Shaner makes history
with comic discFrank B. Shaner's Adventures of Leimomi: Frank B. Shaner (Frank B. Shaner Productions)
FRANK B. Shaner brought a fresh idea to local comedy with his Hawaiian KINE 105 radio morning-show soap opera "Love Island Style." Heroine Leimomi and Hawaiian hunk Big Mack Kanaka tangled with a motley crew of colorful island characters in a series of cockeyed comic adventures. This disc contains the first 18 episodes.
Shaner is an imaginative storyteller and remarkably good at voicing the characters. Some are defined largely with familiar ethnic dialects but he succeeds in creating sufficient distance between voices. Listen once for the story, again for the obvious bits, again for the subtle bits, and at least once more for his clever mangling of the language.
Other local comedians are either doing stand-up monologues or routine song parodies these days. Shaner's disc ranks with K.K. Kaumanu'a, Booga Booga, and Billy Sage's "Honk If You Love George" album as a landmark entry in local comedy.
Ho'opomokai'i: Gary Haleamau (Liko)
GARY Haleamau helped John "Keoni" Fujitani launch Liko Records 10 years ago. He's kicked off the Big Island label's second decade with equal promise with this assortment of Hawaiian standards, a Hawaiian-country remake of "Why Me Lord," and four songs recorded for the first time.
Crisp and unpretentious acoustic arrangements compliment Haleamau's clear falsetto; the absence of a whining synthetic faux string section makes the songs particularly beautiful. Haleamau's "Ho'okahi Wale No" should become a new old-fashioned standard.
Sandii's Hawai'i 2nd: Sandii (Sushi)
SANDII is one of several Japanese nationals who records Hawaiian music here for international release. She's a memorable performer even without the guest spots by Martin Pahinui, Fiji, John Koko and Herb "Ohta-san" Ohta.
Sandii's slightly accented English perfectly fits "The Pidgin English Hula." A Maori medley and an arrangement of "Kinito Itsumademo" in Japanese and Hawaiian adds more variety.
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.
