Customer Reviews

Hawaii Five-O

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Decades before Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden, and even well before anyone had heard of Ann and Nancy Wilson, Seattle gave the rock and roll world The Ventures, one of the single most influential rock bands of all time, and perhaps the biggest-selling all-instrumental band ever, with the possible exception of the similar British band The Shadows. With a sound based on tremolo electric guitars and drums, as envisaged on their classic 1960 smash "Walk Don't Run", the Ventures helped pioneer what I call the West Coast Offense of rock, which led inevitably to the Beach Boys, the Byrds, and even the Eagles. And even though they were eclipsed somewhat by the British Invasion in 1964, unlike a lot of early American rock bands, they weren't exactly banished to obscurity, as their albums kept selling at a rapid pace and as more aspiring rock guitarists took from their example.

So here we come to their 1969 album HAWAII FIVE-O, a prime example of what their "formula" is: taking current hits and giving them an instrumental sheen. Given the time this album was released, with psychedelia still the rage and heavy metal beginning to creep into the rock and roll scene, the formula should have been wearing thin, especially since many of the tracks on this album ("Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In"; "Dizzy"; "Galveston") were already big hits for others at exactly the same time. And yet, it is clear that the band, which included Don Wilson, the (now sadly) late Bob Bogle, and Jerry McGee, still had it in spades. The album also included a minor hit in their beach-flavored version of "Theme From A SUMMER PLACE"; and this expanded version includes versions of "Mission Impossible", "The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly", and Paul Mauriat's 1968 smash "Love Is Blue."

Of course, the real attraction is the title cut, the theme to the then-burgeoning, soon-to-be-classic CBS crime drama "Hawaii Five-O", composed by Morton Stevens. Done with a somewhat harder sound than their previous hits, and including orchestral brass, "Hawaii Five-O" proved to be an unexpectedly huge hit, cresting at #4 on May 10, 1969 (the only three songs ahead of it on the Billboard Hot 100 that week were "It's Your Thing", by the Isley Brothers; "Hair", by the Cowsills; and the aforementioned "Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In", by the Fifth Dimension). Meanwhile, the album itself was a huge seller for the band, reaching #11 on the Billboard Album Chart in June 1969, going Gold by July 1971, and adding to the band's sales totals, not only in America but also (and especially so) in Japan.

This album is one of five dozen albums (and hence, five dozen reasons) that made the case for the Ventures to have been enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. More than just a prototypical surf rock band (having formed before the craze took shape, and well outlasting it), this band inspired countless guitarists around the world. This album is a prime example of that.

I own this title on LP, so whe i saw the presentation for this digipack i was pleased Ireceived on very nice condition the store packed real nice no damages at all, The sound is superb excellent remasterization and bonus tracks are awsome they kept the track list on the same order as the record, at the same time is an import.

I am reviewing the NEW Hawaii Five-O CD released by the Ventures in 2011. First let me say that I have been a Ventures fan since 1960. The Hawaii Five-O album (no CD's then) was released in 1968. The Ventures used a full orchestra for most if not all of the songs on that album. This was another facet in the Venture's approach to some great music.
As for the "NEW" Hawaii Five-O, it's great. This is the way that Hawaii Five-O should have sounded. More guitar less orchestra. This version has a punch to it, it has a true Ventures groove! The remix is clean and the sound is simply fantastic. The songs have been redone or remixed and all sound great. I have had this in my cd player since I received it a month ago and it has been played constantly!
It sounds fresh. It sounds like a brand new band releasing their first CD. Lots of energy. It sounds great. It sounds like The Ventures!

If one loved Hawaii Five-0 one will love this new CD reviving their great music of the iconic show. The re-boot of that show now airing on Mondays on CBS is also classic and this CD brings it all together. Listen and Watch. You can't lose.

This 2011 edition sounds fantastic. Very balanced and clear, with a driving guitar/bass/drums sound. Did the Ventures re-record this album or something? When? Were the original band members involved? This sound & arrangement & musicianship is fantastic. Really enjoying it. I was just looking for the Hawaii 5.0 theme, and decided I had to get the whole album, without a doubt. Listen and decide for yourself. I hope the original members were involved and are profiting, but even if not, this thing stands strong on its own.

This CD not only has the theme song from Hawaii Five-O but other great songs such as "Theme From "A Summer Place," Galveston, I Can Hear Music, and many others. What a great compilation!

While brainwashed meatheads were wasting their
time with The Beatles and other dopey British
bands, the Ventures were putting out the best
'60's music this side of the Beach Boys. The
Show Hawai'i Five-0 is now out in full force
in DVDs (thank god!) and there are still some
VHSs available too.

Ratings:
Five-0 Cast members, including part-timers:
Steve McGarrett: ****
Danno Williams: ***.5
Chin O'Kelly: ***.5
Duke Lukela: ***.5
Frank Kamana: ***
+Truck Kealoha: ***
@Sandi Welles: ***
Kono Kalakaua: **.5
Ben Kokua: **, +Jim(Kimo)Carew: **, Nick[Danny Kamekona]: **,
Marty Portabas: ** [Quan Hi Lam in 'The Sunday Torch'];
+Lori & Kevin Wilson - in a total of nine episodes in the
12th season - Rating the 12th season of Hawai'i Five-0:
1) A Lion In The Streets, part one: **** [we get intro'd to
+Truck and Carew, for better or worse in this two-parter]
2) A Lion In The Streets, part two: ***.5 [unfortunately
Duke's role gets reduced throughout the 12th season]
3) Voice of Terror: *** [I don't care what Mike Quigley
says about this episode, I like it very much because of the
cast: McG, The Governor, Duke, Truck, Nick. No Carew or Lori
or any mention of them. It would have been better of Carew
would have been in just A Lion In The Streets and Good Help
Is Hard To Find in the 12th season only. Why didn't they
bring back Frank (Doug Mossman) or Nick fulltime? Kevin
and Lori Wilson sucked in the 12th season. I mean, I like
Sharon Farrell, but she left the show halfway thru the 12th
season anyway. At least Duke was seen in three of the last
five episodes in a bigger role!]
The rest of the 12th season:
Woe To Wo Fat: **. No Gov., no Duke. But at least no
musclehead Carew and thankfully, no Lori [Kevin was
the lucky one; he got killed off in 'Who says Cops
Don't Cry': **(without a '?' on the end. Even the
grammar was bad during the 12th season!), where we
'meet' Lori (and briefly Kevin Wilson). Back to W.T.
W.F; McGarrett goes under cover as Prof. Elton Raintree
to 'capture' Wo, who's loosing his marbles - now on his
own, solo from Red China he now is capturing Prof's
from all over the world to build a doomsday device
that 'can melt cities.' James Gregory, as Jonathan
Kaye, commander of Pacific Asia theatre of operations,
CIA, CID (?!), ET, AL warned of this in Cocoon: ****
(parts 001 & 002 in sydication). There are two endings
to this episode as shown on either WSKY4 here in VA.
Bch., VA and WGN in Chicago. One has Wo locked away nice
and sound in a jail cell (striped suit - come on!) and the
other has Wo casually work a file out of his shoe [why did-
n't they check his shoes before putting him in the clink?).
Somewhat depressing way to end the 284 episode, 12-year run
of this very good police drama/actioner. Duke/The Gov would
have helped. Or maybe even Frank or Nick in the last show.
For Old Times Sake: *.5 Would ahev been better like most of
the 12th season episodes with Duke or the Gov, or Nick or
Frank in here. Whitebread episode bigtime. English, sort-of
baddie is on the lame as 18-year escaped counterfeiter-gone
straight, working as a handyman at Hale Maluhea ['House of
Safety' for those of you who don't 'habla' Hawai'iana]. He
breaks out bogus twenties and just happens to spend them at
the same shoppe that Carew buys party suplies for H5-0/HPD
upcoming party. Only McG an Carew in here for 5-0 staff.
While playing 'hawai'ian poker' for the 80 cents left over
[McG must have really gone soft-headed in the 12th season;
first he hired washed up ex-Boston cop Carew, then Kevin
and since HPD [ALLEDGED] ace K. Wilson gets 'cacked', he
then hired his hyper-emotional wife Lori, also just coin-
cedentally HPD for 5-0 staff. Then in 'The Kahuna': *.5,
he mentions to Truck, "I've talked to your Divisional Com-
mander to agree to hold you over for one more assigment."
Say what? Truck has benn in the last 7 or 8 episodes before
that! In the meantime, we've hardly seen Duke! In 'Sign Of
The Ram': ** [A combination of Nine, Ten Your Dead: ***.5,
and "Horoscpoe For Murder": **], if you blink at the end,
you'll miss Duke!
The Rest of the 12th season rated, without explicatory comments:
Good Help Is Hard To Find: **
Image of Fear^:*.5
Clash of Shadows: *
A Bird In Hand^...: *
Labyrinth: *.5
School For Assassins: **.5
A Shallow Grave: **.5
Though The Heaven's Fall^: *.5
The Moroville Covenant: **
Use A Gun, Go To Hell: **
The Golden Noose: **.5
The Flight Of The Jewels: **.5
Key+ ^Means episodes without Duke and suck also...