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In 1985, after a long summer on a national rock and roll tour, Jim West made his first trip to Hana, Maui and fell in love with cultural and physical landscape of Hawaii, sometimes spending a couple months a year there. It was there that he also discovered ki ho'alu or as it is more commonly called, "slack key" guitar, an old Hawaiian style of playing where the strings are loosened or "slacked" to different tunings, allowing the bass, chords and melody to be played simultaneously.
Already a devotee of playing in altered, non-standard tunings, he quickly fell in love with the gentle spirit of slack key and the great sense of discovery that comes with exploring new tunings. Records by Gabby Pahinui, Atta Isaacs,The Sons of Hawaii, The Sunday Manoa and Peter Moon played continuously on the turntable or cassette deck and Jim absorbed ki ho'alu more or less by osmosis. Jim didn't concentrate on learning the standard riffs and songs but instead, developed his own slack key vocabulary which now defines his very unique approach to this great tradition.
His first two CD's, "Slack Key West" (2005) and "Coconut Hat" (1999)are excellent examples of the tradition of slack key guitar taken to a new and unique place, while still retaining the essence of ki ho'alu. "Kimo" as he is called in Hawaii, has performed at many of the islands' legendary slack key guitar festivals as well as many concerts on the mainland, including the historic So Cal Slack Key Festival in 2008 and 2009. His playing has been featured in a number of Honda TV spots, Disney Channel movies and National Public radio. "Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar: Kimo-Style"was released in Dec of 2007 and will undoubtedly prove to be another seminal step in the ever-evolving journey of ki ho 'alu.
Released in fall of 2008, "Kimo's Hawaiian Slack Key Christmas", features slack key arrangements of classic and contemporary holiday songs and also won the Hawaii Music Award for best Seasonal recording. Kimo is also a two-time recipient of the LA Treasures Award from the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.
Between composing music for TV and film and slack key guitar playing, Jim also finds time to hone his production chops and has produced CDs for a number of independent artists. A recent project is for Los Angeles-based Hawaiian performer Kapo Ku, a talented composer of new Hawaiian language mele. "Eia Mai Ka La" was recently released by Hawaii's foremost record label, The Mountain Apple Company. He also has produced two CD's for CMH Records in Los Angeles, "Hotel Honolulu", and 'Livin's EZ-The Hawaiian Tribute to Sublime".
Kimo's most recent project is for acclaimed artist Donovan Kealoha: www.myspace.com/donovankealoha
Jims other hobbies include traveling, scuba diving, hiking, fishing, cooking and of course, playing guitar!
"Slack Key West" (CD Baby, Amazon and iTunes)
"Coconut Hat" (CD Baby, Amazon and iTunes)
"The Hawaiian Tribute to Sublime - Livin's EZ" (CMH Records, Amazon.com and iTunes)
"Hotel Honolulu - The Hawaiian Tribute to the Eagles" (Amazon.com and iTunes)
If you live in Hawai'i, you can find Kimo's CD's at the following music outlets:
Borders, Borders Express, Wal Mart or on the web at www.mele.com
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