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February
10, 2008
And the Grammy goes to... Treasures of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar!
Photo by MARK J. TERRILL | Associated Pres
LOS ANGELES — Facing some of his stiffest competition ever, slack-key
artist and Hawaiian album producer George Kahumoku Jr. walked away
with his third Grammy Award on Sunday at the Staples Center.
“They’re all special,” Kahumoku said of his Grammy wins. “Each one is a
little different.”
“We’re so happy,” said falsetto artist Richard Ho‘opi‘i, a Kahakuloa
resident who performed on Kahumoku’s “Treasures of Hawaiian Slack Key
Guitar.”
“It was so great,” Ho‘opi‘i said.
Kahumoku teamed up with Daniel Ho, Paul Konwiser and Wayne Wong to
produce the “Treasures” collaboration, which won the Grammy for Best
Hawaiian Music Album.
 Treasures
of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar
anticipated third compilation of
"live", on-stage
performances from the Masters of
Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Concert Series on Maui
50th Annual GRAMMY Award winner for Best Hawaiian Music Album!
Live, Hawaii’s Top Slack Key Musicians, Together on One Album!
"...features the usual luminaries of ki ho'alu sharing their artistry.
The vocals add a truly expressive twist to the guitarmanship, and
to experience these greats, side by side, is a joyous experience."
-Wayne
Harada Review Oct 2007 in the Honolulu Advertiser...
February
11, 2007
And the Grammy goes to... Legends of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar!
Photo by MARK J. TERRILL | Associated Pres
Read the story...
Honolulu Advertiser
Legends of
Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar
-Live from Maui
long anticipated second exciting compilation of
"live", on-stage
performances from the Masters of
Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Concert Series on Maui
Live, Hawaii’s Top Slack Key Musicians, Together on One Album!
...followup to winning 48th Annual GRAMMY Award in the category of
Best Hawaiian Music Album
Winner
-May 31, 2006...
Na Hoku Hanohano Award for Religious Album of the Year 2006...
Hymns of Hawai'i -Volume 2
An exciting new recording with
Daniel Ho containing more of the spiritual and inspirational
performances that earned the first CD the Na Hoku Hanohano Award for
Religious Album of the Year 2000.
"This is a
perfect sequel. Count this as a front-runner for a Hoku in 2006." -John
Berger of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin
Read the full review...
More Info on this CD
also can be found on DanielHo.com...
Released -April
2006
Na 'ano 'ano: The Seeds
showcases George's strumming artistry (on 12-string guitar)
The latest new solo recording!
Living-room/back-porch informality prevails and annotated liner notes
provides details amplifying each title, as if he were there to introduce
them. -Wayne Harada
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Marian Liu, music writer for
the San Jose Mercury News, interviews George about his GRAMMY nomination.
Hear the podcast
interview... |
Winner!
Best Hawaiian Music Album
48th Annual GRAMMY Award
MASTERS of HAWAIIAN SLACK KEY GUITAR -Vol 1
live excerpts from the concert series on Maui !!
featuring:
Ledward Kaapana,
George Kahumoku Jr,
Cyril Pahinui,
Ozzie Kotani,
Keoki Kahumoku,
Daniel Ho,
and Da Ukulele Boys
CD Just Released...
George and Daniel Ho follow up on the first Hymns CD...
Hymns of Hawai'i -Volume 2
An exciting new recording with
Daniel Ho containing more of the spiritual and inspirational
performances that earned the first CD the Na Hoku Hanohano Award for
Religious Album of the Year 2000.
"This is a
perfect sequel. Count this as a front-runner for a Hoku in 2006." -John
Berger of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin
Read the full review...
More Info on this CD
also can be found on DanielHo.com...
These are some of the lyrics of an original composition by George for the
Ka'anapali Resorts. He translated the resort slogan, “Where the World Comes to
Play,” into Hawaiian. You’ll find this song along with historical, animated and
scenic images of the resort on their new state-of-the-art flash technology
website at:
www.kaanapaliresort.com
(Note: To view this site, your
web browser needs the Macromedia Flash plug-in)
From George & Daniel Ho...
These are beautiful
recordings of classic Hula songs played and sung by Slack Key guitar
master George Kahumoku, Jr. He is accompanied wonderfully on sparkling
ukulele by Daniel Ho. This is true and deep Hawaiian music, and there is
an abundance of sweet songs, as well as many other moods. -- George
Winston
Sept 2004 -excerpt from Air
Canada’s in-flight magazine, enRoute
Douglas Anthony Cooper explores the Ukulele and Slack Key Guitar
"Hawaii
Unplugged"
"I meet one of Hawaii’s greatest living slack key players,
George Kahumoku..."
The 2004 Workshop is over and was a
resounding SUCCESS!
2004 -Seventh Annual Maui Slack Key
Guitar Workshop
sponsored by:
Dancing Cat Records *
Rain Song Graphite Guitars
*
George Winston *
Masters of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Concert Series
*
John Pearse®
Strings
Mahalo to the sponsors, contributors, instructors and guests
for making the 2004 Workshop the best ever!
(photo
gallery...)
April, 2004 -in
Acoustic Guitar Magazine
Brian Kluepfel describes 2003 Annual Slack Key Workshop
"Hawaiian Holiday
-Learning slack-key from the masters"
"Last summer, I had the great fortune to absorb some of
the secrets of slack-key, along with a healthy dose of aloha, at slack-key
master George Kahumoku's sixth annual Maui Slack-Key Workshop..."
December 2003
- Liz Janes-Brown interviews George in the Maui News -
"The essence of island life by George"
"George Kahumoku Jr. defies the stereotype of a laid-back Hawaiian. A dynamo
who exists on very little sleep, he crams all his passions into one very
busy life. One of those many passions is slack-key guitar..."
released Fall
2003...
Footprints in the Poi: George Kahumoku Jr LIVE !!
An exciting recording of "live", on-stage music and stories
from George's last 2 years of touring. Several cuts include guest artists
Keoki Kahumoku, Bob Brozman, and Daniel Ho. At last, here is George's
spontaneous Guitar and Vocals presented WITH the stories that everyone has
been requesting! A great addition to your Slack Key collection!
November 2003 -CD
Review by RootsWorld.com.
RootsWorld is an online world and roots music magazine
whose mission is to bring readers good information and knowledgeable
opinions about the world of music and culture.
July 2003
- Jamie O'Brien
reviewed
the performance at the Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia in
PopMatters.com, an international online magazine of cultural
criticism.
(June 18-22, 2003)
George's Sixth Annual
Maui Slack Key Workshop
Culmination of another marvelous workshop
with lots to learn and unique experiences.
When was the last time George
performed
Kane (male) Hula in public?!
(Mahalo! to Rich Shipley for this candid photo
at the 2003 Maui Slack Key Festival.)
Brian Kluepfel, in a
special to AsianWeek, wrote a wonderful article about
George's recent Workshop. He writes "At the heart of it all, literally,
is Kahumoku. This workshop was his brainchild six years ago, and it has
grown from a handful of participants to more than 50. George and his
partner, the incredibly energetic Nancy Sweeney, oversee all the details."
AsianWeek is a national English-language
newsweekly for the rapidly growing Asian Pacific American community.
 George
has just finished writing the music "Kahua" a play by
Kent Lee Brisby, that will open in San Diego, April 4-12, 2003. George
is going to try to bring it up to the Mello Center for the Performing Arts
in Watsonville CA where he is an artist in Residence.
If you are a AAA-Hawaii member, there's a nice article
about George in your April/May 2002 issue of Hawaii Westways Magazine
(A Healing
Place by Jeanne McCabe on page 16).
George
as 'coverboy' of GOOD TIMES, Santa Cruz County's leading news and
entertainment weekly. View the Jan 17, 2002 Internet edition of the photos and story by
Bruce Willey.
 March
2002
- Jamie O'Brien
reviewed
a performance of the 2002 Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Masters
Tour in Rambles.net, a cultural arts online magazine for
folk and traditional music, speculative fiction, folklore, movies and
more. Jamie had previously
reviewed George's book in November 2001.
January 21, 2002 - Live from San Diego California... George was interviewed on
KFMB radio's "Jack and Paul Show".
A Real Audio archive of the radio broadcast is available here as for your listening pleasure.
January
5, 2002 - Live from Honolulu... George performed Live on the NPR's "A
Prairie Home Companion" with Garrison Keillor. Also
appearing were his son Keoki, Ledward Kaapana and Noelani Mahoe & the Leo
Nahenahe Singers. In addition to the radio broadcast, the show was
broadcast over the internet and a
Real Audio archive is available at the
Prairie Home Companion website.
 
A November 2001 re-release
on CD...This is the Kahumoku Brothers'
Sweet
& Sassy album which was nominated for 4 Na Hoku
Hanohano awards in 1988. The
brothers originally did this album as a historic book mark of Hawaiian
Slack Key instrumentals that included the Spanish influence on Slack Key
guitar (The Spanish Song), the Paniolo cowboy songs
of the Big Island (Kaula 'ili), and original compositions
of the brothers (Moses' December at Mauna Kea and his Tennis
Elbow Swing, and George's Mauna Kea Mosquito).
Traditional Slack Key tunes include Dad's Slack Key and the
classic medley, Hilo March/Maui Chimes. This new CD
version includes one bonus track of George and Moses playing and singing
No Ke Ano Ahiahi.
George's latest CD on the Dancing Cat
label.
Hawaiian Love
Songs
(Na Mele Ho`oniponipo Hawai`i)
His second Dancing Cat release,
George Kahumoku, Jr. plays evocative original songs and soulful
interpretations of a variety of beautiful Hawaiian classics. HAWAIIAN LOVE
SONGS features both solo renditions in his trademark slack key style and
great duets with Bob Brozman, Norton Buffalo and Diana Aki.
George and Daniel Ho have done it again. Their newest album is
called:
 Island
Classics
Though
George has traveled extensively playing Hawaiian music at concert halls
throughout the world, his "Steady Freddy" gig for the last 30
years has been playing at the open air restaurants, buffets, and clam
bakes of the Westin chain, now owned by Starwood Resorts and Hotels. He
continues to charm audiences from all over the world in his classic,
no-nonsense cha-lang-a-lang style and brings back the romanticism of days
past through his music. These songs are the island classics that are
requested every night, sometimes several times in an evening.
George
Kahumoku, Jr. - vocals, Hawaiian slack key guitar
Daniel Ho – ukulele
Record Label: Daniel Ho Creations
Recorded: 2000
Release Date: January, 2001
The
Island Classics CD on Daniel Ho's Website
Tracks:
1. I'll
Remember You (Kui Lee / Kona Kai Publishing)
Written by Kui Lee at the height of his career. Sadly, Kui Lee died of
throat cancer at an early age. The song is an expression of his feelings
for his large family that he was going to leave behind. George remembers
Kui Lee performing at the Kamehameha Schools in the late 60's and
remembers Kui Lee for giving him his first professional debut at the
Forbidden City on the corner of Kapiolani and Kalakaua Streets at the
gateway to Waikiki in 1962.
2. One Paddle
Two Paddle (Kui Lee / Alley Music Corp)
In the 60's George and his cousin Dexter Gomes and cousin Steve Ho'okano
used to paddle for Healani Canoe Club located on the Alawai Canal in
Waikiki. This song was written by Kui Lee in the mid 1960's when there was
a renewal of interest in canoe paddling and outrigger racing in Hawaii and
throughout the world. The Hawaiian canoe has since become a huge icon in
the resurgence of the Hawaiian culture. This song is a musical expression
of the rising interest in Hawaiian sailing canoes that continued into the
1970's and '80's with the around the world voyages of the Hoku Le'a, the
Moku Lele, Hawai'i Loa, and other canoes.
3. Maui Waltz
(Bob Nelson / Criterion Music)
This Maui island classic was made famous by Loyal Gardner and was written
by Robert Nelson who also wrote Hanalei Moon. This song is a favorite
among both locals and tourists.
4. Tiny Bubbles
(Leon Pober / Granite Music Corporation)
Another Don Ho classic, probably the most requested song George has played
for the last 30 years. It has little to do with Hawaii, but because Don Ho
sang it intermingled with other popular Hawaiian songs, people relate Tiny
Bubbles to Waikiki, waves washing upon the shore, and drinking Mai Tais on
the beach.
5. Lahainaluna
(Kui Lee / Sunbeam Music)
This Maui island classic was written by Kui Lee when he played music at
the Sheraton Hotels located at Kaanapali on Maui in the early 60's. George
has taught at Lahainaluna High School for the last seven years and has
played this classic for over 30 years.
6. Beautiful
Kaua'i (Rudolph Farden / Munrab Publishing Co.)
This was written by Randy Farden and has since become a Kaua'i island
classic.
7. Pearly
Shells (Webley Edwards, Leon Pober / Criterion Music)
This classic was made popular by Don Ho in the early 60's and continues to
be an island classic sing-along.
8. The Hukilau
Song (Jack Owens / Owens-Kemp Music Co.)
This classic comes from Lai'e, where the Mormon church members would hold
huge fishing gatherings as a show for the tourists in the 30's, 40's, and
50's and has become a classic, too, for beginning hula dancers, especially
tourists. Huki means to pull a long rope tied with lau, Hawaiian ti
leaves. This was used to scare the fish into a net.
9. Akaka Falls
(Helen Kauinohea Parker / EMI Miller Catalog, Inc.)
For ten years George lived eleven miles from Akaka Falls in Hilo town on
the Big Island of Hawaii. For four years he farmed Chinese root ginger,
Hawaiian and Chinese taro, cucumbers, and bananas on the roadway up to
Akaka Falls located in the district of Honomu. George also fished for Opu,
Dojo, and Opae on the small inlets and streams that led up to Akaka Falls.
This song is dedicated to William "Billy Aina" DeMotta, a pure
Hawaiian raised by and lave hanai by
Portuguese. Billy was born and raised in Honomu and worked on George's
Kealia Farm for over twenty-five years. Honomu was also the birthplace of
Aunty Edith Kanaka'ole, one of George's mentors.
10. Little
Brown Gal (Don McDiarmid, John Avery Noble, Wendell Lee Wood / Bourne Co.)
Here is another island classic written by Don McDiarmid and Lee Wood from
the 1950's and continues to be promoted by the Waikiki Kodak Show held at
Kapiolani Park.
11. Hanalei
Moon (Bob Nelson / Criterion Music)
Hawaiians would write songs about special events and places in their
lives. This song was written by Bob Nelson, George's mentor and good
friend, when Bob played at Princeville in Hanalei, Kaua'i. Bob has also
helped guide George through the maze of his musical career and now resides
in Arizona with his wife Irene.
12. My Little
Grass Shack (Thomas J. Harrison, John Avery Noble/ EMI Miller Catalog,
Inc.)
This song was written by Tommy Harrison, and Johnny Noble in 1933 and made
famous by Uncle Tom Lindsey who played for many years in New York City. He
finally returned home in the 1980's where he resides in Kealakekua Mauka
on the Big Island. This song is reminiscent of the times when Hawaiian
families would gather at Honaunau Bay to celebrate birthdays, weddings,
graduations, and dedications of canoes for their families.
Hymns of
Hawaii
It’s a peaceful, quiet Sunday morning on the Big Island of
Hawaii...
Bright sunlight reflects off a calm sea, a brief, warm shower forms
a rainbow on the slopes of Mauna Loa.
A small, colorful wooden church is shaded by mango and palm trees
in a tiny coastal fishing village. The
soft island air, redolent with the gentle scent of plumeria and the richer
fragrances of passion fruit, is stirred by sweet music from the church.
The songs are distinctly Hawaiian, yet somehow familiar. These are the hymns of
Hawaii, the songs that George
Kahumoku, Jr. sang as a child growing up on the Big Island. They are the
hymns that have helped to hold his family together over several
generations.
With this recording, George realizes a dream he has had for many years.
He has long wanted to preserve this music, which has been an
important part of his spiritual life.
When Daniel Ho proposed that they collaborate on a recording of
Hawaiian hymns, George immediately agreed.
These are the hymns, the hïmeni,
that George learned as a young boy seated with his parents, grandparents,
aunties, uncles and their children around the kitchen table. For George,
the little and sometimes not so little tragedies of life are just ways of
bringing one closer to God. "George Kahumoku has gotten a little off track, so let’s give him a bout of
cancer right at this point in his life,” is the way he puts it.
Especially at these times, not just the words, but also the
melodies and rhythms of this wonderful music have brought him comfort and
peace. He hopes that this
recording will do the same for others.
"Hymns of Hawaii",
George and Daniel's first album together, has won a Na Hoku
Hanohano award for Religious Album of the Year 2000. The Hoku award is
basically the Hawaiian version of the Grammy. George has won Hoku
awards before. If you can't picture him in a tux, here's a photo.
Above:
Actual un-retouched photo
of George Kahumoku, Jr. wearing a tuxedo.
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