Alicia plays slack key guitar and sings sixteen Hawai’ian songs and medleys, eight of which are original. Two renowned Hawaiian musicians, chanter/percussionist Lei’ohu Ryder and jazz guitarist/vocalist Sam Ahia, join her. The CD opens with the first and only Hawai’ian birthday song (an original), followed by environmental anthems, turn-of-the-century instrumentals, Waikiki lounge tunes from the 1930’s, hulas in three part harmony, homages to Hawai’ian grandmother musicians, tropical feel-good swing tunes, and odes to landscapes of overwhelming beauty. The ten-panel full-color booklet, written, illustrated and designed by Alicia, includes the complete lyrics, translations of all the Hawai’ian words, and little stories about each song that include notes on Hawai’ian history, biology, geology, and social customs.

Alicia Bay Laurel first arrived on Maui in 1969, already an accomplished open-tuned guitar player, having learned from pioneering guitar legend John Fahey, a family member, during her ‘teens. She immediately fell in love with Hawai’ian style open tuning—slack key. In 1974, she moved to Hana, Maui, where she learned to sing in Hawai’ian from Clara Kalalau Tolentino, the town kumu hula (and matriarch of a musical dynasty that includes recording artist G-girl Keli’iho’omalu), and slack key guitar from Clara’s son-in-law, Jerome Smith. Later, she studied slack key with Uncle Sol Kawaihoa, and hapa-ha’ole guitar arrangements from jazz guitar great, Sam Ahia. In January, 2000, after 16 years of performing extensively on Maui, Alicia recorded her first, all-original, solo vocal and guitar CD, Music From Living On The Earth, in the Fahey-influenced tunings of her youth. The following year she recorded a CD of original and historic Hawai’ian songs on slack key guitar with vocals, Living In Hawai’i Style, with guest artists Sam Ahia and Lei’ohu Ryder.

Lei’ohu Ryder: A spiritualist, composer, performer, and educator with roots in Hawai’ian culture, Lei’ohu raises her superb voice in song and Hawai’ian chants, which she can compose on the spot. (There’s one on the CD.) Her psychic abilities yielded the discovery of the Kukuipuka heiau (temple ruins), which she and others are restoring. Her latest CD, Lady of the Mountain, was on the Top Ten on Hawai’ian radio stations. Her web site.

Sam Ahia: Widely respected throughout the state of Hawai’i as a great jazz guitarist/vocalist, Sam has appeared on dozens of recordings, including his own, the all-original Ukumehame, and Hawai’ian Time, a collection of Hawai’ian favorites.

Listen and/or buy the CD at CDBaby.

Buy the CD directly from Alicia, so you can have it inscribed to you (or whoever). 

Reviews of Living In Hawai’i Style.

Lyrics to Living In Hawai’i Style

Tags: music hawaii aliciabaylaurel hawaiianmusic slackkeyguitar hula leiohuryder livinginhawaiistyle samahia