ISLAND SOUNDS
Band's spirit from the beaches

From left: "High Surf Advisory" by Kaiser's Surf Crew, KSC Records, KSCD 1029 "Silva Anniversary: 25 Years of Comedy" by Frank DeLima, Pocholinga Productions "Believe" by Believe, Hobo House on the Hill, HHHRCD 0021

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Editor

"High Surf Advisory," by Kaiser's Surf Crew: And why not a surf band, performing feel-good, make-you-smile music with a distinct island persuasion? This is the philosophy of Kaiser's Surf Crew, a beach boy band led by Troy Fernandez (yes, the same one from Ka'au Crater Boys and Palolo), who missed music when he left the ranks and comforts of a band.

Private gigs required rounding up his musician pals from the beach, and this debut CD is the result. Fernandez, who sings and plays 'ukulele, is joined by Brian "Benny" Benitez (guitar and vocals), John "Blackie" Kealoha ('ukulele, harmonica and vocals), Gabriel "Chucky" Kealoha (guitar and vocals), Darrell Aquino (bass and vocals), Rick Gilbert (drums and vocals) and Salaam Tillman (percussion).

The songs are not necessarily surf-related, and much of the repertoire is nostalgia-laced. But the spirit is right from the sandy beaches, the kind of jam beach boys engage in after they surf. And the 'uke dominates, giving the set its island stamp.

Keola Beamer's "Real Old Style" is updated with a charming posture, with opening and closing sequences that combine Hawaiian lyrics with chant, then segues into kind of folkish framework with contagious 'ukulele pluckings from start to finish, including an instrumental interlude, enabling a new generation of listeners to savor a true classic.

Covers range from "Driving My Life Away" to "Southern Style," from "Ain't No Sunshine" to "Give a Little Love." Plus a snazzy rendering of Jimmy Cliff's "Roots Woman."

"Roots Woman" by Kaiser Surf Crew. Audio sample available in mp3 and RealAudio formats.

"Silva Anniversary, 25 Years of Comedy," by Frank DeLima: This makeshift CD, a patchwork of the comedian's best-known works over his first quarter century of making audiences laugh, was released in lean times. There's no cover, front or back. No liner notes. No spine with catalogue number. Rather looks like a demo disc, but that was DeLima's intent: No money means no frills.

For those who savor only the disc, this is fine. For those who want to know vintage or credits on the disc, this is a problem. Perhaps, with his reinvigorated "Noodle Shop Days" show now at the Palace showroom, DeLima might consider putting on a dress (on the CD, silly) to legitimize this keepsake.

A lot of the earlier nonsense is here: "Filipino Purple Danube," "Glen Miyashiro," "Don't Sneeze When You Eat Saimin" and "Slant Eyes."

More recent parodies such as "Bishop Estate Trustee" and "Smashing Da Cock-a-Roach-a" give the CD a bit of currency.

The disc is as much an achievement to DeLima, for surviving 25 years in a tough business as it is for his writers, Patrick Downes, the late Tremaine Tamayose and Michael Ching.

"Smashing Da Cock-a-Roach-a" by Frank Delima. Audio sample available in mp3 and RealAudio formats.

"Believe," by Believe: Believe is a hip trio composed of Malama Puhi, Rayna K. Kong and Abby Vasconcellos; its contemporary musical framework to express its faith in and philosophy of life should bring recognition and success.

With the production savvy of Hobo House on the Hill, the group — drawing from the love of gospel, blues and even Carpenters and Supremes-type styles — serves up a sweet and earnest concoction of spirituality and even love, on such cuts as "Heaven Sent Love," "Show Me Love," "Fly Away" and "Wouldn't It Be Nice."

"Heaven Sent Love" by Believe. Audio sample available in mp3 and RealAudio formats.