Search - Don Tiki :: Skinny Dip With Don Tiki

Different Than the First

Peter N. Risser | Medina, OH USA | 08/14/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I need to disagree with a few of the posts below. Don Tiki's new effort is not that similar to their first album.
- There are far more vocal pieces on this album
- The instrumentals aren't as hot or lushWhere the first album was like Les Baxter or Martin Denny, this one is more like Don Ho (although, admittedly with one Yma Sumac-like number). This isn't a bad thing, just a different thing than I was expecting.This album is far more coolly produced as well, never reaching the true fiery energy that permeated The Forbidden Sound on tunes like Hot Like Lava, Barbi in Bali, Itchy Palms or even the luscious Maidenhair Fern.It's a good time though, and certainly better than most of the garbage being produced today. Slap it on at your next luau or barbecue, with a mai-tai in one hand and your hula honey in the other, and see if it doesn't keep the party going."

Don Tiki album captures exotic sounds, party spirit

Wayne Harada | Honolulu, HI | 02/08/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

""SKINNY DIP WITH DON TIKI," by Don Tiki, Taboo Records 8889Don Tiki is Martin Denny for the millennium, purveyors of the musical style that's come to be known as "exotica," complete with tropical percussion, mystical bird calls, demure vocals.They also call it "lounge music," and it casts its own special spell.Don Tiki is Perry Coma (keyboards), Hai Jung (bass, vocals), Noel Okimoto (mallets, drums, percussion), Carlinhos de Oliveira (Brazilian percussion), Jim Howard (flute) and Abe Lagrimas (drums). But a coterie of other musicians and singers - described as the Tiki Tribe - contribute both attitude and allure, and a party spirit prevails.Take "Primitiva," an homage to Denny, who composed it and earlier recorded it, a percussion-driven piece with Lopaka Colon's jungle-sound atmospherics (bird calls and all). "The Natives Are Restless" has marvelous vocals featuring Delmar deWilde, throbbing with the seductive syncopation of the genre. The 'ukulele work is that of - guess! - Jake Shimabukuro of Colon.For a quiet ballad, examine "Sweet and Sour," sung by Jung, which dwells on the see-sawing flavors of love in a relationship.Exotic music has a flavor and language of its own, a blend of jungle juice with samba seasoning. It's alternately playful and romantic, haunting and mesmerizing, toe-tapping and heart-tugging. Co-producer Kit Ebersbach wrote or co-wrote most of the songs here. Part of the charm is trying to figure out who does what, because there's a whole community of stellar talent contributing roles big and small, from Teresa Bright to Emmett Yoshioka, Rachel Gonzales to Ben Vegas, Sam Ahia to Lana Warner, Salaam Tillman to Aaron Aronita. And lots more."

Don Tiki does it again with more modern Exotica

hanford_lemoore | Tiki Central, USA | 03/17/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The follow-up to Forbidden Sounds, Don Tiki's new album again combines sweeping range of exotic, mellow, upbeat, and loungy tunes, moving the art of Exotica forward into the new millennium. The album features 15 tracks, with a sound consistent with their previous release. The vocals are more native/island sounding that your typical mainland-produced track from the 60's, but here it only adds to the atmosphere. The liner notes are written by none other than Sven Kirsten, author of the Book Of Tiki. This is a disc that any Exotica collector must add to their collection. Pick this album up and listen to it, now. It's another glimpse into the almost non-existant genre of Modern Exotica."