Jamie Strange and his friend Jessie O'Brien. Photo / Supplied
Jamie Strange and his friend Jessie O'Brien. Photo / Supplied
Labour MP Jamie Strange has written a song to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of the death of Sir Edmund Hillary, paying tribute to Hillary's philanthropy.
Mr Strange, a music teacher before he became an MP last year, recruited friend and former Amazing Race and NZ Idol participant Jesse O'Brien torecord the song Footprint on a Mountain, which can be viewed on YouTube.
Hillary passed away on January 11, 2008.
Mr Strange said Hillary has long been an inspiration to him, and not just because of his feat of being the first person on Mt Everest's summit.
"I wrote the song as a tribute to one of our great Kiwis, someone who inspired me growing up. Hillary's belief that we can achieve anything we set our minds to inspired me. New Zealand may be a small country, but we've proven many times that we can be a world leader," Mr Strange said.
"Most people know about Hillary climbing Everest and reaching both the North and South poles, but not as many are familiar with the humanitarian work he did in Nepal. He devoted a large portion of his life to helping the Sherpa people, particularly through the Himalayan Trust he founded."
Mr O'Brien said he was excited to work with Mr Strange and took up the opportunity immediately.
"When my good friend, Jamie, asked me to be involved in this song I jumped at the opportunity as I love everything that Hillary stood for, in particular, his philanthropic work with the Sherpa people and support of those around him. Jamie and I had known each other for a number of years and crossed paths in all sorts of ways but had never had the chance to work together musically, it was great to be able to finally collaborate."
Mr Strange said Mr O'Brien was the perfect fit for the job.
"I asked my mate Jesse O'Brien to play guitar and sing this song, as his raspy voice suits Hillary's rugged persona.
"I have known Jesse since 2003. He came fourth in the second edition of NZ Idol (2005). He also competed in The Amazing Race Australia vs New Zealand (2014) with his wife Cat."
It is not Mr Strange's first foray into songwriting.
In 2007 he released an album called Thanks For Faking It Sometimes, which included a music video for the song Rockstar Clone starring a mannequin he named Kate Brightstar.
