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It’s really too bad vintage Hawaiian music is dismissed with terms like “goofy” or “novelty.” Sol Hoopii, who made the tri-cone National guitar the instrument for Hawaiian players once he began featuring it on his 1920s Columbia recordings, found fame in southern California after stowing himself away on a ship leaving his native land. These Columbia and Brunswick sides from the late ’20s and ’30s showcase his brilliance, revealing him as a six-string master on par with Lonnie Johnson or Eddie Lang in terms of sophistication, virtuosity and variety. Whether on grin-inducing faster numbers or stuttered crooners, Hoopii’s precision attack, swooping slide and rapid staccato blasts helped land him fame in Hollywood as well as on record. A grab bag of caffeinated Hawaiian novelty tunes, jazzy downtempo cuts and the primeval origins of modern country, in the case of his “Hula Blues,” this collection is essential listening.
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