Album Notes

Jim "Kimo" West

Listener comments..

"This is one of the most beautiful albums I have. It is so relaxing after a stressful day...just gets the knots right out of my soul! I highly recommend this CD to anyone who cherishes great music."

"Think of Leo Kotke, Ry Cooder and John Fahey all rolled up into one guy. Ship him off to Hawaii for a gentle bake in the sun and surf... feed him tropical fruit drinks, invite him to luaus, let him enjoy the beauty of God's islands. You do this, and "Coconut Hat" is what you'll get back. I loved this recording... was immediately transported from the mainland back to the islands with their relaxed sense of time and nature, friendly people and a comfortable, casual lifestyle that suits me just fine."

Biographical Info...

Best known as being long-time guitarist for the world's most famous musical satirist,"Weird Al" Yankovic, Jim "Kimo" West is a talented and uniquely gifted slack key guitarist and also wears the hat of composer for film and television
and producer for independant artists.

In 1985,after a long summer on the road, he visited Hana, Maui where he first heard the lilting sound of ki ho 'alu,or "slack key" guitar. As records by Gabby Pahinui, The Sons of Hawaii and Peter Moon played on the turntable, he jammed along for fun and relaxation. Already a devotee of altered tunings, he soon started composing his own ki ho 'alu songs, bringing a unique musical perspective to one of the world's greatest acoustic guitar traditions.

His CD's "Slack Key West","Coconut Hat" and "Nurturing the Garden",a commission for the National Tropical Botanical garden on Kauai, feature new, original compositions, setting them apart in a genre that relies heavily on existing repetoire. He performs regularly at the legendary Slack Key Festivals in Hawai'i and is a recent winner of the "LA Treasures" award for his contributions to LA's world music landscape.

He still tours and records with "Weird Al" Yankovic and maintains a personal studio in Los Angeles for his music productions.