The Chronicles of Hawaii’s Best

While preparing for the 70’s Nightclub Reunion V, I received a rather curious request via email from a person by the name of Tom Tourville. Tom was inquiring about a 45-rpm single that our band Greenwood, recorded in 1985. The single never became a commercial hit here in Hawaii but recently had found its “legs” some 23 years later in Japan as a resurgence of vinyl had hit the country. Being that he was attending our Reunion concert, we offered to give it to him as a gift of appreciation that someone domestically actually knew about our recording! I had no idea at the time that Tom was coming to our Reunion via his home state of Iowa! When we finally met at the Reunion, he provided me with a draft of a “project” he was working on, a book detailing the entertainment and recording history in Hawaii! At first, I wondered how someone from Iowa would ever be able to compile detailed data regarding the entertainment industry in Hawaii. However, as we began communicating and exchanging notes, it was very evident that he was an unbelievable sleuth with an incredible inner drive that is the key to success…passion.

Music has always been a common denominator to mark a given decade. There is something to the fact that you can somehow remember where you were when you heard that special song. Contemporary pop music had one of its finest and memorable moments during the 60’s & 70’s. By the time the mid 80’s rolled around, the Beatles had disbanded, Elvis had left the building forever, brass bands emerged as a dominant force, Latin rock found a strong following , R&B, Soul and Funk fused together and countless vocal bands were plentiful. As disco found its mark in the 70’s and disco dance bands emerged, other acts found it a way to rejuvenate their careers and take it to greater heights. Local musicians in Hawaii were not insulated by these various genres as they found inspiration influenced by the popular music of the day. Nightclubs were plentiful as were dance bands and for the first time, many artists were suddenly presented with an opportunity to record as a benefit from their popularity at live venues. Not to be outdone by what was popular on the national scene; local acts found their own contemporary style and sound as evident by the successes enjoyed by Cecilio & Kapono, Kalapana, Country Comfort, Olomana and many others.

The late, great Don Ho was an icon in Waikiki for many decades and was at the forefront of nationally recognized recording artists from Hawaii. However, those of us who have been in the industry have known that the abundance of talent here is enormous. Many talented local artists have never gotten the exposure or fame as some of the fore mentioned artists.

When Greenwood started out as a high school dance band, making it to the nightclub circuit let alone recording a vinyl record was something we only dared to dream about. One faithful day in 1973 an insightful friend inscribed a phrase from the Climax tune “Life and Breath” on my birthday cake. It would change my outlook on life and renewed my passion to shoot for the stars. Playing in the top nightclubs in Waikiki and eventually recording a vinyl record all became a reality.

The greatness of Tom Tourville’s book is it chronicles ALL the efforts of the many artists that performed in nightclubs locally and or were fortunate enough to eventual record an LP or 45-rpm record. Sit back, read and enjoy!

“If you believe in dreams enough, then they’ll believe in you…”

Rob Kimura