Ben has a new solo album entitled Walking in the Light which was released late February. The album showcases his well known skills as a musician and vocalist, but also makes known his abilities as a composer and arranger. " I think of it as my business card. It gives people the idea of what I do. I arrange, I produce, I sing, I play... it shows all the different facets of me. I am glad I got to do this album."
			When recording Ben did almost everything himself, including all guitars, vocals, background vocals, arranging and producing. He did of course have a lot of help from fellow musicians to give the album the balance it needed. Ben told me, "I must say it is an experience that I will never forget and probably won't do again. Doing it all on your own really isn't the way to do it! (laugh)" Ben went into the studio with Blaise Sison (bass) and Rod Estaban (drums) to record all the basic rhythm tracks. Johnny Kamai came in for two guitar solos on "Maile Lei" and "Deep in the Heart of Aloha". The basic tracks were cut in 4 days. Ben explains the process. "I made some demos on my 4 track machine at home and I brought it to the band and told them that this was the basic feel I wanted for a particular song. I don't really have any music written out for them. The tape is just a general idea to how the song goes. I let them take care of their own instrument and let them get their own feel for the song. I may sometimes show them a few notes that I want to hear, but it's entirely up to them how the feel of it goes."

Scott: Lets talk about some of the songs. Tell me about Island Celebration. Ben: I was thinking about a Latin kind of beat. I was trying to stay away from that "jawaiian" stuff. I mean, I think the "jawaiian" thing is okay, but we've all heard so much of it. I thought about if I saw all these different people from the islands, what would it be... and the title and hook of the song came really quick. It's just a happy, come together and have a great time kind of song. It's the kind of song that sticks in your head even after you turn off your CD player and watch some TV... you kinda start singing the song and think "what am I doing singing this song!?" (laugh) It sticks in your head. Scott: "Whenever I" is a very clever song lyrically. Ben: That song is for two people who are really in love. When you hear the title, you think, "what does this that mean?" But once you hear the song you understand what it's all about. When I wrote the song I thought about two people who are in love and what their thoughts would be because of the love they have for one another. When you're in love, all of your senses just come alive and that's what this song is all about. This song was written pretty quickly. The hook came really fast. The lyric "Whenever I" just sat there for a while and I kept repeating and thinking, "Whenever I WHAT?". But I soon realized that I was the hold up of the songs completion... because I was looking for something to complete it, but that was all there was! The title was the completion of the song. And if you listen to the lyrics you will know what I mean. This song is really hitting it off in Japan. They really like it , in fact it is my favorite song on this album. Scott: Maile Lei was a natural first release for this album. Ben: Its doing really well! It's in high rotation on KCCN FM 100. It's a tribute to everyone who danced to Pupu hinu hinu when they were young. I asked Eddie Suzuki, who wrote Maile Lei, if I could use it and he didn't think anything about it. Now he's so excited because the song is doing so well. He's the one who gave me my first real break in music professionally. This is my tribute to him.

Scott: Who is the singer who duets with you on "You're my love"? She's great! Ben: She is a great singer! That's Darla Short, of course no one knows her here yet, but they will. She sings at my church, and we used to work together in a club. I actually wrote this song for a friend who got married. I worked with Darla on it to make sure that it brought out all of her strengths as a vocalist. The horns are beautiful, they are done by Robert Shinoda, and the Sax is David Choy. Darla will be coming out with an album, so we are working with her on that. Scott: What was your inspiration for "Living in Paradise". Ben: I saw this movie or video where a helicopter was coming toward this Island and just hearing the words "Living in Paradise". The song is just about the beauty of the islands. In the bridge of the song you can hear me sing about Pele. I think its a neat song because I thought about if the Island could speak, what would it say? Scott: Is "Walking in the Light" a tribute to show type tunes? Ben: It's got that huge brass section and big vocals. In that song, I talk about my life and all of my experiences, and my walk with God. It's a tribute to my walk with God because through it all, everything I have seen and experienced in all of my life, I am thankful for because he has showed me the true way, which is walking with him.
		Scott: "You is what I like about you" is another song with a funny sounding title. Ben: The title is interesting because you really do have to think about what is it that you really like about a person. I wanted to get down to the simplest, most basic part of what you like about someone. And then you realize, that it's YOU that I like about you. You like everything about that person. Even their mistakes or their little quirks. It's them that you like. Everyone who sees the title thinks its a remake of that Romantics song "What I like about you!" (laugh) But when they hear it they immediately know it isn't! But once you listen to the song, it makes sense! Scott: The opening to "Only You" has a U2 kind of feel to it. Ben: Actually that rhythm in the beginning I had even before I heard of that group. That's a gospel song. People think its that old song, "Only You", but it isn't. I started with the title and the rest came from that.