Post #606724 by tiki mick on Wed, Sep 14, 2011 11:02 AM

I tend to agree that any “hawaiiana” from the mid 70’s on, has little if anything to do with tiki.
But I feel that anything before that, would be tiki.
For me, “tiki” has always meant the Hawaiian and Polynesian aspect. That’s why, although I like exotica, I prefer Hapa Haole.
My first exposure to “tiki” was of course, Disneyland and the Tahitian terrace restaurant. Though this occurred in the 70’s, rock music was huge at the time…and NOT featured in the Tahitian terrace at all. No surf bands. No garage rock bands. Nothing like that.

It was indeed, the Polynesian “floor show” that I first associated with Tiki, and still do.
And of course, the Polynesian floor show is not authentic at all. It’s for entertaining haoles on the mainland or in Waikiki. Therefore, how much more tiki can it possibly be?

In my corner of the tiki universe, it is hawaiiana and polynesiana that comes first, followed by exotica and lounge culture/space age/jet age culture.
Sorry Jeff, but in my opinion, surf and garage are not even close! Neither is low-brow art or hot-rod/kustom car culture. To me, those are all part of something else: Rock and roll.

I would agree that most modern Hawaiian stuff is not tiki. Cecelio and Kapono pretty much helped destroy true tiki over there. 70’s soft rock and yacht rock is not tiki. I don’t even consider slack key to be tiki. For me, it HAS to be Hapa haole music. Whatever was playing in the background of the classic brady bunch goes to Hawaii episode is to me, Tiki.

Even exotica was not featured in fake Polynesian restaurants of the 50’s and 60’s as much as Hapa Haole was. That much, even Sven agrees on.

Flame on.