5 Hawaiian albums up for Grammy

By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Five recordings have been nominated for the first Grammy Award for best Hawaiian album of the year.

The nominees are:

• "Some Call It Aloha ... Don't Tell" by The Brothers Cazimero.

• "Amy & Willie Live" by Amy Hanaiali'i Gilliom & Willie K.

• "Cool Elevation" by Ho'okena.

• "Ke'alaokamaile" by Keali'i Reichel.

• "Slack Key Guitar, Volume 2," a multiartist compilation; Charles Michael Brotman, producer.

Those and other nominations for the 47th annual Grammy Awards were announced yesterday.

The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences created a Hawaiian music category in May after more than a decade of lobbying by state-based record labels, producers and musicians.

Ho'okena vocalist Manu Boyd was given the good news yesterday by co-workers at the Office of Hawaiian Affairs as he arrived for work.

"We are absolutely stoked about this," said Boyd. "It's been a long time in the making for Hawaiian music to be recognized in this national, and really worldwide, forum. And to have been among the first final-ballot nominees in this Best Hawaiian Music Album category is an extreme honor. We're in great company with my kumu Robert Cazimero, Roland Cazimero, and friends like Keali'i, Amy and Willie."

All five nominees in the category were by veteran acts with strong back catalogs of music and a substantial Mainland distribution and touring presence. The critically acclaimed "Slack Key Guitar, Vol. 2" includes tracks by Sonny Lim, John Cruz and John Keawe. Nearly all of the nominated recordings were also best sellers locally.

"This is an area of recognition that we in the industry have been looking for for a long time," said Hawaii Academy of Recording Arts president Alan Yamamoto, a voting member of the national recording academy. "It's taken about 10 years to get to this point. It's definitely a great moment."

Keola Donaghy, an assistant professor in Hawaiian studies at the University of Hawai'i-Hilo, voting member of the academy and webmaster of the Hawaiian music news, reviews and discussion site www.nahenahe.net, said he was satisfied with the list.

"As we were going through this process to get the Hawaiian Grammy category established, there were quite a number of local recording industry people who were pushing to water down the language requirement and make nearly every Hawai'i release eligible," said Donaghy.

"Many of us fought that. And in the end, all of the releases that made the final ballot well represent the Hawaiian music tradition, even if they are not all completely traditional Hawaiian."

The Best Hawaiian Music Album category is one of four in the Grammys' folk music field. The category was open to vocal or instrumental Hawaiian music albums containing at least 51 percent playing time of newly recorded material.

"The category is intended for recordings of a more traditional nature, but allowing contemporary recordings containing substantial traditional elements," said Grammy Awards spokeswoman Lourdes Lopez. "Hawaiian language must be used in a predominance of the vocal tracks."

Other Grammy eligibility requirements include membership by the artist or record label in the national recording academy, and general nationwide distribution of the recording. Albums released between Oct. 1, 2003, and Sept. 30, 2004, were eligible.

Final-round ballots will be mailed to the recording academy's voting members on Dec. 15. Tabulation will occur after the Jan. 12 ballot return deadline.

Awards will be handed out at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on Feb. 13.

"To be considered for this with the rest of the nominees is an honor," said Keali'i Reichel. "The award is important on many levels. It brings recognition of a different level to our islands, our culture and our people. Hawaiian music reflects us as a culture and a people. When the audience is expanded in this way, our voice becomes louder in the world."

Reach Derek Paiva at dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8005.