Artist · chart history · #242 in alternative artist polls
Split Enz
Band Auckland New Zealand Active 1972–1984
Split Enz formed in 1972 in Auckland, New Zealand and was active until 1984. Split Enz has 101 chart appearances on 53 radio countdowns from 13 stations on RockLists, spanning 1981–2025. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “I Got You”, which appears on 50 lists with a best position of #39. The station that charted Split Enz most often is CD101 (Columbus, OH), with 51 appearances. The artist’s biggest year on year-end countdowns was 1981.
Split Enz started in Auckland in 1972 and spent their early years as a gloriously odd art-rock troupe, all prog twists, flamboyant costumes and theatrics that made a show feel like a traveling circus. Tim Finn and Phil Judd were there at the start, with Noel Crombie, Eddie Rayner, Mike Chunn, Robert Gillies and Mal Green all in the ranks at one time or another, and Mental Notes in 1975 and Dizrythmia in 1977 won them acclaim and a following.
Neil Finn joined in 1977, Judd was gone the next year, and the band tightened into a sharp new wave pop outfit. "I See Red" came off Frenzy like a fire alarm, and True Colours in 1980 delivered the nervy, hook-packed "I Got You" and "What's The Matter With You?". They are regarded as the first New Zealand band to make a real mark outside Australasia. Waiata followed with "One Step Ahead" and "Hard Act to Follow", Time and Tide with "Six Months In A Leaky Boat" and "Dirty Creature", and Conflicting Emotions with "Message To My Girl", with Paul Hester in the lineup for the final stretch.
They split in 1984, reunited for concerts on and off from 1986 to 2009, and in 2026 came back again for the Electric Avenue Festival in Christchurch and a tour of New Zealand and Australia.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by Split Enz on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | I Got You | 50 | #39 | – | – | |
| 2 | Six Months In A Leaky Boat | 14 | #565 | – | – | |
| 3 | One Step Ahead | 14 | #488 | – | – | |
| 4 | What's The Matter With You? | 4 | #783 | – | – | |
| 5 | Message To My Girl | 11 | #1609 | – | – | |
| 6 | Hard Act to Follow | 2 | #38 | – | 1981 | |
| 7 | Dirty Creature | 2 | #499 | – | – | |
| 8 | I See Red | 1 | #1718 | – | – | |
| 9 | History Never Repeats | 1 | #868 | – | – |
Albums with charting songs
Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.
Comments
Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about Split Enz.
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.