Charity CD a great stocking filler

24 November 2009

A New Zealand version of the Beatles classic Come Together has been recorded for the benefit of the Raukatauri Centre.

The single, recorded by Boh Runga and Che Fu, will be released on 30 November, in time for Christmas.

The single will be available at JB HiFi, Marbecks, Real Groovy and The Warehouse as well as digitally through digiRAMA, Telecom and Vodafone. All funds raised from its sale go to support the Centre.

Come Together was originally written by John Lennon to support American psychologist Timothy Leary's presidential campaign. It became a Beatles classic and was the opening track on the group's Abbey Road album.

Boh, a patron of the Raukatauri Centre, says it's a great song that's fun to sing.

"I've always liked the strange, percussive lyrics and the great sing-a-long chorus. When it was suggested as the charity single I was totally up for it. Che is an amazing talent who I have long wanted to perform with and finally I have the chance to sing with him for a cause that is dear to me."

Che says he is thrilled to be involved. "I got to spend an afternoon at the Centre with Boh, and what the staff do there for our young peeps is just magical. I'm stoked to be involved and am glad to be able to rock out a classic tune with Boh at the same time."

Former Raukatauri Music Therapy Trust chair Campbell Smith says the song was chosen by Supergroove vocalist and keyboard player Karl Steven, who produced the single. Karl is also a Raukatauri Music Ambassador.

Campbell says they were looking for a song that had a good groove and that Boh and Che's voices would suit, and Come Together was one of Karl's suggestions.

"The entire project has been one of fantastic cooperation between performers, musicians and the music industry. We're extremely grateful for their help in not only giving of their time and funding but also helping to raise the profile of the work done by the centre."

The single was recorded at Auckland's York Street Studios and is due to be released by Sony Music on 30 November.

The single is $4.99 in physical format and $1.79 as a digital download. Sony and the music retailers are foregoing margins to ensure as much of the purchase price as possible goes to the benefit of the Raukatauri Music Therapy Centre.

Boh performs with Che on the More FM Winery Tour in February. The tour runs through 16 wineries and estates throughout New Zealand between 5 February and 6 March 2010.