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Topic: George Kainapau w/Jules: 1957 @ The Ale Ale Kai Room |
Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 17 Apr 2012 3:05 pm |
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Just received my gratis copy directly from www.cordinternational.com of the brand new and stunning CD release; George Kainapau - Hawaii's Falsetto King. It's so new I can't find any web info, even on Cord's own site, so it may take a bit before it hits the shelves. But it's a true gem, not to be missed, the packaging is beautifully colorful and discriptive, setting the tone well for an amazing listening experience.
Documenting an evening in golden era Waikiki in it's finest form with the Hawaiian falsetto giant, he's accompanied by stellar musicians, George 'Kaipo' Miller - bass/vocals, Sonny Kamahele - guitar/vocals, and the great steel guitarist - Jules Ah See.
The best-of recording of the evening's two shows is virtually perfect, belying the fact that it was bootlegged by a fan, Douglas Allen, on a night off from his US military service duties while toting a high-end recorder and mics, which with the singer's OK was allowed to place on George's mic stand. All the vocals and instrumentation were captured in their full glory, with the bass so full I had to switch from my BOSE system to a less bass-friendy unit as the rafters were trembling and rats were running for the hills!
This may be the best live recording of '50s Hawaiian music I've ever heard, and that it was captured by a passing tourist is a stunning accomplishment. My hat is off to Mr. Allen, a Texas native, and CORD for this exceptional effort that nearly didn't see the light of day. These recordings sat idle for decades and just as I was fortunate to have contacted the tapes owner after a Hawaiian forum mention of what to do with the recordings, he was in the process of working a deal with Michael Cord, knowing after all these years time was getting short if it was going to happen at all. This was a good example of how timing and luck can make or break, and we're fortunate that all the pieces fell together just right for this to be available.
I'm blown away after having waited for half a year for this moment, and couldn't be happier that now we have such an incrediblly rare and wonderful offering from George Kainapau and his top-shelf backing. The only bummer is not having the musicians themselves around to relate the times. Get this one, you'll be delighted! |
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Mike Anderson
From:
British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 17 Apr 2012 3:09 pm
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| I'm on this Ron, thanks a million for the heads up! |
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David Matzenik
From:
Cairns, on the Coral Sea
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Posted 18 Apr 2012 12:32 am
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Yep, no question, I gotta have it. Cord puts out highly significant stuff. And while we are on the subject, here is George Kainapau rather late in his career at the Kona Village Resort, 1973. George Ka'a on steel guitar. I hope I spelled that name right. I don't know the other brother's first name.
_________________
Don't go in the water after lunch. You'll get a cramp and drown. - Mother. |
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Mike Anderson
From:
British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 18 Apr 2012 7:00 am
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| Ordered mine yesterday evening and Michael was right on it - it's shipped this morning. My favorite record label without a doubt. |
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Butch Pytko
From:
Orlando, Florida, USA
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Posted 20 Apr 2012 10:29 am
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| Ron-Thanks for your brilliant description on this CD! Just now ordered mine. Anything with the great Jules Ah See on it is a "GOTTA HAVE"! |
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Dave Mayes
From:
Oakland, Ca.
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Posted 20 Apr 2012 11:46 am
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| Mine's in the mail too! Thanks Ron. |
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Norman Markowitz
From:
Santa Cruz, California
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Posted 20 Apr 2012 12:44 pm
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| I've got one on the way also. I've got a lot of George Kainapau on vinyl, but I'm sure the sound quality on this CD will be great. |
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Dave Mayes
From:
Oakland, Ca.
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Posted 23 Apr 2012 4:00 pm
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| Pulled it from the mail minutes ago. Looked at the group insert photo on the cover and thought to myself, "that doesn't look like Jules, looks more like..... Joe Custino"? I'm through the fifth tune and I'd bet a BUNCH I'm hearing Joe, not Jules. I'm still lovin' it. |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 23 Apr 2012 5:03 pm
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| I wouldn't put much stock in the photo aspect, Dave, there's precious few group shots with GK to chose from no doubt, but I'll be spinning the disc again and listening with a more judicial ear towards your thots. That said, there are some surprising niggles in the booklet which should have been proofed out better. If it's decided that it's Joe, I'll still be just as happy, tho not as much as I'd hoped from the start that it would be David Kelii, a common GK cohort. |
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Bill Wynne
From:
New Jersey, USA
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Posted 24 Apr 2012 5:31 am
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| Ron Whitfield wrote: |
| I wouldn't put much stock in the photo aspect, Dave, there's precious few group shots with GK to chose from no doubt, but I'll be spinning the disc again and listening with a more judicial ear towards your thots. That said, there are some surprising niggles in the booklet which should have been proofed out better. If it's decided that it's Joe, I'll still be just as happy, tho not as much as I'd hoped from the start that it would be David Kelii, a common GK cohort. |
OK, first, you gotta stop referring to him as "GK" as that is the common abbreviation for the legendary Genoa Keawe. You confused the crap out of me.  (Even her record label was "GK Records.")
I am surprised to hear that this might be Joe Custino or any player besiders Jules Ah See. I won't be disappointed either way as I am a falsetto singer first and any found George Kainapau recording will be a revelation. But none other than Harry B. Soria put his imprimateur on this release, and I would be surprised if he were wrong about the steeler (although Harry is not a steeler himself, he has heard them all, and few are more immediately identifiable than Jules).
I am also surprised that Cord started with this Kainapau release and not with the many sides he did with the Royal Hawaiian Serenaders - for which Michael already owns the rights.
I have many such live recordings that have been passed down to me - Sterling Mossman with Barney Isaacs and his crew (not the live LP, but hours of tape made the same way that Mr. Allen made these Kainapau sides), Pauline Kekahuna at a party at her own home, and Genoa Keawe with Herbert Hanawahine at the Aloha Grill. (I posted some of that tape on Facebook on the anniversary of Aunty Genoa's passing, and her son, Eric, and I managed to identify all of the group members.) Perhaps I should place a call to Michael Cord this morning?... |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 24 Apr 2012 9:05 am
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| Just start your own damn label! You got more good stuff than God, and then the families could get some $. The world needs that goldmine of recordings, or at least my world does. |
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Mat Rhodes
From:
Lexington, KY, USA
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Posted 24 Apr 2012 8:34 pm
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I second that. Bill, get off the sidelines! You would think the "signs" were obvious. Ah, how we squander our youth...  |
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Bill Wynne
From:
New Jersey, USA
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Posted 25 Apr 2012 5:06 am
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Youth? I am so much older than you think. And I feel it, too.  |
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Norman Markowitz
From:
Santa Cruz, California
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Posted 25 Apr 2012 6:17 am
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| Bill Wynne wrote: |
I am also surprised that Cord started with this Kainapau release and not with the many sides he did with the Royal Hawaiian Serenaders - for which Michael already owns the rights.
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So right on this. As good as this CD is. To truly get the full effect of his amazing voice you need to hear some of those recordings. For that reason I hope Cord does another anthology of that material. |
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David Matzenik
From:
Cairns, on the Coral Sea
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Posted 25 Apr 2012 1:51 pm
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We are told by some historians that Hawaiian falsetto is an art with roots in the ancient gender divisions of the tapu system. When it is thrown into a regular arrangement it adds a wonderful dimension. However, when listening to artists like George, and Bill Lincoln, who did songs that did not come out of that register, I can't help getting the impression that they painted their toe-nails. "Not that there is anything wrong with that." 
_________________
Don't go in the water after lunch. You'll get a cramp and drown. - Mother. |
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Mike Anderson
From:
British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 25 Apr 2012 5:30 pm
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Huh, I'm sure not all mahu singers do falsetto, and not all falsetto singers were/are mahu! Personally I love falsetto, and can kinda-sorta pull it off myself to a certain degree that I'd like very much to improve on. 
I like countertenor voice in early music for that matter - I dunno, I guess it's an acquired taste.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ucxW-676dE |
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Bill Wynne
From:
New Jersey, USA
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Posted 26 Apr 2012 5:08 am
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| David Matzenik wrote: |
| I can't help getting the impression that they painted their toe-nails. "Not that there is anything wrong with that." |
Smiley face notwithstanding, I have known you for some time now, but if I could unfriend you here, I probably would.
I know every living falsetto singer in Hawai'i - young and old - as I have made it my business to know those who have inspired me. And I know the histories of most of the falsetto singers who have passed into another life. Yes, there were some who were homosexual, but it is about the same percentage as there are gay steel players or gay anything else.
The origins of falsetto singing in Hawai'i are not clear. But you can certainly time it with the arrival of the missionaries and the four-part harmonies they brought with them. Nobody would dare accuse the countertenors of old English music - or new English music if you count the raft of countertenors that have graduated from the Kings' Singers - as being gay. So let's not cast the same aspersions on the legends of Hawaiian falsetto.
Falsetto singers do this because we love it. But we also have to constantly defend ourselves from ignorance such as what we are discussing here. I have always been incredulous that any thinking person could possibly assume that a man who sings in a high register - which, by the way, is not the same as singing like a woman, as falsetto is considered masculine by the Hawaiians - must also necessarily enjoy the delights of being a woman. If there were a stigma such as this attached to being a steel player, you probably would be constantly defending yourself too. And to defend oneself for pursuing the thing they love can be a pretty miserable life.
I am speaking from experience...
Last edited by Bill Wynne on 26 Apr 2012 8:24 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Wally Pfeifer
From:
Illinois, USA
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Posted 26 Apr 2012 7:16 am
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This is a little too much! Who cares?
Not me
Wally |
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Bill Wynne
From:
New Jersey, USA
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Posted 26 Apr 2012 8:21 am
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| Wally Pfeifer wrote: |
This is a little too much! Who cares?
Not me
Wally |
Wally, you would care if you spent your entire life defending what you love. |
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David Matzenik
From:
Cairns, on the Coral Sea
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Posted 26 Apr 2012 7:10 pm
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Bill, it was a joke for gourd-sake. I was not casting nasturtiums. Some of my best friends paint their toe-nails.
_________________
Don't go in the water after lunch. You'll get a cramp and drown. - Mother. |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 27 Apr 2012 5:04 pm
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| David Matzenik wrote: |
George Kainapau at the Kona Village Resort, 1973. George Ka'a on steel guitar.
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David, could the steel player here be in fact 'Bill' Ka'a?
Just touched bases again with Douglas Allen, and shared this thread with him. He's very happy to hear the responses to this release, and hopes it helps further appreciation in the great Hawaiian music and musicians of the past, especially to younger generations. I echoe those hopes, and if releases like this one doesn't spur sufficient interest, then maybe nothing will. A nomination in next year's HOKU awards show is most deserving. |
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David Matzenik
From:
Cairns, on the Coral Sea
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Posted 27 Apr 2012 5:30 pm
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Ron, I think you a right; Bill Ka'a, not George. Thanks.
_________________
Don't go in the water after lunch. You'll get a cramp and drown. - Mother. |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 27 Apr 2012 5:42 pm
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| The guy on guitar is so familiar looking I'm surprised I don't have a name, or that nobody has supplied one. |
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Bill Creller
From:
Saginaw, Michigan, USA (deceased)
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Posted 27 Apr 2012 7:35 pm
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And here I figured tight underwear helped with the extreme high notes.......
OK, don't shoot me, it's just humor ! |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 27 Apr 2012 8:06 pm
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| We're not talking dog whistle falsetto here, Bill. |
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