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Island Mele
OSB mixes sound
in debut albumKeep On Dancin':
by Ocean Side Band (Tropical Jam Productions TJP00262)OCEAN Side Band enlisted studio veteran Al Erub as a defacto fourth member for its debut album. He reinforced the bass/guitar/ukulele sound with a plethora of synthetic instruments.
Credit OSB's Wendell Rosa and Frank Niihau Jr. as the novice writers of seven songs. Several suggest the influence of Kalapana and the Island Band. Rosa's "It's Only You," and Niihau's "My Lady" and "Fly Away," are the most promising.
"Ahulili" and "Kelana Kai" capture OSB doing Hawaiian standards as a straight trio (Fidel Mamaril Jr. is the other guy). The title song is a formula Jawaiian/Top 40 Oldies number, while "Ocean Side Band" is an earnest effort at an expository band bio that assays out as album filler.
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Walthen & Son Inc.
94-035 Leokane St., Waipahu 96797
808-671-1771; 808-676-5838 fax
by Kawehi Lindsey (On The Way Up Productions TW88)KAWEHI Lindsey's 1989 debut, "Someone So Special," remains one of the best local pop recordings ever. Her third album doesn't have the same instant impact but is easily one of the best local pop albums of 1999. Lindsey and Roy Hamada share writer/arranger credits for most of the songs. Maestro and Corey Loren created the others. There are no remakes!
"I Do Miss You" and "Talk To The Paper" capture Lindsey's romantic sweetly seductive vocal style perfectly. "Lonely (Fast Version)" is a welcome change of tempo that shows she can handle faster stuff; the slow version works well too. "Can't You See " adds a languid social message about saving children. Lindsey is a pop artist worth hearing.
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No contact information.
by Yuki "Alani" Yamauchi (Respect RES-32)JAPANESE slack-key guitarist Yuki "Alani" Yamauchi plays ukulele too. His fifth solo album is a potpourri of uke standards plus two originals -- "Slack Key Uke #1" and "Na Opio"
He merits an international audience.
Detailed bilingual liner notes make this a fine introduction to a major player in Japan's Hawaiian music scene.
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Respect Records
201 Fukuda Heights, 3-18-29 Jungumae
Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-001 JAPAN
Overseas fax: 81-3-3746-2572
See Record Reviews for some 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 Today
section on Fridays for the latest reviews.
