Besides recording several respected EPs for Chain Reaction under the confusingly titled production concern known as Various Artists, Berlin's Torsten Pröfrock co-owns (with Sasha Brauer) Din Records, home to releases by excellent, respected producers Monolake, Pole, and Arovane. Pröfrock entered the Berlin electronics scene first by shopping at the Berlin record store Hard Wax while working toward his economics degree. By 1994, he worked at Hard Wax as well, growing closer to the store's base for legendary productions on the Basic Channel/Chain Reaction family of labels. Pröfrock also began producing and released his first Various Artists project, 1995's 1-7, on Chain Reaction. (He also recorded two singles for the label as Resilient and Erosion.) The continuation piece 8, 8.5, 9 appeared on England's Fat Cat label in 1997, highlighting the producer's subtle ambient sense and reliance on a restrictive frequency range -- all middles, no highs or lows. Later that year, Chain Reaction compiled his work on the Decay Product compilation, and Fat Cat expanded 8, 8.5, 9 to an EP for Profrock's second CD release. ~ John Bush

Famed guitarist Jerry Byrd was born on March 9, 1920 in Lima, OH. As a child, he developed a passion for Hawaiian music, although he made his first inroads into performing by playing country on an area radio station between 1935 and 1937. After a stint on Cincinnati's WLW, he joined the Renfro Valley Barn Dance in 1941; a year later, he jumped to WJR in Detroit, and remained there until he signed on with Ernie Lee's Pleasant Valley Boys in 1944.

Byrd remained with Lee until 1946, when he formed his own group, the Jay-Bird Trio. Two years later, he joined Red Foley's band and became a session staple at King Records. Also in 1948, Byrd cut his first singles, "Mountain Mambo" and, under the name Jerry Robin, "Sun Shadows." Later in the year, he issued his first 78, "Steelin' the Blues." While at King, Byrd also recorded a handful of Hawaiian songs, and as the years wore on, the music became his primary focus.

Still, Byrd remained an active figure on the country landscape; in 1950 he became a regular on Foley's NBC television program, and from 1954 to 1956 he was featured on the Nashville-based series Home Folks. An eight-year stint on the program Country Junction followed, and in 1964 he became a member of Bobby Lord's TV band. In 1968, Byrd left country for good, moving to Hawaii to focus exclusively on the state's native music. ~ Jason Ankeny

Nina Kealiiwahamana was born into music as the daughter of the great Vickie I'i Rodrigues. With some training primarily from her family, she soon moved into public performance, joining the highly popular Hawaii Calls radio show in 1958 as a live soloist, holding her popularity with the show until 1974. After this, she went into the Royal Hawaiian hotel during the prime era of popular Hawaiian tourism as one of the leading ladies of Hawaiian song, as well as recording her classic album, Nina, with Jack DeMello, one of the major movers in Hawaiian recording. After her time at the Royal Hawaiian, Nina toured extensively, performing as a mezzo soprano with various symphonies and Hawaiian bands alike, as well as a good number of performances abroad on behalf of the Hawaii Visitors Bureau. In 1992 she received the lifetime achievement Na Hoku Hanohano (Hawaiian Grammy), followed in 1995 by the release of two more albums on Mountain Apple and Surfside. 2003 saw the re-release of the classic Nina album. ~ Adam Greenberg