Lemuria -

Lemuria was an American jazz-funk/soul band from Hawaii that released a 1978 self-titled album on Heaven Records.

Members: Azure McCall, Creed Fernandez, Ira Nepus, Kirk Thompson, Merri Lake, Stacie Johnson, Star Williams

Background

Lemuria formed in Hawaii in 1978 when producer and ex-Kalapana multi-instrumentalist Kirk Thompson assembled an eighteen-piece Oahu ensemble with guitarist John Rapoza.

Thompson entered professional music as a child in Don Ho’s show. He first recorded with Kalapana, a Honolulu group co-founded with Mackey Feary, DJ Pratt, and Malani Bilyeu. Kalapana moved from the Hawaii club circuit to national-label releases during the mid-Seventies.

Rapoza came from Waipahu and played Beowulf with drummer Alvin Fejarang and saxophonist Michael Paulo. Kalapana hired Fejarang and Paulo for mainland work while Rapoza presented Thompson with “Get That Happy Feeling,” the impetus for Lemuria, which also featured bassist Gary Sprewel, drummer Bert DeJesus, pianist Kit Ebersbach, percussionists Creed Fernandez and Master Henry Gibson, and a seven-piece horn section: trombonist Ira Nepus, trumpeters Bill Simmons and Mike Morita, and saxophonists Bill Popaka (baritone), Mark Stone (alto), and Chet Christopher and Gordon Uchima (tenor).

Lemuria

Lemuria released their self-titled singular album in 1978 on Heaven Records

The album contains eight Thompson originals and Rapoza’s “Get That Happy Feeling,” performed by an expanded studio ensemble and the Ladies of Lemuria, comprised of vocalists Azure McCall, Merri Lake, Stacie Johnson, and Star Williams.

“Hunk of Heaven” cruises through sunlit ensemble replies, brief solo turns, and horn hits at phrase breaks. “All I’ve Got to Give” glides from a light jazzed sway into Star Williams’s choral section, then clears space for a rounded solo span. “Dreams” threads female lead phrases around a smooth featured break. “Mister U (Universe)” opens on a reed figure, yields to a keyboard break, then settles into a sung lead.

“Get That Happy Feeling” spotlights instrumental interplay above hand-patterned percussion. “Moonlight Affair” simmers on a slick rhythm bed, with layered reed figures wrapped around sung lines. “Mystery Love” carries female ensemble lines through twin reed breaks before a full-ensemble entry.

A1. “Hunk of Heaven” (4:00)
A2. “All I’ve Got to Give” (5:12)
A3. “Dreams” (3:57)
A4. “Mister U (Universe)” (7:10)

B1. “Get That Happy Feeling” (4:07)
B2. “Moonlight Affair” (5:10)
B3. “Mystery Love” (5:12)
B4. “The Making of You” (3:50)
B5. “The Lady and the Dude” (3:35)

Sessions occurred at Broad Recording Studio in Honolulu with producer and arranger Kirk Thompson, co-producer Master Henry Gibson, and engineer Gary Ham. Thompson’s adjacent studio sequence continued with 1979 albums by Ira Nepus (Trombone Feeling) and Babadu (Babadu!).

Lemuria appeared in a sleeve with artwork and graphics by Bruce Page. The cover shows a gold coastal scene with breaking surf, dark shoreline rock, distant headlands, a cursive Lemuria nameplate, and a small Heaven Records logo.

Heaven lifted “Hunk of Heaven” as a 1978 single (b/w “Moonlight Affair”).

P-Vine reissued Lemuria on CD in July 2012 and on LP in March 2019. A 2022 expanded edition added “Don’t Say Their Ain’t No Heaven,” “Somebody’s Talkin’,” “Who Do You Love,” and alternate takes of “All I’ve Got to Give” and “Mister U (Universe).” P-Vine also paired “All I’ve Got to Give” with “Hunk of Heaven” on Japanese 7-inch singles in April 2019 and January 2025.

Postlude

Thompson kept the Lemuria personnel circle active through 1979 projects by Ira Nepus and Babadu. Nepus released Trombone Feeling on Heaven with Thompson as executive producer. Babadu recorded a self-titled album at Broad with Rapoza, Nepus, Gibson, and pianist Kit Ebersbach among the credited players.

Rapoza joined Thompson at the December 1982 Kalapana reunion at Waikiki Shell, where he filled the guitar chair for DJ Pratt. Ebersbach moved from Lemuria and Babadu into The Squids, then worked through the Eighties with Gain Dangerous Visions beside Robert ÆOLUS Myers, Nelson Hiu, and Frank Orrall. Master Henry Gibson remained active on Oahu with Thompson-affiliated musicians and Waikiki players.

Discography: