"Da Kine"

By Tony Solis

What do you have in your car CD player right now? What kinds of sounds represent your character? As for me, it’s simple: Island music. Hey, I’m down with Usher, Alicia Keys, Maroon 5, Jay-Z, etc. But, being brought up in Hawaii and proudly living the local lifestyle, to me, holds some individual responsibility as to what we should have as essential, in one’s musical library.

The mind-set being “local,” here is a list of the top 5 Hawaiian CD’s that one should have no matter what:

1. C&K (Cecilio & Kapono) – Elua

This CD is a must simply because of the song, “About You.” This song is, and always will be, Hawaii’s greatest love song of all time.

2. Kalapana – Kalapana

“Nightbird,” “The Hurt” and “You Make It Hard” are songs that declare, “Timelessness.” In fact, 80 percent of this album still receives airplay on local
stations. Great songwriting by Malani Bilyeau and the late Mackey Feary prove that creative minds begin within a person and are not about geography.

3. Sunday Manoa – Guava Jam

If the names Peter Moon and Robert & Roland Cazimero don’t ring a bell, then you probably don’t even know that Hawaii exists! 1969 Hawaii was not ready for such a revolutionary album. The song “Kawika,” proved that the ukulele was an instrument just as
important as any other and the arrangements on the other cuts prove innovative in any marketplace.

4. IZ – Facing Future

It’s true that this album has traveled many continents the world over and has been featured on many television commercials, television shows, blockbuster movies and has even earned
its place in history by scoring, “Gold Record” status in accordance to the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) But, if you ask any islander why this album is special, they’ll simply say, “…because IZ was special.” IZ lived, loved and sang local lifestyle.

5.  The Beamer Brothers – Honolulu City Lights

Not many can say that they don’t care for the song “Honolulu City Lights,” a song that has embedded itself into our psyches as the “Farewell Song.” Many of Hawaii’s sons and daughters leave the island every day in search of a better education, more career opportunity or just for experience sake. When you listen to the lyrical poetry of this masterpiece, you’ll see why this song epitomizes the emotional details a local person goes through as they have chosen to follow their path that draws them away from Hawaii, their home.

Tony Solis is the Host of “Eh! U Da Kine, Ah?” in its second season on OC16, an on-air personality and the producer of the Aloha Morning Show on Hawaiian 105 KINE. Tony can be reached at tony@udakinetv.com.