Here is a remix of “Home Abroad,” a slide guitar song which was recorded as part of my Awake Again album project. While revisiting that project and remixing the album (a playlist of the full album is also available on the ‘music’ page), I had two different ideas for how I wanted to approach the mix for this song – basically a ‘wet’ mix which is featured on the remixed album, and a more ‘dry mix’ with a little less reverb that I decided to release here as a bonus track of sorts. Though the wet mix was a better fit for the album, I also like the directness of the dry mix.
Tag Archives: kona coffee
Straight Ahead Blues (310ce)
Here is another take of “Straight Ahead Blues,” also known as “New Blues,” which was recorded as part of my Awake Again album project. While revisiting that project and remixing the album (a playlist of the full album is also available on the ‘music’ page), I came across some alternate takes of a couple of songs that I thought it would be fun to publish; this is one of those songs. At the time I recorded this song, I was listening to the Clapton Unplugged album quite a bit, and experimenting with various blues ideas. Hope you enjoy.
Hualalai Sunrise (Slack Key Guitar)
“Hualalai Sunrise” was inspired by the morning sunrises in Kailua-Kona on the Big Island of Hawai’i. Much of North Kona – from Kalaoa where I spent much of my early childhood to Holualoa where I later lived – can see the sun shining over the top ridges of Hualalai in the morning, bathing its warm light over the slopes from the summit to the ocean.
Crossing the Field (Original Fingerstyle)
Here’s another take of “Crossing the Field,” a song from my “Awake Again” album. “Crossing the Field” was recorded as part of a pair of songs (along with its companion song, “Moment in the Sun”) to set the stage for the second half of the album. Following the dramatic strumming of “Make” that closed the first half of the album, “Moment” & “Field” framed the mellower vibe of the album’s remaining songs. Hope you enjoy.
Magic Sands (Original Slack Key, Alt Take)
I used to take a guitar to sit and play some slack key at beaches around Kailua-Kona like Old Airport, Honl’s, Kahalu’u, Keauhou Bay, and La’aloa Beach Park… which is also known locally as White Sands, or Magic Sands. La’aloa Beach Park is just off Ali’i Drive a few miles South of Kailua-Kona. Often known as Magic Sands because the sand ‘disappears’ practically overnight from most of the shoreline during winter swells, only to fully ‘reappear’ in the Summer, the beach is a popular spot for residents of Kona. I often used to head over there with a cup of Kona coffee in the early morning before the crowds arrived, when it was still quiet, and sit on the picnic tables and play guitar. Here is a slack key style tune I wrote one day while hanging out with my guitar around Magic Sands. Hope you enjoy.
Mauna Loa Slack Key
Here is my cover of “Mauna Loa Slack Key,” one of the relatively few surviving original songs from legendary slack key kupuna Fred Punahoa. Though “Uncle” Fred never made a full album, he did make a notable appearance on the Waimea Music Festival album which features Mauna Loa Slack Key along with another of Fred’s originals, “Punahoa Special.” Uncle Fred’s legacy also includes fostering amazing Big Island talents of the next generation such as Ledward Ka’apana and Sonny Lim. Like the Punahoa Special, Mauna Loa Slack Key is an often covered song in the slack key world. Hope you enjoy.
Recorded in Holualoa, Hawai’i, 10/11/07.
Opihi Moe Moe (Taylor 310ce)
Here’s a recently found cover I did of Leonard Kwan’s signature tune, Opihi Moe Moe. One of the most popular songs in the slack key repetoire, this song has been covered perhaps most prominently by Led Kaapana; in fact, Chet Atkins even recorded a version after hearing it from Leonard on a visit to Hawai’i. Notably, Leonard himself recorded several versions of this song including variations such as Opihi Bounce. Opihi Moe Moe is a fun song to play that lends itself to little variations, and everyone seems to bring something different to this deceptively simple song. Hope you enjoy.
Recorded in Holualoa, Hawai’i, 1/4/2008.
Gabby Style Hula Medley
Today’s post is a performance of “Hula Medley,” which pays tribute to Gabby Pahinui’s hugely influential recordings of the same name (both the early solo verision, and the version found on Pure Gabby). Many have covered this over the years, with one of my favorite versions appearing on Sonny Chilingworth’s Sonny Solo album. Per below, my recording of the medley here includes a slightly different lineup of songs. Hope you enjoy.
Medley:
Intro / Nani Wale Li’hue
Wai’alae
U’lili E
Aloha ‘Oe
Recorded with a Taylor 310ce (Elixir Polyweb 80/20 Bronze) and a matched stereo pair of Shure KSM141 microphones in Holualoa, Hawai’i, in fall of 2007.
Bumble Bee Slack Key
Demo recording of original song Bumble Bee Slack Key, inspired in part by the nalo meli, honey bees buzzing about their business. I wanted a song that was both lively and mellow and think I achieved it. Hope you enjoy.
Recorded in Holualoa, Hawai’i, 12/16/07.
Silver Threads – Slack Key Improv
Here is an improvisation I did based on Leonard Kwan’s famous slack key arrangement of “Silver Threads Among the Gold.” This classic tune is a popular piece in the slack key repertoire and often one of the first things people learn when exploring Drop C tuning. Most listeners of modern day Hawaii radio will recognize Silver Threads as the slack key passage quoted in the intro to Country Comfort’s Waimanalo Blues, a beloved song in the islands in its own right. Hope you enjoy.