Career
He is best known internationally as the bassist and vocalist in Bill Nelson"s Be-Bop Deluxe. He began his music career in New Zealand before moving to Australia in the late 1960s. Tumahai travelled to the United Kingdom with Mississippi in 1974 and remained there when Mississippi broke up.
Later that year he joined Be-Bop Deluxe, with whom he played and recorded until 1978.
In this year, he joined The Dukes. He returned to New Zealand in 1985 and joined the popular New Zealand reggae band Herbs.
He was also developing plans for an arts programme for Maori prisoners and for exploring new ways he could help young Maori people connect with their culture. He died suddenly on 21 December 1995, aged 46, after suffering a heart attack while working at the Auckland District Court.
During his days with Be-Bop Deluxe, he used Fender Telecaster and Precision basses.
From the late 1980s onwards, he became known for playing a black copy of a Steinberger XL2A made by Cort.