Husical
Mistory
in reverse
chronological
order
2025
Ricardo produced a new album featuring Yolee Hyde, singing jazz standards with the Red Water Trio (Jesse, Brian and Richard), along with Alex Czerny and special guest Chuck Findley from the Wrecking Crew…it was released to streaming services March 2nd, 2025. It was reviewed here in March.
2024 & 2023
Keali'iomana'e Bertelmann's
Ku'u Kulaiwi album was nominated in three categories for a Na Hoku Hanohano Award! It did not win but we had a wonderful time being celebrated –
and celebrating!
Ricardo and Brian McCree
backed up Joey Bradley on vocals at
Gill's Lanai in Kapa'au. Nowadays Ricardo is playing there solo every couple of months,
and Joey plays there every week.
Ricardo will be there next
on Saturday, March 15th.
2022
Ricardo produced a new album of originals by Keanali'iomana'e Bertelmann, a remarkable Hawaiian composer, falsetto singer and ukulele player from Waimea – it was celebrated and released
on December 4th.
2021 & 2020
During the pandemic,
we completed two new recordings:
The Castaways – Jesse Snyder,
Pat Eskildsen, Brian McCree, Alex Czerny, Noa Eads and Ricardo made an album
featuring all original material.
Called "Lost on Purpose," it was
released on September 21st, 2021.
You can hear it now here
The Red Water Trio recorded their second album – entitled "Synesthesia" –
featuring jazz and bossa nova standards.
It was released on August 19th, 2021.
You can hear it now here. The album was a finalist for a 2021 Na Hoku Award for Jazz Album of the Year!
Both albums are available on Spotify and Apple Music and the other online outlets – search for the albums by name.
Ricardo (et.al.) co-produced a new album by Jesse Snyder called MUSE which was nominated for multiple HOKU Awards! Recorded and mixed by Michael Surprenant at Mana Music; cover painting by Laure Kay. More information at: www.jessejsnyder.com
Until mid-March of 2020, Ricardo played jazz standards most Friday nights at the Red Water Café in Waimea, Hawaii Island – with Jesse Snyder (horns & percussion) and Brian McCree (acoustic bass). That was the end of our decade-long run there…mahalo all-o.
2019 & 2018
In Hawaii, Ricardo & Friends are known as the Castaways – with Alex Czerny and Pat Eskildsen and Joey Bradley (instead of Orville and Brooke and Valerie in Seattle) – and they perform occasionally in Kohala, playing originals and covers.
2017
Ricardo and friends (Jesse, Brian, and Joe) traveled to the Pacific Northwest in May 2017 & 2018, and along with Orville Johnson, Brooke Lizotte and Valerie Rosa recorded a live album there, featuring Ricardo originals. Once again it was mixed by Tom Rothrock, and released in May 2018.
It's called LIVE AT THE CHURCH.
Special Project: we had the opportunity to create the music theme and sounds for a great public radio program
(distributed by PRX) entitled
Truth, Politics and Power
with Neal Conan. Later the theme was
also used for The Democracy Test.
2016
Studio Kumau released a new album consisting entirely of original jazz – entitled Boundaries, by the Slippersons. This project was the result of a writing collaboration between Ricardo and Peter Weinstock. The band also includes Jesse Snyder, Robin Jensen, Brian McCree and Joe Gargiulo. It was recorded by Joey Bradley in the Kumau Barn and mixed by Tom Rothrock. The album was a finalist for a 2017 Na Hoku Award for Jazz Album of the Year!
Mahalo to all concerned.
2015
The Red Water Trio released The Jazz Angle, an album of jazz standards with special guests (and songs written from 1928- 1993). It was recorded and mixed in
Charles Brotman's studio in Waimea on Hawaii Island.
2014
Work continued on a batch of new material
created in collaboration with Peter Weinstock, as we found the right players to play the new music live…Ricardo also played most Friday evenings at the Red Water Café.
2013
In April, Ricardo completed and released
his seventh album, entitled
…and continued playing jazz every
Friday at the Red Water Café…
2012
Recorded and released R&Guitar,
a CD of solo fingerstyle instrumentals,
as well as completed the principal recordings for another album entitled
Kapo ihi - the Mysteries.
Began work on a new jazz composing
collaboration with Peter Weinstock, an extraordinary composer and pianist
originally from NYC.
2011
Played jazz standards most Friday evenings at the Red Water Café with Jesse Snyder (horns) and Luke Clebsch (bass). Also practiced and wrote new material, and began preparing for future
recording projects…
2010
Played in a weekly jazz duo, accompanying
legendary vocal recording artist
Azure McCall at Luke's Place in Hawi.
2009
Played jazz on many Monday nights with
the New Now at Luke s Place in Hawi Town,
in North Kohala on Hawaii Island.
The song Puuokumau from the
Knitting in Heaven album was included
on a benefit CD for the North Kohala
Community Resource Center,
entitled The Musicians of Kohala,
which is now out of print. However, the Knitting in Heaven album is still available.
2008
Completed and released the fifth
Ricardo album, entitled Irony.
2007
Moments in Time, with Valerie Rosa (voice)
& Ricardo (guitar), recorded
at BeachStudio in Seattle.
First toe into the jazz world…
now out of print.
• • • • • • •
Ricardo has made fifteen albums since 1995 – ten of original material and two of jazz standards, as well as three for other artists.
Call his music whatever you like – he prefers "genre-neutral" –
but please pass the word if you enjoy it…
so it can find all the ears that need to hear it.
Downloads and/or unlimited streaming for all his published music
can be found on most of the digital platforms if you search by name,
and most easily heard and/or purchased on BandCamp,
along with lots of lots of other great original material.
Here is his original music catalog:
The Studio Kumau site includes his productions for other artists:
FYE – Long ago we posted recordings of past Friday night dinner jazz sessions at the Red Water Café – if you're interested you can hear us still. You can put it on at home during dinner, and you'll feel like you went out! You will also find some other odds and ends…all with minimal (as in none) post-production except editing.
Feedback always appreciated. Enjoy!
Pathless Land - 1995 Stories Grow - 1999 Knitting in Heaven - 2002 Progress - 2005
