The Big Island offers small escape for big-time musician Citizen Cope

KAILUA-KONA — After two decades in the music business and a half dozen records, sometimes all a musician needs before a big tour is a low-key stay in Hawaii.

Clarence Greenwood, known by his stage name of Citizen Cope, was on the Big Island last week to perform at Laverne’s Sports Bar, his second concert he has performed at the late night Alii Drive venue. The 50-year-old singer-songwriter is on the cusp of a new album and a national tour, and Hawaii is the place for him to reset his mind before the chaos.

“I went swimming in the ocean, I did sprints in the sand,” Greenwood said. “I slept with my window open and didn’t hear any horns honking, didn’t hear any jackhammers. It’s interesting because every time I come to Hawaii, people are like what did you do today? And I did nothing, and I’m proud of it.

“There’s enough travels and destinations in my life that if I get somewhere in Hawaii, I just like to stay there, jump in the water and go for a run somewhere.”

Backstage at Laverne’s last Thursday, the musician who splits his time between New York and LA said the show in Kailua-Kona, which was put together by local music promoters Grab the Reef Entertainment, was an opportunity to have a good time in a more intimate setting than the big cities and festivals Citizen Cope is used to performing.

He will be traveling the U.S. beginning in March alongside the release of his first album since 2012, “Heroin and Helicopters,” and the tour starts in Philadelphia before making its way across the nation for over 30 shows, a big feat for the road-weary musician.

“I’ve always been down for the adventure of it and I’ve always kind of enjoyed learning things from touring,” Greenwood said. “But I went through a period where it’s gotten to be a little too much, so I don’t know how long I’ll be doing that much touring in the future.”

The name of the new album, to be released March 1, comes from musician Carlos Santana, who told Greenwood when they first met to “stay away from the two H’s — heroin and helicopters.”

“I thought it was a poignant time to kind of touch on that subject, because we’re dealing with a lot of addiction in our society, not just with drugs, but to also social media, telephones,” Greenwood said. “And also helicopters are viewed as a way to get to places kind of fast without having to do the work to get there. So it seemed like an appropriate time to bring that title out there.”

Two songs from the new album, “The River and “Justice,” were played for his Big Island audience last Thursday, and the song “Justice” has already been released to the world through various music streaming services.

“I don’t really write songs that are about anything,” Greenwood said about the inspiration behind his new songs. “I think songs, you can look back and say what they’re about, but I think you have to listen to a song to really understand what it means to you and it’s really about whatever the listener thinks it’s about.”

Greenwood said his career has been a journey, with different experiences in his life influencing the sound of his music. His music is a unique mix of rock, blues and folk, and some of his most recorded and most requested songs include “Let the Drummer Kick” and “Sideways.” “Sideways” has also been recorded by Santana and Sheryl Crow.

“I don’t even consider myself a great guitar player, I just use it to write songs,” Greenwood said. “Certain things happened in my life and I wanted to express myself. Like any artist, you go through struggles in life and we as people kind of choose how we overcome those struggles. I think music was a way that helped me to overcome certain things in my life that I don’t think I could have overcome without some sort of art.”