Editor’s Blog:

Riding the Rails - the ‘Bay Steamer’ 
At Queen’s Birthday Weekend, a lucky 400-plus people climbed aboard the Bay of Plenty Steamer as willing guinea pigs – to try out a potential new tourist venture targeting  cruise ship visitors to the Port of Tauranga. Locomotive JA 1275 (for you trainspotters), built in 1951, hauled a diverse group of travellers (Ranging from local mayors and other VIP’s to a two week old girl and her parents) on a round trip from Mount Maunganui down the coastal plains to the forestry town of Kawerau, and back.

The hypnotic sight of the chugging locomotive hauling carriages drew a huge response from the public. Organisers happily acknowledged they had under-estimated the “unbelievable” reaction  – as people filmed from cars, waved from level crossings, and climbed on the roof of houses and other vantage points for a better view of  the “fire- breathing monster.” 

At a photo and refreshments stop outside Kiwi 360 , the kiwifruit theme park, a Mainline Steam official warned parents to keep hold of their children who, used to Thomas the Tank, might panic at the sight of a black, hissing iron monster. But there were only beaming smiles.    

JA 1275 doesn’t spew polluting coal smoke by the way; she’s almost as environmentally friendly as a Toyota Prius – running on “recycled waste furnace oil” from ships. When the driver shifts his throttle lever, more oil is squirted into the boiler. Before the conversion, a loco like this would burn through tonnes of coal a day.

The Bay of Plenty Steamer’s trial run was all about “putting wheels to the idea” of an excursion for cruise ship passengers, with up to 50 ships due next summer alone, and even more in following seasons.  One of the organisers, Tourism Bay of Plenty’s General Manager Tim Burgess, is enthusiastic about developing the train trips. “We know it works now.” And he speaks confidently on the possibility of more excursions to cater for both locals and domestic tourists - in addition to cruise ship visitors.

A key player in the trial, Kiwi 360 Chief Executive Graeme Crossman, has visions of train rides that could run throughout the summer to cater for domestic tourists to Mount Maunganui. They could become one of the Bay of Plenty’s top tourist attractions reaching an “iconic status” very quickly, he says.

Steaming towards Matata along the coast, the surfing rolling in, and well into this unique jaunt, vehicles are still shadowing the train. Passengers lean out the window to film JA 1275 in full flight.

 See our Photo Gallery for more Choo choo pics!

Kokomo’s Made Local Music History – Again!

Local band Kokomo has a bit of a penchant for notching up firsts on the Tauranga music scene. It seems hard to believe that 13 years ago, the local blues & roots band became the first group in Tauranga to release a CD (Remember when a CD was a novelty?) with their When In Rome Do Rome album.

Now the band have made history again with the release of the Bay of Plenty’s first full-length concert DVD - filmed, edited and produced entirely in Tauranga (It was manufactured in Auckland because there’s no DVD-pressing facility in the Bay). 

The band describes DVD Kokomo À Gogo, released in May, as a companion piece to the CD of the same name released last year. But the DVD is “a lot more than just a repeat of the CD with pictures,” says the band’s spokesman, singer Derek Jacombs.

Filmed by Hugh Robb and a specially-assembled team of professional Tauranga cameramen during two concerts at Baycourt Theatre’s Exhibition Space, the Gogo DVD is “a full 102 minute concert experience,” says Derek.

 Recorded in front of an intimate audience, the DVD features songs from each of the band’s seven albums, almost all in radical re-arrangements. It also includes a new song from Derek Jacombs called ‘Home of the Blues’.

Kokomo À Gogo shows the band at its best, working in what he describes as the “rootsy nexus where blues meets jazz and country.”  The full range of Kokomo’s sound is on display, from the age-old washboard blues of ‘Strange Angels’ to the rockabilly jump of ‘30 Days’ and the playful version of Bill (Windy City Strugglers) Lake’s ‘Good Grief’. Other highlights include blues favourite ‘Rainy Night In Taupo’ and rocking country blues in the shape of ‘Freight Train,’ written specially for the band by fellow Taurangan John Terry.  

The disc is packed with extras including the band’s two music videos and four featurettes. Kokomo À Gogo DVD also features the band’s entire first album (Audio only, recorded in 1992), which has never been released on CD. And like many music DVD’s, it has a full-length commentary track where band members discuss the origins of Kokomo, the songs, the filming, and more.

The band (with trumpet player Sonia Bullôt resting up after giving birth to baby girl) are taking a break from touring since Easter, when they played storming support set for the legendary Georgie Fame. But they’ve begun work on their next album at  Boatshed Studio at Whakamarama.

Support local musicians! You don’t have to buy the Gogo DVD to do so – it is available for rental in Bay video stores. To purchase your own copy, head for Tauranga stores Jim’s Music Room in Grey Street or Traces in Devonport Road (Also available in good music shops nationwide).

For more information contact: Derek Jacombs info@kokomo.co.nz  or 07-577 0969