Hawaiian String Virtuoso: Acoustic Steel Guitar Classics from the 1920's
Along withSol Hoopii, King Bennie Nawahi was the undisputed master of Hawaiian steel guitar music in the 1920s and '30s. His lyrical playing and virtuosic solos were as jazzy as the guitar playing ofDjango Reinhardtand his repertoire ranged from island tunes to Tin Pan Alley to the blues. It's hard to imagine that the same guy performing the slow and sentimental "Mauna Kea" could churn out a rollicking number like "Dinah" (here with the Red Devils), but Nawahi possessed a versatility and proficiency that few instrumentalists could match (in the '20s, he was even crowned "King of the Ukulele" for his numerous wins in stateside uke contests). On Charles B. Smith's "My Little A-1 Brownie," he juggles steel guitar, mandolin, standard guitar, and harmonica solos on the same tune (Benny Goodmandid the clarinet solo). Nawahi is a legendary figure in Hawaiian music history, and liner notes by Robert Armstrong (whoseCheap Suit Serenaderswould cover the Hawaiian's "Singing in the Bathtub" five decades after its release) tell the entire story. A great disc.--Jason Verlinde