Search - Willie K :: Awihilima

Reflections of Pure Hawaiian Aloha!!

Robert Miller | San Francisco, USA | 10/14/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"A lot of what Hawaii is and stands for is on this cd. Released back in 2001 (per my copy), this collection of traditional Hawaiian music shows the love (aloha), the caring, the respect, and the true beauty of the Hawaiian people, and their full appreciation of family and their surroundings.



Willie K. handles all the vocals wonderfully on this album. He also plays slack key guitar and ukulele. Most of the songs (13) are sung in Hawaiian, while 1 track, "Kau Ele Makule/C-A-T" is evenly split between both languages; the first 2 verses in Hawaiian, the second 2 in English, and the last 3 verses (each repeated twice) in both English and Hawaiian. The last song, "Na Moku 'Eha (The Four Islands)" is perhaps my favorite. It pays tribute to each of the 8 main islands (Kaho'olawe and Ni'ihau included) and shares the true beauty of each.



The cd booklet is well done, and includes credits, plus the words to all of the songs in both Hawaiian and English. The Hawaiian language is so beautiful and flowing, and having the lyrics helps me to better understand the heartfelt meaning of each song.



Listening over and over reminds me of sitting on a beach at Ke'e or Hanalei, or a black sand beach at Hana, watching the palm and coconut trees, and looking out at the crystal clear blue water. What a rush!



"