Katchafire (New Zealand roots reggae)

Katchafire are an all Māori New Zealand roots reggae band from Hamilton, New Zealand. Katchafire formed in Hamilton in 1997, originally as a Bob Marley tribute band. The band's name derives from Catch A Fire, The Wailers' debut album. They have released six albums: Revival (2003), which featured the highest-selling New Zealand single of 2002 "Giddy Up", Slow Burning (2005) Say What You're Thinking (2007), On the Road Again (2010), which peaked at No. 3 on the US Billboard Reggae chart, and the compilation Best So Far (2013) Legacy (2018). The band has extensively toured Australia, the UK, Europe, the United States, New Caledonia, the Pacific Islands, Guam, Indonesia, Brazil including their home country of New Zealand and have played on the same bills as The Wailers, The Marley's, Steel Pulse, Third World, UB40, Shaggy, Lauryn Hill, Fiji, and Horace Andy. The band's original line-up consisted of founder Grenville Bell (manager, lead guitar) with his two sons Logan (vocals) Jordan (drums), the line-up expanded to include eight members, including Jerry Taukamo (lead vocals, lead guitar), Thompson Hohepa (lead vocals), Hani Totorewa (keyboards, vocals); bass duties went to a number of different musicians, Jhonny Fish (John Kennedy), Shocka (Shane Maraki), Tere Ngarua and Travis Te Hau. As a result of commitments with other bands, family and religion, lead singer Jerry Taukamo departed from the band Katchafire with Logan stepping into the position becoming the band's new and current lead singer. With the addition of James "Jamey" Ferguson (vocals, keyboard, saxophone) and departure of Tere Ngarua, it opened the opportunity for Ara Adams Tamatea (bass, band management) and Leonard "Leon" Davey (percussion, vocals) to join, not long after which it allowed Grenville Bell to step out of the management duties and continue his role as the band's lead guitarist. The band went through yet another change in line-up as Ara Adams Tamatea stepped down from his role as manager/bass player, continuing only as the band's New Zealand booking agent, with original bass player Tere Ngarua returning and Logan Bell taking over the band management. The current line-up: Logan Bell (guitar, vocals) 1997–present Jordan Bell (drums, vocals) 1997–present Leonard "Leon" Davey (percussion, vocals) 2000–present Tere Ngarua (bass guitar) 1997, 2007–present Roy Kaiki (keyboards, vocals) 2016–present Wiremu Barriball (lead guitar, vocals) 2016–present Former members: Grenville Bell (lead guitar) 1997–2014 Haani Totorewa (keyboards, guitar, vocals) 1997–2013 James "Jamey" Ferguson (keyboards, saxophone, vocals) 2000–2013 Ara Adams Tamatea (bass) 2000–2006 Jerry Taukamo (lead vocals, lead guitar) John "Jhonny fish" Kennedy (bass) Shane "Shocka" Maraki (bass) Travis Te Hau (bass) Katchafire have appeared on a number of compilations since 2002 in New Zealand. The following is a list of these albums that have featured tracks by the band. "Circle Back" did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number 11 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart. "Karawhiua" did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number 11 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart. "Whaingaroa" did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number 21 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart. "Always with You" did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number 23 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart. "Magic (What She Do)" (acoustic) did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number 29 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart. "Commit" did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number 28 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart. "Collie Herb Man" (Revival 2.0) did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number 26 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart. "Giddy Up" (Revival 2.0) did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number 29 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart. "Seriously" did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number 33 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart. Macgregor, Jody. Katchafire biography at AllMusic. Retrieved 25 March 2012. Campbell-Livingston, Cecelia (2013) "Katchafire keeping NZ reggae scene ablaze", Jamaica Observer, 24 November 2013. Retrieved 1 December 2014 Katchafire at AllMusic "Dreadlocked and loaded". The Sydney Morning Herald. 23 June 2011. Retrieved 11 October 2025. NEWS: New Katchafire Album Coming October 2010 - Rip It Up Magazine Archived 1 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine retrieved 15-09-2010 "KATCHAFIRE IN NEW ZEALAND CHARTS". charts.nz. Retrieved 22 October 2012. "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 11 June 2018. Retrieved 8 June 2018. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 21 December 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2020. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 3 May 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 19 July 2021. Retrieved 17 July 2021. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 28 November 2022. Retrieved 26 November 2022. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 1 July 2024. Retrieved 28 June 2024. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 5 August 2024. Retrieved 2 August 2024. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 5 September 2025. Retrieved 6 September 2025. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 5 December 2025. Retrieved 6 December 2025. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 13 February 2026. Retrieved 13 February 2026. Official website