Precision Nesting Kit

Here's Precision Drum's version of the nesting kit. Can I say cool again?

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

Nesting Kit Demo by Drummers World in New York

Here's Drummers World's version of a nesting kit. Cool!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

Nesting Penguin Setup by Jimmy Kadesch

Who's the coolest when it comes to members of a band? Many will say the drummer is the coolest. If that's the case then cool comes at a price. Ever watch what a drummer needs to bring to a gig? Here's a typical setup: 1. bass drum 2. floor tom 3. rack tom 4. snare drum. OK, you get the idea. Enter Whitney Drums. What could be cooler than a drumset that all nests inside the bass drum (except the hardware which all fits in a separate bag)? Check out the video below and watch all those drums coming out of one bass drum. Cool!!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

70's NCR VIII......3 weeks & counting down......

Here's a little Tiny TV with Robin Kimura & Candy Au counting it down to Saturday, August 14, 2010!!!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

And while we're on the subject of what's cool......

.........I love Kea Ho's quote from the August 2010 issue of Playboy where she's pictured non-nude. "Hawaiian girls are the coolest girls in the world......". "Coolest in the world". Now that's cool!!!


Don Ho’s daughter in latest issue of Playboy
July 22, 2010 by Star-Advertiser Staff
Filed under Featured, Latest News
Leave a Comment
By Gary Chun
gchun@staradvertiser.com
While Kea Ho didn’t get the centerfold, it’s the next best thing as the daughter of Don Ho has a non-nude full-page spread in the August issue of Playboy, now on newsstands.
“Hawaiian girls are the coolest girls in the world because we grew up in bikinis,” she says in a pull quote to accompany her photo.
Now based out of Los Angeles, the model-actress is the magazine’s latest Becoming Attraction. Ho is the daughter of the iconic singer and hula dancer Elizabeth Guevara. As a child, Ho sang and danced in her father’s Waikiki stage show.
Ho’s recent on-camera appearances include HBO’s “Entourage” and a small role in the upcoming Adam Sandler-Jennifer Aniston movie shot in Hawaii, “Just Go With It.”
British lad magazine Maxim recently declared her its “most international model EVER!,” due to her Hawaiian-Chinese-German-Portuguese-Spanish-Mexican-Native American-English-Czech ethnic mixture.
Her website is www.keaho.net.
Tags: don ho, kea ho, magazine, pictorial, playboy

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

John Berger - On the Scene

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, here's something from Hawaii's own John Berger as only he can do. Cool John!!!

On the Scene
For Friday, July 23, 2010

By John Berger

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Jul 23, 2010


Share
0 Comments

JOHN BERGER / JBERGER@STARADVERTISER.COM
A WONDER GIRLS NIGHT
Life imitated art as the Wonder Girls -- Sohee, left, Yenny, Sun, Yubin and Lim -- prepared for a meet-and-greet with their loyal fans before their first Hawaii concert last Friday at Pipeline Cafe. The backdrop is the cover of their American CD, “2 Different Tears,” and the Girls included all the songs from the CD and their popular Pussycat Dolls tribute, “Don’t Cha,” in their impressive concert.

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

山下達郎 "Sparkle" PrimeLoose

The Greenwood recording of Tatsuro Yamashita's "Sparkle" was done after the band had officially broken up in the early '80s and because of this the song was never actually performed anywhere by the band live. Here's a band by the name of PrimeLoose from the land of the rising sun and their live performance of Sparkle. Nice rendition of this Tatsuro Yamashita song by this band. I love the funky strumming on the Telecaster. Nice vocals by the lead vocalist, plus I really like the bright floral aloha shirt, straw hat and shorts on this cat. Cool!!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

SPARKLE-Robin Kimura 山下達郎 vs 中日ドラゴンズ

Who'd ever think that twenty plus years after Robin's recording project was completed that this song would make a come back in Japan and end up in the 21st century on YouTube. Pretty cool huh!! Sparkle!!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

Asian Blend Got to be Real 70's Reunion 8/1/09

Here's a YouTube clip courtesy of Hemingway Jasmin, keyboardist and member of bands such as Beowulf, the Mopptops, Breaking Point, Phase VII and the Krush to name a few, of Asian Blend from the 70's Nightclub Reunion VI. This clip features the vocal stylings of Hawaii divas Sunway and Annamarie Love. In addition to being great to listen to, Sunway and Annamarie are always great to watch, as they mesmerize the crowd with their unending energy and passion for what they do. Cool!!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

Asian Blend Reasons 70's Reunion Concert 8/1/09

The second to the last 70's Nightclub Reunion on Saturday, August 14, 2010 will once again feature the band Asian Blend. Since the inception of the 70's Nightclub Reunion series, Asian Blend has been a big reason for the longevity of this event. Truly one of the all-star bands in Hawaii, bandleader Mitchell Hazama brings together such talent as Mike Kennedy on drums, David Toma on guitar and vocals, David Choy on saxophone, singers like Pamela Gamboa Petersen, Sunway and Annamarie Love and of course on bass and vocals, the man who sounds as good today as he did in his heyday, Jay Molina. This is one cool band and I look forward to seeing them once again on a cool tropical night in paradise in August!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

Some Cool Advice.......

Something my good friend just emailed me. I know, this ain't about music or entertainment, but, it's some pretty cool advice that may come in useful one day.


Subject: free advice from an attorney

Not A Joke!! Even If you dislike attorneys..You will love them for
these tips.

Read this and make a copy for your files in case you need to refer to
it someday. Maybe we should all take some of his advice! A corporate
attorney sent the following out to the employees in his company:

1. Do not sign the back of your credit cards. Instead, put
'PHOTO ID REQUIRED.'

2. When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card
accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the 'For'
line. Instead, just put the last four numbers. The credit card
company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling
your check as it passes through all the check processing channels
won't have access to it.

3. Put your work phone # on your checks instead of your home phone. If
you have a PO Box use that instead of your home address. If you do not
have a PO Box, use your work address. Never have your SS# printed
on your checks. (DUH!) You can add it if it is necessary. But if you
have It printed, anyone can get it.

4. Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do
both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you
had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to
call and cancel... Keep the photocopy in a safe place.

I also carry a photocopy of my passport when I travel either here or
abroad. We've all heard horror stories about fraud that's committed on
us in stealing a Name, address, Social Security number, credit cards.

Unfortunately, I, an attorney, have first hand knowledge because my
wallet was stolen last month... Within a week, the thieves ordered an
expensive monthly cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card,
had a credit line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN
number from DMV to change my driving record information online, and
more.

But here's some critical information to limit the damage in case
this happens to you or someone you know:

5. We have been told we should cancel our credit cards immediately.
But the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers
handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them.

6. File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your
credit cards, etc., were stolen. This proves to credit providers you
were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation (if
there ever is one).

But here's what is perhaps most important of all: (I never even
thought to do this.)

7. Call the 3 national credit reporting organizations immediately
to place a fraud alert on your name and also call the Social Security
fraud line number. I had never heard of doing that until advised by a
bank that called to tell me an application for credit was made over
the internet in my name.

The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your
information was stolen, and they have to contact you by phone to
authorize new credit.

By the time I was advised to do this, almost two weeks after the
theft, all the damage had been done. There are records of all the
credit checks initiated by the thieves' purchases, none of which I
knew about before placing the alert. Since then, no additional damage
has been done, and the thieves threw my wallet away this weekend
(someone turned it in). It seems to have stopped them dead in their
tracks.

Now, here are the numbers you always need to contact about your
wallet, if it has been stolen:

1.) Equifax: 1-800-525-6285

2.) Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742

3.) Trans Union : 1-800-680 7289

4.) Social Security Administration (fraud line):
1-800-269-0271

We pass along jokes on the Internet; we pass along just about
everything.

If you are willing to pass this information along, it could really
help someone that you care about.

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

The 40th Annual Ukulele Festival

It was a beautiful day in paradise yesterday under the bandstand at Kapiolani Park in Waikiki. Cool, tropical and all kinds of music with the focus on a small four stringed instrument that originated in Portugal. It was my first ukulele festival, but the festival's 40th. Roy and Kathy Sakuma did a marvelous job of putting on this event. Ukulele players from around the world participated in what has become a huge event in Hawaii. Ukulele players, associations & groups from France, Japan, neighbor islands, California were in the house. There was no contest, no competition, just people coming together to share their love of a simple but yet beautiful instrument. And to top it all off as an added bonus, I got to see my granddaughter perform with Roy Sakuma's "My Ukulele Group", made up of more than a few of his students. Now that's pretty cool!!!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

Wonder Girls NOBODY US Debut Single HD MV

Cool!!!!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

The Wonder Girls

K Dramas, K Singers, K Boy Groups, K Girl Groups........In this global economy and world that has gotten so small with technological advances, is it any wonder that The Wonder Girls from Korea are creating such a stir. Something about The Wonder Girls gives them an edge, something that stirs up excitement. Tonight at 8 pm and tomorrow at 1 pm at the Pipeline Cafe in the heart of Kakaako on the outskirts of downtown Honolulu will find the Korean all girl group in concert. John Berger does a write up of this group below with courtesy pictures. Got a feeling that it's gonna be a very Cool Tropical evening tonight and afternoon tomorrow when The Wonder Girls from Korea take the stage!!!! Cool!!!



The Wonder Girls
The Korean girl band is in a strong position to take K-Pop into the American mainstream

By John Berger

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Jul 16, 2010


COURTESY PHOTO
The Wonder Girls.
More Photos


PREFABRICATED "boy bands" and "girl groups," you say? Record producers sorting through dozens of candidates to assemble a group that will appeal to a certain target demographic? It all started with the Monkees.

The prefab concept has been a winner many times since. The early '80s brought us the Mary Jane Girls—four women, each with a distinctly different look—assembled by Rick James. Seduction epitomized the "girl group" look of the late '80s—one Caucasian, one black and one Latina—while boy-band pioneer Maurice Starr assembled New Kids on the Block.

Since then we've seen *N Sync, O-Town, the Cheetah Girls, Eden's Crush, Danity Kane, the post-burlesque version of the Pussycat Dolls and many, many others along the way.

A local attempt in the '80s to fabricate a local version of Menudo fell flat, even though the producers had the original group to crib from, but Coconuts Musume, a locally recruited spinoff of J-Pop girl group Morning Musume built around Hawaii residents Ayaka Kimura and Mika Todd, enjoyed some success in Japan.

Fast-forward to 2010 and the story continues with the Wonder Girls, Korea's biggest contribution to the prefab genre and perhaps international pop, as well.

'THE WONDER GIRLS WITH JYP'

Where: Pipeline Cafe, 805 Pohukaina St.
When: 8 p.m. today and 1 p.m. tomorrow (doors open one hour before show time)

Cost: $32, $75 VIP; $150 "meet-and-greet" includes photo opportunity, tour gift and general admission seating. Tickets sold at Pipeline Cafe Box Office, Hawaii's Natural High, www.groovetickets.com and www.pipelinecafehawaii.com

Info: 877-714-7668 or www.pipelinecafehawaii.com

Note: People with "meet-and-greet" tickets should be there at 7 tonight, and noon tomorrow, when doors open.



WONDER GIRLS—Sun, Yenny, Sohee, Yoobin and Lim—is the creation of Korean entertainer/songwriter/producer Park Jin-Young. Also known as JYP, he is founder and head of one of the biggest entertainment companies in Korean entertainment. In a stroke of luck for many K-Pop fans, JYP is flying in to perform with them when they play their long-anticipated shows at Pipeline Cafe this weekend.
Park had been announced as the opening act for the Girls' two Honolulu concerts that were originally scheduled for last month. The shows would have been the start of the next leg of the Girls' "Wonder Girls World Tour," but the unanticipated death of Sun's father a few days before they were scheduled to arrive put everything on hold.

The Girls' management issued a statement on the group's behalf, thanking their Hawaii fans for their understanding and support, and the shows were rescheduled for this weekend.

Park, a Korean recording star in his own right, assembled the original quintet in 2007 and developed them first as a domestic Korean K-Pop act with television projects, a string of Korean hits and a memorable music video, then reached out to expatriate Korean communities. The Girls appeared as special guests when JYP played American concert dates in 2008 and again in 2009.

The Girls' next steps toward mainstream American pop stardom came last year, with the release of their first English-language record and a concert tour with the Jonas Brothers.

Less than a year later, the Wonder Girls are touring North America as headliners in their own right. YouTube clips of dates earlier this year suggest their American audience is still predominately Asian, but that could soon change: Their first English album, "2 Different Tears," has been released in conjunction with the tour, with English versions of their Korean hits "Nobody," "So Hot" and "Tell Me."

The Wonder Girls' first English single, "Nobody," charted on the Billboard Hot 100, and they seem positioned to take K-Pop into the American mainstream.

In the meantime this is probably Hawaii's only chance to catch them in a venue the size of Pipeline Cafe. Next time around, they'll probably be playing Blaisdell Arena.

The Wonder Girls were in Singapore last month and looking forward to visiting Hawaii. We reached out via e-mail and they responded collectively.

Q: What do you enjoy most about being in the group?

A: Performing together, experiencing new things and learning from each other.

Q: Is it difficult to sing in English?

A: Singing in English is pretty fine for us since we've been listening to a lot of English songs, but recording in English is kind of tough because everything has to be perfect.

Q: Is there a Korean song—a song recorded in Korean that was a hit in Korea—that you think would be a hit in the United States if you recorded it in English?

A: "I Wanna," because it's fun and fast rhyme, and also because of the '80s retro sound.

Q: Have any of you visited Hawaii before?

A: No, but we are really looking forward to going there because we've heard a lot of good things about it and also because some of our parents are going to come to our concerts there.

Q: Will you have time to do any shopping or go to the beach or go to cultural places while you are here?

A: We usually don't have time to do that when we are on tour, but hopefully we will soon!

Q: Is there any place in Hawaii—or elsewhere in the United States—you would like to visit?

A: One of the cities we would most like to go is Orlando (Fla.) because Disney World is there.

Q: Who are some of the entertainers—from Korea or from other countries—that have influenced you as a singer, dancer or entertainer?

A: Since our basic content is "retro," we've been influenced by Madonna, Stacey Q, the Supremes and most of the Motown artists.

Q: It looks like you have fun making your music videos. Do you have a favorite music video of the ones that you have made? If so, why is it your favorite?

A: When we made our "2 Different Tears" music video with special guest (Korean-American comedian) Bobby Lee, he made a lot of funny dance moves, and we had a lot of fun working with him.

Q: Do you think of yourself as a role model for your fans?

A: We don't know that we are, but it would be an absolute honor for us. We like to share a lot of feelings through our music (for our fans), just like we were influenced by others when we were children.

Q: What do you like to do when you are not performing?

A: Most of the time we try to get some rest. But since Yenny is really outgoing, she usually goes out and does something.

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

Kong Ling - More Than I Can Say 196x

It's amazing what you learn when you're not even trying to learn anything. Checking out The Fabulous Echoes on YouTube Hong Kong singer Kong Ling pops up with something from the 60s. Fast forward to the 70s and a singer by the name of Leo Sayer had a string of hits including "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" and "More Than I Can Say". "More Than I Can Say" you say? What's this Kong Ling - More Than I Can Say 196x? Could it be? Nah, merely coincidental, merely a similar title. Right. There's a saying in the bible that goes like this, "There is nothing new under the sun", and as such there's also a version of the same song from the 60s by Bobby Vee. "More Than I Can Say", Kong Ling, Leo Sayer, Bobby Vee, now that's cool!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

The Fabulous Echoes - A Little Bit Of Soap - Slide Show

As you listen to the audio of the Fabulous Echoes, stroll down memory lane with some real cool pieces of a rich history of Tony, Bert and the boys. I remember seeing some of the photos growing up many, many years ago. Too cool!!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

The Fabulous Echoes - Early History, Pt. 3 of 3

The final part of 3, The Fabulous Echoes - Early History. Really, really cool stuff !!!!!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

The Fabulous Echoes - Early History, Pt. 2 of 3

Part 2 of 3, The Fabulous Echoes, pre-Society of Seven. Cool!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

The Fabulous Echoes - Early History, Pt. 1 of 3

What a story, the beginnings of the group that Hawaii proudly calls one of its finest ever, the Society of Seven. Much thanks to JoeWuSeattleWaUSA for these cool memories!!!!!!

-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @

COVER Europa by Van de Guzman

COVER Europa by Van de Guzman

The very, very talented musician originally from Wahiawa, Hawaii, Van de Guzman and his rendition of the song Europa. Cool !!!!

Link
-posted by Cool Tropical Jazz LLC @