Kona Town’s Finest Music is a collaborative, independent collective of artists from different backgrounds, united to create a unique sound distinct to Kona Town, Hawaii. The collective represents the West Side of the Big Island’s Moku, or district, and includes musicians like vocalists Abe Van Meter, Makana Keana’aina, Nalu Duque and Jonah Baxter, guitarist Nui Keana’aina, keyboardist Clarence Alakoa, bassist Matthew Schwartz, and drummer Benni Duque . They perform at various venues, and their aim is to share their music and the spirit of their community with their listeners.
Doors at 5pm..show 6:30pm. Tickets are $12 in advance…$15 at the door (children 12 and under are free).
Tomi Isobe is a dynamic blues guitarist and showman who has performed for over 40 years in Tokyo, Boston, Georgia, and Hawaii. Though the blues is his first love, Tomi plays a wide variety of music, .including rock, R&B, and funk…covering artists like Santana, Stevie Wonder and Stevie Ray Vaughn, as well as blues artists like BB King, Muddy Waters and T-Bone Walker. Tomi will be joined by the Blues Dogs featuring Ashley Harding on sax, Doug Espejo on bass, and Russell Lundgren on drums.
Doors at 5pm…show 6:30pm-9:30pm. Tickets are $10 in advance…$13 at the door (children 12 and under are free).
IMMERSIVE BODY ART EXPERIENCE and ANIMAL THEME DANCE PARTY:
Saturday November 22nd
Doors at 5pm, Happy hour 5-6pm, Live Body Art by TribaLifeArt Collective starting at 5pm, DJ dance party and cat walk from 6:30pm-10pm
Tahitian dancers will kick off the evening!
Presale tickets are: $15 in advance and secures your spot to get body painted or body taped and included in the photo shoot.
Hosted by TribaLifeArt and Krissy Lee in collaboration with The Blue Dragon Tavern bring to you an Immersive, Interactive Live Body Art event with Local Kona DJ Tape-Deck for an evening of Sexy Jams and dancing, Live life drawings, painting and body art showcases, photoshoots, vendors and a happy hour with a full cocktail and mocktail bar.
Come early and fully immerse yourself!
TribaLifeArt Collective is an eclectic group of creators, entertainers and artistic rebels committed to Creating Unity Through Creative Expression. TribaLifeArt provides artistic and creative services across the Big Island including facepainting, body art, flow performers, dancers, and live painters. The Collective also hosts a variety of eclectic events that help to showcase local talent and provide spaces and outlets for co-creation for adults and kids alike.
The Pau Hana Pickers bring their special brand of Americana, folk, rock and country to the Blue Dragon for a good ole foot stompin’ time! The band features Jonathan Brooke on guitar/vocals, Jeff Quin on fiddle, and Delphina on upright bass/vocals.
Doors at 5pm…show 6:30pm-9:30pm…tickets are $10 in advance…$13 at the door (children 12 and under are free).
Pete Sawyer and The Left Hand Monkey Wrench Gang are stoked to be kicking off their Big Island Tour on Friday November 28th at The Blue Dragon Tavern and Cosmic Musiquarium with two fat sets of “all killer–no filler” Grateful Dead classics, deep cuts and unexpected gems! Doors at 5pm…Show 6:30pm. Tickets are $40 advance…$50 at the door.
Pete is bringing a stacked lineup to The Blue Dragon filled with some his favorite folks to play Dead with!
The Gang:
Mookie Siegel (Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, David Nelson)
Sean Nelson (Phil Lesh, Midnight North)
Nate LaPointe (Cubensis, Bobby Womack)
Dave Ojeda (Uncle Charlie, Bass Bias)
“Pete Sawyer & The Left Hand Monkey Wrench Gang is one of the most compelling recent entries into the world of Grateful Dead Tributes” — Nick Sestanovich, The Santa Cruz Sentina
“From the first note to the final encore, audiences can expect a night of inspired musicianship, soulful improvisation, and a musical chemistry that only forms when top-tier artists share the stage. Drawing from the deep well of classic rock, psychedelia, and the storied traditions of the Grateful Dead and other influential pioneers, Pete Sawyer and The Left Hand Monkey Wrench Gang transport listeners on a sonic journey that pays tribute to the past while forging ahead into new musical territory.” —GratefulWeb.com
Links
https://www.facebook.com/thelefthandmonkeywrenchgang/
Join Internationally renowned percussionist Gabriel Fara Tolno and his band FANYE on a musical journey that is sure to soothe the soul and make you move. Eclectic Afro jazz fusion with sweet melodics!
Doors at 5pm…show 6:30pm-9:30pm. Tickets are $15 in advance…$20 at the door (children 12 and under are free).
Join us for a very special night of story-telling and Hawaiian music with Brother Noland. Doors at 5pm…show 6pm. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door (children 12 and under are free).
Brother Noland is an impactful player in Hawaiʻi’s music scene and one of Hawaiʻi’s most respected artists. He is a storyteller at heart and music is how he shares his stories. Music is a portal – sounds, melody and lyrics can transport you back in time, connect you to a familiar feeling, or inspire you in the moment. Seeing him live on stage, you will step into an experience and embark on a journey to what he calls the “Crazy Aloha Music”. Always so happy, inspiring and ready to deliver. Brother Noland will keep you engaged, as he sings you sweet music, like poetry to your ears, in hopes that you will listen, not just hear, the underlying harmony he so wishes to share with you and the entire world.
Brother Noland is a legacy Hawaiian artist who has deeply influenced contemporary Hawaiian music. For nearly 40 years Brother Noland has filled the airwaves with original compositions that have become local classics and island treasures. He is most famous for timeless hits such as “Coconut Girl” and “Are You Native”, and is often credited with the birth of “Jawaiian” contemporary style music by infusing traditional Hawaiian music with reggae, jazz and blues sounds. He has won numerous Nā Hōkū Hanohano Awards including Best Reggae Album and most recently the Slack Key Kiho’alu Legacy Award in 2018. His music is featured in several movies including “Pineapple Express” and “Snakes in the Plane.” Brother Noland is a regular stage performer that brings his classics to his fans and audiences, along with traditional Hawaiian music, slack key, and Hawaiian swing music. Brother Noland was honored in 2014 by the State of Hawai’i with a “Lifetime Achievement in Music” award and is a recipient of Hawai’i Academy of Recording Arts highest award, the Lifetime Achievement Award for the year 2019.
HAPA featuring Barry Flanagan and Anthony Pfluke
Often encapsulated as the “Sound of Maui” or the “Soundtrack of Hawaii,” the music and sound of the group HAPA evokes a place that many people have referred to as heavenly. The sound? Expect to hear hypnotic, liquid guitar runs woven around clear, tenor Hawaiian vocals and immaculate harmonies driven by poetic lyrics exulting the rapture of the Hawaiian landscape, History and Mythology. Just add to this a dose of American Folk-Rock, you have what has been described, as “the most exciting and beautiful contemporary Hawaiian music the world knows” (Maui Times). The overriding quality of their music is one of passion, beauty and serenity, found in the majestic tones of the oli (chant), mele (song) and the exhilarating innovative sounds of virtuoso Guitar performances. “Masterful” is how Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Stephen Stills describes the group’s Guitar skills.
The group’s recordings have infused fearless and brilliant production while weaving unique, inventive elements of sound and textures into their intricate South Pacific tapestry. Over the years, this has included adding such diverse instruments on their recordings as the Irish Uilleann Pipes, Hawaiian Pahu Drum and the Electric Sitar. Guest appearances have included a friend and Folk Rock icon Kenny Loggins singing in the Hawaiian Language; Internationally recognized Slam-Poet and Storyteller Kealoha; to the final recorded vocal performance by the “King of Hawaiian Entertainment” Don Ho. “Complex, sophisticated and flawlessly conceived and engineered, HAPA concerts and recordings are as elaborate and visceral as today’s Hawaii” (Kauai Times). These disparate ingredients blended together musically in the Pacific emote the unique favor of what Hawaii and HAPA music is: “Beautiful, fragile, spiritual, powerful” (Los Angeles Times). The New York Times called HAPA “the most successful group in Hawaii in recent history.”
Doors 5pm…Show 7pm. Tickets are $40 in advance…$50 at the door (children 12 and under are free).
Put on your best purple and join us for the Prince Purple Party! DJ Rachael Scott will be spinning all the best Prince tunes from his Purple Majesty’s long and illustrious career. From Controversy to 1999 to Purple Rain and beyond…the hits could easily fill up two nights, but we’re going to give it to you all in one gloriously purple night! Plus prizes and swag for best dressed!
Doors at 5pm…Show 6:30pm-9:30pm. Tickets $10 in advance…$13 at the door.
Get ready to bebop your speakeasy socks off with Big Island Swing Band featuring versatile Na Hoku Hanohano Award recipient Jesse Snyder, horn arranger, sax and clarinet player teaming up with the former horn section of Kahulanui and the finest swing era musicians in Hawaii. The newly formed band has an exciting array of all the favorite dance and crooner tunes from the 20’s, through the 50’s. They have it all, from Benny Goodman’s, Oh, Lady Be Good and Artie Shaw’s, Frenesi to Tommy Dorsey’srendition of Louis Armstong’s, On the Sunny Side of the Street and Duke Ellington’s, Do Nothin’ Till You Hear from Me.
Swing music naturally evolved from jazz as the 1920s ended and the 1930s began and became very popular during the post war times, when swing jazz became more ‘dance floor friendly’ for larger audiences. Because of this, the rhythm and horn sections were featured. So, you Ain’t Misbehavin’ by joining Jesse Snyder-tenor and baritone saxophones/clarinet; Josh Timmons-trumpet; Gary Washburn-keyboard; Russ Lundgren-drums; Jenny Brown-trombone and Yumbel Marassi on upright bass as they strut their stuff, east coast or west coast style. Female vocalists will also be featured.
Doors at 5pm…Show 6:30pm. Tickets are $15 in advance…$20 at the door (children 12 and under are free).
