- Pure Gabby · 1978
- The Descendants (Music from the Motion Picture) · 1972
- Gabby · 1972
- The Descendants (Music from the Motion Picture) · 1972
- Pure Gabby · 1978
- Gabby · 1972
- Gabby · 1972
- The Descendants (Music from the Motion Picture) · 1989
- Riding Giants · 2004
- Gabby Pahinui With the Sons of Hawaii · 1995
- Hawaiian Folk Music · 1998
- The Descendants (Music from the Motion Picture) · 1973
- Gabby Pahinui Hawaiian Band, Vol. 1 · 1975
Essential Albums
- This 1972 set from beloved slack-key guitarist Gabby Pahinui helped fuel that decade’s Hawaiian musical revival, and was the first to feature Pahinui’s sons—James “Bla”, Martin, Philip and Cyril—who all went on to become powerful performers on their own. Pahinui’s warm, easygoing voice and accessible, countrified acoustic arrangements on “Lihue” and “Keawaiki” made it look easy. But the gently chiming guitar work and intricate melodies on “He’eia” and “Leahi” reveal his masterful craft.
Albums
Singles & EPs
Compilations
Appears On
- Andy Cummings
- Various Artists
About Gabby Pahinui
Gabby Pahinui helped to lay the foundation for Hawaiian slack key guitar playing. Although he recorded only one internationally released album, Gabby Pahinui Hawaiian Band, Vol. 1, his influence continues to be reflected in the playing of Hawaiian slack key players and American guitarists including John Fahey, Leo Kottke, and Ry Cooder. During an early-'90s interview, Pahinui's son, James "Bla" Pahinui, also a skilled slack key guitarist, recalled, "My dad got away with a lot of stuff because it worked. He touched so many people because he shared what was in his heart in such an honest and direct way." Pahinui recorded the first slack key recordings in 1946. He continued to lead his own band, the Sons of Hawai'I, until the early '70s when he formed a new group with his sons Charles, Cyril, and James. Their first steps towards international fame came when Ry Cooder traveled to Hawaii to record Gabby Pahinui Hawaiian Band, Vol. 1, during a two-week-long session at Pahinui's home in Kona in 1975. The home had been the site for nightly jam sessions for many years. The same year, Pahinui made a guest appearance on Cooder's album Chicken Skin. ~ Craig Harris
- HOMETOWN
- Honolulu, HI, United States
- BORN
- 22 April 1921
- GENRE
- Worldwide