The delta boys of Kainoda Serenaders

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Three of the remaining members of the Kainoda Serenaders. From left: Jolame Turaganikeli, Avenisa Balewai and Ratu Sekove Qereqeretabua. Picture: VILIAME ODROVAKAVULA

In the 1960s, life for the people living in Lomainasau Village, Tokatoka, Tailevu was hard.

There were no roads linking the interior of the Tebara Delta to Wainibokasi.

The only means of transportation was via outboard-engine driven punts.

Avenisa Balewai said despite the transport challenges, the people lived “a very happy-go-lucky life.”

“We use to walk from our village to Nabitu Village just a little bit further down the delta and we would cross the river to Matainabou landing in Nakelo,” the 71-year-old recalled.

“From Matainabou landing we would then board a bus or taxi to take us to Nausori for shopping or health reasons, or to sell stuff.

“For those who were really ‘tough’, they would walk to Draubuta Village and cross the river from there if they wanted to go to Nausori or Suva.”

Balewai said if there was one certainty in the delta area, it was the surety of rain on most days.

And while many would bemoan being subject to constant wet and damp conditions, he said the delta people would use it for the most unusual of purposes.

“During rainy weather we would go out and practice our dance moves on the slippery mud, it was good fun back in those days.”

Apart from frolicking in the rain and mud, Balewai and his mates would also spend time around the tanoa, strumming away into the wee hours, singing songs of old.

He said the nightly grog sessions resulted in the formation of the Kainoda Serenaders.

“At first, the nightly jam sessions were a way of relaxation for us after a hard day’s work.

“The cool breeze would sweep through the mangrove trees and provide a nice atmosphere as we enjoyed our kava and music.”

Balewai said his elder brother, Tomasi Turaganiqali (now deceased) came up with the idea to form a sigidrigi band.

“We all agreed and we naturally looked to him as the leader, and he was the one who composed all our songs back in the day.

“We named our group ‘Kainoda’ because it was a very popular slang in the olden days.

“Kainoda means someone who has ties to your district.

“For example when someone from Tailevu goes to the Western side of Fiji and meets another gentleman from his district and he doesn’t know his name. They will refer to each other as kainoda.

“Sometimes, some people go through life with no idea of their compatriot’s name – they only know him as kainoda.”
Balewai said once the group was formed, “there was no turning back”.

They began practising their original compositions in earnest and recorded two albums at the then Radio Fiji One Station (now Fiji Broadcasting Corporation).

He said recording songs was a difficult process because each tune had to pass through a rigorous process.

“In the ‘60s, the whole group had to go to Radio Fiji One studio. There was a gentleman there who would listen to every song we had to offer.

“He was like a judge. After we performed a song he would tell us if everything was okay or he would make changes and we would have to practice them before entering the recording studio.”

Balewai said he preferred the old recording process over the modern way of doing things because everything was recorded live.

“All the guitars and ukulele and every voice in the old recordings are live, not like nowadays – the young people use a lot of gadgets and computers.

“Even though our songs were recorded in the ‘60s, most of them are still being played today.

“When they first came out, they were played over the old sigidrigi program every lunch hour.

“One of our top songs called Au Mai Dikeva Lo was a hit in the Digidigi Domoni program at that time.”

Balewai said their popularity took the Kainoda Serenaders out of Tailevu and across the country.

“We toured around many places because of our music.

“We even got to tour the Yasawa Group and that was one of the proudest moments for us because we got to see the famous places we only heard about.”

He said the group also toured the district of Tokatoka and Nakelo district.

Balewai said one day there was a sigidrigi competition organised by the Wainivula Church Group in Suva.

He said they conducted three competitions in Lautoka, Vanua Levu and Nausori where the first, second and third place getters from the three areas would go headtohead at the Suva Civic Centre the following week.

“We got the first prize in the Nausori competition after we defeated Caucau ni Waimanu and the Gaunadivi Group and we went together to Suva as the Nausori competition winners.

“When we got to Ratu Sukuna Park, it was jam packed and everyone was a bit nervous.”

Balewai said they managed to calm their jitters and sang and played their hearts out.

In the end, Fiji’s leading sigidrigi group Bua ni Lomai Nabua claimed first place and Kainoda Serenaders got the second prize.

Balewai said one of the reasons for their successful outing was having one of Fiji’s premier lead guitarists, Naba.

Their success at the competition resulted in Kainoda becoming household names.

As their popularity grew, so also did the demand for live performances.

“I will never forget one day while I was working at the Millers Group in Walu Bay as a crane operator, someone told me that I was wanted at the Metropole Club on Waimanu Rd.

“When I got there I saw Titimo Leva, our lead singer, and Ro Cava the lead singer of the famous Caucau ni Waimanu Serenaders waiting for me with two guitars.

“As soon as we sang our first song, our table was magically filled with drinks.

“We sang a few songs and then I went back to sign off at work and returned to the club to continue drinking.

“Things were different in those days, everyone just wanted to have a good time and people loved music and musicians.”

Balewai said Kainoda would have made a lot of money but one of the biggest issues was copyright enforcement.

He said people would make tapes and then later CDs of anyone’s music and make a killing out of it.

“Another thing killing the music industry today is all the remixes.

“Somebody with a computer who has no music knowledge just makes up a beat and takes a good song and butchers it.

“By doing that they are taking away the real meaning of the song and taking away money from the original artist.”

Balewai said many composers were not happy with the way pirates were infringing on their music and they were also unhappy about deejays who were remixing their songs.

Balewai said all the members of the Kainoda Serenaders had given up their wayward ways, and from 2010 had pooled their talent to sing songs of praise to God at the Lomainasau Methodist Church.

“As you get older, you get wiser and it’s time to give back our talent to the creator who gave it to us in the first place.”

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