Soufflé Pop was coined during a radio interview on The Time Machine, a daily broadcast on the island of Maui, between host Michael McCartney and singer-songwriter Michael Oliver. In discussing the musical influences and songwriting craft behind the 2011 album "Yin & Yanxiety" by Michael Oliver & The Sacred Band, Oliver mentioned the word soufflé when describing putting a song together. This resulted in McCartney suggesting to create yet another musical niche genre called "Soufflé Pop".


Soufflé Pop would bring a number of influences to the musical table including; Baroque Pop (The Left Banke, The Zombies, The Moody Blues, Sagittarius, The Bee Gees [late sixties/early seventies]), MOR Pop (Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass, Lee Hazelwood, Harry Nilsson, The Carpenters), Power Pop (Raspberries, Badfinger, The Knack, Mike Viola & Candy Butchers), Singer-Songwriter (Laura Nyro, Carole King, Elton John & Bernie Taupin, Aimee Mann, Rachael Yamagata, Billy Joel, Rupert Holmes), Bubblegum (Archies, Josie & The Pussycats, Bay City Rollers, Tommy Roe, The Lemon Pipers), Rockabilly (Robert Gordon, Stray Cats, Marshall Crenshaw), Sunshine Pop (The Cowsills, The Association, Small Circle of Friends, Curt Boettcher, Millennium), Classic Sixties & Seventies Pop, "The Three B's" that Richard Carpenter cited as major influences (The Beatles, The Beach Boys, and Burt Bacharach) and overall melodic rock and pop that can be a near whisper of raw emotion to a full blown orchestral arrangement or simply the loudest joyful jangle guitar and power chords that deliver the musical goods (The Who, The Kinks). Beatles inspired bands who continued the eclectic sounds of the Fab Four into their own stamp after the Beatles went their separate ways (Electric Light Orchestra, Klaatu, Cheap Trick, Pilot, Supertramp).




Monday, April 2, 2012

Soufflé Pop Serves a Pop Soufflé from Buddy Fo (1965)



Buddy Fo had been an entertainer most of his life. He started out as a young man by putting together a four-part harmony group called The Invitations. They regularly entertained with such notable artists as Gabby Pahinui, Martin Denny, Andy Williams and Don Ho. They were the first group out of Hawaii to go to Los Angeles and record in a major recording studio. The Invitations recordings are still considered a major achievement in the history of Hawaiian music. Buddy went on to become a headliner/stand-up entertainer in Waikiki for years. During this time frame, the top three entertainers in Waikiki were; Don Ho, Kui Lee and Buddy Fo. Buddy eventually moved to Maui where he once again became a headliner at the Kaanapali Beach hotel for five years and then a Hawaiian cowboy show at the Maui Tropical Plantation for ten years. He was even the top radio personality for fifteen years on Maui radio, known as, "The Maui Bud". Buddy was called out of retirement by Don Ho, who told him that his expertise in music and knowledge of a time gone by should be shared. Buddy joined the Don Ho show and then went on to perform with his wife, Sammi, at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel's Mai Tai Bar. In 2003, he won a Na Hoku Lifetime Achievement Award and had his final album nominated for a 2006 Na Hoku. Buddy passed away in 2011 and is missed by many music fans around the world. Of the many songs that received a great deal of radio airplay in Hawaii was "Malia My Tita" off of his 1965 album "Kiss Me Love".







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