Aloha goes to Margaritaville!

[LikaNui]

I'm kinda surprised that nobody here has mentioned anything yet about ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro being on tour right now with The Grand Parrothead himself, Jimmy Buffett. That's just WAY kewl!
Jake's also doing some shows with Bela Fleck & The Flecktones. If you've never heard of them, you're missing some of the most amazing musicians on the planet.
Way to go, Jake!
:)

[kimo55]

I'm kinda surprised that nobody here has mentioned anything yet about ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro being on tour right now with The Grand Parrothead himself, Jimmy Buffett.

aaaah, c'mon.
Generally, jake is considered a touristy and japanese national thingy lately. he doesn't play Hawaiian music. and Buffet is known as the audio fodder/soundtrack for guys who wear starched burmuda shorts, haraches and overly pricey fake aloha shirts such as that Timmy Banana brand, created by those Gap expats.
That margaritaville junk all sounds like incidental music created for commercials.

[Menehune Man]

Jake is good and so is Jimmy. I don't have any CD's of Jake's but do of Buffet's. A long time ago I stayed in California for awhile. Our roomates were into "alternative" music and once when I played a C&K tape, a remark was made that it sounded soo commercial. I replied "By that you mean that alot of people would like it and buy their music?" :rolleyes: Hummm? I guess to each their own yeah.

[kimo55]

I played a C&K tape, a remark was made that it sounded soo commercial.



I grew up to a large degree on C&K even tho my buddy Cuz Henry ain't too much older than me.
and I suppose their music could be termed commercial, but that is a far cry from, and is in no way related to music that generally sounds as if it was created for a commercial.

[Menehune Man]

I agree Kimo that C&K music doesn't sound like it was made for a commercial, but you see to me Buffet's music doesn't either. Mother Ocean, A pirate looks at forty, Come monday, Etc. are songs that have meaning to me. C&K's You and Me is my wife and I's song. Always looking for some more good weather. But my truly favorite of their's is Sailin'. Now myself, I'm not into Jawaiian and the like, while to someone else it's their favorite, you know?

[kimo55]

I agree Kimo that C&K music doesn't sound like it was made for a commercial, but you see to me Buffet's music doesn't either.

believe me I have tried to give Jimmy Buffett's stuff a chance. But fer eg; whenever I hear that female chorus join in;
Chorus:
Cheeseburger in paradise (Pair uh DIIIICE!)
aaauuugh! So damn... well... cheezy!
sounds like a cheap pop tune. just too simple.
and it DOES sound like some theme for a small burger joint chain.

and that Southern fried accent. I'd like to throw that on the grill and forget it for a few weeks.
I mean, what does he do; watch Dukes of Hazzard on TV while he's writing these songs?
"Awn thuh thereyushowuld-uv-udveyunchoor"
"Dayown thayut Spayuneeyish haaahwayuh!"
aaarrrrrgggghhhhxxxxzzz!

and his lyrics are overly simplistic and cute, (sometimes bordering on the infantile) rhyming anything just for the sake of rhyming often. "zucchini fettuchini".
and his blatant rip of of:

"The Weather Is Here, Wish You Were Beautiful"

i mean c'mon. This ain't a song title, it's an old joke.

His "Changes in attitude" is a rip off of the old "Sonora's Death Row." listen to Leo Kottke's rendition.

How bout this:
"I like mine with lettuce and tomato
Heinz 57 and french fried potatoes
Big kosher pickle and a cold draft beer
Well good God almighty which way do I steer for my..."

I could NEVER, no matter how drunk i got, imagine myself singing that pap.
that's not poetic or evocative or inspiring.
That is a construction worker's highest level of conversation; reciting his shopping list and urges of the moment.

A web site that tries to understand the attraction of Buffet and his cult generously describes: "Jimmy Buffet's music can be best described as adult nursery rhymes celebrating drunkenness, laziness and promiscuity"
"It can aptly be categorized as yuppie muzak. The ubiquitous xylophone and maracas create a nauseating faux island music experience"
"This clown and his band are nothing more than a wedding/bar band that got lucky and found a nitch of idiots with more money that taste. The fans often refer to themselves as Parrot Heads who adorn themselves in silly straw hats, fake Hawaiian shirts, tight Khaki shorts, sandals and those sun glasses with the strings attached."


I listened to pirate at forty just now.
sounds formulaic. that b/g voices; done a thousand times before. Sounds like a template for a pop song.


and his appropriation of carribean, marimba and mexican musical elements and motifs to flavor his songs that damned near sound all the same, makes ya realize; OK, he originally composed ditties for Disney and had the flash: "Hey! I could create a cult following darn near what the grateful dead had". (or rather: "Dern neyar whaut thuh guh-rate fuwol deyad heyud".
And he did.
wow.
I give him an "E" for effort. and marketing.
But no more of my time.
OK, he makes thousands of people happy. Especially when he's in concert and ya have these swarms of yuppies in their tommy bahama fake tropical wear all singing and swaying in unison. More power to him and his cult. More CD's for all them, too. Cuz i just don't buy it.


Oh. and his margaritaville tequila features some of the most pretentious copy ever written on a label on a bottle of any kind since adam and eve.
Just a taste, so yer cranium doesn't implode:
"Where is margaritaville? It's in the tropics between the port of indescision and southwest of disorder."
jesus!
His tourist traps; "Margaritaville" are an assault to the senses.
read one review here:
http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Caribbean_and_Central_America/Jamaica/Parish_of_Saint_James/Montego_Bay-1694862/Tourist_Traps-Montego_Bay-BR-1.html

("hey. Why doesn't anyone wanna leave Margaritaville? Cuz ya haveta go through Hangovertown to do it.")

His forgettable, snore inducing sllloooowww throwaway songs shanghai your brain and force it to board the boredom boat and float to somnambulistic oblivion. The only recourse is to run screaming to any other brand of tequila but his, to wash away the K-mart level musical experience.


Other than that, I like him.

.

[Menehune Man]

That was all pretty funny and insightful too. Guess I'm just too dahrn easy to please. I fit in there somewhere. Got my deck shoes, board shorts and a Captain Bob's tank top. I used to be 1st mate aboard that tourist boat long ago. "For a three hour cruise". Thanks for the psych report. Think I got it.

[LikaNui]

Generally, jake is considered a touristy and japanese national thingy lately. he doesn't play Hawaiian music.
coffee ---> nose ---> keyboard
Say WHAT?!? Considered by whom? Jake plays lots of Hawaiian (and plays with lots of Hawaiian musicians), he just won yet another Hoku award recently, his performances in Hawaii are always sold out, and his new CD is selling great here.
Just because you don't like him sure as hell doesn't mean the whole state hates him.

[kimo55]

"Say WHAT?!? Considered by whom? "

I hear this here and there, now and then.

"Jake plays lots of Hawaiian (and plays with lots of Hawaiian musicians), "

yep. heard that. I see him occasionally at Chai's aloha tower.
But he plays modern jazz renditions.
Not "real hawaiian music"
at least that's the buzz from the purists...

"he just won yet another Hoku award recently, his performances in Hawaii are always sold out, and his new CD is selling great here."

ok. dass fine. I never refuted his popularity or sales figures.

"Just because you don't like him sure as hell doesn't mean the whole state hates him."

I don't dislike him and I never mentioned "hate".
'least I don't remember it.

[LikaNui]

That was all pretty funny and insightful too.
Well, the only insight I got from Kimo's exceptionally lengthy diatribe against Jimmy Buffett is that it seems that Kimo can't just dislike something without feeling a bizarre need to go over the top and try to destroy it.
For decades now Jimmy has consistently been in the top 10 tour money earners in the world, and his audiences constantly span three generations... all without having had a "hit" single since "Margaritaville" (except for that country duet last year).
Kimo hates Jimmy's lyrics for not being pondersouly heavy and meaningful, but with all the problems on the planet these days there's not a damned thing wrong with people wanting to forget their problems for an hour or two and simply have fun. Jimmy's record-setting success proves that.
Kimo blasted Jimmy's southern accent, although I don't know what he expected to hear from a guy born and raised in Alabama.
Kimo also repeatedly commented about "fake Hawaiian shirts"... whatever the heck that means. What would a real Hawaiian shirt be? A red-dirt shirt?
So I'll agree that Kimo's spiel was "funny", but the only thing "insightful" was that it shows once again that Kimo is hawaiithreads.com's resident curmudgeon.
:p

[kimo55]

Well, the only insight I got from Kimo's exceptionally lengthy diatribe...

Hey. the guy created a huge subworld and there's alot to say about it.

...against Jimmy Buffett is that it seems that Kimo can't just dislike something without feeling a bizarre need to go over the top and try to destroy it.

ahhh. I don't think anything was damaged, at all...

Kimo hates Jimmy's lyrics


again wit' da "hate"
i nevah wen say i hate.



Kimo blasted Jimmy's southern accent, although I don't know what he expected to hear from a guy born and raised in Alabama.

I subscribe to the old saw;
"he who expects nuthin', ain't gonna be deceived".

it's just a funny anomaly; a country western southern guy creating a whole Tropic-Rock syndrome thing. No hate involved. Just pointing out the incredible irony and I am very entertained by the incomprehensible mass appeal of it all. And the effects on the fans of the mass appeal. And I dissect it.

Some guy puts himself out there and this whole wacky subculture pops up and someone, will, and must say: "Heeeey! Now justa doggone minute!" and pour forth. He is ripe for parody and we will oblige.


Kimo also repeatedly commented about "fake Hawaiian shirts"... whatever the heck that means. What would a real Hawaiian shirt be?

They are two very distinct animals.
covered elsewhere.


So I'll agree that Kimo's spiel was "funny", but the only thing "insightful" was that it shows once again that Kimo is hawaiithreads.com's resident curmudgeon.


yea. I would never claim to offer an individual "psych report" for a fan of buffet, or even any "insight" as to why or how the fan likes Jimbo, as quickly as I am happy to be tied to the epithet; "curmudgeon". That's part of what free speech is. Offering differing perspectives in a hopefully open forum. I defend the Alabamabuffet's right to develop his cult without fear of seeing it destroyed as much as I would defend my right to try to understand it and entertain myself by commenting on it and take the chance someone will misconstrue and claim I hate it and am trying to destroy it.

[Menehune Man]

All I'll say is that it is all in the wording... on whether or not an opinion is accepted as just that.

[kimo55]

All I'll say is that it is all in the wording... on whether or not an opinion is accepted as just that.



uhh, I'd like to accept this but require more clarity:
can you reword your opinion?

[Menehune Man]

'kay den. No stay talk stink den no stink talk stay.

[kimo55]

'kay den. No stay talk stink den no stink talk stay.
hmmm... thats pretty good. I think I may take yer adv...
naaah! cain't do it.

[pzarquon]

Jake is a wonderful, right-hearted musician. He's not just incredibly talented, and a natural collaborator, but he genuinely cares about music -- creating it, and sharing it.

Sure, he has a bigger fan base in Japan than in Hawaii... heck, there are more hula halau on the Mainland than here. I'm glad for any efforts to share a touch of the islands with the world. And even though he could probably just tour around Tokyo for a few weeks and make bank for a year, he still comes home, even plays for small groups like at his alma mater, Kaimuki High, and gives his time and talents to various charity and educational events.

If Jimmy Buffet and Jake Shimabukuro were coming to town in concert, I'd go for Jake. But for all the new ears that will hear Jake's unique `ukulele stylings, I'm glad for him and his pairing with Jimmy.

So I'll agree that Kimo's spiel was "funny", but the only thing "insightful" was that it shows once again that Kimo is hawaiithreads.com's resident curmudgeon.I suppose it really isn't an official HawaiiThreads thread until Kimo's pissed all over it, but I sure wish sometimes we could have a friendly "attaboy" round without another "I'm cooler than thou" gripe. If you don't care for what's being discussed, start another thread and discuss something else.

[kimo55]

well, no one is contesting that jake is a loverlee human and he's a philantropist to a degree anyone should admire, I was offering an answer for the original query which was; Maybe the reason he hasn't been brought up on H.T. is jake and his fast kine ukulele stuffs appearing with da great peckerhead, is not really some people's cup-o-tea, at least many of the people posting in the last month...

[pzarquon]

Thanks to Aunty Maria of Mele.com (http://www.mele.com) for pointing out that Jimmy Buffett's site is offering streaming audio, so you can hear Jake playing with Jimmy at yesterday's concert in Pittsburgh at Jimmy Buffett's Radio Margaritaville (http://www.radiomargaritaville.com/).

If you're Kimo, this will sound like "mainland country western music." For everyone else, enjoy!

[LikaNui]

I am happy to be tied to the epithet; "curmudgeon".
I knew you would be, brah!
:D

[lurkah]

That talented buggah Jake embodies da meaning of da word ukulele, or dancing flea, as he becomes the dancing flea himself bouncing all ovah da stage during his performances.

Tie dat buggah down to one chair and what do you have left? A very talented flea. http://allthingshawaiian.com/lurkah/smileys/smileylaughevil.gif

His high-powered performances are fun to watch today, but let's see how much gas he's got left in 20-30 years when he begins to look like a curmudgeon. http://ohanalanai.com/lanai/images/smilies/snicker.gif
http://allthingshawaiian.com/lurkah/smileys/smileylurkahnunchuks.gif

[pzarquon]

I'm always worried about RSI. The speed with which that kid plucks and strums seems nearly supersonic. I'd hate to see the day when those complicated little muscles seize up!

[LikaNui]

he becomes the dancing flea himself bouncing all ovah da stage during his performances.
One of the first times I saw him he was doing that, then all of a sudden he sat down in a chair and played a classical Bach cantata that had half the audience in tears. WOW.
:eek:
And yesterday while listening to the live Jimmy Buffett concert broadcast I heard Jimmy introduce him and absolutely rave to the crowd about Jake's talent. Buffett said that he was really disappointed because he wanted to sign Jake to a contract but Jake already had a record label.
Then during intermission they were interviewing other members of Jimmy's Coral Reefer Band and other guest performers. One of them talked at length about the amazing rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner" that Jake had opened each show with, and referred to him as "the Jimi Hendrix of ukulele". All the other musicians said that was a perfect description.
But the best thing to come out of all this was Jimmy and the others saying they had just never realized anyone could do everything Jake does with an ukulele. In the past they'd all written an uke off as just a toy, but thanks to Jake the uke is going to get a whole helluva lot of attention now.
Attaboy, Jake!!!
:D

[kimo55]

I suppose it really isn't an official HawaiiThreads thread until Kimo's pissed all over it,

Oh, I think that is just a wee bit caustically unfair, now.

[Palolo Joe]

Not when you're making posts that call Buffett "the great peckerhead."

It would be pretty cool, I think, to see Jake do an album like Carlos Santana - get a bunch of different vocalists on the tracks, but base everything on his ukulele playing.

[pzarquon]

What synchronicity! Jake was featured yesterday (http://www.theworld.org/globalhits/2005/06/29.shtml) on National Public Radio's "The World." Click the link to hear the segment, and to read a transcript of his interview.NPR: So how open are people to that sound from the ukulele, in that context, are there purists, who say you're not making the best use of this glorious instrument?

Jake Shimabukuro: People who are hearing about my music more recently they say things like that, but people back at home in Hawaii who've known me for a long time know that I started out with a traditional Hawaiian band and so in my past I've always done traditional Hawaiian music and because they know that I've always respected the instrument and where its come from.

[LikaNui]

From Wayne Harada's column in today's Advertiser:

"The "Margaritaville" dude and the fastest 'ukulele strummer in Hawai'i have teamed up again for more concerts through August. Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band, who first encountered local boy Jake Shimabukuro in a Waikiki Shell show, have reunited for 16 concerts that started last week in Phoenix and extend over the next few months, culminating in a two-night stand in Boston."

Attaboy, Jakester!
And the link to Buffett's schedule for his Party At The End Of The World tour is at http://www.margaritaville.com/tour_dates.php .
:)

[LikaNui]

Another Jake item.
In the nationally-syndicated "Parade" magazine that came with the newspaper on Sunday, May 28, there's the "Personality Parade" section on page 2:

Q: Conan O`Brien featured a young ukulele player who knocked my socks off. Who is he? -- Janet Graham, Boston, Mass.
A: That's Jake Shimabukuro, 29, of Hawaii. "I like going for extremes, from traditional Hawaiian music to using the ukulele like a rock guitar," says Jake. A huge star in Japan, he may soon be one here too. His latest CD is the rock-oriented "Dragon."

Attaboy, Jake!
:)

[WindwardOahuRN]

Another Jake item.
In the nationally-syndicated "Parade" magazine that came with the newspaper on Sunday, May 28, there's the "Personality Parade" section on page 2:

Q: Conan O`Brien featured a young ukulele player who knocked my socks off. Who is he? -- Janet Graham, Boston, Mass.
A: That's Jake Shimabukuro, 29, of Hawaii. "I like going for extremes, from traditional Hawaiian music to using the ukulele like a rock guitar," says Jake. A huge star in Japan, he may soon be one here too. His latest CD is the rock-oriented "Dragon."

Attaboy, Jake!

Okay. I LOVE the way he plays, but am I the only one who wishes he would tone down his near-Tourette's-like gyrations just a wee bit? I find them distracting. Cringe-inducing. Great musician, agreed, but...
I agree Kimo that C&K music doesn't sound like it was made for a commercial, Heh-heh. Guess you never saw the Kuakini Hospital commercial with the C&K "Friends" music running in the background....;-D

[LikaNui]

Okay. I LOVE the way he plays, but am I the only one who wishes he would tone down his near-Tourette's-like gyrations just a wee bit? I find them distracting. Cringe-inducing. Didn't hurt Joe Cocker any. :p

[kimo55]

well, that is an RN speaking.
Looks like Tourette's! quick. fix it!