Tag Archives: Ki Ho’alu

LIVE 038 • Punahele – Ray Kane

Fingerstyle, Live, Open Tunings, Slack Keyacoustic guitar, altered tuning, Elixir HD Light, fingerstyle guitar, Fred Kelly, g wahine tuning, Hawaii, Ki Ho'alu, nanakuli, open tunings, peaceful guitar music, punahele, Ray Kane, Raymond Kane, relaxing music, rosewood taylor, Slack Key, Taylor 412ce-R, taylor grand concert, Taylor guitars, thumbpicks, tranquil song

Here is another Ray Kane cover – this time his classic song Punahele. According to the Dancing Cat liner notes, Punahele (“favorite” or “pet”) came to Ray “one night in 1938 at Zablan’s Beach in Nanakuli. ‘Back in those days there were no cars, it was pitch black. So I sit there in the dark in the nice cool breeze and I hear the waves bouncing on the sand and see the moonlight flicker on the water. It inspired me, something so nice. So mellow. That’s what gave me my inspiration.’”
Similar to other songs Ray composed on the beach (Keiki Slack Key for example), this mellow laid back songs exemplifies Ray’s nahenahe approach that to me represents the archetype of ‘old style’ slack key. Like Keiki Slack Key, Punahele is one of the first slack key songs I learned, and has stayed on my setlists ever since. I recently improvised a few new licks into the song, and recorded a half dozen takes – some 5-6 minutes long. I think this short three and a quarter minute version gets the point across though. Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor 414ce-NR (Rosewood/Spruce nylon string) and a Neumann TLM 102 microphone.

LIVE 037 • Home Abroad – Slide Guitar

Acoustic, Liveacoustic guitar, altered tunings, big island, blues slide, Elixir strings, fingerstyle guitar, Fred Kelly, Hawaii, Holualoa, kailua kona, Ki Ho'alu, kona coffee, Open D, Open E, open tunings, relaxing guitar, relaxing music, Slide Guitar, Taylor guitars, thumbpicks

From the vaults, here is a slide guitar song I wrote called Home Abroad. I used to play a fair amount of slide guitar, but I don’t play it much anymore. I figured I’d either have to go all in on the slide or not, but couldn’t just dabble with it – so I decided to work on other areas instead. This is a fun leftover from when I dabbled with it though. Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor 310ce (Elixir Polyweb 80/20 Bronze) and a matched stereo pair of Shure KSM 141 microphones in Holualoa, Hawai’i, 3/18/09.

LIVE 027 • Banyan

Acoustic, Fingerstyle, Live, Open Tunings, Slack Keyacoustic guitar, altered tuning, banyan, banyans surf spot, classical guitar, fingerstyle guitar, kailua kona, Ki Ho'alu, kona, mauna loa tuning, open tunings, relaxing music, Slack Key, taylor 414ce-NR, taylor classical guitar, taylor nylon guitar, tranquil song

Banyan (a/k/a “Banyans,” or “Banyan Tree Slack Key”) is a slack key style song I wrote about 10 or 12 years ago on nylon string guitar. I used to play my gut string ‘beach’ guitar around beaches and surf spots in Kona like Magic Sands, Banyans, and Old Airport. For one, the nylon strings aren’t as affected by the salt air, and for two, it was less expensive than my other guitar at the time, a Taylor 310ce that I didn’t want to take to the beach. So I guess this song is partially named after the surf spot, but also after some banyan trees near Magic Sands – some of which have since been cut down – or even those mystical banyan trees in general. Shortly after writing this song, I sold that nylon – an Ibanez, sort of crossover model – though I continued to rotate this and a few other related songs in and out of my set. Until recently though, it had really been a while since I played this song. Once more, owning a nylon string guitar again inspired me to go back and revisit some older material. Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor 414ce-NR (Rosewood/Spruce nylon string) and a Neumann TLM 102 microphone.)

LIVE 026 • Keiki Slack Key on Nylon String Guitar

Acoustic, Fingerstyle, Live, Open Tunings, Slack Keyacoustic guitar, altered tuning, classical guitar, fingerstyle guitar, keiki slack key, Ki Ho'alu, open G, open tunings, Ray Kane, relaxing music, Slack Key, Taro Patch, taylor 414ce-NR, taylor classical guitar, taylor nylon guitar, tranquil song

Today’s song is a cover of the Ray Kane classic “Keiki Slack Key” (not to be confused with the Sonny Chillingworth song of the same name). To me, Ray Kane is probably the best example of an ‘old style’ slack key player, and his tracks are always nahenahe. I never got to take a lesson from Ray, though I did get to speak to him and his wife Elodia on the phone once, not long before he passed – a cherished memory. Keiki Slack Key is one of the first slack key songs I transcribed, and has stayed on my setlists ever since. This arrangement was inspired by my recent purchase of a nylon string guitar; I really think this song works well on nylon for a number of reasons. Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor 414ce-NR (Rosewood/Spruce nylon string) and a Neumann TLM 102 microphone.

SLACK 110 • Intro to Sixth Shapes in Open G

Slack KeyKi Ho'alu, Major sixth, minor sixth, open G, Taro Patch

Intro to Sixth Shapes – this lesson explores Major and minor 6th shapes on the first and third strings in Open G tuning. These shapes are important building blocks for playing slack key (and other styles of guitar) in Open G. Sometimes referred to as simply “open” and “closed” shapes, they are used both to harmonize melody lines and outline chords.

SLACK 120 • Intro to Third Shapes in Open G

Slack KeyKi Ho'alu, Maj third, min third, open G, Taro Patch

This lesson explores Major and minor 3rd shapes on the first and second strings in Open G tuning. These shapes are important building blocks for playing slack key (or other styles of guitar) in Open G.

SLACK 202 • Basic Slack Key Turnaround #2

Slack KeyKi Ho'alu, open G, Slack Key Turnaround, Taro Patch

Here is a follow-up to the basic slack key turnaround #1 lesson. Here we see another common type of turnaround plus a variation that can be used over a D7-G vamp.

SLACK 231 • Descending Slack Key Turnaround #2

Slack KeyKi Ho'alu, open G, Slack Key Turnaround, Taro Patch

This is a follow-up to the taro patch runs and picking patterns in lesson SLACK 230. This run starts higher up on the neck and requires a cutaway on your guitar. If you don’t have a cutaway, you can try to come up with some of your own variations on the patterns in SLACK 230 using some of the ideas from this lesson.

SLACK 230 • Descending Slack Key Turnaround #1

Slack KeyKi Ho'alu, open G, Slack Key Turnaround, Taro Patch

This lesson shows you how to play a descending turnaround in Taro Patch (Open G) tuning. This is a very common type of turnaround in Hawaiian slack key music and also makes a good exercise for those looking to move from beginner to intermediate territory. The tip to keep your left hand stationary (or even just using open strings) while focusing on your right hand picking pattern for 5 to 10 minutes is a good thing to keep in mind if you find yourself having trouble with the run.

SLACK 201 • Basic Slack Key Turnaround #1

Slack KeyKi Ho'alu, open G, Slack Key Turnaround, Taro Patch

Here is a very common type of slack key turnaround in Taro Patch (Open G) tuning. The turnaround resolves from a D7 to a G chord and can be played in just about any song in Taro Patch tuning.

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Slack Key and Fingerstyle Guitar

Tag Archives: Ki Ho’alu

LIVE 038 • Punahele – Ray Kane

LIVE 037 • Home Abroad – Slide Guitar

LIVE 027 • Banyan

LIVE 026 • Keiki Slack Key on Nylon String Guitar

SLACK 110 • Intro to Sixth Shapes in Open G

SLACK 120 • Intro to Third Shapes in Open G

SLACK 202 • Basic Slack Key Turnaround #2

SLACK 231 • Descending Slack Key Turnaround #2

SLACK 230 • Descending Slack Key Turnaround #1

SLACK 201 • Basic Slack Key Turnaround #1