Tim Finn and that famous song
Tim Finn: I’ll sing for you a song of Parihaka.
Below is an article by Virginia Winder about how Tim Finn came to write the song about Parihaka.
When Carolyn Finn read Dick Scott's book, Ask That Mountain, she turned to her famous brother. "She said to me 'You've got to write a song about this, it's such a great story'" Tim says during a visit to Taranaki, the home of Parihaka.
"I hadn't heard anything of the story at all," he admits. "So you do what your big sister tells you to do. I think I got caught up in her passion for the story. Then I read the book and loved it and it just flowed from there. The song came from that really - it was directly inspired by the book," he says.
"I wanted to make sure it was 100% with the people, so we got in touch with Richard Wharehoka, he was our contact, and we sent him the lyrics. He said 'Great, great, but make sure you mention Tohu', because I had just been singing Te Whiti. So, we ended up having to drop in a micro-second's [worth] of tape span, Tohu and Te Whiti."
The song has also touched hearts and put Parihaka on the international stage. "It's amazing how many letters and emails I've had from people in America and everywhere, who have heard it and wanted to know more," says the solo artist. "It really did have quite an impact outside of New Zealand. It's led a lot of people through to the story and to visit the marae."
It even led Tim to coastal Taranaki. "The only marae I have ever been invited on to in New Zealand was the Parihaka Marae" Tim says. "We were called on and it moved me deeply. I suppose I'd reached out and so they reached out back. I spent a couple of days with some of the people and talked with them and ate with them and surfed with them and drank with them.
"It was just an inspiring couple of days and it really bonded me with this place, just walking around the land out there with the people and talking. I'd never had any particular affinity with this part of the country before, but I sure did after that. And the mountain itself."
Writing and performing the song has been an ongoing lesson. "When I sang it with Herbs, they made sure I understood that Te Whiti wasn't just some peace-loving hippy, he had been quite a warrior in his day and then he sort of discovered, I suppose, the philosophy of non-violence as a skilful means, as a tactic.
"He wasn't just saying 'Take whatever you like, we won't fight you', there was far more to it. There was cunning and guile and skill. In the end it shows pride and fearlessness and that it's much braver to take a non-violent approach. To be violent is to show fear."
The people of Parihaka embraced the song. "When I went on to the marae, they made sure they copied the down all the lyrics and so they could teach people who were passing through, or teach their own kids or whatever. So, the song lives on..."
Source: Pukeariki- stories of Taranaki.
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