Blue Smoke
Blue Smoke: Wellington R&B in the 80s
If there was a Wellington sound in the 80s it was a local version of rhythm and blues that became unique to the capital. What was once borrowed and blue became sunny and joyous. It passed through the… Audio
Blue Smoke: Twist Fever
The New Zealand Truth immediately saw it as a scandal. "Beware of the Twist" they declared, when the swiveling dance first arrived in Auckland. The Twist had more grace than rock'n'roll, the paper… Audio
Blue Smoke: Getting it Together in the Country
In the late 60s the phrase "getting it together in the country" described bands who were burnt out from psychedelia, or just wanted some space, man. They removed themselves from the city to live… Audio
Blue Smoke: DJ Twist
In the 1960s there was a wave of pop DJs who decided to flip roles and become recording artists? Was this vanity? Certainly. Were the early local record companies offering sweeteners hoping their… Audio
Blue Smoke: North Shore
In this episode we take a musical tour of Auckland's North Shore, which once had its own pirate ship dance hall, still has a bunker, and nurtured a Lorde. Chris Bourke takes a ferry across the… Audio
Blue Smoke: Josie Rika
Why was a woman regarded as New Zealand's best soul singer of her generation hardly known outside Auckland's musicians and the city's nightclub audiences? Josie Rika was in constant demand for backing… Audio
Blue Smoke: The Beatles and NZ Music - Part 2
How did New Zealand respond to the Beatles? Like most places - unless you were a boy or a band feeling threatened. Sheer joy. In the second episode of a new series of Blue Smoke, Chris Bourke looks at… Audio
The Mixtape: Chris Bourke
This week's mixtape selector is Chris Bourke, Audioculture editor and presenter of New Zealand music history series Blue Smoke. He shares the songs that have shaped him and speaks with Yadana Saw Audio
Blue Smoke: The Beatles and NZ Music - Part 1
The arrival of The Beatles' music in New Zealand required a response, whether you were for or against. Young musicians reacted quickly: if you didn't comb your hair forward, suddenly you looked dated… Audio
Adam McGrath: Supporting Small Venues
Adam McGrath and The Eastern play two fundraiser shows in support of much-loved Hastings venue Common Room. Yadana Saw talks to Adam about the challenges facing musicians under the shadow of COVID19… Audio
Pixie Williams Reimagined
Pixie Williams, the iconic voice of TANZA Records with her recording of 'Blue Smoke', is still with us, thanks to a new reimagining of her songs titled The New Blue. William Dart puts the new blue… Audio
Blue Smoke: Warm memories of NZ's first pop hit 70 years on
New Zealand's first-ever pop song, Blue Smoke, is being remembered 70 years on since its creation.
Worlds of Music Ep142 June 22- June 25 2019 featuring Pixie Williams
On Worlds of Music Trevor Reekie hosts a weekly music programme celebrating an eclectic mix of trans global music, fusion and folk roots. Audio
Alien Weaponry's reo Māori heavy metal hits number one
It's a significant moment in Māori music history - Alien Weaponry's reo Maori heavy metal album Tū has hit number one. Tū has more than one million streams on Spotify since the album was released on… Audio
New release of Blue Smoke
Neil Finn has revived a song which has its origins in World War II and is seen as a starting point in the country's recorded music history. Audio
The music of World War I
2015 marks the centenary of the Gallipoli campaign and historians are pouring through records from the First World War looking for new insights into the conflict. Chris Bourke is the award winning… Audio
Johnny Cooper - The Māori Cowboy
Johnny Cooper, who recorded New Zealand's first rock 'n' roll record, died this week. Chris Bourke, author of Blue Smoke, pays tribute to 'The Māori Cowboy'. Audio
Pixie Williams: In her own words
Jim Sullivan in conversation with early New Zealand singer Pixie Williams who, aged 18, featured on 'Blue Smoke', the first record to be composed, recorded, pressed and commercially released in New… Audio
Blue Smoke: Beat Groups, Bobby Soxers and Bohemians
Rock’n’roll bands, teen pop and folkies... Chris Bourke looks at New Zealand’s pop scene in the early 60s. Audio
Blue Smoke: Combos and Comedians
Chris Bourke enters the world of musical comedy and cabaret that New Zealand nightclubs offered in the early 1960s. He warns that some of the recordings are deeply corny - while others remain risqué.
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