Honolulu Weekly

It’s a feast for the eyes and ears. Bob Rogers, front man of local band Coconut Joe, is mixing his group’s already-popular music with his second, lesser-known talent–photography.

Lizard Loft, the NPO in love with local art, presents Coconut Joe and the Bicycle Perspectives, a multi-media art presentation meshing the group’s harmonies with a two-hour video presentation of Rogers’ five-year photo collection–shots he took while riding his bicycle. The event opens tomorrow night at Marks Garage for two short runs.

The photography on display during the shows is Rogers’ Windward Coast of O’ahu Collection: Makapu’u to Turtle Bay. The photos will be shown in two one-hour sessions with a short intermission between them, in which the band will also take a break.

On why he rides a bike: He says people tend to drive from place to place, without noticing what’s in between. ‘I decided to take it a little slower; take the back roads, explore a little of my island home.’

But Rogers is no stranger to O’ahu, having been born in Honolulu and raised in Kailua and Kane’ohe. At 7, he received his first bicycle–a 26-inch adult Schwinn he named George. Rogers remembers having to fit it with blocks so his legs could reach the pedals. ‘I thought it was my horse,’ he says. ‘I would talk to it, leave it tied up somewhere. I was a weird kid.’

Also taking up music at an early age (the ‘ukulele and the guitar), the long-time songwriter formed Coconut Joe in 1996, which has released two albums and is working on a third.

CJ’s rich harmonies, indeed its signature sound, are provided by wife and vocalist Barbara Ann Rogers, bassist and vocalist Peter Agustin, and electric guitarist and vocalist Frank Kam. Scott Sato may not sing, but he keeps the jive alive with his percussive ingenuity.

The group mixes pop, rock, jazz and blues with a native Hawaiian sound–a genre it hopes will catch on. ‘We’re hoping to create a musical bridge to shores beyond the Hawaiian Islands,’ the group says.

Rogers’ talent as a musician isn’t contested, and fans will most likely enjoy the continued artistry of his photos. And though George has gone by the wayside (he kept it for almost 13 years, replaced now with a $1,000 Rocky Mountain Trail Jumper), Rogers continues to take the back roads, capturing the magic of Hawai’i now in visual, not just aural, form.