Re: [Harp-L] Jamming etiquette

[Grant Walters <grant@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Cecilio & Kapono....Sailin"...from the night music album...

If you want to bring tears to big Hawaiian dude's eyes...just play the intro to this song......

I played with a Hawaiian Band "Nalu" when I lived on the Big Island...
They played many C&K tunes.

Hawaiian etiquette is much different that other places...
For one...the hotel gigs are sometimes handed down to the next generation...
If you have a good gig...you keep it...it is an Island ...no get no road trip bruddah...

I used to sit out on the beach at the Outrigger and watch C&K do their thing..I was to broke for the floor show..but the open air theatre allowed a great beach venue..
perfect harmonies,  Great music..they even made it to the Mainland for a time....

In Hawaii...( not Waikiki) when you have a party...you call it a luau and you don't hire a band...
People would all bring an instrument..I don't remember ever having to worry about egos...
We never played the blues much but anything you could add in was welcome..and the guys can play...Soulful Hawaiian music...(see John Cruz and Taj Mahal)

There are some great harmonica players...I have  a cousin Ryan Walters on the Big Island who plays great diatonic...we had a band with three harmonica players.  

My favorite times were the ones where the Grandfather/ (Tutu kane)  would come sing with the circle of musicians...grandma walks by and adds the harmony...
Best of all...some guy you would be intimidated by, 350 Lbs..++ would start singing the soprano harmonies...right in tune...(seen IZ)....sweeeeet.

yeah, too bad about that tourist guys "making A" as they say..my guess is Henry Kapono is used to it..what a talent.

I never asked to sit in...just enjoyed it...sounds like you did to.

I will say that one thing has always bugged me about sitting in with other groups who play a unique kind of music.
When they see the harmonica, they always want you to play some blues and break the flow of the show....
Even though they don't play blues... they will play something like steam roller blues like James Taylor....ruining the flow of the show....
I always beg the band to please just keep playing from the set list once I figure I can blend in....common ground...

One of my favorite harp players...that you never hear...Fingers Taylor...Jimmy Buffet band...Haven't heard him...exactly...
Get the Island Blend...it taste real good.

Don't play Honolulu city light...or I might start crying too.

Much aloha Bra.
Grant Walters



On Jun 1, 2010, at 10:43 PM, Richard Hunter wrote:

> I'm in Hawaii this week, and on Sunday afternoon I went to hear one of the local bands, Henry Kapono, play at Duke's in Waikiki. Very good rock/blues cover band, VERY good rhythm section (bass/drums/percussion) in particular, and a good harp player (Pat Goodrich, who played some very nice Lee Oskar-ish lines) too, which is something you don't hear often in a cover band. 
> 
> During the band's performance, a guy walked up--in the middle of a song--and asked to sit in on "Mustang Sally", which apparently is a staple in the band's repertoire. When he was turned down, he next went to ask the harp player, who turned him down again.  The guy then walked over to the bandleader, stood next to him holding a harp up in one hand and a camera in the other, and took their picture together.
> 
> This is some pretty spectacularly bad etiquette, and does not reflect well on harp players in general.  I thought I'd take the opportunity to describe a few basic principles for asking to sit in with a band (in a situation other than an open mic or jam session, of course).  
> 
> 1) Principle #1: it's their gig, not yours. Sitting in is a privilege that you earn first with your attitude and your demeanor, and it starts with respect for what they're doing. 
> 
> 2) Principle #2: You never approach the band in the middle of a set, much less in the middle of a song, to ask to sit in.  That's flagrantly disrespectful. If you're serious about sitting in, wait for the break, then make your pitch.
> 
> 3) Principle #3: Sitting in is ALWAYS about making the BAND sound good. Before you sit in, listen hard to the band, and think about how your stuff is going to add to what's going on.  If you can't think of what to play to make the band sound good, it may be a better idea to listen some more than to sit in.   
> 
> This isn't a principle, but it's good advice: when you approach the band on a break, start the conversation by showing that you were listening. Talk about something great you heard in the set--a groove, a solo, something the bass player did, whatever. If it sounded good to you, it probably sounded good to them, too, and it shows that you respected them enough to pay attention.
> 
> If you happen to be in Waikiki on any given Sunday, the Kapono band plays 4-6 at Duke's.  Worth checking out.  If you go, don't do what that other guy did. 
> 
> Regards, Richard Hunter
> 
> 
> author, "Jazz Harp" 
> latest mp3s and harmonica blog at http://myspace.com/richardhunterharp
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>