 Aikako, and welcome to the beautiful studios of thinkte kawaii located in downtown Honolulu in the Pioneer Plaza building. My name is Walter Kawaia, your host for another broadcast of Ukulele Songs of Hawaii. Today's episode entitled Na Hoku o Kaleipohaku featuring the man behind the scenes former member of the Peter Moon Band himself, please welcome Mr. Bobby Hall. Aloha, Bobby. Aloha, Walter. Good to have you. Good to see you. It's been an age in the last 40 years, huh? I saw the old guys tell each other. Yeah, I'm sure. Although Bobby was never officially part of the Hui Onalpio, while at St. Louis High School from 1969 to when he graduated in 1971, he sang and played music casually at outings with friends. He played with classmates, Dennis and Francis Kamahele. Bobby got to meet and play music with kids from other schools, which included Dennis Kamakahi, Danny Akaka, Mike Kawa, and a dear friend of mine, Randy Borden. Bobby never had any serious intentions for a musical career from 1973 to 1975. Bobby began his professional music career unintentionally, played gigs with college friends at weekend gatherings. After a close college friend went off to school in Colorado, plans were made for he and his band members to follow his friend. This is when it all began. Realizing the cost to get there and live would require money, they looked for playing opportunities. So they decided to put themselves out there and began playing for all kinds of paying jobs. Eventually, it led them to a five night a week gig at the Outriggery Hotel. They were known as the Calvary Trio. The time came to make their trek to Colorado. The group was all excited to go, but realized they were locked into a contractual agreement with the hotel and therefore never made the journey to Colorado. The group reformed with Bobby Hall, Steve Hall, and Brian Hussie, and they were known as Ka'ala. They were performing at the places like Ranch House, Ina Hina, Hilton Hawaiian Village, and the International Marketplace. However, Bobby's day job resulted in him having to relocate to Hilo and thereby leaving the entertainment business. But, fortunate for us, in 1978, Bobby relocated back to Oahu for work. Shortly thereafter, he was contacted by Peter Moon, who was looking to rebrand himself after the breakup of the Sunday Manoa group. Bobby Hall, along with Randy Lorenzo, joined with Peter to form the Peter Moon Band. And in 1979, they released their new recorded album entitled Tropical Storm. In 1980, that album gave the Peter Moon Band five Naohoku Hano Hano Awards, including album, group, and Song of the Year. The group would release 13 albums and win multiple Naohoku Hano Hano Awards. And in 1992, Martin Pahinui and Bobby Hall mutually parted ways with Peter to spend more time with their families. Bobby is now retired, living the life of Riley. He's retired from his day job, but continues to have a very active role at St. Louis School. His alma mater as a member of its board of directors. And in 2018, in an effort to fundraise for the school, Bobby created a venue where musicians who have graduated from St. Louis would come back home and put on a yearly event. Successful concerts show at Mamia Theatre, which I was fortunate to be a part of last year and looking forward to in a few weeks. And we'll talk more about that with Bobby. Because of that success, I decided to reach out to Bobby to join me here today at Ukulali Songs of Hawaii to talk about his wonderful, this wonderful event coming up on Saturday, July 27th, the second annual Naohoku or Kalai Pohaku. So Bobby, let's talk about that event. You're the man, the genius behind the event. And you want to tell us how all that got started? Well, first of all, that was a major flashback of my entire music career. And thank you for sharing that, Walter. Yeah, Naohoku or Kalai Pohaku was basically a creation with St. Louis Alumni Board and school president Glenn Madaris. It was talked about for years, but it never, nothing really materialized until I had the opportunity to share my past talents with the school. And with Glenn Madaris at the helm, it made the venture even much easier from an entertainer's perspective. So last year's event was the first time. Typical, try to get St. Louis entertainers back to perform. They showed up strong, represented the school. And for me, it was such a unique event, possibly something that couldn't be duplicated only because it was the brotherhood, playing for the brotherhood, with the brotherhood, you know, all red and blue throughout. And what was most unique to me was the caliber of the entertainment, very versatile, very well-renowned in Hawaii. And everybody just basically made up their show sets backstage. Yeah, that's true. I was backstage. I don't keep talking about it. I mean, it was awesome just to see guys. And most of the time, we were just catching up on stories, reminiscing, what's all you're going to play? Oh, what about this one? And then boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, you're on it in 10 minutes, OK. And I think that transcended into the audience for a night that probably might be too hard to replay. I know for me, being backstage most of the time, and of course, Bobby was all over the place, being the man in charge. First time. Yeah, first time. And so from an entertainer's point of view, from being backstage and looking out at the audience, I mean, the place was packed as far as what I could see. And I had asked John Lake's daughter, Sissy Lake, to fly in special, which she did, because she knew that there was going to be a part of the program that was going to honor her dad. And so she came to dance with my wife and I, as we sang and played some songs. Yeah, I mean, so many, I always, now, this is no reflection on commitment school, both my daughter is a graduate. Oh, you went there, Walter. I went there. My daughter's a graduate of Kamehameha. My two grandchildren graduated from Kamehameha last year. I love Kamehameha school, but, and I think Kamehameha school would agree. I mean, you know, it's nice to see another institution like St. Louis, well founded on this island, you know, reaching back into its roots, because there are a lot of people that have graduated from St. Louis, and not just the ones that performed that night, or that will perform this year, but I'm talking people that have since passed, like my mentor, Kahau Anulik, went to St. Louis High School, most of his high school career. There's a small segment that we put together, identifying, you know, by video, all that we knew that went to St. Louis, going back to the 1900s, early 1900s. And it was, you know, for me, it's like I didn't realize some of the graduates at St. Louis turned out. I didn't realize that, you know, Ota San went to St. Louis. You know, and Ota San is worldwide renowned, you know, for his ukulele, and he's probably the, you know, one of the inspiring ukulele players that inspired people like Hiramun, right? So when you look at that Genesis, it's like, wow. You know, and there were others, your classmate, George Helm, right? You know, I mean, people really realized the music side of George, but it was just astounding to see how many alumni there are in the music business. And I'm glad the school, I'm glad, you know, Dr. Madaris, you know, decided to endorse this and start showcasing, you know, the alumni, you know, for its broad talents, you know, beyond just sports and academics, you know, and entertainment field. Well, you gotta love, you know, you mentioned Dr. Glenn Madaris, and I've been working with him since last year on a project to help preserve some of the student records at the school, and I don't wanna get into that, but just, he has such a soft heart. I mean, he's not, he's not even a seamless graduate, but just by his behavior and how he embraces the brotherhood, you would think he is part of, he is part of the brotherhood, but he's not, you know, he's not a graduate, and I just appreciate that about him. His business acumen on how he's, you know, adapted to the school, and, you know, you know, reduce, you know, operational costs, and you got the most out of everybody up there. I mean, that's something that I don't think all St. Louis alumni realize, but it really helps to, you know, sustain, you know, a school that's been around for over 175 years. I know, I didn't realize St. Louis was that old. I mean, it's original. It's actually, in 1844, I was shocked, and its original location was back in Huy Manu. Right, right, right. And then, you know, it eventually made its way to Kalai Pohaku, that mountain, and so, yeah. You know, that's the thing we find, you know, and we tend to brag about, you know, the fact that we belong to that brotherhood. There's definitely history, and I think you have to be part of the brotherhood to have that piece of DNA that keeps us united. I mean, people talk about it, but, you know, if you've been on the campus and you've been through the school, there's a certain DNA, and that showed up in all the entertainers. You know, they, as busy as they were from their, you know, music schedule, and we're talking, you know, international schedules. You know, they were very willing to come back and perform, and it was like a good reunion night, and we look forward to doing, you know, something like that again this year. I'm gonna ask the engineer if he could throw up that. This was the, from last year, yeah, there we go. So, this was the program, pretty much, of those that entertained, but you know what really warmed my heart, Bobby, was seeing, you know, of course, we know Chris, I played with Chris, and to see Chris's dad, to see him there, was really something. And his dad's getting up in years. I believe he just turned 96. I could be wrong. Yeah, just recently. Still going. Still going, still going. I mean, it was great to see him, and of course, Holly Huckle-Seabury, such a talented musician. Nahua. Yeah, Nahua, this guy. But his, I first met him at Pohai Sousa's Halau. We were doing, this was two years ago, so I was joining with him to play for the Prince Laat Hula Festival at the palace. And so I never met him, and when I got in there, you might appreciate the story. Pohai says, Walter, I mean, Holly, play something full of Walter. And he busts out his idol in the music world. Do you know who his Hawaiian music idol was? Alka Ailao. Oh. Alka Ailao was the still guitar player. I mean, an electric guitar player on albums one and two of the Kahau and the Lake Trail. And he plays every song, if you ask him to, the lick. I mean, it's incredible. I have to have him on another show, but it was great to see him there, you know, and others. So tell us, you know, these, these, I mean, I'm sure it wasn't your intention when you created this venue, but simply to have a night to showcase the entertainers that are in the field that graduated from St. Louis. I mean, it went far beyond that. It was, it was, the intention was to raise funds for... Well, like all private school institutions, you know, many of them have to fund raise to help supplement operational costs, tuition costs. There's a balance on, you know, what they can charge as far as tuition. And a lot of the costs get picked up through donation, alumni support, what have you. And St. Louis has always, you know, been a school that, you know, benefited from donations and fundraisers and things like that. So this was intended to be, you know, a fundraiser for the school. And at that time, last year, the primary needs of the school was to support their STEM program, and particularly the robotics program, which was taken off and literally taken off and, you know, going international and being, you know, renowned and with some expense, of course. So the first time, first try, there were the beneficiaries of last year's Na Hoku. Nice. Going forward, there's a commitment, you know, from the school to have Na Hoku support arts and music and arts. Yeah, and that's befitting, you know, for us as entertainers, you know, to give back to the school and to help possibly future aspiring entertainers. You know, before the show started, Bobby and I were just sitting outside in the front office and talking, and I shared with Bobby that, of course, my mentor was Kahawa Nuleik, and he gave me, you know, long before his passing, he gave me all of his ukuleles, and so one of the primary ukuleles, which was made, ironically, by Sam Kamuka and Kamuka Ukuleles, all of them were made by them. This is the one that had his name engraved on it and that he played most of his musical career recorded almost all of the albums. And so it was time for some of the, the bracing was coming off, so I took it to Chris, this was about six years ago, and Chris looked at me and he says, Walter, the ukulele has surpassed its days of playing, and I was heartbroken because the sound on that was so cunning. Sure. And I just thought, oh, I can't give this up. So it took me about four years to part with it. But I'll say, I'll share with Bobby that I've donated that ukulele, a number of personal items of Cajal wanted to, Dr. Glenn Madaris was so grateful and we're trying to find a home for it on campus just to perpetuate that brand of music, that style of music. And so, you know, Bobby and I will probably talk, sorry, more off the air and maybe work with the alum and I to see that come to fruition and to see that displayed for the upcoming, you know, students at St. Louis and to hear that brand of music, which doesn't get played that often. It's amazing how an instrument, such as a ukulele, can produce that much history for those that perform there. Not only for themselves, but for people around them, for music and, you know, Kamako family has been inspirational, been basically the catalyst in getting the ukulele out there in the world. And we've all benefited from playing their instrument. But since this is ukulele stories, it is the story associated with the ukulele that brings that ukulele to life. And I can't think of a better home than Kalai Pohaku. Well, same. The argument's here, red, blue. Well, folks, we're having a great time talking to start with Bobby Hall, but former member of the Peter Moon Band and board member of St. Louis School, Bobby is here telling us all about the second annual Nahoku or Kalai Pohaku event that will be happening Saturday, July 27 at the Mamia Theater on the grounds of St. Louis School. We are going to take a 60 second break and we'll be right back with our guest, Bobby Hall. Hi, I am Yukari Kunisue, host of Konnichiwa, Hawaii. Think Tech Hawaii's Japanese program, broadcasting every Monday from 2 p.m. I usually invite a guest in Japanese language community who does interesting things and I'd like to share stories with you guys. Please tune in and listen to Konnichiwa, Hawaii. Hello, ha. My name is Wendy Lowe and I want you to join me as we take our health back. On my show, all we do is talk about things in everyday life in Hawaii or abroad. I have guests on board that would just talk about different aspects of health in every way, whether it's medical health, nutritional health, diabetic health, you name it, we'll talk about it. Even financial health. We'll even have some of the Miss Hawaii's on board and all the different topics that I feel will make your health and your lifestyle a lot better. So come join me. I welcome you to take your health back. Mahalo. As an entertainer, musician over all these years, and I'm asking Bobby a question now. Who are your musical influences for you? So I really didn't start out, you know, liking Hawaiian music, you know. You just said that to the whole world. Yeah, I know, I know, right? But in my early years, I was always a fan of big band music. Yeah, I like music from the 40s. I like Glenn Miller's stuff. I like Andrew's sister's harmonies. I've always enjoyed that. You know, my parents were musically inclined. And so whenever we had parties and get together, especially my mom and my dad's friends, you know, they just come and sing, which is typical for many Hawaiian families. So I picked up, you know, the Hawaiian music and stuff like that. But as far as Hawaiian artists, I would like to think part of the Hawaiian Renaissance, the late 60s, early 70s, so much inspired by Sunday Manoa, the moon, so much inspired by Wili, by the Pahinois, particularly Gabi Pahinoi, and the Sons of Hawaii. You know, so I basically in those days bought every record and played them 100 million times, you know. So I engrained myself with all of the music. You know, I think, you know, your description of that, it probably speaks for most of us of that generation. I mean, in my home growing up, I mean, those, you know, Linda Della Cruz and the Holy Kulani girls, I mean, Gabi Pahinoi, the Sons of Hawaii, you know, with Eddie Kamae, and all of that, it was constant. If you didn't get it on the radio, you got it at home because your parents were playing that stuff. And of course, the Kahaua No Lake Trail. So, you know, that influence. What kind of personal advice though would you give to, right now, you know, to a youngster that might be watching this show, that is contemplating, you know, teetering perhaps on making this a profession, because I know, you know, music was an avocation for most of us. We all had regular daytime jobs to support our ability to play and make it fun and enjoyable. So what kind of advice would you give to the youngster? So I'll condition my answer, you know, based on my age and experience, right? It's hard for me to evaluate, or I'm not trying to evaluate the type of music or the sounds that, you know, a musician enjoys because there's too much of a generational gap in between my preferences and the younger musicians of today. But, you know, I always performed taking the perspective of the audience. I've always been on stage and I've always felt that, especially if you're working as an entertainer, they're the ones that thank you, right? What would that person want to hear? What songs might make them happy? What gives them a smile? What do I know that can help, you know, get them to really enjoy the moment because music is for that moment. And if there's anything that I would, you know, recommend or suggest to aspiring musicians is when you perform, perform for them. You know, don't just perform sort of for everybody, you know, all the major segments and the ninths and you can do all that. That's my perspective, you know? Share your music, that's what it's intended for. Well, you know, it sounds like you have to, you really have to love it and you have to enjoy it. You know, for me, this was the council, I'm going to say that word council, that was given to George Helm and myself. Because every Saturday morning, George and I used to go over to Kahawana's house for a lesson. And the council to him was- Lessons or scoldings? Both. We always thought it was scoldings, but it was actually, I mean, I don't know. And it's, you know what he told us? And it deflated our egos because we thought that we were, because we were being trained by him, we would just slip into their career when they slipped out. Well, quickly we learned because his advice to us, well, first of all, finish St. Louis, graduate. He told us to go on to college, get a degree in college and get a good job. And George and I were deflated because the last thing we wanted to do was go college and the last thing we wanted to do was to get a day job. We thought we would just play music day and night and just, you know, money would literally drop from heaven, like mana to the children of the house of Israel, right? Well, that never happened. So, you know, fortunately we listened, we went to college and furthered our education and got good daytime jobs and, you know, we're able to enjoy the benefits of playing music. Because one thing I learned from him was, whenever you play music, and I agree with what you said, I mean, if whoever you play music to, if they're not happy with what you're playing, you know, you gotta change that. They're not gonna come back. Make your music, they're not gonna come back. And then you'll be out of jobs shortly. You know, so, unless it's a private gig for a private party, well, that's different because they came to you. But you're playing to a crowd of, you know, there's a way to, whatever your genre of music is, you know, you learn to, if you know enough about it, you know how to bring them in to enjoy the music by sharing with them what the music is all about. But going back to your comment about Benny Goodman and the orchestra, Big Band Sound, that, do you know that that was one of the things Kahawanu told George and I to go home and listen to Big Band Sound? Really, I didn't know. Yeah, and he says, and go listen to the Mills Brothers. And I'm like, I don't even know who that is. And so I did, I had to go out and do that. But then I realized, years later though, after listening to that, what he was talking about, because all of them jazz progression, those chords, when you listen to Big Band Sound, that's what, that generation, you know, our parents' generation, that's the kind of music they grew up. We grew up on rock and roll. They grew up on jazz music. And so that was a tendency to incorporate that kind of sound into the Hawaiian music. One of the things that really excited me when Peter wanted to, you know, come back into the music scene and start something different, you know, was our ability to do all kind of music, not just the traditional Hawaiian, maybe more aggressive contemporary Hawaiian, but all kind of music, you know, from rock and roll to reggae to Big Band, to ballads, to a whole bunch of stuff. And, you know, we went there with the intentions of drawing upon each of the band members, you know, personal background. So it became, you know, almost by coincidence that, you know, my role was to figure out harmonies, parts, you know, singing, and, you know, different, you know, type of arrangements that would suit a certain genre. I mean, with guys like Randy, Lorenzo, Peter Moon, Sarah Pahinui, Martin Pahinui, Steven Hall, you know, I'm the sixth best musician out of group five. You know, so, you know, everybody had their role and it worked for us, you know. Well, that's good to hear. Yeah. You know, and I think that's important to remember that every member of the band had its role. There were, nobody's ego got over anybody else's and you work together as a team. And that's, you know, I'm sure that contributed to your folks success. You know, and I realize we're talking, you know, from our generationals perspective, right? You know, I realized today that the opportunities for entertainers are even, you know, broader. I mean, you can do recordings right at home. You can distribute your music electronically. The world is changing. You know, you can entertain an audience that's not even in front of you. You know, so it's different. And, you know, you can actually, in our days, you had to have that grounded, secured daytime job in order to, you know, survive as a musician because musicians never really got, you know, they got paid a lot for a short period of time but then after that, you know. Nowadays it's different. You know, aspiring young artists can make, you know, decent careers with online distributions and things like that. But I still believe that it's what you put out is what you're gonna get back. Well, our time is almost gone, Bobby. So I wanna ask for our viewers out there. So we have this event coming up on Saturday, July 27th. It's a fundraising event. It's a concert featuring musicians. They're all graduates of St. Louis High School and have gone on to have illustrious careers are coming back home to Kokua, to Brotherhood. So if people are interested, how can they get tickets? They can contact the school, St. Louis School. They can contact St. Louis alumni. I mean, I don't have those numbers off hand, but at the alumni in contact David Diamond there and at the school, you can contact Scotty Gonzales at the school and these two gentlemen, you know, are working on this event just as hard as I am. Excellent. So best advice is either call the St. Louis Alumni Association if you know someone, otherwise call the school. You can find it in the phone directory and ask for Dr. Scotty Gonzales. Dr. Scotty Gonzales at St. Louis School and Mr. David Diamond at St. Louis Alumni. Our time once again is slipped right by us and I want to give a big mahalanui to my special guest today, Mr. Bobby Hall, former member of the Peter Moon Band and remind everyone out there about the second annual Nahoku or Kalai Pohaku event that's happening Saturday, July 27th at Mamia Theater on the grounds of St. Louis School. So thanks for watching. My name is Walter Gawaii, your host for Ukulele Songs of Hawaii. Until next time, everybody, take care and aloha no.