Photography

Inside the Hawaii Record Sale: More Photos

Monday’s blog post painted a vivid perspective of the the weekend music sale in Hawaii—thousands of dusty LPs on sale, collectors anxiously waiting to flip through wax, the Hawaiian sky beaming gorgeous blue.

I’ve been updating the Aloha Got Soul Instagram account frequently, featuring snapshots of records dug up over the weekend—Hal Bradbury, The Aliis, Summer, Ron Tish, Nohelani Cypriano, Cecilio & Kapono.

(Yes, you should start following me on Instagram.)

You should follow Aloha Got Soul on Instagram.

More Photos from the Record Sale

Saturday morning, the garage doors rolled all the way up. For a few moments the collectors outside didn’t know what to do. Can we go in? Is there an admission fee?

Everyone understood real quick: game on.

The people poured in, short of a stampede but still filled with loads of excitement, carrying empty crates and boxes soon to be filled with dusty vinyl.

At that point, I knew I’d better start digging, too. 

Here’s what I captured when I looked up from flipping through records.

The "Collectibles Corner" filled up quickly. Dennie from Hungry Ear wore his Record Store Day tee.

In deep concentration. Looking through the Pop section for R&B, rock, disco, and more.

Home Grown mail order inserts. Can someone please find me one of these old shirts?

Surprisingly, the sale wasn’t crowded elbow-to-elbow.

Some collectors were worried the event would be blown out after I announced the sale and posted the flyer last week. But not that many people showed up in the morning.

At 9:00 am, the handful of Hawaii music collectors who woke up early on a Saturday were here having a good time.

For the first hour everyone was pulling good finds and a few gems (more on those later!).

The people I talked to spoke positively of their scores. It sounded like everyone found something good this year.

Digging through records. I now know three of the five collectors pictured here thanks to Aloha Got Soul.

Barry made an appearance.

Ready to make a new discovery. Shout out to Oliver for always finding good music.

More finds coming soon

Although I scored tons more vinyl at the Harry’s Music Store sale, where I came home with about a hundred records (and made a mixtape from my finds), I left the Friends of the Library of Hawaii music with enough vinyl to last me—20 solid Hawaiian LPs, plus a box of other finds from Monday’s mega sale.

Stay tuned for more updates on what I found:

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Honolulu Record Sale: Before the Storm

If you missed the Friends of the Library of Hawaii Books & Music Sale this weekend, you missed aplenty.

As advertised, there were nearly 30,000 vinyl records waiting to be combed through by local collectors.

Thanks to the event’s organizer, a sweet (and busy) lady named Bird, I had a chance to look around the warehouse before the collectors, who started lining up outside around 7:30 am, rushed the stacks of wax inside.

Inside the Friends of the Library of Hawaii Annual Sale, about 30 minutes before the garage doors opened and collectors rushed in.

Near the front garage doors was the “Collectibles” section, where the most desirable* albums, singles, and 78s could be found. (*Completely subjective, curated by a guy who overlooked tons of gems in the rest of the warehouse’s selection.)

This is where most people went first, once the doors opened, of course.

The "Collectibles Corner" at the 2012 FLH Music Sale.

FLH Volunteers meandered the aisles, tidying books, CDs, magazines, and LPs as they went along.

Everyone was happy to lend a hand—all proceeds from the sale go to the Hawaii State Public Library System.

One volunteer told me I was too young to be listening to records. On the contrary.

Out back, the green, rolling hills of Kakaako Waterfront Park rose past the chain link fence bordering the warehouse perimeters, the sky a deep, gorgeous blue.

Nearby, flights left Honolulu International Airport for a destination unknown to us, slowly moving through the clouds, heading out over the Pacific Ocean.

In back of the warehouse. No records to be found out here!

And out front, collectors mingled, talking story about rare jazz 78s, Ghost World, legendary Hawaiian musicians, last night’s Dublab show, and how the 2011 FLH record fair was a crapshoot—hardly anyone found anything, apparently (I wasn’t there last year).

Some people couldn’t stand the wait. They peered in through dingy, tiny windows to catch hints of the setup. Not sure if that helped any.

When volunteers finally started opening the garage doors, collectors had a clear idea of the layout. Collectibles Corner, Hawaiian, Jazz, Pop, Country, Classical, Folk.

There was something for every taste, and everyone wanted in already!

Awaiting entry into the warehouse, 8:45 am. Official start time was 9 am—that's 15 minutes of bittersweet anticipation.

Hawaiian LPs all lined up.

Hawaii’s crate digging scene is much less competitive than other parts of America, there are fewer collectors on the island than, say, New Jersey or Seattle.

The people are friendly. They won’t cut in line if you need to move your car. When we had to relocate to another garage door 50 feet south, everyone took their same spots in line.

Talking story outside.

I had a great time chatting with other collectors. Many of them are my friends. Some of them are looking for the same stuff I am: Hawaiian funk, soul, and jazz. But if there’s something I don’t have, like a rare LP from a local jazz guitarist (more on this later), no one hesitates to offer me a listen.

After all, we do this for the love of music.

A portable turntable is essential for a record fair like this.

It’s late—2 am on a Sunday—so I’ll wrap this up.

If you want to see more photos from the record sale, follow me on Instagram and Twitter.

In the meantime, stay tuned for more blog posts about my finds at the Friends of the Library record sale!

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Harry’s Music Store Closing, Reopening

For nearly 65 years, Harry’s Music Store has given the greatest gift to the local community that any business ever could: the gift of music.

This family business serves Oahu residents as the go-to shop for everything musical. The now closed (and soon re-opening) Harry’s Music Store encompasses 10,000 square feet and even more instruments, sheet music, vinyl records, CDs, cassettes, song books, and some of the island’s most knowledgeable and influential musicians and tastemakers.

The closing and re-opening of Harry’s

Next month, the shop is moving down the street to a location that’s about one-tenth the size of what it is now.

It’ll be the third time Harry’s Music Store has moved since opening 1946. It’s first location was just across the street, but the iconic green building in Kaimuki is the distinctive characteristic that most people remember Harry’s by.

The distinctive storefront on Waialae Ave.

“The gaudy green, two-story, 55-year-old-plus building, with its chipped paint, crumbling walls and large puka in the ceiling—where an elevator was supposed to have gone—exudes character.

‘When people walk in this door, they don’t come as a person who just happened to pass by,’ vice president Alan Yoshioka said. ‘They come from Ewa Beach, Kaneohe or Kailua,’ looking for specific items.” — Honolulu Star-Bulletin, April 23, 1996 

The clearance sale: everything must go

Harry’s is moving down the street, but they can’t take everything with them. So what’s a business to do? Move out inventory, quick.

So the music store hosted a 3-day weekend clearance sale with ridiculously low prices (records were cheaper than toilet paper, @shackwax said).

After spending three days digging through the albums for cheap—cheap!—records, I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t ever been to Harry’s before, because I had come across some fantastic albums.

I frequent Jelly’s and Hungry Ear Records (and thrift shops, too), but for some reason I always thought Harry’s was strictly devoted to instruments and songbooks, not vinyl records.

The massive weekend clearance sale at Harry’s Music Store proved me wrong. What I found were dozens of handfuls of quality soul and funk albums and singles. Jackpot.

Harry's Music Store Clearance Sale. LPs were 5 for $1 on Friday, 10 for $1 on Saturday, and free on Sunday.

A happy customer at the Harry's Music Store Clearance Sale

Dedicated collectors wait for Harry's to open on Sunday morning. Practically everything was free.

Harry's Music Store is closed, and will reopen in February.

Unfortunately the bins didn’t offer any Hawaiian music (maybe other local collectors picked it clean before I arrived, but I doubt there was much to begin with). Fortunately, I’ve increased the size of my record collection at a bargain price—about 10 cents a record!

Meet Alan Yoshioka

Aside from the records, I wanted to find out what the rest of the store was like, so I introduced myself to vice president Alan Yoshioka and asked him to give me a quick tour.

Alan’s footprint in the local Hawaiian music scene spreads wide and far. He’s one of the originators of the Na Hoku Hanohano Awards, Hawaii’s most prestigious music awards.

“I think about 100% of Hawaii’s musicians know me,” he told me. It’s probably true, because although Alan’s role in the Na Hoku Awards goes unnoticed if you’re attending the ceremonies, this man works harder than most throughout the year to prepare for the show.

Alan examines my business card.

A painting of Harry's Music Store by Vel Tong, 1999.

Alan Yoshioka of Harry's Music Store talks about the history of the shop.

Storage areas = curious wonders. What can be found in here?

I told Alan I like the music of Hawaii’s 1970s and 80s music scene, like Kalapana and Mackey Feary.

“Mackey Feary? You know, I was at Kalapana’s first record release show and I remember saying, ‘Who are these guys?’ Nobody had heard of Mackey or the rest of the guys before. In fact, I remember most of the media not being there because Kalapana wasn’t so well known at the time.”

A lifelong legacy

Harry’s three nephews, Alan, Glenn, and Clayton, have been with the shop since its early beginnings.

The year 2012 marks a new beginning for Harry’s Music Store, which will continue to supply the instruments and instructors necessary to the survival of Hawaii’s musical legacy.

Psst. Want to hear some of the music I found at Harry’s? Check out this free mixtape.

Summer in Honolulu: Reunion Show at Terry’s Place

Thousands upon thousands of people swarmed the Chinese Cultural Plaza in Honolulu’s Chinatown on the night of the Summer reunion show. Crowds filled the open space, food stands lined the walkways, strings of flags floated above the courtyard, and on stage was the biggest act of the night.  Continue reading »

No Shortage of Good Music: The Glass Candle Band Reunion

I met bassist Bruce Imai—who co-founded the Glass Candle Band with guitarist Robert Shinoda when they were about 12 years old—on stage in between sets at the Glass Candle 2011 Reunion Show at Hawaiian Brian’s.

Bruce was happy to meet me, especially after reading my article last week. I asked him what it was like back then, when live dance bands were everywhere and soulful, funky music pulsed through the streets of Honolulu.

“There was no shortage of good music,” Bruce told me.

Bruce and Robert Shinoda got their first gig in intermediate school, as 12-year-old schoolkids at Niu Valley Middle School near Hawaii Kai and Aina Haina.

“During that time it was fertile ground for great horn songs. We had bands like Tower of Power, Chicago, Blood, Sweat & Tears. [Locally] there were so many bands, a lot of competition. Glass Candle was one of the first bands in Hawaii to really feature horns… Other bands followed, but we had the leading edge.”

After some 40 years, Glass Candle once again proved they are one of Hawaii’s best performing acts.

Glass Candle Band (L-R: DeShannon Higa, Ken Suesz, Doug Rivera)

The Glass Candle Band with Little Albert (left: Doug Rivera, back: Robert Shinoda)

When you have three outstanding singers—Little Albert, K.K. Kaminaka, and Doug Rivera—you’re guaranteed to get great results. K.K. did a near flawless (and largely humorous) Barry White monolgue in the first set.

Little Albert sang with such power that strangers to Albert Maligmat’s music might wonder how this small guy got such a big voice. You don’t have to watch him perform live to believe me (check out “Movin’ In”), but there’s nothing else like hearing Little Albert belt “Do I Do” and “Me & Mrs. Jones” right in front of you. What a voice!

And what a stage presence! Albert bounced all over the stage. Albert felt the music move throughout his body, playing tambourine hits on his elbows, arms, hands, hips—anywhere that helped keep the beat.

Lil Albert at the Glass Candle Band reunion show

Robert Shinoda kept his cool at his position, stage left. As Glass Candle’s bandleader, Robert signaled to the musicians to change it up, extend a break, start a solo, or end a song. Without Robert, I don’t think the group would’ve been as tight as they sounded that night.

Robert Shinoda of the Glass Candle Band

Doug Rivera flew all the way from Sarasota, Florida, to reunite with his bandmates. You could immediately tell Doug was grateful having the time of his life once again. After all, Glass Candle rocked the dancefloor at Duke’s in Waikiki night after night—and made countless memories at the same time.

As I watched Doug and the guys perform, I saw hints of contemplation in his eyes (are you reading this Doug?) that gave thanks to such a remarkable group of musicians.

Doug Rivera of the Glass Candle Band

I couldn’t have asked for a better setlist, with songs like “If You Don’t Know Me By Now”, “Soul Vaccination”, or Billy Paul’s “Me & Mrs. Jones”, after which Little Albert threw a shaka! (A Filipino king of soul who throws a shaka after singing one of Philly’s greatest R&B tracks? Only in Hawaii).

But it was Kurt Ken (K.K.) Kaminaka whose jaw-dropping solo had everyone screaming. Not only did K.K. spin around on a swivel keyboard stand—while jamming a massive solo—the man sits down to read a book as his fingers fluttered over the keys.

As if sitting and reading weren’t good enough—wait for it—K.K. lifted his keyboard at a 45-plus degree angle and rocked the final bars of his solo. That’s how you end the year. I’m happy I was a witness.

I break a sweat just looking at these photos. Hands down the highlight of the night! (Check out all 20 photos of K.K.’s solo on Flickr.)

What else can I say?

Glass Candle rocked their reunion show—Hawaiian Brian’s was packed, the dancefloor filled up, and the musicians never sounded better. It was a great performance! (By the way, I still can’t get over that K.K. solo!)

Mahalo to trombonist Dale Nishikawa for giving me the opportunity to attend, and also for organizing the reunion show!

Roger Bong with Little Albert in between sets. Photo by Irwin "Supes" Santos.

Digging in Hawaii: Bailey’s Antiques and Aloha Shirts

There are so many directions I could go with this post. Should I spill more details about the Fitted x Aloha Got Soul project? Should I highlight a local music shop? Maybe I’ll showcase my latest song-that’s-on-repeat?

Wait, why can’t I just talk about all of it?

Click here for the latest updates on Fitted x Aloha Got Soul.

Fitted x Aloha Got Soul at Bailey's Antiques & Aloha Shirts on Kapahulu Ave.

Somewhere near University Avenue, 10:00 a.m.

OK, so I took a day off to hunt for records with a few members of the Fitted team. We hit a handful of spots in the Honolulu area on a typically hot yet overcast Thursday in Hawaii. We climbed into one car and I popped in a CD-R of some Hawaiian stuff not featured on the upcoming Fitted x Aloha Got Soul mix, including Hal Bradbury’s “You Win, I Lose” from the singer’s solo album, This Is Love.

Before the big release (tentatively dropping in February), we’re giving away a free 30-minute teaser mix to get people excited about the project. This musical appetizer (we call them pupus in Hawaii) will be a delectable prelude to the main course: a 1 hour, 16 minute blend of Hawaiian jazz, funk and soul.

Ready for some digging with a portable turntable plus coffee.

That’s right, the main course will be an original Aloha Got Soul x Fitted shirt with a professionally pressed CD featuring over 25 tracks of Hawaiian grooves—delicious to the last bite, just what a main course should be.

The hunt begins: Hawaiian LPs at Bailey's

Digging for vinyl at Bailey’s

Bailey’s Antiques and Aloha Shirts specializes in what tourists usually call “Hawaiian shirts”. That’s how you can tell whether someone’s a local. Bailey’s offers a sizable collection of used Hawaiian music, though no local ever calls it “Aloha music”.

Condition dictates price at most vinyl music stores. But, because Bailey’s is at the edge of Waikiki and Hawaiian music is a novelty most tourists pay more for, price tags here discourage me from buying more than two records.

Of all the stores on Oahu that carry vinyl, Bailey’s boasts the most aesthetically intriguing environment—with over 15,000 Aloha shirts, hundreds of posters, and thousands more trinkets, this Honolulu vintage store sells enough tropical paraphernalia to hypnotize any shopper.

Vintage aloha shirts on display outside, 15,000 more on sale inside.

Redeeming a broken record

If you follow @alohagotsoul on Twitter, you might remember the day I fell down while skateboarding with records under my arm. Bad idea. Crack in ground = cracked LPs.

I redeemed my tumble after finding another copy of the fourth album in the Homegrown series, produced by radio DJ Ron Jacobs. This time, my four-wheel ride home was a pickup truck, so my records were safe.

Stay broke: My Homegrown IV LP from September 2011. Rest in Peace.

Digging in Hawaii is more fun with friends, especially when you’re filming for an upcoming Fitted project. Did I forget to mention that we’re also filming a teaser video for the upcoming project? Well, there you go, secret’s out!

Mahalo for reading, and remember: support local. Stay tuned ’cause there’s lots more to talk about!

Don’t miss a single update:

• Like Aloha Got Soul on Facebook
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Look for the Hawaiian vinyl at the end of the maze at Bailey's.

Music Magic Reunion Recap: The Band Makes the Name

Music Magic, their name lives up to the show!

Some 28 years after the group disbanded, Music Magic proves worthy of their name with a string of reunion shows at Jazz Minds Café. I was lucky enough to catch one of their weekend performances on a Friday night (one of five gigs total).

It blew me away.

Jay Molina, Darryl Blouin, Fred Screuders, Al Pascua, Peter Factora, and Fred Li all sounded tight as ever. (Not that I would know, this was my first-ever Music Magic performance!)

Super funky, super soulful, super jazzy. Just the right blend.

Fred Schreuders (left) and Jay Molina (right) of Music Magic performing live at Jazz Minds Café.

They hit every song with enough energy to excite the crowds into rounds of shouts and howls. If there was a bigger dance floor, people would’ve stood up and, how do you say? Get their groove on.

And the percussion: flying all over the place, and loud, too, just like Darryl’s shirt, bright gold. Darryl was another show of his own accord, adlib-ing and scat-ing his way through songs, even singing Stevie Wonder’s “Do I Do” with the same conviction as the Wonder man himself. So good.

Songs included “People Make the World Go Round”, “What’s Goin’ On”, “Spain” by Chick Corea, and Music Magic originals “Ray Alan” and “Only Ours to Share”, and more.

Fred Li (right) and Darryl Blouiin of Music Magic

My iPhone failed to make any decent audio recordings. Luckily, YouTuber bassplayer60 just uploaded some videos of Music Magic! (*Note: Darryl must’ve changed shirts for the 10:30pm show, because he was glittering gold a few hours earlier).

Mahalo to Jay Molina and the crew for a truly magical moment in Hawaii’s music history! And thanks to Fred Li and Joe Hee of No Hum Yet and Sound Systems Hawaii for organizing the Music Magic reunion shows!

Read more Music Magic

Doing Something Special: An Interview with Jay Molina
Mixed-Up Music Magic: The Many Styles of Hawaii’s Jazz-Fusion Group

Something to Shout About: The Final 70s Night Club Reunion

Forty years in the making, the last reunion concert featuring Hawaii’s biggest disco, funk, soul and R&B acts from the seventies finally came to an end Saturday night at the Ala Moana Hotel Hibiscus Ballroom.

Pauline Wilson captivated the crowd.

It was a blast, every band went all out, everyone was in high spirits. The dancefloor was jam-packed from the very first song to the last!

For now, some thoughts on this year’s 70s Night Club Reunion (the last of its kind, although we hope that isn’t totally true!). More photos and more stuff soon.

• Nueva Vida was a surprise hit (for me, at least). Triple threat of singers, including Carla Young, Lil Albert and Pauline Wilson. Young did a stellar version of Us3′s “Cantaloop.”
• Remember when I said Babadu was the Hawaiian Stevie Wonder? I was only partly correct. Lil Albert powered the house with smashing, Wonder-ful vocals. He was good.
• And Pauline Wilson. Of the handful of songs she performed with Nueva Vida, the crowd went wild for her versions of Seawind’s most popular songs..
• Power Point: another unexpected hit (probably because I had no idea what to expect in the first place). Super high energy, all smiles, very very funky.
• Greenwood: first band up. Tight as ever. Dance floor filled in seconds.
• Aura rocked the ballroom and it was almost impossible to move toward the stage. It was packed.

I met a lot of cool ‘club’goers who wondered why a 23-year-old was hanging out at the reunion show.

The stories they told me about Waikiki’s clubs, like The Point After and Hula Hut—packed every night with outstanding house bands that kept the night going on and on—made me wish my generation had something close to what 1970s Honolulu had.

Of course, it wouldn’t be the same if it happened today.

Lil Albert belts it out.

Memory lane aka a half dozen display boards filled with memorabilia from tons of bands were out in the hotel lobby, featuring newspaper clippings, flyers and posters from: Natural High, Mackey Feary Band, Greenwood, Phase VII, Power Point and so many others that I need to go back and look through my photos again.

When Natural High reunited for the 70s NCR a few years back, tickets sold out in 5 minutes.

No joke: all tickets were gone in 5 minutes. Can somebody please play me one of their records?

And Phase VII. Last band up. The ‘horniest’ band around, I heard someone say. Every person in the crowd watched them with smiles of nostalgia while singing along to the songs of their youth.

Everyone had a good time, so much that the performance went over 30+ minutes—maybe an hour? Hotel staff eventually turned on the house lights for the last two songs of Phase VII, but people kept dancing and Phase VII kept singing!

Nobody wanted it to end…

UPDATE: Good news, the 70s Night Club Reunion will be back in 2012!

Aura brought the funk.

Power Point funked it up big time.

Big thanks to Irwin aka ‘Supes‘, Candy Au of Ala Moana Hotel and Rob Kimura of Greenwood for organizing these reunions for the past seven+ years.

Missed out on the action? Buy the live DVD set of the 70s Night Club Reunion!

Phase VII & Dolly Parton

With two gigs nightly, 7 days a week aboard the Rella Mae cruise ship, Phase VII must have met many people during their tenure. So I was happy to find this photo in my inbox the other day, courtesy of saxophonist Edd English (far right):

Edd gave me a bit of background on Dolly Parton’s appearance aboard the Rella Mae:

That year she took her family to Hawaii for X-mas—I mean everyone because she was able to rent the top deck of the Rella Mae, the boat Phase Seven played on. This photo is on the Top deck, as after our show we got invited up to meet with her. We were told that she heard our show but did not come down to see it, as she didn’t [want] her stardom to upstage us or something like that. I do remember her showing up in a corvette driven by a really [muscly] body guard.

Edd, who performs nowadays in Portland, Oregon (see him rockin’ in this video), didn’t mention a date of when this was taken, but my guess is 1983. Below is a photo of Dolly in 1983 at the Kahala Hilton Hotel (now the Kahala Hotel & Resort) in Honolulu. Photo by Alan Light.

Speaking of country music, stay tuned for a very special interview with a Hawaii-bred musician now living just outside Nashville, Tennessee.

Thanks Edd!