Hawaiian Music

Mark of Irish Elk fame is listening to one of Yazoo's great Hawaiian reissues, so it is as good a time as any to tell you about one of the great musicians we saw this weekend. Saturday we went to the Sounds of Hawaii show at the Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View. Most of the music was great (except for the rock band whose best song was a mid-80's new country cover), and some of it really stood out. For instance, I still cannot get the sound of Raiatea Helm out of my head. She has one of those great, soaring pure voices with perfect phrasing and intonation. What's more, she is only 18, so she should really improve (most singers, depending on the genre, hit their prime in their late 30's), although I cannot imagine how. I have no idea how she sounds on record, so I cannot report, but if she sounds just half as good as she sounded Saturday, I would recommend her without hesitation.