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"Living Ukulele"
Brittni Paiva (Talmidim Productions)
An award-worthy Kenneth K. Martinez Burgmaier documentary film and an additional 18 minutes of instructional videos make Brittni Paiva’s recently released DVD an attractive introduction to her work and a must-buy package for fans.
Burgmaier’s documentary includes excerpts from performances on different islands and interview segments in which Paiva talks about her life, her career and her marriage. He also shows Paiva taking a surf lesson in Waikiki, working on her high-performance car and traveling to Australia for a show with ukulele enthusiasts there.
"Talking heads" who provide comments include ukulele master Herb "Ohta-san" Ohta, Tom Scott, Richard Ho‘opi‘i, "Brother Noland" Conjugacion and Grammy Award-winning record producers Charles Michael Brotman and Daniel Ho.
Burgmaier and Paiva’s Talmidim Productions team add value with the instructional tracks not seen by film audiences. In them Paiva demonstrates playing techniques for beginners, intermediate and advanced players. Most people in Hawaii probably know there is more to playing the instrument than wild strumming. The instructional segments reveal some of the techniques Paiva and other players use when playing more elaborate arrangements.
A music video seen in its entirety in the Burgmaier film is included as a stand-alone track.
"It’s the Weekend"
Rhapsody (Self-produced)
Every generation should have its own weekend anthem. "Aloha Friday" and "Working for the Weekend" are classics from the 20th century. Rhapsody is offering this one for 2012. The group is musical entrepreneur Lance Motogawa (keyboards, vocals) partnering with Hiram Johnson (guitar, vocals), Kiki Johnson (bass, vocals) and Bill Mouser (drums, vocals). All four share composers’ credits for this smooth salute to this favorite time of the week.
The lyrics anticipate a weekend spent relaxing "at the beach or in the club," dancing, listening to music and spending time with family and friends. The rhythms are Jawaiian; the vocal arrangements and overall instrumental sound is reminiscent of old-time soul music. The quartet harmonizes nicely, and Motogawa’s keyboards suffice to represent the horn section that would have been part of the session if they’d recorded it in the ’60s or ’70s.
"It’s the Weekend" is available on iTunes and Amazon.com.
For more than two decades Kapena has built its arrangements around the voice and instrumental virtuosity of Kelly "Kelly Boy" De Lima. The other founding members of the trio eventually retired, and other talented musicians came and went, but De Lima’s voice and ukulele remained the foundation of the group — until now, that is. De Lima and his ukulele are nowhere to be heard on this CD single that is credited to the group and features his daughter, Kalena (aka KalenaKu).
She certainly has a fine showcase with this commercial Jawaiian-pop tune. It’s perfect for play on Hawaii’s self-styled "island music" radio stations.
The musician or musicians involved in the project are not identified, but there’s no question KalenaKu could easily have a parallel career as a solo artist.
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