How I Got Started Playing Slack Key Guitar Part 2

Another thing that really got me going was the Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Masters CD which is still my favorite to this day. Especially when I was living in Japan, I'd listen to that CD a LOT. When I was still attending the University of Hawaii I'd visit the library and check out some of the slack key sheet music they had on hand. Also, my friend Ruth Komatsu let me borrow the Leonard Kwan book that is now unfortunately out of print although after all these years I was finally able to snag it online on Ebay! Ruth is the sister ofJoanie Komatsu, a wonderful musician who I used to always go down and watch in Waikiki. Joanie appears on the "Ki Hoalu Christmas" CD playing "Silent Night" with Ruth on recorder. Ruth was a major influence on me wanting to go into music seriously. When I told her I was thinking of studying guitar in college she told me I'd have to learn classical technique, of course I had no idea what that was. And when another friend said "You know - like Andres Segovia?" I was like, "Who??"

Ruth also let me borrow tablature copies of stuff by Ozzie Kotani and Keola Beamer and these I worked on in Japan since my work schedule really was only 4pm - 9:30pm for most of the time I was there so I had lots of time on my hands - nice eh? I remember it felt a little ironic to be learning "Koko Ni Sachi Ari" arranged for Hawaiian slack key while in Japan. Also had Beamer's "Wi-Ha", "Pua Lililehua" and "Ho'omalu Slack Key" as well as a bunch of slack key Christmas songs which I still have to this day. Only thing about Beamer's first CD is that a lot of it is duet stuff but still, what beautiful arrangements. George Kahumoku told me (I didn't realize this) that Beamer is classically trained and writes out his stuff. Can anyone verify this?

Speaking of Leonard Kwan, last summer when I was back in Hawaii I found a CD with like, 25 of his songs on there, reissued by Cord International. I didn't know that the slack key piece he played on the Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Masters CD was unusual in that I think I read once that that was the first time he'd recorded with an acoustic guitar instead of his usual electric hollow-body. Jim "Kimo" West told me that the old amps back in the day had a vibrato setting which would explain how Leonard Kwan and some other guitarists from back then got that sound on their guitar.

Anyone else think I should get a kickback from Aunty Maria at Mele.com?