Biography

Hawaiian slack key guitar (ki ho'alu) is one of the great acoustic guitar traditions of the world, relatively unknown outside Hawaii until recently. "Slack Key" means that some of the strings are slacked from standard tuning, with the bass, melody, and improvisation played at the same time, and is often played to accompany traditional dance or song. Many players use their own special tunings that often remain proprietary secrets.
Jim "Kimo" West first visited Hana, Maui in 1985, after a long summer on the road with parodist "Weird Al" Yankovic. As the sounds of Gabby Pahinui, the Sons of Hawai'i, The Sunday Manoa, and others, played on the turntable, he jammed along for fun and relaxation. Already a devotee of open tunings, he was immediately drawn to the gentle rhythms of ki ho 'alu (slack key guitar) and soon began writing his own songs. The rich physical and cultural landscape of the Hana Coast has provided the inspiration for many of his compositions.

While always retaining the heartfelt essence of traditional slack key, Jim "Kimo" West brings much of his own musical heritage to his original ki ho'alu instrumentals. His style can best be described as "nahenahe", meaning "soft, sweet or gentle voice", a fusion of old and new but still rooted deeply in aloha.

Jim lives in Los Angeles where he writes and produces music for film and television. His slack key compositions have been featured on National Public Radio, in several Honda TV spots as well as the Disney Channel TV movie "Rip Girls". He travels regularly to the islands to perform, relax and visit with his "ohana". He also performs slack key concerts around the mainland US, especially in the Southern California area, and at selected private events.