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Tracklist: Paradise 1x10x100 Revisited
I hope you’ve been playing the Paradise mixtape on repeat since its release last month. A handful of bloggers shared the mixtape with their followers—shoutout to The Diggers Union!—so no doubt there are people across the world finding paradise through music.
Paradise: 1x10x100 Revisited is an oasis of smooth soul and jazz sounds that will take the listener to a paradise within. At least, that’s what my goal was when I made the mixtape.
I think it worked, because I’ve received several requests for a tracklist for the second installment in the 1x10x100 mixtape series. (The story goes like this: 1 store. 10 dollars. 100 records. Learn more here.) People really want to know which artists are behind these songs!
With this post, I happily share with you the complete Paradise tracklist, including artist, label, and release year for each track. Enjoy!
Tracklist for Paradise: 1x10x100 Revisited
1. Paradise – The O’Jays – Message in the Music – Philadelphia International – 1976
2. I Believe In You – Enchantment – Soft Lights, Sweet Music – RCA Victor – 1980
3. Keep On Smilin’ – Weapons of Peace – Weapons of Peace – Playboy – 1977
4. Coming Back For More – Odyssey – Hollywood Party Tonight – RCA Victor – 1978
5. It’s Critical – Billy Paul – First Class – Philadelphia International – 1979
6. The Skin You’re In – GQ – Face to Face – Arista – 1981
7. I Love To Please You – Ramsey Lewis – Legacy – Columbia – 1978
8. Expressions – Willie Hutch – Willie…Mitchell…Listen…Dance… – Bearsville – 1981
9. La Bruja Negra – Joe Torres – Latin Con Soul – World Pacific – 1967
10. Back To My Roots – Lamont Dozier – Peddlin’ Music on the Side – Warner Bros – 1977
11. Inner Beauty – Lonnie Liston Smith & The Cosmic Echoes – Reflections of a Golden Dream – Flying Dutchman – 1976
12. So True – Karma – Celebration – Horizon/A&M – 1976
13. It’s All In The Way – Mirage – Princes of Love – RCA – 1978
14. I Can’t Be The One – Enchantment – Soft Lights, Sweet Music – RCA Victor – 1980
15. Passport To Ecstasy – Banks & Hampton – Passport to Ecstasy – Warner Bros – 1977
16. BS – Jimmy Owens – Headin’ Home – Horizon/A&M – 1978
17. Mom And Dad – LaSo – LaSo – MCA – 1977
18. The Coke Song – Lamont Dozier – Peddlin’ Music on the Side – Warner Bros – 1977
19. Just A Phone Call Away – Mirage – Princes of Love – RCA – 1978
There you have it, the tracklist to Paradise.
Several of the songs can be found on YouTube, but I’m trying to fill the gaps with what’s missing—like Billy Paul’s “It’s Critical”, Karma’s “So True”, or Lonnie Liston Smith’s “Inner Beauty”.
Note: I uploaded the songs to my other YouTube account, bonghitsmusic, since the music is not exclusively Hawaiian.
Still searching for Paradise?
Click here to download Paradise: 1x10x100 Revisited.
P.S. If you’re wondering about the first installment, 1x10x100 (Harry’s Music Store Mixtape), that tracklist is coming soon, I just need to upload more music videos to YouTube first.
Like this:
Fabulous Krush “Without The One You Love”
“Without The One You Love” by the Fabulous Krush Continue reading
Fabulous Krush: That Summertime Sound
I’m in love with the album “Blame it on the Night” by Robert Byrne, an Alabama songwriter whose music I can listen to over and over throughout the day.
His music guides the listener through a strong emotional sway with every story he creates. Each song is powerful yet gentle, persuasive yet passive, immediately memorable to those who listen closely the first time around.
With each consecutive spin, the album sinks deeper into your soul.
Fabulous Krush “Blame It On The Night”
The Fabulous Krush knew this.
That’s why they covered “Blame It On The Night” for their self-titled release on Dove Records.
The Krush
Upon its release, Fabulous Krush propelled the band, led by singer Edwin Ramones and Hal Bradbury, to the top of Hawaii’s pop music scene.
The group already had a strong following, starting as the Exotic 5 then changing its name to New Experience, and then Fabulous Krush. They later dropped ‘fabulous’ and became The Krush..
Making Memorable Hits (and winning awards)
Their LP, an approachable mix of disco, AOR, and soul music, gave the islands some of the most memorable hits of the day, especially “Waialua Sky”, a song that brings genuine tears to those nostalgic for the days when music was pure and happy—an era when Nohelani Cypriano, C&K, and Kalapana dominated the local music scene
In 1981, their eponymous album won a Na Hoku Hanohano Award for Best Album of the Year—becoming one of the few exceptions where a distinctly non-Hawaiian group earned the award.
“In the 31 years the category has existed, the winners have almost always been either a Hawaiian album or some type of contemporary hapa haole rather than something pop, jazz, rock, hip hop, “urban” or reggae.” —John Berger, 2011
That Summertime Sound
With roots in Waialua, a rural North Shore town surrounded by sugar cane fields and surfing beaches, the Fabulous Krush captures that summertime sound which contemporary Hawaiian artists of the era played so well.
“Blame It On The Night” is a perfect example. I hope you think so, too.
Like this:
Nohelani Cypriano “Lihue” Music Video (1977)
I should’ve seen it coming, but this surprised me: the original 1977 music video for “Lihue” by Nohelani Cypriano.
Thanks to Hawaiian music collector Yoshi—whose initial upload of Brandon Bray & Brown Spice performing “Polynesian Girl” brought Ron Jacob’s KKUA Home Grown TV series to life on the web—Nohelani and Dennis Graue’s “Lihue” music video from 35 years ago finally finds its place in Internet history.
“We think this young lady is gonna be an emerging star of the future. Look at her now as she performs ‘Lihue’”. —Ron Jacobs
Screenshots of Nohelani Cypriano's "Lihue" 1977 music video.
An emerging star…
In 1980, Nohe won Female Vocalist of the Year at the Na Hoku Hanohano awards, Hawaii’s most celebrated music awards ceremony.
In 1992, she won it again.
And to this day, Nohe continues to perform “Lihue”, along with other classics like “Moon of Monakoora”.
(Listen to “Lihue” by Nohelani Cypriano in high quality audio.)
This song will forever be one of Hawaii’s greatest rare groove tracks, resonating with future generations of music lovers.
Nohelani Cypriano "Lihue" 1977 music video
(P.S. There’s another version of “Lihue” from 1995, have you heard it yet?)
The Aliis Live: “Summer Sun”
Summer is just around the corner for most of you, the sun gradually warming the earth and breaking those spring clouds and rains away.
In Hawaii, it’s almost always summer. Which means anytime is the the perfect time to celebrate sunny weather. Right now sounds good.
The Aliis Live: "Summer Sun" (Photos by me_lv / Instagram)
Enjoy the sunshine with this track by The Aliis: a medley of three tunes, “Keep the Customer Satisfied”, “Didn’t We”, and “Summer Sun”.
What’s your favorite Hawaiian track to celebrate the summertime?
Tender Leaf “You’re My Fantasy”
“You’re My Fantasy” by Tender Leaf Continue reading
Hal Bradbury “Babe I Want You”
“Babe I Want You” by Hal Bradbury Continue reading
Hal Bradubury “You Send Me”
“You Send Me” by Hal Bradbury Continue reading
The Home Grown Series, Volume I (1976)
“Inspiration is where you find it,” wrote Wayne Harada in the Home Grown I liner notes, a Hawaiian music compilation released on KKUA Records in 1976.
Me? I find my inspiration in music (of course), and I know I’m not alone (hence: this).
In 1976, prolific radio DJ Ron Jacobs released Hawaii’s first volume in the Home Grown series. Ron had moved back home to Hawaii from San Diego and immediately fell in love with the music of the islands.
While living and working in San Diego, Ron Jacobs produced the California city’s own Home Grown LPs.
But he dreamed of a releasing Hawaii’s own Home Grown compilations. Upon returning to the islands, Ron made it his goal to bring greater recognition to Hawaii’s tremendous, upcoming talent.
Enter, Home Grown I:
“The idea is to provide a showcase, in a setting of pride and professionalism, to possibly launch a career or two or three.”
The careers of several Hawaiian artists were already shining bright when Home Grown I hit the record stores in Honolulu—the likes of Cecilio & Kapono, Olomana, Country Comfort, and The Brothers Cazimero propelled forward with success (some of these acts still perform to this day!).
The initial idea of Home Grown was thus: as an outlet for homegrown artists creating homegrown music. As Wayne Harada wrote in his liner notes for the LP:
“Hawaii is known the world over for its cosmopolitan blend, its mixing of races and cultures. In Home Grown, you get this chop suey feeling—indicative that music remains the universal language.”
Home Grown is the heart Hawaii, sharing its thoughts, feelings, struggles, and emotions with the world.
Let’s listen in:
Country Living presents a perfect example of the laid-back lifestyle of Hawaii with their contribution to the LP. I’ve talked about this before, and it’s true. Country living is free and easy. It’s mellow. It’s open. It’s love of a land that gives and gives so long as you appreciate and respect it.
Another aspect I enjoy about folky, jazzy Hawaiian music is the bossa nova influence. The Brazilian-Hawaiian connection becomes apparent with the incorporation of Latin beats and acoustic guitars. “Country Living Hawaii” represents that feeling that you get while living in a tropical paradise.
Let’s stick around the countryside a little longer and visit the tune “Oh Why Leave?” by Breezin’, following in the footsteps of Kalapana and the new contemporary Hawaiian sound of the 1970s.
Loose guitars introduce the music, written by Steven Min and Robert Agno, with the beat picking up the pace at the 45 second mark. (We weren’t as talented as Breezin’, but this song reminds me of an EP I recorded with my friend back in 2007.)
Cooper’s Still. “Big Island.” Read those four words, what images stir in your mind?
This song, I hope, will fulfill those imaginations. It did for me. “Big Island” symbolizes wide open country, skies greater than God himself, and gentle blowing winds that bring the fragrance of Hawaiian flowers to your nose.
It’s blissful, it’s peaceful, and in just under four minutes, it works wonders on the human imagination.
Despite the low quality recording, “Makapuu” surprises. Burt Bascone played every single instrument for and sang every vocal track for the song—16 parts total!
A playful, upbeat tribute to the cliffs of Makapuu, Burt’s pop tune proves that one talented man can equal more than what ten men combined could achieve.
Kapono Beamer and Byl Leonard recorded “Living in Hawaii” just four hours before the deadline to enter the Home Grown contest.
Close your eyes and listen to the lyrics, the music will immediately transport you to the islands.
Hana, Maui, is one of Hawaii’s most remote towns and is often called “The Last Hawaiian Place”.
Glenn Pinho wrote this semi-autobiographical song about the highways of life (by the way , the Road to Hana is one of the world’s most scenic highways). Ups, downs, streaks of good luck and regrettable experiences fill our lives. These things shape who we are.
Singing with conviction, Glenn bares his soul, revealing his feelings for his home back in the country.
“Hana Boy” is the quintessential Home Grown composition. It’s country, it’s contemporary (check that cool conga break!), it’s music that only Hawaii can create.
“Inspiration is where you find it. Judging from the songs selected, there’s a sweeping new interest in the simple life of the country.
Unsurprisingly, the mountains, the ocean, the backyards, the frontyards, the gerenal beauty of Hawaii have tinkled the creative juices. Whatever, wherever: The Home Growners sing about life in paradise.”
For some, homegrown is a dream. Fortunately, Ron Jacobs captured those dreams and turned them into reality with the Home Grown series.
Read more from the Home Grown Series here.
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