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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, January 26, 2007

Viva la Europe

By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Local ska band Go Jimmy Go is celebrating its 10th anniversary and kicking off a European tour with a big send-off party Saturday night.

Richard Walker

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GO JIMMY GO 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY SHOW & EURO TOUR SEND-OFF PARTY

with Ooklah the Moc

10 p.m. Saturday

Hawaiian Hut

$12; for 18 and older

www.gojimmygo.com

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The guys of Go Jimmy Go write a blog online beginning Jan. 27 at http://blogs.honoluluadvertiser.com.

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Germany, break out the good lagers! Bulgaria, bring forth your best, uh, wheat products!

Go Jimmy Go is going to Europe. For its first time ever, Honolulu's venerable rootsy mixmasters of everything ska, rock-steady, reggae, soul and funk are taking the skank and how to swing it to the domain of the euro, countries of the former Eastern Bloc and the indie states once known as Yugoslavia.

The thought of bassist Cameron Wright, drummer Shon Gregory, guitarist Ian Ashley, saxophonist Eric White, trombonist Fernando Pacheco and vocalist Jason "Bison" Friedman traveling with ska legends The Toasters on a whirlwind 39-day, 39-gig, 13-country tour of Europe begged several questions. Among them, have the proper state departments and embassies been alerted?

No one official returned our calls.

So on the eve of the band's 10th anniversary show and European tour send-off party, we went to the next best source: Go Jimmy Go. In particular, White, who talked about the tour kicking off in Berlin, Germany, on Feb. 1 and a decade on and off the road with his merry band of roots adventurers.

WHOSE TOUR IS THIS ANYWAY?

The Toasters' Ska Brawl Europe 2007. Go Jimmy Go is opening for the New York City-based ska band, with whom members have shared a close camaraderie since 2003. Go Jimmy Go briefly toured with The Toasters on North American dates in 2005 and 2006.

BROTHERS, WHERE YOU BOUND?

Germany (14 dates), France (5), Switzerland (4), Austria (3), Italy (2), Holland (2), Serbia (2). And one gig each in Belgium, Slovenia, Bosnia, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Hungary and the Czech Republic. The Toasters — commemorating its 25th anniversary with this tour — wanted to take its music to countries it had never traveled. In particular, Eastern Bloc countries.

Go Jimmy Goal! "I've been trying to get us to Europe for many years," White said. "Europe and Japan have big roots scenes. We play roots-style music. Ska music is the roots of reggae. And we play rock-steady, rock-reggae and soul music."

Said Friedman: "Quite a few people have told me Go Jimmy Go would do incredible in Europe. I can't wait to see if this is actually true (but) I have a good feeling that it is."

Go Jimmy Go toured Japan solo for the first time last April. But a solo tour of Europe proved harder to plan without Go Jimmy Go assuming some heavy financial risk all on its own. That is, until The Toasters came calling.

Why Europe now? Year-round road warriors The Toasters had asked Go Jimmy Go to tour Europe with them several times. But this tour promised more bang-for-the-band's-buck than others "for the number of countries we're going to and for the number of crazy countries we're going to," White said. "There's no way we'd be going to Serbia or Bulgaria otherwise. ... If you can check some of these countries off on your 'things-to-do' list, then you've gone pretty far in life." Additionally, The Toasters organization booked all of the tour's venues and transportation.

WHY PLAY EVERY NIGHT ... FOR 39 DAYS?

In short, The Toasters don't believe in taking breaks. "I never asked them why, but I imagine it would be to maximize the time that you're on the road," White said. "You don't want time off because time is money. That means extra hotel rooms, extra per diems, extra everything."

And besides, "touring this way will definitely broaden our fan base. And it will definitely broaden our palate for good beer. We're gonna keep a beer log."

REST EASY. 39 CITIES IN 39 DAYS WON'T REALLY BE ALL THAT

bad. "What's great about Europe is that the cities on the tour aren't that far apart. For the most part, drive times between cities shouldn't be more than four hours," White said. A couple of hours before or after shows will be about it for playing tourist, though. "I think the urgency of our time there is really going to make for fun times and memories. Like when we need socks. My god, where are we gonna get our socks at?"

BYE, BYE 'CREAM MACHINE.'

Go Jimmy Go will leave behind its much-overheating, much-breaking-down recreational vehicle previously used on Mainland tours. For the first time, the band is traveling in a tour coach. The bus has a living room, a working bathroom and enough bunks for members of both bands. Ashley, who usually assumes driving duties on GJG tours because he digs it, is surrendering his post to a hired driver. "He can't read the signs in Europe, anyway," said White, laughing.

City at night. Almost everyone has a European city they're most anticipating visiting — if only briefly, and mostly post-sunset because of driving schedules. "I'm really looking forward to Prague because my favorite hockey player is from the Czech Republic," Ashley said.

Pacheco was vibing on Munich because he studied the city while taking German at the University of Hawai'i. "I think my professor would be proud," Pacheco said.

Gregory was looking forward to stopping in Ljubljana, Slovenia, and the "exotic" offerings promised by the 2005 film "Hostel." (In short: three American backpackers are promised hot, lustful women when checking into a Slovenian hostel and get bloody hell instead.)

White just wanted to touch down in the tour's first stop, Berlin. "Then I'll know the tour is for real," he said.

LIFE BEYOND EUROPE.

Work will continue on the band's fourth CD when it returns home in early March. "We're gonna settle down after Europe ... and then take those experiences into the studio," White said. "We've started work on the new album — writing and sketching out songs. But I think after we come home from Europe we're going to be different people. It's gonna change us for sure. Every new experience opens your eyes. And I think we're gonna have a new take on the new album." No release date has been set for the CD, and the band promised it wouldn't rush recording it.

A 10-YEAR HISTORY OF GO JIMMY GO ACCORDING TO ERIC (IN EASY-TO-ABSORB 'FLASH MEMORY' FORM):

1996 — "Suits, ties and porkpies. The old ska days." Go Jimmy Go forms in October.

1997 — Radio Free Hawaii spins. Big shows at Nimitz Hall. Dynamic Pressure arrives in town with Bison as lead singer.

1998 — Spring Ska-lebration at Andrews Amphitheater with Hepcat and Save Ferris. "Lots of house parties, and Bison joins the band."

1999 — Shon joins. First album, "Slow Time" is released.

2000 — "Welcome, Fernando! ... West Coast here we come!" First Mainland tour.

2001 — "West Coast here we come again!"

2002 — "Soul Arrival" CD release party. "Hawaiian Hut, where you at?" The boys open for sold-out No Doubt show at Blaisdell Arena.

2003 — Ska Summit in Las Vegas. "We meet the legends. ... Plan next big step."

2004 — The next big step. An open-ended U.S. tour. "We leave everything behind and charge the Mainland!"

2005 — "The Girl With The Fishbowl Eyes" is released. "We go from West to East Coast and everything in between."

2006 — "Ohayoo Gozaimasu, Go Jimmy Go!" The boys go to Japan. They tour with reggae faves John Brown's Body.

2007 — "10 years is so sweet! Prost! Europe and beyond!"

ONE WORD THAT DESCRIBES YOUR LIFE IN GO JIMMY GO OVER THE PAST DECADE.

"Spontaneous" — Fernando.

"Tasty" — Eric.

"Fulfilling" — Cameron.

"Go easy!" — Shon.

"Crazy" — Ian.

"Supercalafragilisticexpialadocious!" — Bison.

Reach Derek Paiva at dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com.