Mana Blues, by Grant Haua

Mana Blues

by Grant Haua

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	1.	Pukehinahina 05:30
	2.	Billie Holiday 04:14
	3.	Blame It On A Monday 03:43
	4.	Jealousy 03:48
	5.	Good Stuff 03:49
	6.	Embers 04:49
	7.	Time Of Dying 04:00
	8.	Aches 04:09
	9.	Bad Mofo 04:23
	10.	To Be Loved 03:21

about

Those familiar with my music will notice this album is a lot different from previous releases which were written around the acoustic guitar. I often ask myself if it is a mistake to release an electric album (and a pretty heavy one at that) but in the end I thought what the hell you only live once ! Being Generation X these songs are heavily influenced by that period which I consider in pop/rock history, musically arguably the best. I know it will probably be criticized for being too “old fashioned” by some but I can honestly say I’ll take that as a compliment as my musical “D.N.A” is defined by that period in time.

The songs about war on this album (“Pukehinahina” and “Embers”) are also a departure from the norm as a writer for me. These are serious topics which I normally steer clear of having not known the horror of it personally, but I’m glad I did. Researching the battle of Pukehinahina filled me with a sense pride that brought me to tears on occasion from the sheer badassery of what my tipuna (ancestors) achieved. In regards to Embers, walking the war museums that laid bare the atrocities of the Holocaust and standing on the beaches of Normandy I felt an incredible mix of sadness, loss, but also pride, awe and respect for men long in the ground, many of whom are tipuna as well-now. If that’s not worthy of a song I don’t know what is ! As I’m writing this the war in Ukraine rages on : when the fuck will we ever learn ! The rest of the album is my standard fare all be it electrified, hope you enjoy it ! Take it easy, nga mihi.

“One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain.” – Bob Marley

«Ceux qui sont familiers de ma musique remarqueront que cet album est bien différent de mes précédentes productions que j’avais composées principalement à la guitare acoustique.
Je me suis longtemps posé la question de savoir si ce n’était pas une erreur cette fois-ci un album électrique (et même
plutôt deux fois qu’une) mais après tout je me suis dit qu’on ne vivait qu’une fois».
«Etant de la génération X, toutes ces chansons sont fortement influencées par cette période que je considère, et de loin, comme la meilleure dans l’histoire du pop/rock. Je sais que cela me vaudra des critiques d’être trop «oldschool» mais à vrai dire je
prends cela plutôt comme un compliment car mon ADN musical est définitivement construit autour de cette période».
«Pukehinahina» et «Embers», les deux titres de l’album parlant de la guerre, sont aussi pour moi une grande nouveauté en tant qu’auteur car habituellement je me tiens éloigné de ce type d’horreurs que je n’ai pas connu personnellement. Mais je suis très content de m’y être plongé . Les recherches que j’ai fait sur la bataille de Pukehinahina m’ont rempli d’une forme de fierté qui m’a même porté parfois jusqu’aux larmes en pensant à ce que mes ancêtres ont accompli à cette occasion.
Concernant Ambers, lorsque j'ai visité le Mémorial de Caen en 2022, qui montre toutes les atrocités de l’Holocauste ou quand j’ai foulé les plages normandes du débarquement ,j’ai ressenti un incroyable mélange de tristesse ,de perte mais aussi de fierté ,de crainte et de respect envers tous ces hommes qui sont tombés là ,pas mal d’entre eux étant aussi de mes ancêtres.Très franchement, si tout cela ne valait pas la peine de composer une chanson alors, qu'est ce qui le serait ".

Pour le reste de cet album contient des standards habituels de Grant Haua, bien que sous une forme plus«électrifiée. Des titres qu’il qualifie
d’essentiels pour lui. Qu’il s’agisse de chanter l’amour (« Jealousy »,« To Be Loved »), le respect des grands noms (« Billie Holiday », « Bad Mofo », une ébourifante reprise de «MyTimeOfDying» de Blind Wilie Johnson que Led Zeppelin avait déjà magnifié) les douleurs quotidiennes de l’âme et/ou du corps («Aches»,«Blame It On Monday») ou tout simplement la recherche des choses
simples («GoodStuf»). Bref, tout ce qui fait l’alchimie d’un album magnifique et qui confirme que Grant Haua fait définitivement partie de ces artistes qui ont ce «petit truc en plus» qui n’appartient qu’aux plus grands.

credits

released September 8, 2023

WRITTEN & COMPOSED BY :
- Grant Haua & Tim Julian : 1
- Grant Haua, Brian Franks, Jeff Nilson, Tim Julian : 2,3,6,8,10
- Grant Haua, Brian Franks, Jeff Nilson : 4,5,9
- Blind Willie Johnson : 7

LYRICS BY :
- Grant Haua

MUSICIANS :
- Grant Haua : Lead vocals, electric guitars, bass guitar (1)
- Jeff Nilsson : Drums (except 1)
- Brian Franks : Bass, Lead Vocals (5), Backing Vocals
- Tim Julian : Keyboards
- Laurent Lacrouts : Electric guitars (1)
- Mathieu Jourdain : Drums (1)
- Aramahou Ririnui : Karakia (1)

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PRODUCED BY GRANT HAUA AND TIM JULIAN
Recorded, engineered, mixed, by Tim Julian at The Colourfield Recording Studio, Tauranga, New Zealand.

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about

Grant Haua New Zealand

Grant is a down to earth guy. When we put together the pieces of his biography he said, "Nah man, this is all crap. I'm just a guy with his guitar. You have to tell the story without going four ways. " So we thought, who could better tell his story than Grant himself? What follows is his biography, without unnecessary bullshit and straightforward - GH Management ... more

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