‘Fish & Poi’ has
the right ingredientsFish & Poi: Sean Na'auao (Fat Katz Productions)
MANA'O Company alumnus Sean Na'auao has achieved success as both record producer and recording artist. It's no surprise that his third solo album, "Fish & Poi," has everything that gets local albums radio play these days. The list includes originals, island standards, Top 40 remakes, and pseudo-Jamaican posing. Na'auao sings well too.
The title song should already be a hit on Hawaii's "island music" radio stations. It has a perennially popular topic (local culture), a hint of Caribbean rhythms, catchy lyrics, and the time tested melodic structure of the pop hits of the early 1960s.
The formula won 'Ehukai two Hoku Awards and has worked well for others; the song "Fish & Poi" could make composers G. Veikoso and Michael Grande Hoku winners as well.
"Nakoa's Song" was co-written by Na'auao for his son; it provides another glimpse of the singer's identity. "Surf Pa'ina" will be familiar as his contribution to the recent "Sessions II" anthology. A third original, "Local Motion Style," also reflects his ties to the local surf industry.
Na'auao does an inspired job with a fresh interpretation of "Tewe Tewe" but inspiration is absent in two premakes. He sings "Three Times A Lady" with feeling but doesn't improve on the Commodores' 1978 megahit. A Jawaiian rehash of the Rays' 1957 classic, "Silhouettes," is the nadir on all counts -- watch it become a local hit!
Kaliuwa'a: Palolo (Roy Sakuma Productions)
PALOLO maintains the high standards set by their underrated 1995 debut. The trio -- Troy Fernandez, Chino Montero and Nathan Nahinu -- is sometimes better than its material, but Fernandez's virtuosity does much to redeem weaker choices. Nahinu's liner notes explain that they wanted to demonstrate the variety of music they enjoy playing. His explanation makes the Top 40 remakes more tolerable.
Originals are the brightest gems. "Island Paradise," written by Eugene Lebeaux and Montero, is an exquisite blend of modern hapa-haole themes overlaid with nuances of Stevie Wonder-style pop. Fernandez and Ed Barinque co-wrote a more conventional showcase for the trio's talents with "Iwalani."
An inspired arrangement powers an impressive update of John Kalani Lincoln's nationalist anthem, "O Akua." Palolo's instrumental skills make for striking arrangements of "Wai Hui O Ke Ani Ani" and "Hi'ilawe."
The pop chart remakes don't compare. Peter Tosh introduced "Johnny B. Goode" as a reggae hit 14 years ago. "Pay the Man" has also been played to death here recently, and a tourist show Elvis medley needs 300 percent more of Fernandez's virtuosity on ukulele to merit inclusion.
See Record Reviews for some of John Berger's past reviews.
See Aloha Worldwide for locals living away.
John Berger, who has covered the local
entertainment scene since 1972, writes reviews of recordings
produced by Hawaii artists. See the Star-Bulletin's Home Zone
section on Fridays for the latest reviews.
