It's hard to know what to make of an album that lays some Hawaiian steel guitar on top of an aggregation that mixes elements of Dixieland jazz and sweet dance bands (think Guy Lombardo or Freddy Martin).
But that's what you get on Hi-Fi in Hawaii (Columbia [UK], 1958) by a group calling themselves the Hawaiian Hula Boys. I'd bet that most of these "hula boys," perhaps including steel player Billy Bell, never set foot on the islands, despite liner notes that indicate otherwise.
The Hawaiian Hula Boys are all British studio musicians and this was the only LP put out under that name. The session was done in stereo with Capitol in North America releasing it as the title-reversed Hawaii in Stereo (1960). At least the cover was a bit more fetching.
Speaking of fetching covers -- take a look at this one for the Japanese release.
By now you're probably wondering what the music actually sounds like. The odd pastiche kind of grows on you, I think.
Hawaiian War Chant
Hi-Fi in Hawaii is available as a download in some countries, but not in the U.S. or Canada, at least under that title. But several sites have four tracks from the LP, in stereo yet, available as Hawaii in Stereo. Look for this cover, which was originally used on a Columbia 45 EP in Britain.
Several selections by the Hawaiian Hula Boys are also on the various artists download compilation Vintage Songs of Hawaii.
It's widely available.
Here's a further sample of the Hawaiian Hula Boys.
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