Chulu Chululu sometimes referred to as Chululu is a
Fiji
Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
an song that has been covered by a multitude of artists ranging from
Peter Posa to
Bill Sevesi & His Islanders. An English version of this song was a hit for
Bill and Boyd.
Background
The song of Fijian origin is considered to be very well known in Fiji and the Pacific. It is also a popular party song. The Fijian version begins with the lyrics "" with this verse repeated five times throughout the song. The song was originally composed by
Sam Freedman whose songs have been covered by
The Kingston Trio,
Bill Sevesi and
Maria Dallas
Maria Dallas (born Marina Devcich, 1946) was discovered at a talent contest in small town of Morrinsville, New Zealand.
Her first single "Tumblin' Down", written by Jay Epae, released in 1966 and made it to #11 in the charts. It also won her a ...
etc.
Eddie Lund version
It was possibly first commercially released by
Eddie Lund
Eddie Lund (October 12, 1909 – December 4, 1973) was a pianist and bandleader.
He grew up in Vancouver, Washington, USA, and later moved to Oregon where he worked as a pianist. He later moved to Tahiti in either 1936 or 1938 where he stayed pe ...
& His Tahitians and released on record in 1958. It was released as a single on
Viking Records
Viking Records was an independent record label that featured many New Zealand and Polynesian recording artists.
Background
The company was founded in 1957. In the 1960s, the company was the largest locally owned record label in the South Paci ...
in May 1958. The B side "Samoa Silasila" was sung in Samoan. According to the National Public Library of New Zealand, the group that recorded it was an Auckland based Tahitian group. It appeared on Lund's ''Lure of Tahiti'' album which was released in 1960.
[Discog]
Eddie Lund And His Tahitians – Lure Of Tahiti
/ref>[National Public Library of New Zealan]
Lure of Tahiti (sound recording) / Eddie Lund and his Tahitians.
/ref>
English version
The song was recorded by Bill & Boyd in Rotorua, New Zealand 1964. It became a hit for them and appeared on their album ''Songs for a cloudy afternoon''. The English version was written by Bill Cate and Bill Robertson. Bill and Boyd rerecorded the song in 1974 and that version appeared as the B-side to the single, "Santa Never Made It Into Darwin". The single was recorded to raise money after the devastating 1974 cyclone that decimated Darwin.
Other versions
In 1993, New Zealand group The Radars recorded their version of the song as the B side to " The Banana Boat Song" released on the Epic
Epic commonly refers to:
* Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation
* Epic film, a genre of film with heroic elements
Epic or EPIC may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and medi ...
label. It gained them an award under the Best Polynesian Album award, beating finalists Dalvanius
Maui Dalvanius Prime (16 January 1948 – 3 October 2002) was a New Zealand entertainer and songwriter. His career spanned 30 years. He mentored many of New Zealand's Māori performers, and was a vocal and forthright supporter of Māori culture. ...
& the Patea Maori Club and the Kaiwhaiki Cultural Club.[InMyCollectio]
The Radars Single 'The Banana Boat Song'
/ref>[Audio Cultur]
The Radars Profile // Adam Gifford – Show More +
/ref>[NZ Music Award]
Past Winners, 1983 Winners
/ref> The Wiggles also recorded their version on their Wake Up Jeff! album.
Releases
References
{{authority control
Fijian songs
Year of song unknown
Songwriter unknown