Trio in remake of a Roro love song

MUSIC

THE PNG music scene continues to evolve, producing lovely songs that have become household hits and favorites on our airwaves over the years.
The advent of social media platforms, especially YouTube and the array of home studios has indeed served as a very convenient medium to produce PNG songs that can now be sent in an instant far and wide, domestically and globally for all to hear and especially the PNG diaspora overseas.
Differing genres and styles of music continue to attract the aging and the young alike who have their preferences. Needless to stay, music will always be a way to entertain, relax and sooth the mind as well as relate to any given situation whether it is political, social, economic or plain old love and romance.
There has been an emerging trend these days whereby contemporary musicians and unknown groups, such as the one that is the subject of this story, which are reviving old favorites and mixing them with modern technology to produce quality sounds to our PNG songs.
Emerging out of obscurity and the blues is a lesser-known group on the PNG music scene known as the Trio Delena Heritage who have recently released a single that is currently making small in-roads on the PNG airwaves and is gradually gaining popularity.
In fact, it has initially had the full endorsement of senior and well-known PNG musician such as Elina, Dokona Manoka, Martin Rawali and Arthur Awai. That in itself is a big statement and rating, said band member Frank Mohi Aisi.
The group comprising Frank Mohi Aisi on lead vocals, backed up by Joe Kone Purari and Gau Aisi have remade an old love song by the Delepous Band of the 1960s and 70s, and blended it with modern musical sounds. It was masterfully engineered by Robby Tee, a seasoned and well-known artist at Metere Crew Studios in the suburb of Gerehu, to creating a hauntingly catchy sound of the song “Raona’au eka baitabu asiai” in the Roro dialect of the Kairuku sub-district in Central.
Trio Delena Heritage at the outset greatly acknowledge Sam Willie, front man of the Delepou’s Band of Delena Village, who endorsed the re-make this wonderful love song. Tanikiu apauana Uncle Sam who is alive and well and currently resides at Kira Kira Village.
Just for a bit of backgroud, Note that both Gau and Frank are part Delena and Hanuabada while Kone is originally a full-blooded Delena boy.
Gau and Frank’s dads, late Aisi Kone and Dr Frank Mohi Aisi Snr both from Delena, married two beautiful lasses from Hanuabada namely Gairo of Gwadu/Hohodae and Heni Dia from the Kahanamona clans respectively in the 1950s and this is their heritage. Kone’s dad, Peter Purari, also from Delena married a young lady from the Yule Island.
All three men, apart from their respective occupations, had a common interest and that was music. In fact, that legacy has continued through their sons.
Readers of a certain age bracket would have heard the music of the Easygoing Gwadu’s Band of Hanuabada village who were very popular in the 70s and 80s. Gau is from that stock and has been in the music industry all his life featuring as percussionist and bassist for the Undecided, Gunai Cruz, Aybee’s and Clockwork Orange bands of Port Moresby, as well as for a short period, when required with the Easy Going Gwadus.
Kone also played with several Kairuku bands and has recorded some songs. Both he and Gau have had wide experience in the PNG music industry. Their experience has been invaluable and has added great value to this single.

Ayurox
For Frank he has classifiesd himself as not even a part-timer musician and the closest he ever came to playing in a band was at the Aiyura National High School in 1981-82 in the school band known as Ayurox.
“Back then we played at our school mess hall on social nights and were occasionally invited to the surrounding villages in the Aiyura valley and Kainantu area to perform at the “six to sixes”- dusk till dawn gigs,” Frank says.
“We also played once at the Hoffman Tavern in Goroka and also at the Yonki power station on invitation. All these gigs were a far cry from the established PNG bands but we did well with our improvised sounds of the 70s and 80s to entertain our audiences. We actually did quite well.”
The Ayurox Band back then in 1982 comprised of two groupscom
Group 1: Reatau Maraki-Rau on lead guitar; Frank Mohi Aisi on lead vocals; Robin Kasi on rhythm guitar; Gerry Bagita on bass guitar; and Leslie Hoffman on drums
Group 2: Mark Soi – lead guitar; Eri “Ace Kakaba” Edward – rythm guitar and lead vocals; Harry Aigeeling – bass guitar; Alpheus Kaveragari on keyboard; and Paul “Possi el Barrio” Johnson on drums.
“After we left Aiyura in 1982 most of us never pursued a music career except for Mark Soi who played lead guitar for the Extensions Band,” Frank says.
“For me personally, music still runs heavy and deep in my DNA but I didn’t exploit the opportunity to carve out a career given my work commitments. But that didn’t stop me from singing a few numbers at my neighbours’ family gatherings, especially with the Gunai Cruz and with my cousin Gau Aisi. I’ve never sung at nightclubs.

Delepous
“Back to the single, I always wanted to sing it because I had heard the Delepou sing it and later on heard a Gwadu version on NBC Radio back in the 80s. It sounded so good,” Frank said.
“In fact, Easygoing Gwadus frontman and Kaka, late Peter Kadamu Aisi used to play it with the Clockwork Orange Band at the Eight Bells Bar, at what used to be known as the Islander Hotel in Waigani in the 80s and early 90s.
“Those of you who have heard the late Peter Kadamu Aisi sing would agree with me that he had this smooth and lovely voice. Listen to his signature song and all-time Gwadu favourite Ino lau madi.”
Back in the 80s Frank’s family lived at Utuma Place in Tokarara. Kone also lived at Tokarara, and would come up to Frank’s house with his acoustic guitar and play Raona’au eka baitabu asiai.
Frank actually learned the song from Kone and it was implanted in his memory all these years and that had always made him want to sing this song.
Fast forward to 2023 and to cut a long story short, Frank had mentioned to Gau a few times to get together to sing this song but Gau cautioned him that they should find a relative from Delena to review the lyrics so that they would sing it correctly.
Thus, Frank’s search for Kone began. He eventually found him at the Kairuku bus stop near the Meat Haus Butchery in Waigani and brought him to his residence at Vaina Komo, behind the police headquarters at Konedobu where Kone rewrote the lyrics and they did a demo with an acoustic guitar.
Following this, Frank contacted Robby Tee who is also part Delena and Maopa on the Aroma coastline and also a close relative.
“Robby Tee wholeheartedly told us, bubus, just come into Metere Crew Studios and we’ll see what we can do. Well, the rest as they say, is history.”
The song is about a love affair between a relative Robert Amea Parau from Delena village and his sweetheart, a girl from Bereina, Rosemary Ume Pekau who was attending school in the mid-60s at the Catholic Our Lady of Sacred Heart High School (OLSH) on Yule Island.
“Note that from Rosemary initials each line or verse was created…the letter R for the first line Raona’au eka baitabu asiai and so on.
“I’m told there is no letter Y in the Roro dalect. So Uncle Sam Willie brilliantly and creatively threw in that line to the song ‘You’ll be my only true love’. It made practical sense, though,” say Gau and Kone.

What next for the trio?
Now that this song has been released, there is this question being posed: What now, are there anymore songs coming up or in the pipeline?
Definitely yes, say Gau and Kone.
“We are thinking of another song. In fact, we will re-make old songs in the Roro dialect following expressed approval from the actual singers and composers.”
That is the road ahead for Trio Delena Heritage.
“Which brings us to the question. What’s in a name? The answer is simple,” says Gau. “Trio for the three of us, Frank, Kone and Gau, Delena because were from that village, and Heritage, because Gau and I are re-connecting with our roots where our fathers came from-Delena Village.”
In closing this story, Frank says his favorite singers are Glen Shorrock and Beep Birtles of Little River Band fame, who have such groovy voices for soft songs, backed up by a good acoustic and bassy sound that is prominent and a good percussion sound with some horn instruments.
That’s perhaps the signature style of the Trio Delena Heritage that you will hear from now onwards. In summary, not too complicated and singing with good harmonies.
Frank reckons he has tested the waters with his experiment and left a few seasoned musicians scratching their heads, as to who these vocalists and group are.
Kone, Gau and Frank encourage you all to enjoy their single and play it at your leisure, at your family and private gatherings or wherever it suits you.
Tanikiu apauana from Gau Aisi, Joe Kone Purari and Frank Mohi Aisi.
Haparua.