CD REVIEW
CD Review- “The Rhythm of Paradise” – Artist: Tim Coffman
Keith Haugen - Oceanic-Time Warner Columnist
Honolulu, Hawai`iThe Rhythm of Paradise, a new release from Rolltop Music, demonstrates so well a very special feeling that producer Tim Coffman has for Hawai`i and the music that is Hawai`i. It’s called "aloha."
There is a very distinctive Island feeling about the songs and the arrangements on this new Coffman CD, with a soft, sweet touch of Hawaiian steel guitar, just in case your mind wanders to other Islands. Some of the melodies have a very Hawaiian feel, while others have a fascinating fusion of Hawaiian with country or ballads. Tim clearly has mastered many different genres to come up with the songs and the sound on this new CD.
As a songwriter, musician and producer, Tim proved himself on earlier recordings of instrumental music, ranging from Vintage American and jazz to some beautiful Island songs on his “Beach & Guitar” CD in 2004. Six of the songs on this new CD have already proved themselves to an international audience, helping listeners relax and enjoy music that helps them conjure up thoughts and feelings about Hawai`i. Whether you’ve been to the Islands, or only dreamt about going, you can’t help but let your mind wander to the blue Pacific and the lush, green Hawaiian Islands as you listen to cuts like “Sunset at Waikiki” and “Ka Hula O NÄ_Niu,”(The Dance of the Palm Trees).
Many people are unaware of the presence of cowboys and ranching in Hawai`i, but Tim brings that aspect of old Hawai`i to the fore as well, with songs like “Big Island Rodeo,” “Kona Cowboys” and even “The Waikiki Two-Step”, are perfect for country music fans who dance.
As a composer, Tim Coffman, excels. He captures thoughts and feelings, surroundings and attitudes in his melodies. These are tunes you will hum to, and that will find their way back into your mind when you least expect it.
Calling this collection “The Rhythm of Paradise” is so appropriate since every cut will make you want to dance. From a slow, cheek-to-cheek dance as you cuddle on the dance floor with Fresh Roses to the definite swing that you’ll do to Honolulu City Swing, they are all written for those who love to dance. Even the wallflowers that sit on the sidelines will find themselves swaying, bobbing and weaving, their feet tapping to the Coffman melodies.
Once again, Tim has put together a group of outstanding musicians, including Greg Sardinha, Gordon Freitas, and Greg Helenihi, Hawaiian musicians whose music and styles are already well known among fans of both traditional and contemporary Hawaiian sounds.
If it is not a new genre, it certainly borders on it. Tim has created new songs within the framework of existing sounds, but in a style all his own. They will be accepted as Hawaiian by most, as a new genre by others.
If you want to spend some time conjuring up mind pictures of the Islands, of white sandy beaches, swaying palm trees, flowers, sunsets over the blue Pacific Ocean, and yes, even Hawaiian cowboys, this CD is for you. -- Keith Haugen
The Songs:Big Wave Gypsies: a today sound, a great melody with rhythm, and excellent single string guitar solo work. It sets the stage for the entire recording.
Honolulu City Swing: Now that you are in the mood, here’s one with a definite Hawaiian feel, the Hawaiian signature sound of the steel guitar, but with a real swing to it.
Waikiki Two Step: It works, like a two-step should. Close your eyes, and you can see couples doing the two-step in a very Hawaiian or even a country setting.
Cat & Mouse: Another very danceable tune, for movin’ and groovin’, or playing cat and mouse games.
Fresh Roses: As you might expect from the title, this puts you on the dance floor too, but close to someone, cuddling as the lights go down low. This is music for lovers.
Aloha Beach: The haunting sound of the steel guitar sneaks in to remind you that you are in the Islands, while the keyboard drops some light rain, the morning mist that blows from the nearby mountains to the ever-present Pacific.
Big Island Rodeo: There’s a cowboy feel to this one, as you might expect from cowboy country on the Big Island, home of Parker Ranch, the largest family owned cattle ranch in the United States. It’s a real western feel, Hawaiian style.
Kona Cowboys: Again, a blend of guitar and steel guitar give you a cowboy feel, in a very Hawaiian way. This is almost certain to be a favorite up in Waimea.
One Night in Lahaina: Strolling down the street in Lahaina town on West Maui, this one is complete with the sights and smells, the breeze and ocean, the people. You can see them all in this timeless melody.
Low Tide: Ah, the waves washing in on the shore, shades of “Hawai`i Calls” the radio program that brought the Islands surf into millions of homes all over the world over a 40-year period. Tim has not forgotten it, nor will you.
Ka Hula O NÄ_ Niu (The Dance of the Palm Trees): Close your eyes, you’ll find yourself looking up, hoping to see those swaying palm trees. A catchy melody with a definite Island feel.
Sunset at Waikiki: A fitting end to this musical journey to the Islands. The sweet sound of the Hawaiian steel guitar is chiming its way into your mind and your heart. It makes you want to come back again and again.
Keith Haugen has been a part of Hawaiian music for more than 40 years as a performer, songwriter, recording artist and producer. He is a former writer and entertainment editor at the Honolulu Star Bulletin.
With his Maui-born Hawaiian wife, he performed for more than 30 years in Waikiki and around the world. He has credits on more than 40 albums, from producer and artist to translator and editor. Together, the Haugen’s have released more than a dozen of their own recordings, mostly Hawaiian, but also including Christmas, patriotic, country, lullabies and more. They are multiple winners in both local music industry awards programs in Hawai`i.
For the past 11 years Keith has produced and hosted "The Music of Hawai`i," a popular program still heard weekly on KIPO, 89.3 FM Honolulu.
In March 2006, the Haugen’s were honored by the Music Foundation of Hawai`i as the first recipients of the Legacy Award for Lifetime Achievement as a Musical Group. Keith is currently working on a book about the history of Hawaiian music.
Keith can be reached at hakumele@aol.com.CD Review--"THE RHYTHM OF PARADISE"
Composer/Producer-Tim Coffman © 2006 Rolltop Music
Marchand Melcher--Independent Music ReviewsWhen I first heard "The Rhythm of Paradise", all I wanted to do was dance. It was hard to keep pen in hand to write this review. Coffman has created his own genre of music. An incredible mélange of different styles: continental sophistication, cowboy/western sheik, driving back beat, all wrapped up in glorious tropical trappings (sounds of the ocean, the trade winds caressing the palm fronds, that miraculous Hawaiian steel guitar) and I, for one, want to hear more and more.
Coffman has brought an international flavor to the islands, which fits because Honolulu is so very cosmopolitan. It ranks right up there with Hong Kong, Zurich, Paris, and Rome. Partnering his sophisticated, romantic, (sometimes very haunting) melodies with Hawaiian steel masters Greg Sardinha and Gary Brandin's stylings, then adding dollops of a western/cowboy feel and Duncan Moore's riveting rhythm, you have a true island sound unique to this compelling artist/producer. It is so danceable; this romantic package of gorgeous melodies, and it would make any serious European composer worth his salt extremely envious. Coffman does it all with an easy breezy manner. You don't even realize you are being transported to a wonderful state of bien etre, a place many of us have never been before.
I am a rancher's daughter and the rodeo was always the biggest event. When the cowboys came to town, everyone celebrated. Cowboys can really dance. Timing is really an integral part of their art/sport, i.e., bull riding, bronco busting, calf roping, and this shows up in their rhythm. Coffman has captured this feel and placed it in the tropics, which give the island sound a fresh new feel of “Aloha”.
Maestro Coffman's latest CD, "The Rhythm of Paradise" is a delectable, danceable, tropical experience filled with surprises that just make you happy and grateful to be able to experience it.
Track-by-Track review:
1. BIG WAVE GYPSIES: A new twist on Coffman's well-known style of mixing modern and retro surf music with Hawaiian steel. Starts off with a bang, setting the mood, rhythmically, for the whole CD. Mysterious. Pounding waves. Pounding hearts. Wonderful use of major to minor mood swings. Visualize surfers on their boards waiting to catch that perfect “Big Wave. “
2. HONOLULU CITY SWING: So danceable. I am from a rodeo town and when the cowboys came, it was the biggest event of the year. They can really two-step. Incredible how Coffman can mix city, country, and island sounds so seamlessly. I can see a dance floor, outside, Honolulu city lights in the background, palm trees swaying, surf pounding, and the cowboys really kicking up their high-heeled boots.
3. WAIKIKI TWO-STEP: Another great dance tune. The tropical cowboy is a new take on an old favorite. The fabulous steel guitar licks by the great local Hawaiian artist, Greg Sardinha, really make the cut.
4. CAT & MOUSE: A dance number with a very mysterious and playful sense of humor. At times I felt that I was again in Europe (I used to live in France) and that Inspector Clouseau was going to jump out at me any minute. I love the sound of big city sophistication so well interpreted by John Rekevics incredible sax work, the spy sound and feeling thanks to maestro Bill Haworth’s adorable ivory tickling with some well placed pauses to increase the mystery, and Coffman's interesting bass runs, reminiscent of the Stray Cats.
5. FRESH ROSES: Tim’s first four bars on the piano set the mood, then Rekevics' sax chimes in and affirms that this is a really romantic slow dance. You can't get close enough. Remember those high school dances when everything was so new and so fresh? Like that. Again, the surprising coupling of the gorgeous melody executed by Rekevics sax and Greg Sardinha's Hawaiian steel gives you goose bumps. Can't sit this one out.
6. ALOHA BEACH: Very nostalgic, very emotional. For me, the lone sax player is playing on he beach under a full moon and a blue velvet sky; the sax is crying, "come back, come back". Wonderful piano solo by Bill Haworth. My heart pounds, my stomach churns. I miss my love. I am very, very sad. Coffman's melody cuts to the quick on this one, with his brilliant changes from major to minor so strategically placed. A real tearjerker.
7. BIG ISLAND RODEO: One of my favorites. As a lyricist, I feel like begging Coffman to allow me to have my way with this up beat, fabulous song. The melody is a story in itself. A happy cowboy feel, loping along on his horse, accompanied by trade winds and lapping surf. Great guitar work by Paul Tye, Don Strandberg and Coffman. Refreshing ukulele sound. You are definitely in the islands. I loved Gary Brandin's Hawaiian steel. I am such a fan of drummer Duncan Moore. The rhythm is the main thing in this whole CD and that is why it is so danceable. You don't want it to end.
8. KONA COWBOYS: A real two-steppin' treat starring Anthony de Luz on guitar, Gary Brandin on Hawaiian steel, the great Gordon Freitas on ukulele and Coffman on bass and Rhodes. Should be a classic country hit. I see handsome cowboys in boots, silver belt buckles, and aloha shirts open in front. Again, the mixture of Hawaiian and western styles is so comforting to me. To have the power, talent and imagination to instill this feeling in people is a real gift. Nobody does this stuff better than Tim Coffman.
9. ONE NIGHT IN LAHAINA: Mysterious sounding introduction thanks to Walter Santos' percussion talent. A tropical, Latin beat sets the mood. Beautiful, haunting melody. Another story to be told. Very danceable.
10. LOW TIDE: One of my favorites. A very important song. Great surf effects. Kind of sad, just the way I like 'em. Beautiful, soulful guitar work by Anthony de Luz, low and slow. This one tugs at your heart.
11. KA HULA O NA NIU (Dance of the Palm Trees). So cool. You just have to get up and dance. Beautiful guitar work by Anthony de Luz and Beau Mac Dougal. You think the melody is predictable and then, as Coffman does so often, he surprises you and goes in a completely different direction.
12. SUNSET AT WAIKIKI; Beautiful, luscious steel slides by Greg Sardinha. You see the golden/pink sky and swaying palm trees, smell the ocean, hear the lapping waves and feel the soft trade winds caressing you all over. A deep, haunting, serious melody. I am so homesick for the islands. What am I doing in Vegas? Quick, get me to the airport.
Marchand Melcher is an international jazz singer, writer and gifted composer. She has lived and worked in Paris, Honolulu and San Diego and currently spends part of the year performing in Las Vegas. She speaks fluent French, good Spanish and some Italian and sings in all three languages.
Marchand has released three CD s of her own. "Coronado a la Francaise", "Morningstar" and "Rhythm in Love". She is currently working on a CD that includes standards by Duke Ellington and Count Basie. The new CD is scheduled for release in fall 2006. Marchand can be reached at jammusique@cs.com
