Blues legend Taj Mahal returned to Kaua‘i Thursday night for a sold-out one-night musical stand at the Kauai War Memorial Convention Hall. Mahal lived on Kaua‘i for years, enjoying fishing and playing music, before relocating to New Zealand in the
Blues legend Taj Mahal returned to Kaua‘i Thursday night for a sold-out one-night musical stand at the Kauai War Memorial Convention Hall.
Mahal lived on Kaua‘i for years, enjoying fishing and playing music, before relocating to New Zealand in the 1990s.
He employs several bands for different styles of music, using up to five musicians with Kaua‘i ties in his Hula Blues Band.
Carlos Andrade plays electric guitar and provides vocals and songwriting talents; Pat Cockett plays ukulele, sings and writes songs; Pancho Graham plays stand-up bass; and Michael Barretto plays baritone ukulele and provides vocals. The group has spent summers touring Europe, headlining at “world music” festivals in Holland, Germany and other European nations.
Mahal combines his blues roots with the sweet soulful Hawaiian music of the Kaua‘i musicians, who are joined on stage and in the studio by lap steel guitarist Fred Lunt of Honolulu. Mahal brought International Messengers Band drummer Kester Smith and horn player Rudy Costa from the Mainland for the tour to join the Hawai‘i-based musicians. Kaua‘i musician Wayne Jacintho plays with the band on the group’s albums.
The band moves on to the Pipeline Café in Honolulu tonight, then to Maui and the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo. A second show is being added at Hilo after the first one sold-out.
Andrade, Cockett, Graham and Lunt also record together as the group Na Pali. Barretto has toured solo in Australia and in Europe as a singer / guitarist.
