Reposted: This old post was certainly worth resurrecting, especially for the folks who ask me what my job was on the cruise ships. The Pride of Hawai'i was a brand new ship that barely made it a year in the islands before charting a new course to NCL's international fleet as the Jade. As part of the memory, here's a partial glimpse of the mechanics of our Hawaiian Duo -J-O-B. We introduce our guests to Hawaiian free style local jammin' and include lotsa their favorite songs that reconnect them with the good ol' days of their youth... from Don Ho, IZ and Blue Hawaiian Elvis to Bob Marley, and the Beach Boys. We made so many friends on that ship. Usually, the pool deck would be packed... folks gettin' their deep Hawaiian vacation tan while sippin' a boat drink or passing around some Coronas or Coors iced in plastic football helmets. Toward the end of our afternoon shift, a little rain chased off the over-baked sunbathers while the rest were off to dinner reservations and the show in the theatre. For a few months I was doubling as the rock guitarist in the Soul Rockin' Nites show, the wedding band guitar player for Tony & Tina's Wedding production and the solo guitarist in the lounge... not to be confused with the masterful performances of my good friend Butch O'Sullivan in the atrium and restaurant. Anyway, it was time to wind down the show and roll up the hose... when Eddie Pascua decided to whip out his little Nikon and video some of my old school guitar antics. In this video clip I fumbled through some classic chops I forgot a long time ago.. Ha ha aka aka, you can hear us laughing. We had too much fun... not only THAT day, but EVERYDAY! Aside from our goofiness in these moments, couples stopped to dance while the sheltered folks on the upper decks were quite entertained as always. I ended up with an Ibanez guitar after going thru my Godin Multiac Jazz, and a favorite Antigua Fender Telecaster, but here, my first new Schecter guitar + Digitech RP-200 pedal rig proved to have pretty good tone thanks to Eddie tweekin' the pedal to my personal preferences. From this day on the jams only get better as we keep Reeling in the Years! As we acknowledge our new friends who figure we enjoy what we do for a living... with aloha and a smiLe... I hope to be a rock star like Eddie Pascua when I grow up... That buggah is my guitar hero & tech guru. Aloha to that big ship!!
