Charles Turu Tumahai (14 January 1949 – 21 December 1995) was a New Zealand singer, bass player and songwriter who was a member of several noted rock groups in New Zealand, Australia and the UK. He is best known internationally as the bassist and backing vocalist in Bill Nelson's

Be-Bop Deluxe Be-Bop Deluxe were an English rock band who achieved critical acclaim and moderate commercial success during the mid to late 1970s. History Be-Bop Deluxe Be-Bop Deluxe was founded in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, by singer, guitarist ...

. Tumahai was born in

Ōrākei Ōrākei is a suburb of Auckland city, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located on a peninsula five kilometres to the east of the city centre, on the shore of the Waitematā Harbour, which lies to the north, and Hobson Bay and Orakei ...

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, New Zealand, where he began his music career before moving to Australia in the late 1960s. He was a member of several notable Australian bands including

Chain A chain is a serial assembly of connected pieces, called links, typically made of metal, with an overall character similar to that of a rope in that it is flexible and curved in compression but linear, rigid, and load-bearing in tension. A c ...

, Healing Force, Friends and

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

(which later evolved into

Little River Band Little River Band (LRB) are a rock band originally formed in Melbourne, Australia, in March 1975. The band achieved commercial success in both Australia and the United States. They have sold more than 30 million records; six studio albums rea ...

). Tumahai traveled to the UK with Mississippi in 1974 and remained there when Mississippi broke up. Later that year he joined Be-Bop Deluxe, with whom he played and recorded until 1978, when he joined The Dukes. In 1980 he joined Tandoori Cassette, a group featuring ex-members of

Nazareth Nazareth ( ; ar, النَّاصِرَة, ''an-Nāṣira''; he, נָצְרַת, ''Nāṣəraṯ''; arc, ܢܨܪܬ, ''Naṣrath'') is the largest city in the Northern District of Israel. Nazareth is known as "the Arab capital of Israel". In ...

, Jethro Tull and

The Sensational Alex Harvey Band The Sensational Alex Harvey Band were a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 1972. Fronted by Alex Harvey accompanied by Zal Cleminson on guitar, bassist Chris Glen, keyboard player Hugh McKenna (1949–2019) and drummer Ted McKenna, their ...

, however this group did not make any recordings except a single "Angel Talk" c/w Third World Briefcases. He returned to New Zealand in 1985 and joined the popular New Zealand reggae band

Herbs In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...

. As well as music he became involved in Maori affairs, working as a voluntary member of a scheme set up to assist young Maori offenders in

. He was also developing plans for an arts programme for Maori prisoners and for exploring new ways he could help young Maori people connect with their culture. He performed in the 1994 film ''

Once Were Warriors ''Once Were Warriors'' is New Zealand author Alan Duff's bestselling first novel, published in 1990. It tells the story of an urban Māori family, the Hekes, and portrays the reality of domestic violence in New Zealand. It was the basis of a 1 ...

''. He died suddenly after suffering a heart attack while working at the Auckland District Court on 21 December 1995, 24 days before his 47th birthday. Tumahai was the subject of a 2010 television documentary.

Equipment

*During his days with Be-Bop Deluxe, he used Fender

Telecaster The Fender Telecaster, colloquially known as the Tele , is an electric guitar produced by Fender. Together with its sister model the Esquire, it is the world's first mass-produced, commercially successful Les Paul had built a prototype solid bod ...

and

Precision Precision, precise or precisely may refer to: Science, and technology, and mathematics Mathematics and computing (general) * Accuracy and precision, measurement deviation from true value and its scatter * Significant figures, the number of digit ...

basses. *From the late 1980s onwards, he became known for playing a black copy of a

Steinberger Steinberger is a series of distinctive electric guitars and bass guitars, designed and originally manufactured by Ned Steinberger. The name "Steinberger" can be used to refer to either the instruments themselves or the company that originally pro ...

XL2A made by

Cort Cort is the surname of several people: * Cornelis Cort (1536–1578), Dutch engraver * Henry Cort (1740–1800), English ironmaster * Frans de Cort (1834–1878), Flemish writer * Hendrik Frans de Cort (1742-1810), Flemish landscape painter * John ...

References

External links

AudioCulture profileOral history (1995) at Ngā Taonga Whitiāhua Me Ngā Taonga Kōrero (The New Zealand Archive of Film, Television and Sound)
1949 births 1995 deaths New Zealand male singer-songwriters People from Auckland New Zealand bass guitarists Male bass guitarists Pacific reggae 20th-century New Zealand male singers New Zealand Māori male singers 20th-century bass guitarists Be-Bop Deluxe members Mississippi (band) members Chain (band) members New Zealand male guitarists The Dukes (British band) members {{singer-songwriter-stub