Boney M were a phenomenon in the 70s, and to this day, the their hits - ‘Daddy Cool’, ‘Ma Baker’, ‘Rivers of Babylon’, ‘Rasputin’- are still the life and soul of the party.
With 18 Platinum and 15 Gold LPs, more than 200 Gold and Platinum Singles to their name, the disco legends have sold a mind-blowing 150 million records worldwide and continue to play live, today announcing an eight-date tour of New Zealand.
The Boney M Greatest Hits Tour kicks off at the Town Hall in Dunedin on Wednesday, June 7 and takes in the country’s regions and main centres, finishing up in Auckland at the Bruce Mason Centre on Friday, June 16.
Boney M’s remarkable journey began after German record producer Frank Farianrecorded the single Baby Do You Wanna Bump In 1974 he created Boney M to support the song, bringing in four West Indian vocalists who had been working as session singers in Germany -- Marcia Barrett, Liz Mitchell, Maizie Williams and Bobby Farrell.
Their first appearance in Germany was a performance of the song ‘Daddy Cool’ in the then important and famous TV-Show Musikladen in 1976, which led to around 100,000 singles per week flying off shelves and the astounding success of their album TAKE THE HEAT OFF ME.
In July 1976, ‘Daddy Cool’ became the first Number 1 for Boney M in Germany and in December 1976, it hit the Top 10 in the UK. That same year in Germany, the follow-up was a remake of Bobby Hebbs ‘Sunny’, which hit Number 1 in December 1976, and Number 1 in the UK in March 1977.
In May 1977, ‘Ma Baker’ again scored top10 in the UK charts, followed by ‘Belfast’ in October.
By 1978, Boney M was at the height of its popularity with ‘Rivers of Babylon/Brown Girl in the Ring’, which became the second-biggest selling single in UK chart history. ‘Rivers of Babylon’ also was Boney Ms only US Top 40 hit.
The hits continued to roll out throughout the remainder of the 70s - ‘Rasputin’, ‘Painter Man’ and ‘Hooray! Hooray! It’s a Holi-Holiday’ both becoming Top 10 hits, while ‘Mary’s Boy Child/Oh My Lord’ was a Christmas chart-topper, becoming the fifth biggest selling single in UK history.
They kept dancefloors packed and a generation dancing. Don’t miss your chance to see one of the greatest disco acts ever - Boney M’s Greatest Hits Tour, coming soon to a town or city near you!
Tickets on sale Thursday April 13 at 9.00am from www.classicpromotions.co.nz
