'Over the Rainbow' with Bruddah Iz

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Mountain Apple Co. photo Who's Iz? Full name: Israel Ka'ano'i Kamakawiwo'ole Born: May 20, 1959 Died: June 26, 1997, at 38 Cause of death: morbid obesity and respiratory failure Ashes scattered: July 12, 1997, off Makua Beach Musical roots: founding member (with late brother Skippy Kamakawiwo'ole), of The Makaha Sons of Ni'ihau, which became The Makaha Sons Wife: Marlene Ku'upua Ah Lo Kamakawiwo'ole Daughter: Ceslieanne Wehekealake'alekupuna "Wehi" Ah Lo Kamakawiwo'ole Little-known fact: Though associated with Makaha and Ni'ihau, he spent his early years in Kaimuki and Palolo. Hawai'i sings on screen Bruddah Iz's "Over the Rainbow" is Hawai'i's undisputed movie-music champ. Others with tune placements in recent times: Justin Young, "Sip Your Wine," in Trimark Pictures' "An Uninvited Guest" soundtrack Eric Gilliom, "Moondance" and "Beach Boys and Hula Girls," in Sony's "Tom Cats" soundtrack Mark Keali'i Ho'omalu (with the Kamehameha Schools Children's Choir), "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride" and "He Mele No Lilo," in Disney's "Lilo & Stitch" soundtrack Coming up in 2006: Songs by Dennis and David Kamakahi, for the "Lilo & Stitch II" soundtrack

Local musicians contributed to tunes on the big screen in "The Big Bounce" (above), "ER" (below) and "50 First Dates" (bottom).

Right now, the late Israel Kamakawiwo'ole has the one song that's "way up high" on the movie industry's hit list. But other local artists are getting minor attention and exposure from Hollywood movies. They, too, are hoping to break in.

Over the next few weeks, two movies shots on O'ahu — "50 First Dates" and "The Big Bounce" — will be released in local theaters. Iz's "Over the Rainbow" is featured in some way by both.

The "Dates" soundtrack features a track called "Breakfast in Bed," originally recorded by UB40 and performed by Nicole Kea, a Honolulu-born singer-actress-dancer who has Island ties — she performed with the pop group Eden's Crush as Nicole Scherzinger.

O-shen's "Throw Away the Gun," off the "Rascal in Paradise" CD, is heard briefly in a "Dates" scene filmed at the fictional Hukilau Cafe.

A Mike Kaawa tune, "My Sweet" (from his "Hawn Boy" album) also has been licensed for use.

In "Bounce," Sean Na'auao's "Li Hing Hula" is part of a musical segue, but a Ho'opii Brothers cut, "Ahulili," didn't make it into the movie.

"It's often a craps shoot," said John Iervolino of Quiet Storm Records, who pitched a few titles for "50 First Dates." "Our anthologies have brought a lot of our music (to the Mainland). But to place them ... it's a frustrating process."

Peymon Maskan, music coordinator for "The Big Bounce," said fitting music to a film is tricky stuff.

"We've been listening to a lot of nice, great Island songs," he said in a phone conversation from Los Angeles.

Na'auao, whose "Li Hing Hula" is heard over a transition scene, said Mountain Apple Co. negotiated the song deal for his "Li Hing Hula" to get a pop in "Bounce." The 34-year-old musician credits Iz for opening the door for others to get their songs exposed, too.

"When I got the call, I was totally in awe," he said. "I was really, really excited to be on the big screen; I know Israel pave the path for other young musicians, and it's definitely a plus financially, and a chance to get my other songs out there."

"I kinda was surprised, though, at the song they chose," he said, "because it's mostly sung in pidgin, it's a reggae song, and it's a happy vibe — promoting peace and love.

I guess maybe it was the sound that they liked."

The filmmakers in "Bounce" use Island musician Butch Helemano, not only for his voice but his presence. The Island reggae artist "is part of a bunch of protesters in the movie, and he does 'E Ku Mau Mau,' a protest chant, to send away the evil spirit," said Maskan.

Also in "Bounce," excerpts are heard from a vintage recording of "Kumu in a Mu'umu'u," performed by Prince Kawohi & the Lu'au Boys.

"There were other artists we loved and tried, including Kekuhi Kanahele," noted Maskan, who worked with the film's music supervisor, Dana Sano, in tweaking the right sounds for the right moments. "In the end, (Kanahele's song) did not match the song before and the song after.

"Hawai'i is a large part of the setting; getting native music made sense. We went all out, trying to get the younger players, too. We heard Pepper and went after Quadraphonics. But in end, it just didn't work. It didn't fit."

Maskan needed to reflect the fact that "Bounce" was largely filmed in Hale'iwa. The surf town plays itself in the story, based on an Elmore Leonard novel set in Michigan and moved to O'ahu's North Shore. The movie script was tweaked to capitalize on the tropical location.

"The director and producers all decided that it would be nice to have a sexy location for the picture, where the background could almost be another female lead for the movie," executive producer Zane Weiner told The Hollywood Reporter, a trade publication.

Thus, Amy Hanaiali'i Gilliom's "Hale'iwa Hula," a trademark song and her signature in her live shows, was considered for a spot in the movie, but dropped because of that intangible "fit" quotient.

"It had to do with pacing for the movie," said Maskan. "There are so many factors in making that final decision."

There's often a difference between the music featured on screen and the songs included on the movie soundtrack.

"Bounce" features Hawaiian musicians on screen in several spots, but when the soundtrack CD is released, it will be devoid of vocals and principally showcase an original instrumental score by George S. Clinton.

"Over the Rainbow" is heard in the sentimental final scene of Sony/Columbia Pictures' "50 First Dates," the Adam Sandler-Drew Barrymore comedy that opens Feb. 13, but it won't be on the official Maverick Records soundtrack CD, scheduled for release Monday.

In the early previews of Warner Bros.' "The Big Bounce," the Owen Wilson-Morgan Freeman caper premiering Friday, the same Bruddah Iz song sweetened a scene.

Because of an exclusive-use agreement with "50 First Dates," however, the melody could be used only in the trailer, not the final movie.

Still, Hawai'i's music community is bracing for action — and reaction — with the exposure.

And younger artists say Bruddah Iz's continuing success has kept the movie-music option door ajar for newer voices to be heard.

O-shen, 29, who writes his own music, hopes the placement of his "Throw Away the Gun" in "Dates," with its reggae riffs, will serve as a bridge from Hawai'i to the world and help increase his exposure.

"It's exciting to be on this big-time platform, to get in on the movie," the musician said. "Since most of my career is outside of Hawai'i, this is an important, definitely global opportunity to reach a wider audience."

Iz died June 26, 1997, at age 38. Since then, whenever "Rainbow" — his most identifying cut — is used in a movie or a TV show, it spurs in-store and online sales as fans seek out the music.

"When something like this happens, we hope for the best," said Suzi Mechler, a vice president at the Mountain Apple Co., which licenses songs by its recording artists — Bruddah Iz among them — for potential exposure to a wider audience. "You hope it's in the soundtrack, but even if it's not, it can trigger (catalog) sales."

It's happened before, so tradition is on Mountain Apple's side.

Iz's versions of "What a Wonderful World" and "Over the Rainbow" have become Hawai'i's unofficial anthems, at least by big-screen standards. Mechler won't reveal precise dollars grossed or copies sold, but it's no secret Iz's "Rainbow," with the innocent humming and plaintive 'ukulele accompaniment, is a proverbial pot of gold, the most prominent of all local tracks on the big and small screen.

Earlier, Iz's "Rainbow" was heard in Brad Pitt's "Meet Joe Black" and Sean Connery's "Finding Forrester," but "E.R." gave vigorous new life to the Kamakawiwo'ole treatment of the "Wizard of Oz" classic.

"'E.R.' made it huge for us," said Mechler. The tune was used effectively as a backdrop to the heart-wrenching demise of Dr. Greene in NBC's medical show two seasons ago. "We can't reveal numbers, but sales surged 200 percent then, and what's amazing is that they haven't stopped."

"Rainbow's" positioning in the Sandler film was partly the star's choice, Mechler said. "He had wanted to target a younger demographic, to get the kids (hooked to music)," and he knew the appeal of the Iz cut, even if it wasn't placed on the official soundtrack, which is more reggae-fied than Hawaiian-style.

In 2002, Iz became the first artist to earn gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America for his "Facing Future" CD, which sold more than 500,000 copies. It's the only release for which Mountain Apple has acknowledged its actual sales count.

In "Dates," the version heard is the stand-alone "Rainbow," originally released in "Alone in Iz World" — not the medley rendering linking up to "Wonderful World," said Mechler.

"People will search for the song, so we'll be doing a massive radio campaign nationally and work with the studio, too," Mechler said of the impending "Rainbow" exposure for Iz and his catalog.

She said there's really no formula for music placement in films. It's part chance, part luck.

"A lot of times, we'll pitch a song to a studio for a particular movie, but often they'll call and request a title or two with a certain feeling, a certain tempo. The thing is to build an awareness that there's quite a bit of music here — and available."

Reach Wayne Harada at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com, 525-8067 or fax 525-8055.