Non-Tiki Tiki Music

My Hawaii Project CD, was first released on local Hawaiian KOA label which went bankrupt in the post 9/11 tourism drought. It is about to be re-released here in Norway this late-summer (August/October, 2006) and features the members of Don Tiki. Though not hardcore tiki - it is definitely tiki-drenched and tropically-enchanted Polynesian pop. Please give it a listen and a try.

Mahalo nui loa

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000508FT/qid=1139674401/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-4706637-1736968?s=music&v=glance&n=5174

I agree with Congatiki and Tikilee about Mickey Hart and think his most "Tiki-Compatible" albums are a pair of mostly instrumental sessions fro 1976 and 1979.

1976's Diga by the Diga Rhythm Band. It's five tracks of percussive heaven are sufficiently marimba and vibe drenched to make any Lyman fan take notice. Garcia guests on two tracks and his mid-seventies obsession with mastering the pedal steel is evident in the textures he provides to this exotic must-have album.

Jordan Amarantha - congas, bongos
Peter Carmichael - tabla
Aushim Chaudhuri - tabla
Vince Delgado - dumbek, tabla, talking drum
Tor Dietrichson - tabla
Mickey Hart - traps, gongs, timbales, tympani
Zakir Hussain - tabla, folk drums, tar
Jim Loveless - marimbas
Joy Shulman - tabla
Ray Spiegel - vibes
Arshad Syed - duggi tarang, nal
Jerry Garcia - guitar (on Razooli and Happiness Is Drumming)
Jim McPherson - vocals (on Razooli)
Kathy McDonald - vocals (on Razooli)
David Freiberg - vocals (on Razooli)

On The Apocalypse Now Sessions (The Rhythm Devils Play River Music), Hart and fellow Grateful Dead drummer Bill Kreutzmann assemble a small first rate percussion ensemble to produce ten tracks of otherworldly jungle soundscapes for Francis Ford Coppola's 1979 film. "...Each musician contributed a personal selection of instruments and objects, resulting in a massive assemblage of possible sonic palettes. Instruments were arranged in sound groups, and the musicians moved among them as they watched the film being screened before them."

Mickey Hart - percussion
Bill Kreutzmann - percussion
Airto Moreira - percussion
Michael Hinton - percussion
Jim Loveless - marimba
Greg Errico - drums
Jordan Amarantha - congas
Flora Purim - vocals
Phil Lesh - bass

BTW, I just noticed you can get both titles from CDNOW for only $24.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000008GEZ/ref=m_art_li_1/002-8704037-0424019?v=glance&s=music

Just got an awesome reggae album that many have proclaimed to be reggae's only true "concept album." It's called "Flesh Of My Skin Blood Of My Blood" by 70's era dub originator Keith Hudson. When I heard the first track I had to make sure I was listening to reggae and not a random exotica track - full of waterfall sounds, even some birdcalls - really cool sounding stuff! Even though I doubt it is going to make an appearance on the Pi Yi Grotto's playlist it's "exotica-esque" reggae at its best!

Anyone browsing the bargain bins at the used CD shop might be glad they picked up this 1995 compilation of four mid seventies albums by the British duo recording as Jade Warrior. While the rest of the UK was diving headfirst into punk rock these multi-instrumentalist ethno-musicologists were combining various aspects of jazz, Latin, Asian, African, proto-ambient and percussion of the entire pacific rim to create truly colorful sub-tropical music.

I believe you will be pleasantly surprised how well it blends with any music mix incorporating vintage as well as contemporary exotica and jazz.

Todd Rundgren With a twist. His hits only bosa nova style. Great cd. Out of print, But you should be able to get it used.
Link wray
Ray Gelato
Buster poindexter
The bomboras/ Brought to you by Bob's steakhouse.

[ Edited by: tikiskip 2006-02-17 13:48 ]

King Kukulele
Los Straightjackets
The Ventures
The Goofy Feet
Reverend Horton Heat "I Can't Surf","Couch Surfing"
Yma Sumac
Psycho Beach Party movie soundtrack
The Dynotones
The Ghastly Ones
Astrud Gilberto
Hans Karl
The Bomboras

I'm sure there's more, but this is all that comes to mind right about now...damn alcohol.

[ Edited by: BryanDeanMartin 2006-02-18 02:38 ]

[ Edited by: BryanDeanMartin 2006-02-18 02:39 ]

On 2004-07-01 10:01, Satan's Sin wrote:
"Space Age Pop - Vol. 3" (RCA), subtitled "The Stereo Action Dimension!" -- various artists, including The Three Suns, Ray Martin, Bernie Greene ... and Esquivel! Need I say more?

Lately, I can't get enough of the 3 Suns stereo tour de force "Moovin' 'n' Groovin'"
Their versions of Caravan, Jungle Drums, Beyond the Sea -- WOW! Arguably the greatest use of STEREO ever recorded. I'd put it up against Pet Sounds or Sgt. Peppers anyday -- and it was recorded years before those records.

Amazing!

Being an old punk, I tire of lounge and island music pretty quickly, so I usually wake myself back up by tossing a few rockin' instrumentals into the mix:

Tribal Thunder - Dick Dale
Highly Strung - comp.
Beyond the Beach - comp.
Attack of the New Killer Surf Guitars - comp.
Shadows Are Go! - The Shadows

Anything by Los Straitjackets
Anything by Link Wray

*On 2006-02-14 10:29, johntiki wrote:*Even though I doubt it is going to make an appearance on the Pi Yi Grotto's play list it's "exotica-esque" reggae at its best!

I see you're sticking to your convictions...

On 2004-03-14 22:28, johntiki wrote:... just to let the tiki purists know...reggae music is never heard in my bar...tiki and reggae are two of my interests that never mix...

...I'd love to see (or better yet, hear) the Pi Yi Grotto play list.

I however just can't resist mixing it up with jazz, 50's-60's surf, contemporary and vintage traditional Polynesian, Jawaiian, reggae and more. Sure the pure exotica may out number other selections but as long as it can flow... its good to go!

I can't ignore that traditional Tahitian drumming segues so nicely into Dick Dale's "The Victor". And who's going to complain or even notice when that sweet cut from Arthur Lyman's Leis of Jazz blends seamlessly with Cal Tjader's "Somewhere In The Night"? And there's so many cool weirdo versions of Exotica standards to throw in there like a Jamaican Steel Band version of "Yellow Bird" from 1961 or a vintage Hawaiian Nisei version of "Ringo Oiwake". Not to mention all the amazing jazz, slack key and steel guitar players, past and present. Basically if it sounds like it came from the soundtrack to Sponge-bob or Ren & Stimpy I'll dig swigging cocktails to it!

Hey, That gives me an idea. I'm gonna start a what are you listening to thread...

Radiohead Money Mark Friends of Dean Martinez Howe Gelb B Fleischman Beach Boys Modest Mouse Ramones Sigur Ros Pixies Ween Grandaddy Specials Toots Marley Bowie Meters Elmore James James Brown Micheal J McKinley Morganfield AFX Hrvatski Bogdan Raczynski Nick Drake Satchmo Django Reinhardt Los Zafiros Herbie Hancock Zeppelin Beatles Stones Raymond Scott Devo Eno ELO Blondie Prince Joe Walsh The Cars Fleetwood Mac Harry Nilsson Jimi Kinks Nirvana Pink Floyd Queen T Rex Unicorns Astor Piazzolla Orchestra Baobab Billie Holiday Electric Music Elvis Costello Funkadelic John Zorn Lenny Kravitz Martin Denny Mazzy Star The White Stripes Scatman Crothers Cliff Edwards Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Air Bach Wendy Walter Carlos Perry n Kingsley and tehse electronic artist labels - Rephlex Tigerbeat 6 Merck Leaf Morr - any blues on Yazoo - no Who! well maybe that track from the Wes Anderson movie Rushmore but that is ALL

Tiny Tim lol

*On 2006-03-19 20:33, hodadhank wrote:*Hey, That gives me an idea. I'm gonna start a what are you listening to thread...

What, no Motley Crew?

Jeez Kooche...I didn't mean everything you ever listened to since you were in junior high school, I meant while you are on TC, right now...BTW the thread is over here...

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=18844&forum=13&hilite=shuffle

[ Edited by: hodadhank 2006-03-21 15:34 ]

Tiki non-tiki music: Maurice Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe Suite (particularly the second one). Also, Ravel's Tombeau et Couperin.

Also, J.Lo's "I'm Real," which uses a sample of Martin Denny's "Firecrackers," and a pre-release version of Mariah Carey's song "Loverboy," which according to Wikipedia also wanted to use the Denny "Firecrackers" sample but didnt. (Read more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loverboy_(song) under the sub-heading "Sampling Controversy."

-"Professah Humming Flowah" (a.k.a. WAITIKI's Randy Wong)

Someone earlier mentioned the Moon-Rays. I say definitely yes. Also, as the original question mentioned what would sound best in a bar, ANY of the Frolic Diner and Las Vegas Grind compilations...especially later in the night at the bar when things are gettin wild. Many songs have an exotic feel (see also the similar Jungle Exotica comps) but are way too sloppy and sleazy to be considered exotica. Mostly they're creepy strip music, an off-kilter instrumental hybrid of 50s-early 60s R&R, R&B and jazz. For the tiki enthusiast who just got kicked out of the tiki bar after last call and stumbled down the alley only to hear these sounds wafting, along with clouds of "reefer fumes", out of the back door of a fly-by-night recording studio...played by cats who look like Rat Finks black-sheep-of-the-family bastard cousins.

On 2006-03-19 20:33, hodadhank wrote:

...I'd love to see (or better yet, hear) the Pi Yi Grotto play list.

I'll have to put together a copy of the Grotto's playlist... It's about 60 CDs worth of music loaded into the 100 disc changer... the majority being exotica and hapa haole ripped from vinyl by myself or by other TCers. If you want to hear Jamaican/reggae music you can hear it in nearly every room in the house but it's strictly taboo in the bar... (Let me let you in on a little secret - I nearly caved to the pressure and slipped a 50's era mento CD into the mix but after much thought and deliberation I decided against it -- at least for now! :wink:)

Here is a link to a video, where the song is about Tikis, written in surf guitar style by Merrell Fankhauser (I am a huge fan and he lives in my town). Awesome song, "We Love Tikis"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKr-WKT4aiA

Love those 70s bands, Hodadhank...... Jade Warrior. Just when you think you are listing to some new age or exotic chanting, along comes some cool freak-out guitar solo. Just add Hawkwind, Can, Amon Duul (no Yes), King Crimson, etc. For something from this decade try Double Naught Spy Car. The steel and bass player you can also hear with King Kukelele and The Friki Tikis!

i think i saw some vinyl records in grannys house.

Go to Hermosarecords.com That guy has TONS of local [S.cal.]bands most people have never heard of but thier great!Its a funky lil record co. in Hermosa Beach. The guy KNOWS surf,island,loundge,wierd, music. Check out "Cliche OK" & "The Big Jerks" funny & bichen stuff you wont find ANYWHERE!

The Lion Sleeps Tonight-The Tokens
Iko Iko-The Belle Stars from the Rain Man soundtrack(the only version of this song that I really enjoy)
Kodo-The drums just sync with that exotica groove.

Interesting that you should have started this thread as I have been experimenting with music other than exotica in my home Tiki bar. I do not want to risk burning myself out on the genre altogether which may or may not be possible. I just don't want to wake up one day and start thinking that if I hear Quiet Village one more time I will have to go ona killing spree. This is more likely to happen to my wife and much sooner than I, so in defense of my precious music collection I want to be pro-active and look into what other kinds of music can "create the mood", if you will.

I have a rather voluminous music collection and here's what I have found so far to be great alternative musical programming for the Tiki bar.

#1. Cal Tjader Several Shades of Jade
I personally consider this album to be exotica but it's not really
#2. The Minstrels Every Which Way
A great Mercy Beat band from Canada tough to find look on Amazon
#3 The Barracudas Through the Mists of Time
Ass kickin British take on Surf with great lyrics!
#4 Django Reinhart anything and everything by him
What more can I say
#5 The Mermen Their entire catalog
It's Surf music that is definitely outside the box
#6 Perez Prado Havana 3am
His Magnum Opus
#7 Laika and the Cosmonauts Their entire catalog
The Eastern Bloc sound of Finland's #1 Surf Band is positively Spy - Riffic
#8 The Revells The Go Sounds of the Slots
I got the fastest little racer! Funny as shit!

Happy Listening!

T.F.

David Lindley - The 'Very Greasy' album.

this am featured the Beat Crazy cassette by Joe Jackson Band...am reading his book & re-introducing myself to his music. Surprisingly good with lotsa reggae/ska/dub touches---even though that voice of his can get a little GRINDY

Perrey and Kingsley always does the trick for me as far as non-tiki-tiki-music goes. "The In Sound From Way Out" is a nice primer for the uninitiated. I can't quite explain how but it works for me.

As far as contemporary music goes I can't recommend Twilight Circus Dub Sound System enough. Very authentic, very relaxing dub music from Ryan Moore. http://www.twilightcircus.com

not sure if anyone mentioned
Petty Booka
http://www.sister.co.jp/pettybooka/
sure like those girls alot!
Pea

I'm liking this thread. Here's one I that popped up on the old .mp3 random last night. Plenty of you have heard it and has probably been discussed elsewhere on TC:

Sun Ra: Angels & Demons at Play and The Nubians of Plutonia

Perhaps a bit more Africa than Oceania, but still creates a good jungle atmosphere. Also, it was recorded in the '50s (and 1960), which is nice.

Anyone know of another good Sun Ra album along the same vein? Every other album I've heard just sounds like chaos to me. Not that I've heard more than two or three other albums of his. Anyone have any suggestions?

So yeah, everyone on TC needs to give Angels & Demons at Play/The Nubians of Plutonia a spin. It fits right in with your Martin Denny, Les Baxter, etc.

-Joe

Far Side of the World, Christmas on Christmas Island - Jimmy Buffett
Pate Pate - Te Vaka
Anything by Oliver Mtukudze, African, but great party music. It all came from Africa anyway.

While you are waiting in line at Disneyland for the Jungle Cruise or Indiana Jones rides, you will pass rooms decked out as period safari or archeological "field" offices, just full of antique decor and artifacts, (much like a tiki bar). You will also hear tinny, early, swing-era jazz coming from radios in these life-size dioramas. The effect really transports you back in time.

I've found that a little Fats Waller or similar jazz, shuffled in with classic exotica on my sound system, really adds to the nostalgic atmosphere in my tiki bar.

Sabu

While looking for music on-line, I happened across The Kapakahi Jug Band. A group of people with diverse backgrounds came together in Hawai'i and managed to create, yep you guessed it, jug band music! Ionly mention them because their versions of Ukelele Lady and Hula Love are very well done! I found it on cdbaby.com. It's a Japanese import, but most of print is in english.

I got the "Mad Monster Party" soundtrack a couple of years ago, and this is full of a very tiki-friendly atmosphere. A couple of the tracks are heavy on bongos. Nice stuff, recommended.

going off a bit on this...the soundtrack might be good , but that MOVIE is one of the FEW movies of that kind that bored the CRAP out of our WHOLE FAMILY...I still own it because the art direction is NEAR GENIUS and that Ann Margret style puppet is UNNATURALLY HOT but...it seems to last FOREVER & I guess kids of the past had a LOT more patience than kids today--but even my wife & I couldn't take it & we LOVE the whole Rudolph/Frosty Xmas junk...

OK back on track...I think RUMBLE FISH is a good post-modern tiki style recording...Stewart Copeland did GREAT stuff as Klark Kent pre-Police and this gets back to that a bit...there! NO HIJACK

1. Ouch
   and
2. Well, you're kinda right. MMP is a slow movie. In fact, it was padded while it was being made, to make it a longer feature; so anyone who claims it is slow isn't just imagining something!

I can remember a couple of weekends when they ran it on KTLA's "Family Film Festival" and this movie used to make for some fine lethargic Saturdays, which was good back when I was, uh, not able to imbibe alcohol.

Anyway, I saw this soundtrack mentioned on another thread, and the person who posted this pointed out that you can hear samples of the soundtrack on Amazon.com...the "Jungle Madness" track is pretty nice...

[ Edited by: procinema29 2006-08-29 07:21 ]

Mondo Bongo - Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros

The theme from the TV show "Fantasy Island" is great. I also like Willie Nelson singing "Blue Hawaii"!

Here's one you can try: "The Liquidator" soundtrack by Lalo Schifrin featuring Shirley Bassey. Bondesque yet not so well known, very swanky and cocktail-oriented.

[ Edited by: procinema29 2007-01-06 15:29 ]

Try "BOOGIE ANGST" by KRAAK & SMAAK; loungey and atmospheric

On 2004-05-24 10:34, Quince_at_Dannys wrote:
My friends turned me on to a couple of Ames Brothers LPs (probably their two only really good records)--"Destination Moon" and "Hello Amigos." Destination Moon is a kitschy space-themed album with an amazing backing orchestra (Sid Rayman); Hello Amigos is all Latin standards done in Spanish with Esquivel leading the backing band. Unbelievable! And both records give me the urge to suck down Demerara Dry Floats and Never Say Dies.

Other great Non-Tiki Tiki records: Mel Torme's "Ole Torme," backed by the Billy May Orchestra; Henry Mancini's "the Blues and the Beat" and "Breakfast at Tiffany's" Soundtrack; and Ray Martin's "Witchcraft." No Tiki party would be complete without at least a some of those!

I just picked up an AMES BROTHERS album entitled THE BLEND AND THE BEAT which is quite good . Tunes like ON A LITTLE STREET IN SINGAPORE , HARBOR LIGHTS , NIGHT TRAIN and MOOD INDIGO combine swing and exotica with some tracks featuring lots of percussion like bongos , bells and bamboo sticks .

I'm really amazed not one mention has been made of Man or Astro-Man? for their awesome surf goodness. I know it's a bit "futuristic" but it's great!

What a cool abandoned thread. I came across this doing a search for Santo & Johnny's Sleepwalk.

I'm gonna add The Viscounts / Harlem Nocturne it's got a great Twang and Film Noir saxaphone, not Tiki but when you hear it you feel like you've got a murder to solve and if you did hear it in a Tiki Bar your drink wouldn't shoot out your nose.

Did someone mention saxophones ??...

A cool Non-Tiki "Tiki" instrumental first done by The Revels is "Intoxica".

I'm assuming that's where Jeff Berry got the title for one of his excellent mixology books from. (Another link in the Tiki Culture - Surf Music relationship !!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-tDkcS827U

It sounds like a bar song to me. :)

The Revels were actually Pre-Surf and many of the songs they first did went on to become Surf music standards. They were one of the forgotten bands from the early 60's but were rediscovered when their song "Commanche" was used in the soundtrack of Pulp Fiction. It's the scene where Bruce Willis is selecting his weapon of choice in the pawn shop.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IPzwiKk0BE

"Intoxica" was covered by many other First Wave Surf bands. This is what I've collected so far…

1. The Rhythm Kings
2. The Sentinals (as "Intoxico")
3. The Centurions
4. The Original Surfaris
5. The Surf Teens
6. Jim Waller & the Deltas

Wow, I’m going to make a play list with
The Revels Commanche,
Jorgen Ingmann’s Apache,
Paul Revere & The Raiders - Indian Reservation (Cherokee People)
and
Cher’s Half Breed…. :roll:

Kinda ran outta gas at the end.

Don't forget about this oh so politically incorrect (and mid-century Pop Primitivism appropriate) Disney classic...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_at9dOElQk

Also I think the Shadows were the first to cover "Apache". (And are included on "The Sound of Tiki" CD, yet another Tiki connection !!).

[ Edited by: JOHN-O 2011-01-02 19:48 ]

and I gotta put Johnny Preston's Running Bear on there too.

I JUST bought Combustible Edison's "I, Swinger" album! Really, really cool non-tiki tiki music! I can't believe I let that show at Don's go by on New Year's with out seeing them. Where has this band been?? I don't know how I missed them. Really cool spy and cocktail bachelor jazz and exotica!

Aloha, haven't been on in a while and am trying to get my sea legs back!

iTunes has Henry Mancini's Mr. Lucky, the whole album, 24 cuts for only $5.99. Thought it was worth a mention here!