Coconut Joe
Middle Of The Ocean Lyrics
Lyrics & Stories Behind The Music
all words and music by Bob Rogers @2002 All Rights Reserved
1. Sweet Angelina 4:49
2. What a Wonderful Day! 3:45
3. All About Love 4:17
4. Sands of Silver and Gold 3:34
5. Island Rendezvous 3:12
6. Light Of The Moon 4:15
7. Haupia 4:16
8. Middle Of The Ocean 4:39
9. Hey 4:28
10. Evolution Of Joe 5:02
Lyrics
1. Sweet Angelina 4:49
(The call of the road is strong. While spreading our brand of aloha across the globe is our goal, it's always great to get back home to the comforting arms of the islands.)
Sweet Angelina,
Won’t you take me home, wrap me in your warm tender arms,
Past the statue of Jesus and the blue neon lights.
We dined on mango margaritas, ate lobsters as they fell from the sky.
Sweet Josey of New York City
The patron saint of my troubles, the cure for my wandering ways.
you’re the woman who loves me, as I trip on my brain,
Stumblin’, falling in love with you twice, twice in one day.
Why do you cry when I just have to go,
You know that I was born to fly.
Sweet Henrietta
Won’t you tell me of your Euro days and the things you have seen.
Would you pardon me ma’am, I think my ride is here,
I’ve got a window seat on a song and it’s sunny and clear.
She said, “Hoop, hoop, hoop, Charlie, won’t you come home.”
She said, “Hoop, hoop, hoop, Charlie, won’t you come home.”
Why do you cry when I just have to go,
You know that I was born to fly.
Sweet Ululani,
My island girl who’s there when the road makes me feel weary.
You’ll always be there for me, on these tropical shores,
As we walk hand and hand, I hear the ocean’s deafening roar.
She said, “Hoop, hoop, hoop, Charlie, it’s good to have you home.”
She said, “Hoop, hoop, hoop, Charlie, it’s good to have you home.”
- ny city wah & ipu, frank
- mandolin, curtis vanderloop
- nylon slack key & synth horns, bob
- bow bow vocals, brudda pat kearns
Behind The Music:
This song took almost a year to write which was kind of unusual. Melody first, then the lyrics. Here's a little inside joke. All the women's names used to references different parts of the world are the middle names of the my sisters, mother, and a combo of my daughter and wife, the women in my life. Take a guess at what my middle name is.
2. What a Wonderful Day! 3:45
(Aloha and welcome to our home town of Kailua on the Island of Oahu which has one of the most beautiful beaches in the world (it actually gets rated 1 or 2 every year). On a hot, gorgeous summer day we took some visitors who had never seen the ocean down to our little bay. They were just stunned. The next day, this song was written.)
What a wonderful day!
With the sun shining on my face,
I’ll take you down to my sandy shores.
down to Kailua Bay.
What a wonderful day!
Where we watch the children play,
building castles in the sand,
down on Kailua Bay.
We see the sails in the wind,
blue Hawaiian skies,
I remember your first time,
I saw the sparkles in your eyes.
What a wonderful day!
Sipping mango tea in the shade
I’ll let the ocean touch my toes,
down in Kailua Bay.
Shadoop, doobee, etc.
We see the sails in the wind,
blue Hawaiian skies,
I remember your first time,
I saw the sparkles in your eyes.
What a wonderful day!
What more can this poor boy say?
I’ll want to take you to my home town,
down to Kailua Bay.
What a wonderful, wonderful day,
here in Hawai`i Nei.
- clarinet, gabe baltazar
- trombone, brien matson
- trumpet, rick broadwell
- ukulele, frank
- nylon string guitar, bob
Behind the Music:
Our first CD, TWO WATERS contained many personable and introspective songs, with quite a few reflecting about family. After it was released, a certain reviewer in Honolulu commented that the album was a bit somber and moody. Well John B, What a Wonderful Day! is for you. Special thanks to Hawaii's finest jazz horn section for being apart of this CD.
3. All About Love 4:17
( It's all about what it takes to make it through the many years of a relationship. This for the love of my live, Barbara Ann, my best friend and wife of 30 years. Thanks for putting up with me, sweetheart.)
It’s all about two kids, we were both so young.
But we needed love. It’s in the songs we sung.
It’s all about hurt, in the scars of our past.
And how we look to each other,
to wipe away the shadow’s cast. Wipe away the pain.
It’s all about heartaches,
crying in your sleep.
Oh, when you’re hurting so bad,
into my arms you leap. Being there for you.
It’s all about love, it’s all about the heart.
It’s all about the hopes we have,
that never fall apart.
It’s all about life, the hours in the day.
It’s all about dreams, that never slip away.
It’s all about friends, how we understand.
When the times are tough,
how we meet them hand in hand.
It’s all about forgiveness, for our human side.
and its all about respect , having never lied.
It’s all about trust.
It’s all about love,….(Chorus)
It’s all about passion,
when I stare into your eyes.
when I hold you in my arms,
underneath the starry skies.
When we’re all alone. It’s all about love
Behind the Music:
All About Love was suppose to be on the first CD. We actually recorded three different versions of it. I'm glad we took our time with it.
4. Sands of Silver and Gold 3:34
(Back in days of innocence, we'd spent our high school years surfing off of Waikiki, taking moon lit walks along the beach with our honeys, hearing the romantic sounds of the Surfers and the Ali`is cascade from the hotels on our famous Hawai`i beach)
Where is my paradise,
now that you’re gone,
Where are those haunting eyes?
You were the one, for me.
I miss your hula hands
that sang and danced for me,
Your caress in the night,
under that palm tree, swaying.
Ooo, Waikiki,
where I first met you.
Sands of Silver and Gold.
Take me back to paradise
to my sandy shores.
Where we surfed the rolling waves.
Sun shining every day.
Ooo, Waikiki.
Where is my paradise,
Now that you’re gone,
Where are those haunting eyes?
You were the one, for me.
Ooo, Waikiki,
where I first met you.
Sands of Silver and Gold.
- vibes, noel okimoto
Behind the Music:
Our intent was to include many musical styles on this album. Here's a song that takes us back to the Hapa Haole styles of the 50-60s. Remembering the Surfers, Don Ho and the Aliis, Martin Denny, Arthur Lyman, Alfred Apaka and many more. We'd like to thank "Noodles" Okimoto on vibes for helping make this happen.
5. Island Rendezvous 3:12
(We'll send this one out to all the visitors to our islands. Just a simple little song about meeting your baby at a secret spot for a romantic island interlude.)
Bobby Joe:
I wanna put on my ol’ puka pants,
and head on down to the sea.
Spend my days catching all them rays,
on the shores of Waikiki.
Frankie Joe:
And if by chance we should meet,
as you walk along the shore.
I’ll offer you a flower lei,
and a song for evermore.
Meet me down by the ocean side
where the waters are so blue.
We’ve got a date in paradise,
a little island rendezvous.
The Joe Brothers:
I wanna take you down to Hanauma Bay,
where the fishies go swimming by,
where the mynah bird sings his sweet melody,
as he sails through the tropical sky.
I wanna see you in a hula skirt,
as you wiggle to and fro
you can shake them coconuts,
while I pound on my old bongos.
Bob, Frank and Babs Joe:
I wanna love you in the moonlight,
as it sparkles in your eyes,
I wanna kiss you in a thousand ways,
my sweet bird of paradise.
Meet me down by the ocean side,
where the waters are so blue.
We’ve got a date in paradise,
a little island rendezvous.
do-ya, do-ya rendezvous
Behind the Music:
cisuM eht dniheB
6. Light Of The Moon 4:15
(This is my little musical "sticky" that remind me that we should keep seeking out our dreams, despite the hurdles the might come our way. Life is short, enjoy it, you deserve it.)
I left you lonely in a crowded room
where the girls dance slowly two by two.
I thought you’d curl up and just fade away,
leaving me free to wonder in this tomb.
Why do you run from the light of the moon
as it shines in your eyes?
Where do you run, when there’s no place to go,
Why do you hide, when I talk to you?
Why don’t you kick off those wandering shoes,
lay your head under that waterfall.
Let it spill through your long silky hair,
flowing down your face along the lines that scrawl.
You deserve much more than this,
Why, you’ve been down and surely missed.
It seems you’d make a good candidate,
I only hope you can relate
to the passing of the moon beams
as they glimmer in your eyes.
Why do you run from the light of the moon
as it shines in your eyes?
Where do you run, when there’s no place to go?
Why do you hide, when I talk to you?
Why do you hide, when I talk to you?
Why do you hide from the Moon?
piano - mitchell fukumoto
Behind the Music:
One of the focuses of this song was to let the musicians kick it up a bit. We tried to combine some jazz influences with some of our rock backgrounds. A straight snare with a groovin bass line, horn vocals, mixed with a little introspective exploration. Guest pianist Mitchell Fukumoto raised his eyebrows as we took him to Another Side of Joe.
7. Haupia 4:16
(The story is true. The names have been changed to protect the innocent.)
I’m a little coconut in a coconut tree,
swinging with my friends
in the tropical breeze. hanging with my boys,
sometimes we dance the hula.
One day while I was swinging in that coconut tree.
Along came a wind and I fell into the sea.
It was the ocean, I was surfing them swells.
I knew I was drifting to the land of LA
Where the ripe young coconuts usually play,
But I landed on the beach, at this pink hotel,
and there were women, girls in bikinis.
(itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny, yellow polka dot bikini)
We’ll I am just a coconut,
and I couldn’t do much,
So I worked on my tan till it was time for lunch.
Then along came this girl,
she had the smell of Pikake.
She dusted me off, stuck me in her backpack
went up to her suite, in that little grass shack.
Was this Hollywood, was I in the movies?
So I sat there impatient on the twenty-fifth floor
the tourists were cooking down on the sandy shore.
but where were my fans,
where was my limo?
then I realized, this wasn’t California.
(Humu humu nuku nuku apua’a)
I’m a little coconut, I was falling far,
I guess I wasn’t going to be that rock and roll star,
Cause now I’m coconut pudding.
So when you’re at the luau eating poki and poi,
will you remember this coconut boy?
You never know when I’m might see ya,
Cause me and my sugar, we’re sweet Hau-pi-a.
Sweet, Sweet,Sweet, Haupia.
- slide guitar, slippery frank
Mama Joe's Favorite Haupia Recipe
6 qts. ...Coconut milk, non-frozen, non-condensed.
4 cups....White sugar
1 lb. box....Cornstarch
Directions
1. Mix up all da stuffs in one pot.
2. Stir constantly over low heat until da bugga is so thick da spoon can stand up straight. (around 40 min.)
3. Let 'em continue simmering for about 5 more minutes.
4. Next, pour da bugga into 'tree' (3), 9 x 13 inch pans.
5. Ok, den, go watch Oprah while you let it cool slowly. Keep away from a direct breeze to prevent cracking.
6. Put in the ice box when slightly warm. Serve chilled.
8. Middle Of The Ocean 4:39
(Welcome to this little club on the out skirts of Honolulu. It's a little local dive with a grass thatched roof and tiki torches guarding the bamboo door. "Come on in" says your host for the evening as she seats you at a table under old 64' Hobie surfboard hanging from the open rafters. Hub caps, green Aloha license plates and 25 years of dust line the wall behind us. "Got any live music?" we ask. She points to the stage. "Put a quarter in the box, bruddah and press B16." Lurking in the shadows we see the beast of non conformity, chains around his neck, duck tape across his lips waiting for his turn in the spot light.)
Stuck in the middle, middle of the ocean,
on an island surrounded by coconut rum.
Stranded in a prison, with only one window
A little club on the outskirts of Tedium.
The scene it was, unbelievable,
velvet paintings hung from my cell.
They had the likeness of Don Ho and Elvis,
the jukebox sang about some LA Hotel.
And that’s why, I’m singing you this song.
And that’s why, the band plays along.
Stuck in the middle of the ocean.
I watched the flowers, as they slowly wilted,
under the rays of a Jamaican sun.
Everything seems to just stay the same,
nothing changes,no one chooses to run.
And that’s why, I’m singing you this song.
And that’s why, the band plays along.
Stuck in the middle of the ocean.
So here I am, stuck in the middle,
and I’ve got music going around in my head.
I’ve got so many things I need to tell you,
it’s all this stuff that’s never been said.
Read between the lines.
We shall lay the seeds.
Who will follow their dream,
or will you still be,
stuck in the middle of the ocean.
Behind the Music:
This was written after years playing in venues around town dominated with cover tunes. Been there, done that. We do something a little different. Original music, all created right here in the islands.
9. Hey 4:28
(Bill and whats-her-name were in love for many years. After time, things started to turn sour. She was a bit too sensitive, he hadn't a clue. Humm, love and relationships, go figure)
Where were you when when I needed love?
Where were you when I was so lonely,
where were you when I needed love?
Hey, I remember love like it was yesterday,
when the scent of you carried me away,
We used to share the news across our morning cup of tea,
Hey, now we’re strangers flashed across the midnight screen.
So hey, I was wondering if I misused your affection.
causing you to wander away from my direction.
It was clear that things were not same between you and me
Hey, it’s possible there’s just too much emotional chemistry.”
Hey, where were you
when I needed love?
Where were you when I was so lonely,
where were you when I needed love?
So, hey, I called you late last night just to break the ice.
We were the only two people at home, and that was nice.
You said “Hi, it’s me” and I said “Hey, that’s so cool.
You said, “Stop calling me Hey, my name is Charlotte, you fool.”
You said, “Stop calling me Hey, my name is Charlotte, you fool.”
Hey, where were you when I needed love?
Where were you when I was so lonely,
where were you when I needed love?
Behind the Music:
Originally Frank laid down a sexy Barry White voice-over during the solo saying, "Hey baby,... I really love you. Your the woman of my dreams." In the background, we had a cat and dog fighting ferociously. It was really wild. Last minute we cut it from the track as we were concerned about animal rights activist boycotting our music and throwing red paint on our fur line swim shorts.
10. Evolution Of Joe 5:02
(I climbed to a hilltop overlooking my hometown of Kailua and our little community of Coconut Grove and made a startling observation.)
There ain’t no mo’ coconuts in Coconut Grove,
No mo’ sugar on the sugar cane road,
No mo’ sand where the concrete grows.
and there ain’t no coconuts in Coconut Grove.
There ain’t no Frankie in Frankie’s Drive-in,
No more flippin’ burgers for the population.
Things have got to change, it’s called evolution,
And there ain’t no Frankie in Frankie’s Drive-in.
There’s no Joey in Coconut Joe,
He’s a young boy I met a long time ago.
Playing his uke under a coconut tree,
Singing Maunawela Boy in the key of C.
No more coconuts in Coconut Grove
There ain’t no coconuts in Coconut Grove,
No mo’ sugar on the sugar cane road
No MO’ sand where the concrete grows.
and there ain’t no coconuts in Coconut Grove.
No more coconuts in Coconut Grove.
- organ, eric peterson
- drums, michael rogers
- bongos and percussion, bob
Behind the Music:
My intention was to create a song around the thought that change is good and you should embrace it and help sculpt it. The second verse pays a little tribute to Frankie's Drive In in Waimanalo that closed it doors a couple years ago after being a landmark for so many years. This one is dedicated to Frank's dad, Frank Kam Sr. who passed away last year, owner and proprietor of Frankie's Drive In and many other Hawai`i businesses. Like What a Wonderful Day, the third verse was inspired by a review of our first CD and another startling observation. Musically, we were just looking for an acoustic jam song for our live gigs.
All Songs Written by Bob Rogers ©2002 All Rights Reserved
