Listen to the Forest - Eddie Kamae

NEW BOOK AVAILABLE NOVEMBER 16, 2004!

HAWAIIAN SON: The Life and Music of Eddie Kamae

Measured by the many teachers Eddie Kamae has met along the way he and author James D. Houston are charting Eddie's very personal odyssey across the backdrop of twentieth century Hawai'i. In a book generously illustrated with historic photos and drawings in sepia and black and white, Eddie tells of the dancers, musicians, story-tellers, elders and kupuna who have guided him in his lifelong quest to reach the sources of the rich musical traditions of Hawai'i and reclaim his own cultural heritage.

The book will explore the origins of the Hawaiian Cultural Renaissance through Eddie's life and career as a singer, composer, inspirational performer, teacher and filmmaker. It will include memories of Eddie's family and formative years in Honolulu and Lahaina, his early development as an instrumental virtuoso, and the story of his pioneering band, The Sons of Hawai'i. It will also focus on the evolution of his second career as director of the documentary films in his award-winning Hawaiian Legacy Series. A leading force in the Cultural Renaissance of the past thirty years, Eddie's insights will document and illuminate disappearing cultural traditions and old Hawaiian ways.

The book will be approximately 225 to 250 pages long. Copies of the book will be substantially discounted for major public libraries in Hawai'i. Proceeds will be returned to the archive to encourage ongoing work to preserve authentic Hawaiian cultural continuity.