Stories
Sunday Manoa "Guava Jam": Too Bold for its Time
Sunday Manoa's Guava Jam signaled a new direction in Hawaiian music. The trio's definitive album, released on Hula Records in 1969, defined a new style of Hawaiian music, ushering the start of a new era in the islands known as the "Hawaiian Renaissance"—the revitalization of tradition, culture, and language of the Hawaiian people. But in the early seventies, many found Guava Jam difficult to accept.
My Top 5: John Book, a Transplanted Kama'aina
John Book gives us his Top 5 Hawaiian Albums in addition to an important lesson in Hawaiian music history, describing an era when artists expanded the sounds of traditional island music into something new—something the people have never heard before. It was the start of a revolution, a movement that pushed the limits what Hawaiian music should sound like to new heights.
Free Mixtape: Paradise: 1x10x100 Revisited
You know the story: 1 store. 10 dollars. 100 records. When Harry's Music Store closed in February, I bought vinyl records so dirt cheap, I decided to make a mixtape of my finds. But one mixtape just wasn't enough—that's why I made another, it's called Paradise: 1x10x100 Revisited.
Fabulous Krush "Without The One You Love"
"Without The One You Love" by the Fabulous Krush Four Tops, meet the Eight Tops. In 1981, Hawaii's Fabulous Krush released their version of the Motown hit "Without The One You Love". It's a top-tapping pop song that makes me smile and sway with every spin. The Fabulous Krush was Hawaii's favorite band in the eighties, check this out.
The Krush: Hawaii's Favorite Band
It's a huge claim to make: Hawaii's favorite band. But back in the 1980s, nobody could touch the Fabulous Krush. They were charismatic, dynamic and superbly talented. The Krush brought audiences together for good, clean fun with every performance.