THE NIGHT STUFF
Jug band steals the show at Duc's Bistro
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| Janice Hanley, left, lead singer for the Kapakahi Jug Band, guitarist Bart Potter, and Jerry Stewart, in red shirt, who plays a carpenter's saw with a cello bow, entertain the crowd at Duc's Bistro.
Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser |
Still, over the course of two hours and several courses of Duc's wonderful French- and Vietnamese-infused cuisine, the Kapakahi Jug Band offered up a wonderful soundtrack of forgotten hapa-haole and cowboy songs from the 1920s and 1930 as warm and homey as a homemade grilled cheese sandwich (heavy on the cheese, of course).
The fact that the band was at Duc's that evening seemed to be something of a surprise to owner Duc Nguyen as well.
"I'm so sorry," said Nguyen, as he led us past front-of-the-house tables crowded with 40 or 50 of the band's fans, hanging on every sonic nuance of a song I later find out is titled "Honolulu How Do You Do." "They call me and say they want to play. I let them come in."
Nguyen seated us at a table in the rear of the restaurant, just past a large hardwood bar guarded by a menacing ceiling-hung dragon, and again apologized.
"Sorry, no seats in front," Nguyen said. "They play here every three or four months, and bring in a following. Very good people."
This, of course, only made us want to sit out front even more. And we peered around the bar, fascinated whenever a kazoo, cow bell or the theremin-like sound of a musical saw temporarily overpowered multi-ranged vocalist Janice Hanley to make it to our corner of the restaurant.
During a break, Hanley, a speech pathologist by day, explained that the band performed at Duc's only when the members' busy schedules allowed. Its current lineup included contractor Jerry Stewart, woodworking artist Bart Potter, full-time musician Brien Matson, and former head of the UH Department of Art Duane Preble. The jug band has been together — in various incarnations — for about 30 years.
"Sometimes we're good, sometimes we're bad," Hanley said. "We just do this for Duc. We love Duc."
The Kapakahi Jug Band's upbeat, old-fashioned music stylings offer an ideal complement to Nguyen's comfortably welcoming environs. As cozy as it is intimate, both dining areas are awash in pink trellis-mounted backlighting and soft white light. Tables have white linen tablecloths topped with votives and tiny vases of fresh carnations.
The food and service? Excellent.
The audience was done with their dinners long before the music ended at 9:30, calling it quits only when the band did.
Got a night spot or regular club event you'd like us to check out? Reach Derek Paiva at 525-8005 or dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com.
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What: The Kapakahi Jug Band at Duc's Bistro
Where: 1188 Maunakea St., 531-6325
What: Open nightly for dinner, 5-10 p.m.; for lunch, Mondays-Fridays, 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.; entertainment, Mondays-Saturdays, 6:30-9:30 p.m.
Cover: None
Under 21 OK?: Yes
Age of crowd: Thirtysomethings to sixtysomethings
The dress code: Aloha attire
Attire we saw: On the men: dress aloha shirts/dress shirts and slacks; on the women: dresses (aloha prints and solids), blouse and pants combos
Our arrival/departure: 7:30 p.m /9:30 p.m.
What we Ate: Duc's spring rolls, stuffed with shrimp, crab, duck and mushrooms ($7.95); rack of lamb ($25.95); prawns tarragona ($24.95)
How crowded was it?: 40 to 50 people
Queue?: No
Sample music: "Peoria," "Cow Cow Boogie," "Titanic"
Dancing?: No, but owner Duc Nguyen might want to give the idea some thought when the jug band does "Scotch and Soda."
You gotta see this: Contractor-by-day Jerry Stewart and his musical saw
Tip: The Kapakahi Jug Band notifies Nguyen at least a month in advance of their intentions to do a gig at Duc's. Call him to find out the scoops. Reached earlier this week, Nguyen told us he expected the band "probably in another three to four months."
Overheard line of the night: "I could get some kind of sound out of it." — Musical saw player Stewart, when asked if he could play something on a Home Depot-bought saw.
