Rangi Ruru Wananga Karaitiana (4 March 1909 – 15 December 1970) was a New Zealand musician and songwriter. Karaitiana was born in

Dannevirke Dannevirke ( "Earthworks (archaeology), work of the Danes", a reference to Danevirke; mi, Taniwaka, lit= or ''Tāmaki-nui-a-Rua'', the area where the town is), is a rural service town in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of the North Island, New ...

, New Zealand, on 4 March 1909. He was

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

, and was a member of the

Ngāti Kahungunu Ngāti Kahungunu is a Māori iwi located along the eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The iwi is traditionally centred in the Hawke's Bay and Wairārapa regions. The tribe is organised into six geographical and administrative di ...

and

Rangitāne Rangitāne is a Māori people, Māori iwi (tribe). Their rohe (territory) is in the Manawatū-Whanganui, Manawatū, Horowhenua, Wairarapa and Marlborough Region, Marlborough areas of New Zealand.Māori Battalion The 28th (Māori) Battalion, more commonly known as the Māori Battalion, was an infantry battalion of the New Zealand Army that served during the Second World War. It formed following pressure on the Labour government from some Māori Memb ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and led the battalion's concert party. After the war Karaitiana assembled a quintet, and in October 1948 recorded a version of his song " Blue Smoke" with singer

Pixie Williams Pikiteora Maude Emily Gertrude Edith "Pixie" Williams (married name Costello; 12 July 1928 – 2 August 2013) was a New Zealand singer best known for the song "Blue Smoke", recorded in 1949. In 2019, she was inducted into the New Zealand Music ...

to a Hawaiian-style backing played by Jimmy Carter's Hawaiians – the first record wholly produced in New Zealand from composition to pressing, and provided the début for the

TANZA Tanza, officially the Municipality of Tanza ( tgl, Bayan ng Tanza), formerly known as Santa Cruz de Malabón, is a 1st class municipality in the province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 312,116 people ...

record label. It topped the New Zealand radio hit parades for six weeks, and it went on to be recorded by a number of overseas artists, including

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...

in 1951. On 2 October 2019, Karaitiana, along with Pixie Williams and Jim Carter, was inducted into the

New Zealand Music Hall of Fame The New Zealand Music Hall of Fame , Te Whare Taonga Puoro o Aotearoa is a figurative hall of fame dedicated to noteworthy New Zealand musicians. The hall was created in 2007 by Recorded Music NZ (then known as the Recording Industry Associati ...

, to mark the 70th anniversary of the release of "Blue Smoke".

Awards

Aotearoa Music Awards

The

Aotearoa Music Awards The Aotearoa Music Awards (previously called the New Zealand Music Awards), conferred annually by Recorded Music NZ, honour outstanding artistic and technical achievements in the recording industry. The awards are among the most significant that ...

(previously known as ''New Zealand Music Awards'' (NZMA)) are an annual awards night celebrating excellence in

New Zealand music The music of New Zealand has been influenced by a number of traditions, including Māori music, the music introduced by European settlers during the nineteenth century, and a variety of styles imported during the twentieth century, including b ...

and have been presented annually since 1965. ! , - , 2019 , , Ruru Karaitiana , ,

, , , , , -

References

1909 births 1970 deaths APRA Award winners New Zealand musicians New Zealand writers Ngāti Kahungunu people Rangitāne people New Zealand Māori musicians People from Dannevirke {{Māori-bio-stub