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Artist
Patea Maori Club
12+ albums
New Zealandfolkmaori80sfemale vocalists
about
Patea Maori Club was New Zealand group formed in the small town of Patea in the mid-1980s after the town was suffering after its main source of employment, an abbatoir/freezing works, was closed. The group's song, "Poi E", was initially rejected by record companies, so producer Dalvanius Prime started his own label Maui Records to release it, and it was a hit, staying at No. 1 in the New Zealand charts for four weeks in 1984. Edited from New Zealand history online: Maori songs have rarely hit the charts in New Zealand. That all changed in 1984 when the hit ‘Poi E’ blitzed the charts for 22 weeks, including four weeks at number one. Written by linguist Ngoi with music by Dalvanius Prime, the song was a way to help young Maori feel proud of being Maori – in a format that young people were comfortable with. Pewhairangi and Prime got together in 1982 and wrote ‘Poi E’, as well as two other numbers, in a single day. ‘I could hum a tune and she could write Maori words and phrases which were exactly the same as the tune,' Prime recalled. Record companies weren’t interested in the song. Prime decided to form his own label, Maui Records, and he recorded 'Poi E' in late 1983. The Patea Maori Club provided the vocals above a funky rhythm that featured bass, Linn drums and a synthesiser. Commercial radio barely gave the number an airing. It was thanks to a TV story from the Eye witness news team that the song got any publicity. Without radio time, the song hit the top of the charts
