Katchafire
Encyclopedia
Katchafire is a New Zealand
roots
reggae
band from Hamilton
, New Zealand
.
Katchafire formed in 1997 as a Bob Marley
tribute band
and later began writing and performing their own songs. They have released four albums: Revival (2003) which featured the highest-selling New Zealand single of 2003, "Giddy Up"; Slow Burning (2005) Say What You're Thinking
(2007) and On the Road Again (2010)
Katchafire began recording their third album, Say What You're Thinking, as a seven-piece at Auckland
's York Street Studio
's toward the end of 2006.
The band has toured Australia
, the UK
, Europe
, the USA, and New Caledonia
, and has played at festivals with international reggae acts such as Mr Gang, Horace Andy
, Moonraisers, Gentleman and was the only Pacific act to tour with artists Arrested Development, The Wailers
, Maxi Priest
and UB40
as part of the 2008 Raggamuffin. Their name was inspired by the Bob Marley
and The Wailers
album Catch A Fire
.
The band released their fourth studio album, On The Road Again, which has been inspired by their recent worldwide touring.
Katchafire has been through many changes over the years with Tere Ngarua replaced by Ara Adams-Tamatea on bass and the addition of Jamey Ferguson (keyboards, sax, lead vocals) and Leon Davey (vocals, percussion).
For the second album Slow Burning the band was augmented by horn section Le Sexion with Feal (saxophone), Mols (trumpet) and Thomas (trombone) from reggae band Mr Gang of France (See album cover inlay credits).
There were further line-up changes in 2006: Ara Adams-Tamatea left the band to become the group's booking agent and original bass player Tere Ngarua re-joined the group as bassist, Thompson Hohepa also left the band.
. The following is a list of these albums that have featured tracks by Katchafire.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
roots
Roots reggae
Roots reggae is a subgenre of reggae that deals with the everyday lives and aspirations of the artists concerned, including the spiritual side of Rastafari and with the honoring of God, called Jah by rastafarians. It also is identified with the life of the ghetto sufferer, and the rural poor...
reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
band from Hamilton
Hamilton, New Zealand
Hamilton is the centre of New Zealand's fourth largest urban area, and Hamilton City is the country's fourth largest territorial authority. Hamilton is in the Waikato Region of the North Island, approximately south of Auckland...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
Katchafire formed in 1997 as a Bob Marley
Bob Marley
Robert Nesta "Bob" Marley, OM was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and musician. He was the rhythm guitarist and lead singer for the ska, rocksteady and reggae band Bob Marley & The Wailers...
tribute band
Tribute band
A tribute act is a music group, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act - sometimes one which has disbanded, ceased touring or is deceased. Probably the largest class of tributes acts are Elvis impersonators, individual performers who mimic the songs and style...
and later began writing and performing their own songs. They have released four albums: Revival (2003) which featured the highest-selling New Zealand single of 2003, "Giddy Up"; Slow Burning (2005) Say What You're Thinking
Say What You're Thinking
Say What You're Thinking is an album by New Zealand reggae band, Katchafire. It was released in New Zealand on 14 August 2007 and in Australia on 17 November 2007.-Track listing:#"Say What You’re Thinking" – 4:55...
(2007) and On the Road Again (2010)
Katchafire began recording their third album, Say What You're Thinking, as a seven-piece at Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
's York Street Studio
York Street Studio
York Street Recording Studio is a Recording Studio based in Auckland, New Zealand. Founded and built by producer and engineer Martin Williams, producer Malcolm Welsford and Jaz Coleman it quickly became New Zealand's leading music recording, mixing and mastering facility...
's toward the end of 2006.
The band has toured Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, the USA, and New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, and has played at festivals with international reggae acts such as Mr Gang, Horace Andy
Horace Andy
Horace Andy is a roots reggae songwriter and singer, known for his distinctive vocals and hit songs such as "Government Land", "Angel", "Five Man Army" and a cover version of "Ain't No Sunshine"....
, Moonraisers, Gentleman and was the only Pacific act to tour with artists Arrested Development, The Wailers
Wailers Band
The Wailers Band are a reggae band formed by the remaining members of Bob Marley & The Wailers, following the death of Bob Marley in 1981.-Previous Wailers' incarnations:The Wailers started as Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer and Peter Tosh...
, Maxi Priest
Maxi Priest
Max Alfred "Maxi" Priest is a British reggae vocalist of Jamaican descent. He is best known for singing reggae music with a R&B influence, otherwise known as reggae fusion, and became one of the first international successes who regularly dabbled in the genre as well as being one of the most...
and UB40
UB40
UB40 are a British reggae/pop band formed in 1978 in Birmingham. The band has placed more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable international success. One of the world's best-selling music artists, UB40 have sold over 70 million records.Their hit singles...
as part of the 2008 Raggamuffin. Their name was inspired by the Bob Marley
Bob Marley
Robert Nesta "Bob" Marley, OM was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and musician. He was the rhythm guitarist and lead singer for the ska, rocksteady and reggae band Bob Marley & The Wailers...
and The Wailers
Wailers Band
The Wailers Band are a reggae band formed by the remaining members of Bob Marley & The Wailers, following the death of Bob Marley in 1981.-Previous Wailers' incarnations:The Wailers started as Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer and Peter Tosh...
album Catch A Fire
Catch a Fire
Catch a Fire is the major-label-debut album for Jamaican reggae band The Wailers, released on Island Records on 13 April 1973. The album established the band as international superstars. Leader Bob Marley in particular became world-famous...
.
The band released their fourth studio album, On The Road Again, which has been inspired by their recent worldwide touring.
Band members
The band's original line-up consisted of Grenville Bell (guitar), Haani Totorewa (keyboards, vocals) Tere Ngarua (bass guitar), Thompson Hohepa (guitar, vocals) Logan Bell (guitar, lead vocals) and Jordan Bell (drums).Katchafire has been through many changes over the years with Tere Ngarua replaced by Ara Adams-Tamatea on bass and the addition of Jamey Ferguson (keyboards, sax, lead vocals) and Leon Davey (vocals, percussion).
For the second album Slow Burning the band was augmented by horn section Le Sexion with Feal (saxophone), Mols (trumpet) and Thomas (trombone) from reggae band Mr Gang of France (See album cover inlay credits).
There were further line-up changes in 2006: Ara Adams-Tamatea left the band to become the group's booking agent and original bass player Tere Ngarua re-joined the group as bassist, Thompson Hohepa also left the band.
Albums
| Date of Release | Title | Label | Charted | Country | Catalog Number |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 2003 in music -January:* January – following an investigation by The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and London detectives, police raids in England and the Netherlands recover nearly 500 original Beatles studio tapes, recorded during the Let It Be sessions. Five people are arrested... |
Revival | Shock/BMG | 5 | - | |
| 2005 2005 in music -Events:*During the year 2005, 12 rock music albums scored number 1 in the USA. This was the first time even ten albums have scored number 1 since 1996.-January:... |
Slow Burning | Mai/Shock | 5 | - | |
| 2007 2007 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2007.-January:*January 1 - George Shearing is knighted for services to music in the Queen's New Year Honours List. Evelyn Glennie becomes a Dame... |
Say What You're Thinking Say What You're Thinking Say What You're Thinking is an album by New Zealand reggae band, Katchafire. It was released in New Zealand on 14 August 2007 and in Australia on 17 November 2007.-Track listing:#"Say What You’re Thinking" – 4:55... |
EMI EMI The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major... |
5 | - | |
| 2010 2010 in music 2010 in music may refer to:*2010 in American music*2010 in Australian music*2010 in British music*2010 in Canadian music*2010 in European music *2010 in Irish music*2010 in Japanese music*2010 in New Zealand music... |
On the Road Again | Lion House Records | 3 | - | |
Featured appearances
Katchafire have appeared on a number of compilations since 2002 in New ZealandNew Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. The following is a list of these albums that have featured tracks by Katchafire.
| Release | Album | Label | Track |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 2002 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2002.-Events:*February 3 – U2 perform during the halftime show for Super Bowl XXXVI... |
Simply the Best Reggae Album | Warner Music | "Bounce" |
| 2003 2003 in music -January:* January – following an investigation by The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and London detectives, police raids in England and the Netherlands recover nearly 500 original Beatles studio tapes, recorded during the Let It Be sessions. Five people are arrested... |
The Reggae Collection | Universal Music | "Collie Herb Man" and "Giddy Up" |
| 2003 2003 in music -January:* January – following an investigation by The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and London detectives, police raids in England and the Netherlands recover nearly 500 original Beatles studio tapes, recorded during the Let It Be sessions. Five people are arrested... |
Off the Hook 3 | Sony Music | "Get Away" (Remix) |
| 2004 2004 in music See also:* 2004 in music Record labels established in 2004-January:*January 1**The Vienna New Year's Concert is conducted by Riccardo Muti.**Kurt Nilsen wins World Idol.... |
Conscious Roots Conscious Roots Conscious Roots was released in 2004. The album is the 1st edition of the series.... |
Capitol Music | "Get Away" |
| 2005 2005 in music -Events:*During the year 2005, 12 rock music albums scored number 1 in the USA. This was the first time even ten albums have scored number 1 since 1996.-January:... |
Conscious Roots 2 Conscious Roots 2 Conscious Roots 2 was released in 2005. The album is the 2nd edition of the series.-Track listing:#Dreams - House of Shem#One Of These Days - Illphonics#This Here Reggae Music - Unity Pacific#So True - Black Seeds... |
Capitol Music | "Frisk Me Down" |
| 2006 2006 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2006.-January:*January 10 – Eric Burdon releases his album Soul of a Man and begins touring with a new band.... |
More Nature More Nature More Nature is a one-disc compilation album of twenty notable New Zealand popular music songs from 2000-2005, intended to be a supplement to the Nature's Best series of compilation albums... |
Sony BMG | "Giddy Up" |
| 2007 2007 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2007.-January:*January 1 - George Shearing is knighted for services to music in the Queen's New Year Honours List. Evelyn Glennie becomes a Dame... |
Conscious Roots 4 | EMI EMI The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major... |
"This World" |
Singles
| Year | Single | Album | NZ Singles Chart |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | "Giddy Up" | Revival | 4 |
| 2002 | "Get Away" | Revival | 8 |
| 2002 | "Who You With" | Revival | 10 |
| 2003 | "Colour Me Life" | Revival | - |
| 2003 | "Bounce" | Revival | - |
| 2003 | "Seriously" | Revival | - |
| 2004 | "Rude Girl" | Slow Burning | - |
| 2005 | "Hey Girl" | Slow Burning | - |
| 2006 | "Frisk Me Down" | Slow Burning | - |
| 2007 | "Say What You're Thinking" | Say What You're Thinking | - |
| 2008 | "Love Letter" | Say What You're Thinking | - |
| 2009 | "Working" | Say What You're Thinking | - |
| 2010 | "Slow Down" feat. Rebel Souljahz | Bring Back The Days | - |
| 2010 | "Just You & Me" feat. Na Wai | - | - |
| 2010 | "On The Road Again" | On The Road Again | - |
| 2010 | "Groove Again" | On The Road Again | - |