Tag Archives: open tunings

LIVE 176 • Home Abroad (Slide Guitar, Low Reverb Mix)

Liveacoustic guitar, awake again, big island, blue sky guitar, blues guitar, Elixir Polyweb, fingerstyle guitar, guitar instrumental, Hawaii, Holualoa, kailua kona, kona coffee, ksm141, nick borho, Open D, open tunings, relaxing guitar, sapele tone, shure, Slide Guitar, taylor 310ce

Here is a remix of “Home Abroad,” a slide guitar song which was recorded as part of my Awake Again album project. While revisiting that project and remixing the album (a playlist of the full album is also available on the ‘index’ page), I had two different ideas for how I wanted to approach the mix for this song – basically a ‘wet’ mix which is featured on the remixed album, and a more ‘dry mix’ with a little less reverb that I decided to release here as a bonus track of sorts. Though the wet mix was a better fit for the album, I also like the directness of the dry mix.

LIVE 173 • Dragonfly Over Water

Liveacoustic guitar, blue sky guitar, dragonfly over water, Elixir HD Light, fingerstyle guitar, guitar instrumental, Line Audio CM4, nick borho, open tunings, peaceful guitar, relaxing guitar, sapele tone, Taylor 312ce

Similar to Sound and Solace, this improvisation was based on exploring ideas and textures, approaching familiar shapes and runs from a new angle. Here, the focus is on treble string melodies floating over a drone from some of the lower strings. Sometimes it’s important to try something a little different, to expand on familiar territory and explore new approaches, to record an improvisation and see what happens. Hope you enjoy.

LIVE 174 • Naupaka Slack Key ~ Early Take

Live, Slack Keyacoustic guitar, beach naupaka, big island, blue sky guitar, guitar instrumental, half flowers, Hawaii, hawaiian guitar, kailua kona, Kamakahonu beach, ki ho’alu, King Kamehameha Hotel, Kohala beaches, Kona beaches, Kona pier, KTA grocery, lilikoi man, Line Audio CM4, mountain naupaka, nahenahe, Naupaka, nick borho, ohana and friends, open tunings, passionfruit, peaceful guitar, relaxing guitar, sapele tone, Slack Key, Taylor 312ce, white berries

Here is an early take of Naupaka Slack Key, a song that pays tribute to ‘beach’ naupaka, a cheerful bush that can be found near many beaches in Hawai’i. While the story of separated lovers embodied in the ‘half flowers’ of beach and ‘mountain’ naupaka is poignant, I often think of the little white berries bobbing around in the water at such places as Kamakahonu beach near the King Kamehameha Hotel in Kailua-Kona where I used to swim as a keiki. Not long ago, an old friend reminded me of the ‘lilikoi man’ who used to walk by the beach there selling passionfruit from a KTA shopping bag for a quarter. As kids, we would build sand castles, explore the nearby pier, and take small fishing nets to catch little minnow-sized fish for our beach bucket filled with seawater (which we would return to the ocean not long after). Anyway, the naupaka plant was often nearby during those childhood hours (small kid time, as they say) spent at various Kona and Kohala beaches – mellow and relaxing days with ohana and friends. Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor 312ce (Sapele/Spruce, with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD gauge set) and a Line Audio CM4 small diaphragm condenser microphone.

LIVE 159 • Punahele – Ray Kane Slack Key Cover (Longer Version)

Live, Slack Keyacoustic guitar, blue sky guitar, Elixir HD Light, Fred Kelly thumbpicks, g wahine tuning, Hawaii, hawaiian guitar, ki ho’alu, nahenahe, nanakuli, Neumann TLM 102, nick borho, old style slack key, open tunings, peaceful guitar music, punahele, Ray Kane, Raymond Kane, real old style, relaxing guitar, relaxing music, Slack Key, Taylor 412ce-R, taylor grand concert, tranquil song

Here is another, slightly longer version I recorded of the classic Ray Kane slack key 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.’” Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor 412ce LTD (Rosewood/Spruce, Gotoh 510 tuners, strings are Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD gauge set) and a Neumann TLM 102 microphone.

LIVE 170 • Hualalai Sunrise (Slack Key Guitar)

Live, Slack Keyacoustic guitar instrumental, big island, blue sky guitar, Hawaii, hawaiian guitar, Holualoa, hualalai, kailua kona, ki ho’alu, kona coffee, nahenahe, nick borho, open tunings, peaceful guitar, relaxing guitar, Slack Key, taylor 414ce-NR, taylor classical guitar, taylor nylon, Telefunken M60

“Hualalai Sunrise” was inspired by the morning sunrises in Kailua-Kona on the Big Island of Hawai’i. Much of North Kona – from Kalaoa where I spent much of my early childhood to Holualoa where I later lived – can see the sun shining over the top ridges of Hualalai in the morning, bathing its warm light over the slopes from the summit to the ocean.

Recorded with a Taylor 414ce-NR (Rosewood/Spruce grand auditorium nylon string) and a Telefunken M60 small diaphragm condenser microphone.

LIVE 172 • Bron~Yr~Aur (312ce)

Classic Rock, Liveacoustic guitar, blue sky guitar, Elixir HD Light, fingerstyle guitar, guitar instrumental, Jimmy Page, Led Zeppelin, Line Audio CM4, nick borho, open C6, open tunings, peaceful guitar, Physical Graffiti, relaxing guitar, sapele tone, Taylor 312ce, Welsh Countryside

Bron-Yr-Aur is probably my favorite Led Zeppelin acoustic song. Written by Jimmy Page about a tranquil cottage in the Welsh countryside, the song is meditative and bucolic; it always puts me in a different place whenever I hear it or play it. This version was recorded on my Taylor 312ce.

Recorded with a Taylor 312ce (Sapele/Spruce, with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD gauge set) and a Line Audio CM4 small diaphragm condenser microphone.

LIVE 169 • Welsh Dragonfly (312ce)

Live, Open Tuningsacoustic guitar, blue sky guitar, dragonfly, Elixir HD Light, fingerstyle guitar, Jimmy Page, Led Zeppelin, Line Audio CM4, nick borho, open C6, open tunings, peaceful guitar, relaxing guitar, sapele tone, Taylor 312ce, taylor grand concert, wales, welsh, Welsh Countryside, welsh dragonfly

Welsh Dragonfly was born one day from ideas improvised after listing to some of Led Zeppelin’s ‘acoustic’ songs. I’ve long liked the story of Page and Plant retreating to a tranquil cottage in the Welsh countryside with acoustic guitars in tow to find inspiration in the bucolic atmosphere and write some new music. As for the ‘dragonfly’ part of the title, I’ve often been inspired by seeing dragonflies hovering around various places over the years, and indeed they’re striking creatures… I’m also a fan of Art Nouveau and reminded of the Tiffany dragonfly lamp design, a touchstone representation that stands out in my mind at the moment. Anyway, this is a song that makes me feel relaxed and peaceful when I play it. Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor 312ce (Sapele/Spruce, with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD gauge set) and a Line Audio CM4 small diaphragm condenser microphone.

LIVE 171 • Ohio River Rag (Alt Take)

Fingerstyle, Liveacoustic blues, acoustic guitar, blue sky guitar, Elixir Polyweb, fingerstyle blues, fingerstyle guitar, guitar instrumental, ksm141, nick borho, ohio river, open G, open tunings, original fingerstyle, peaceful guitar, relaxing guitar, sapele tone, shure, taylor 310ce

Here is another take of “Ohio River Rag,” which was recorded as part of my Awake Again album project. While revisiting that project and remixing the album (the full album is on this page), I came across some alternate takes of a couple of songs that I thought it would be fun to publish; this is one of those songs. The Awake Again album featured a good mix of both Hawaiian Ki Ho’alu / slack key and traditional acoustic blues influences, though I tend to think of songs like this as more of a blues number.

Recorded with a Taylor 310ce (Sapele/Spruce, Elixir Polyweb 80/20 Bronze) and a matched stereo pair of Shure KSM141 microphones in Holualoa, Hawai’i.

LIVE 165 • Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór (Taylor 312ce)

Fingerstyle, Liveacoustic guitar, blue sky guitar, celtic fingerstyle, celtic guitar, Elixir HD Light, fingerstyle guitar, Line Audio CM4, nick borho, Open D, open tunings, peaceful guitar, relaxing guitar, sapele tone, Taylor 312ce

Here is another version of my arrangement of Si Bheag, Si Mhor, composed by famous 17th century bard Turlough O’Carolan. While some of my prior recordings of this song were down tempo, this is a more up tempo version with a snappier feel. I think the song works well both ways to be honest, one of the many interesting things about it. Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor 312ce (Sapele/Spruce, with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD gauge set) and a Line Audio CM4 small diaphragm condenser microphone.

LIVE 163 • Acacia Improv (K22ce)

Liveacoustic guitar, blue sky guitar, fingerstyle guitar, Hawaii, hawaiian guitar, Hawaiian koa, ki ho’alu, koa taylor, nahenahe, Neumann TLM 103, nick borho, open G, open tunings, original fingerstyle, peaceful guitar, relaxing guitar, Slack Key, Taro Patch, taylor grand concert, Taylor k22ce

Acacia Improv is an outtake of some improvisation done one day while I was recording “Acacia Just Noticed.” That song as well as this short little improv were meant to highlight the koa guitar’s warm low-mid tone with a touch of sparkle in the treble register, to bring out the characteristic warmth and sweetness of the wood. Hope you enjoy.

Recorded with a Taylor K22ce (solid koa grand concert with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze HD gauge set) and a Neumann TLM 103 microphone.

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Slack Key and Fingerstyle Guitar

Tag Archives: open tunings

LIVE 176 • Home Abroad (Slide Guitar, Low Reverb Mix)

LIVE 173 • Dragonfly Over Water

LIVE 174 • Naupaka Slack Key ~ Early Take

LIVE 159 • Punahele – Ray Kane Slack Key Cover (Longer Version)

LIVE 170 • Hualalai Sunrise (Slack Key Guitar)

LIVE 172 • Bron~Yr~Aur (312ce)

LIVE 169 • Welsh Dragonfly (312ce)

LIVE 171 • Ohio River Rag (Alt Take)

LIVE 165 • Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór (Taylor 312ce)

LIVE 163 • Acacia Improv (K22ce)