Bobby Caldwell is the Real Thing

OH...MY....GOD what a weekend we had! As I mentioned earlier, we have been wanting to see Bobby Caldwell perform in person for years...like 20+ years. We were even considering a trip to the Mainland just to see him...that is, until this stupid "economic crisis" interfered. This being "our Big Year" (Jordan 21, Len 60, me 55, plus 30 year anniversary)it was amazingly auspicious that Bobby Caldwell chose this very year to bless us with a rare Hawaii appearance. Thank you to Michael Paulo and "Smooth Jazz Nights"!!

Although, relatively speaking, Bobby isn't as widely known as he deserves to be aside from his pop hit classic "What You Won't Do For Love", he's had much success as a recording artist and songwriter and is highly respected in the music industry. I highly recommend looking up his music because as I said before, his voice is "like buttuh" and he does R & B, soul, jazz, and standards. He played Frank Sinatra in the original production of "The Rat Pack is Back" and got rave reviews.

The Smooth Jazz Nights Concert on Saturday night (March 28) was fantastic with Michael Paulo hosting and playing. Wow, he really is an exceptional saxophone player. Little wonder that he's played with so many big names (Al Jarreau being our favorite). Also appearing were Greg Adams of "Tower of Power" fame, and Pauline Wilson (from Seawind). I loved "Follow Your Road" when it was a big hit in the 70's and her performance of it on Saturday night was just as wonderful. Bobby finally came out and was every bit as fantabulous as we had expected...probably MORE so because we didn't expect to see him playing keyboards and guitar. What an amazing talent and such a seasoned entertainer. I was over the moon because unexpectedly he sang "Cry" (click here for video) which is one of my favorites. My only complaint was that his part of the show was much much too short...way way way too short (about 9 songs). HOWEVER...

After the show we went out to where I was told earlier the artists would have a meet-and-greet and patiently waited for Bobby to appear. Well Jordan Eagle Eye spotted him first and ran up to him to blurt out who-knows-what (you can never tell what she'll say!). When I joined them to greet Bobby, he told me he'd received my email that I had asked Lisa, his website manager, to forward to him. WOW!

He was so kind, and took us to the signing table where he signed Jordan's ticket (his CD's were sold out and we hadn't brought any of our own). Jordan told him her favorite song is "Real Thing" and he apologized for not singing it that night. So guess what happens next? He sang the first few lines to Jordan! Whew, a personal performance from Bobby Caldwell. Beyond our wildest dreams! I've attached a video, but it's not of the greatest quality. I suck at photography, especially when I'm in the presence of Greatness. (You can also view a video of him singing "Beyond the Sea" on my blogpost two entries down that I found on YouTube.)

"On" Kauai SIs

The other night I was watching KGMB News and Malika Dudley, during her weather report, said the dreaded "....in Kauai".

"In Maui" has been one of my pet peeves for the past few years. Because Maui is the most popular island among Mainlanders--especially celebrities--it's often mentioned in the Media. Now I guess it's because many of these people don't realize Maui is a separate ISLAND, they say "...in Maui" rather than "...on Maui". So when I heard Malika utter the dreaded "...in Kauai," I think my ears grew a few millimeters and despite becoming hard-of-hearing, I caught it.

"Oh nooooo it's HAPPENED!!! Now a HAWAII newsperson is starting the 'in' thing!!"
Later when I went back to work on the computer, I of course--nitpicker that I am-- emailed KGMB News to bitch and threaten.

Today I was surprised to receive a very nice reply from Malika, apologizing for her grammatical error. She said it just slipped out as she adlibbed. Perfectly understandable, but maybe an indication that "in Maui" is indeed permeating our subconscious. Yikes!!!

So, attention EVERYONE... beware of the "in"!! Don't let THEM overtake our "on"!! Respect our aina!!! (Ok, I'm laughing now)

And while you're at it, here's another grammar tip (my mom was an elementary school teacher, can you tell?): If you're not sure whether to say "and me" or "and I"... simply take out the other person to check. You would't say "Me went to the store." SO why say "John and me went to the store"? You wouldn't say "Mom gave I a cookie," so why say "Mom gave John and I a cookie"? See? Simple!

Consider this my good deed for the day.

BTW... my favorites for this season's AI: Adam cuz he is so awesomely entertaining and unique, Lil cuz she's a great singer, Megan cuz I love her jazzy cool voice and quirkiness (OMG I was mesmerized by her brown/turquoise dress this week!!), and Anoop cuz it's cool to see a cute Indian guy singing. I also like Matt and Kris and liked Alexis (boohoo, she's gone). Danny and Scott are ok, I wouldn't mind either of them winning. Allison reminds me too much of Kelly Clarkson. I don't like country music much so Michael doesn't interest me.

Back to work!!

What I Won't Do For Love of Bobby Caldwell

We were painting Mom's bathroom white the other day...pure drudgery because white is sooooo boring. Anyway, hubby had the jazz station on. Most jazz music bores me so I wasn't paying much attention. Suddenly he says, "Hey did they just say Bobby Caldwell is coming to Hawaii?" I said "Nah, I've been getting emails from his site. I didn't see anything like that." Well later that night I checked my email and there it was...an update from Bobby's website saying he'll be part of Michael Paulo's "Smooth Jazz Nights" at the Royal Hawaiian Theater at the end of the month. If I were you, I'd go to Tickets.com and buy some tickets.

IMHO, Bobby Caldwell's voice is "like buttah." Check him out on YouTube:


I find it amazing that Bobby C. isn't more widely known. Many people know the song "What You Won't Do For Love," which was his biggest hit, but he's written many other great songs for himself and others in the pop, jazz, and R&B genres.

I'll be at his Saturday performance with 3 other fans of his: my hub, my daughter, and my mom. This is BIG for us because we were seriously considering going to the Mainland to catch BC performing live. Thanks Bobby, for saving us some airfare!!! I wasn't looking forward to traveling to a Mainland city (unless it was Las Vegas), but hey, "Some people go around the world for love...What you won't do, do for love..."

Cheap Eats

Life is all about decisions. Deciding what to sacrifice: good cheap food or less traffic. 20 varieties of dim sum or ...does Kauai even HAVE dim sum??? The only dim sum I recall seeing is at the 7Eleven and I'm pretty sure it starts out frozen like what they sell in the grocery store. Recently I experienced yet another bittersweet discovery in Honolulu: Blazing Steaks. $6 for a steak plate: two scoops of rice, a generous tossed salad, and a mound of sliced steak done perfectly (medium rare). Six dollars?!!? I contemplated moving to Oahu. I had also had some Peach/Pear pie from Lee's Bakery in Chinatown--OMG so delicious!!

Another recommendation is Eagle Cafe on Nimitz near Costco. On a recent trip, we headed for Eagle's as soon as we left the airport. We walked into the restaurant for breakfast and met two families we knew from Kauai (who did not know each other). As we were leaving we bumped into my Oahu cousin and his wife. Wow, in a city of close to a million, what are the chances of that? I felt like we were back on Kauai. It was also a testimony for Eagle Cafe's popularity.

I guess Oahuans (is that a word?) deserve all those epicurean delights for the hours they spend sitting in their cars. Kauai people want peace and quiet and consequently have to pay for it by putting up with overpriced food. A smaller population can't support the large number of restaurants required to raise the standard of eating.

Since a move to Oahu is probably out of the question, I guess I'll simply have to continue gorging myself whenever I'm in Honolulu.