Brown Skin Woman

By Keith Haugen

Brown skin woman,
Island woman that I love

Gentle woman of Hawai`i
Brown skin woman that I love
Hair that glistens in the moonlight
Hands that move just like a dove.

Brown skin woman
Hands that move just like a dove

Pretty like Hawai`i's flowers
Wove into a lovely lei
Fragrant like an Island blossom
One that steals my heart away.

Brown skin woman
One that steals my heart away

Brown skin woman of Hawai`i
Swaying like the Island palm trees
Dark eyes like Hawai`i's midnight skies
A smile that always seeks to please.

Brown skin woman
A smile that always seeks to please

Dancing slowly to an Island song
Singing softly like a dove
Movements like the rippling ocean
Island woman that I love.

Brown skin woman
A smile that always seeks to please

"Brown Skin Woman" was written for Carmen, while Keith was researching hapa-haole songs and studying the works of such great composers as R. Alex Anderson, Harry Owens, Jack Owens, Mel Peterson, Sonny Cunha and others who wrote Hawaiian songs in the English language. It was recorded first on a 45 rpm single in 1980 (Tropical Music) and later include on both "Keith & Carmen at the Royal" and "Looking Back," a Hawaiian Anthology which is still in print.

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