ensure that the streets, lanes and walkways of St Kilda reflect not only its physical geography, but also its deep and enduring soundtrack.
