A catchy waiata that captivated the nation. That's how Poi E, one of the country's best loved songs, is being remembered as it marks its 40th birthday.
Over the weekend, hundreds gathered in the tiny Southern Taranaki town Pātea to mark the anniversary where it all began.
Among them was the Pātea Māori Club's chairperson, Laura Maruera, who remembers the early days when Poi E took off.
"We had to have sleepless nights and travelling was continuous throughout that. We went around the world," she said.
In 1984, Poi E, composed and performed by the Pātea Māori Club, topped the charts for an entire month."
It was an unprecedented feat for a song written in te reo Māori.
The Pātea Māori Club's world tour and success elevated te reo into the 'mainstream', a language some of its own members couldn't speak.
"We were all English-speaking," said Haimona Maruera, one of the club's first members.
"If someone said 'tēna koe' to me I'd say, 'eeekk Māori' and run away," he laughed.
"Not only has it given us the reo, but it's given us total confidence. I'll be honest, these fellas think they can take on the world."
The late Dalvanius Prime composed the song's music to Ngoi Pewhairangi's lyrics.
Using entirely untraditional sounds and beats somehow worked.
"Del really took us into another world, and brought us up with the play, and really jazzed it up," said Laura Maruera.
Many who gathered to remember the song and what its meant also honoured those no longer here to enjoy it.
"There's one person we always remember today, and that is our kuia, our Poi E lady, Hui Kahu," said Laura.
Her legacy, and that of the entire Pātea Māori Club, are now keeping the song alive for future generations.
SHARE ME