Hawaiinawa

In an interesting twist, Teresa Bright mixes Okinawan and Hawaiian music, with the artist drawn to the commonality of two island cultures that were formerly independent and taken over by larger nations. The basic form of this album involves applying Hawaiian lyrics to Okinawan folk songs (though only partially — Bright has an easy way with languages and slips from one to another fluidly and without pause), and using Hawaiian rather than Okinawan instrumentation. The result is quite nice — the songs can come across as overly sweet with her high, soft, lilting vocals, but there's also a touch of sadness in many of them: a touch that seems to pervade a lot of Okinawan music. The backing band is exceptional here — Ozzie Kotani provides an excellent slack key (though at times only as a mild accompaniment, just as a standard Western acoustic guitar might be used), and Bobby Igano provides his classic steel skills. Bright herself adds in accents with her ukulele, but it remains interesting really only when played in counterpoint against the lone Okinawan instrument here, the sanshin (not considerably different from a small shamisen). The music isn't tremendously exciting on its own, but it's a quiet and relaxing set, resulting in a cross-cultural fusion that should be of interest to many a listener.