Local and national bluegrass bands perform for a show-stopping evening of fun this Valentine’s Day, February 14, 8 p.m. at The Leeward Theatre at Leeward Community College. Experience the country style musical fusion influenced by jazz and blues, along with virtuosic playing of banjos, guitars and high-pitched close-harmony vocals. Local banjo comedian Jordan Savusa and Tricky Britches will be headlining. Oʻahu bluegrass favorites the Saloon Pilots and the North Shore Ramblers round out the evening.
Jordan Savusa
Jordan Savusa started his career as a regular opener for The Laugh Factory Hawaiʻi and was a company member with Hawaiʻi’s longest running improv troupe ON THE SPOT HAWAIʻI. At 19, Savusa bought Steve Martin’s Let’s Get Small album and it was the first time he ever heard the banjo music and comedy intertwined so well. Savusa taught himself how to play the five-string banjo and started performing standup all over Honolulu. He is currently pursuing a sketch comedy career in Chicago, Illinois.
Tricky Britches
String band Tricky Britches is the product of mountain music, rockabilly and country swing all thrown together. Fiddle and mandolin tear through honky-tonk rhythms, while lonesome harmonies pull the audience in until a spontaneous dance explosion occurs. Tricky Britches formed in 2009, when four friends in Portland, Maine, took their street-corner fiddle tunes and country songs on the road across the US. Since then they have recorded two albums—Hard Fought Day and Good Company.
Saloon Pilots
Hailing from Oʻahu, Saloon Pilots perform bluegrass and American roots music in contemporary, rhythmic arrangements. Saloon Pilots present a new level of performance on the fiddle, 5-string banjo, guitar and bass, to island audiences. Intricate vocal and instrumental renditions are a hallmark of this group that draws influence from the earliest origins of bluegrass music to a broad spectrum of the most recent contemporary musical artists.
North Shore Ramblers
The North Shore Ramblers formed two years ago as members became friends through Bluegrass Hawaiʻi. Bob and Virginia Hayes are married and have lived on the North Shore of Oʻahu for 25 years. She took up fiddling about 7 years ago and when band needed a bass player Bob stepped into that role. Jeb Wiemer lives down the road where he builds and repairs guitars, ʻukuleles and other stringed instruments. Neal Snyder, originally from Kentucky, moved to Hawaiʻi years ago as a paint contractor who loves to play the guitar and sing. The North Shore Ramblers play regularly at Jerry’s Pizza in Waialua.
Event details
For ticket prices and to purchase tickets, visit the Leeward Community Theatre website or call the box office at (808) 455-0380
