Charles Tumahai

NZ musician and songwriter. Born in Auckland in 1949 he played in a variety of bands, including some of the Maori showbands of the sixties and toured throughout the Pacific, Australia, and NZ, venturing as far afield as Vietnam in the early seventies. He then played with a string of legendary Australian bands, and, in 1974 found himself in London where he joined Be-Bop Deluxe, staying with them until visa issues forced a return to Australia and several bands. In 1985 he returned to Auckland and joined the iconic Herbs who were pioneering the Pacific Reggae sound, and he became the band's frontman, appearing on a string of hits, until his death on 21 December 1995. He was 46.