The Folk Music of Hawaii - Sons Of Hawaii
One of the best selling Hawaiian music albums of all time, Sons of Hawaii, not only charted an exciting new course for all Hawaiian music to follow, but also set a new standard for excellence in the island recording industry.  Originally released in Hawaii by Panini Productions in 1971, the album has been out of print for over 23 years.  Digitally mastered from the original tapes, it was released on CD in October 1998.The original release of the Sons of Hawaii album in 1971, marked a pivotal moment in the evolution of Hawaiian music.  Its arrangements, harmonies, superb musicianship, and sensitive use of Hawaiian language coalesced to set a path which emerging generations of performers continue to emulate to this day.  Coming at a time when rock dominated both the night club scene and radio dial, the album was a sudden illumination to listener and musician alike, a bright light announcing that traditional island music could be successfully contemporized, that to become popular, Hawaiian music need not be restricted to the long standing hapa-haole idiom, but could restate and reaffirm the venerated Hawaiian legacy in an exciting, joyous and eminently listenable fashion.  New standards were set by this album in production and recording technique.  Recorded in Honolulu, it was mixed and mastered at Capitol Records, Inc. in Hollywood.The album features the cumulative talents of a group of individually revered performers, each a respected star in their own right. Legendary slack-key guitar master and vocalist Gabby Pahinui, ukulele virtuoso, composer and researcher, Eddie Kamae, ukulele master and vocalist, Moe Keale, bassist and vocalist Joe Marshall, and steel guitar master, David Feet Rogers.  As the Sons of Hawaii they forged a new and strong path for Hawaiian music to follow.Far more than a reissue of an album, this is the celebration of a moment in time when a group of artists and selflessly dedicated producers came together to revitalize and redirect Hawaiian music in a way which led to the very heart of the Hawaiian renaissance.  Perhaps the groups motto, (which Joe Marshall used to say at every live set the group performed), sums it up best of all, We are the Sons of Hawaii, and we are Hawaiian!!