You must admire a performer when they truly believe in the old theatrical credo, “The show must go on!” Well, when life threw Waimea musician Blayne Asing a curveball, and one of his band members couldn’t make a scheduled show in September, he could’ve canceled altogether, but, instead, he honored the date, offered a fantastic solo appearance, and vowed to return with a full band.
“Take 2,” as Asing’s Sunday Kahilu concert was billed, was a pretty powerful performance, and this time he brought along several heavy hitters to join him on stage.
The ensemble featured some of Hawaiʻi’s top musicians: Bailey Matsuda (keyboards/piano), Stephen Inglis (guitar/vocals), Asing’s regular rhythm section Richard Heirakuji on bass, and Mark Lindberg on drums.
Matsuda taught Asing music in high school and put him on the path to becoming an award-winning singer-songwriter. Matsuda would later produce and play on Asing’s second album, Molokai On My Mind.
Inglis is a Grammy-nominated musician who performed with Asing ten years ago at a small club in Waikiki. They later appeared together on the Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Festival tour.
Sunday’s concert was split into three sections. First was a country-rock collection of Asing’s familiar tunes like “Poor Man Blues” and “Waimea Cowboy.” For the second part, Asing and Inglis performed acoustic Hawaiian slack guitar songs like the lovely “Pu’uamahulu,” made famous by Gabby Pahinui. When the rest of the band returned to the stage, the music was a mix of rock, reggae, and contemporary pop.
Throughout his 90-minute show, Asing premiered several new numbers from an upcoming album with the working title Far From Town. “It’s not a conventional album as we’re not recording it in a big studio but at home, and that’s the ‘far from town’ approach,” noted Asing in our post-show interview.
“A Lovely Night For Love” is a new tune that will appear on this next album. “Big band music is a guilty pleasure of mine, and I like to write swing music that’s open and colorful,” said Asing, explaining the song’s upbeat mood.
Asing listens to 68 songs in an iTunes playlist every day in his downtime. “It’s not because that’s all that I like; it’s the sound and form that I’m chasing as far as writing and arranging music,” said Asing. “I have four favorite musicians I listen to regularly: James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Mark Knopfler, and Keb’ Mo’. My guilty pleasure? Loud, obnoxious rock music. I always wanted to be a rock ‘n’ roll guy. It all started with my first Eric Clapton album, Me and Mr. Johnson, a tribute to Delta bluesman Robert Johnson.”
Asing’s advice to aspiring musicians: “Don’t be ashamed of being vulnerable and writing your material and performing it. I may not be the best singer-songwriter or musician, but no one believes in my songs more than I do, and that’s what keeps me going and can be the first breakthrough for anyone writing songs.”
Notes & Links
Setlist
I Hear Music | One Day Soon | Poor Man Blues | She’s My Honey | So Free| Railway Stations | Waimea Cowboy | Hualalai | Puuanahulu | Kuu Pua O Ke Au Moe | Lay Your Dagger Down | Livin’ For Tomorrow | Stand Up | A Lovely Night For Love | Molokai On My Mind |
Hana ho
Sun Will Shine
Connect with Blayne Asing on Facebook
Read a 2018 concert review for John Cruz/Blayne Asing
About the author: Steve Roby is a music journalist and editor of Big Island Music Magazine.
Photos: Steve Roby