Harry Owens(1902-1986)
- Actor
- Music Department
- Writer
One of the foremost exponents of Hawaiian music, Harry Owens arrived in
the islands in 1934 and became quickly enamored with the local scene.
Owens had been a straight trumpet player in Los Angeles dance bands (at
the Ambassador Hotel Cocoanut Grove and for
Vincent Rose). His previous experience as a
leader dated back to 1926, when he fronted a band at the Lafayette Cafe
in L.A.. His song "Aloha Oe" was heard by the manager of the Royal
Hawaiian Hotel, who asked Owens to establish a house orchestra at his
resort. Owens obliged, and, abandoning western-style music, totally
embraced Hawaiian culture -- music in particular -- transcribing many
traditional songs for the first time. He was also instrumental in
popularising the steel guitar. Owens took his
'Royal Hawaiians', with regular vocalists Hilo Hattie
and Alfred Apaka, on several successful
tours of the U.S. West Coast. This included a return to his old haunt
at the Cocoanut Grove and engagements at the Mural Room of the St.
Francis Hotel in San Francisco. Owens made prolific recordings for
Decca, Capitol and Columbia and enjoyed being regularly showcased on
the radio show 'Hawaii Calls' (from 1935, complete with ocean sounds
emanating from Waikiki Beach for added authenticity) and had his own
show on CBS television from 1949 to 1958.
His most famous composition and signature song was "Sweet Leilani" (inspired by the birth of his daughter), crooned by Bing Crosby, which won the Oscar for Best Song, after being featured in the film Waikiki Wedding (1937). It remained top of the charts for twenty-eight weeks and has sold more than twenty million copies to date. Among more than 300 songs written or transcribed by Owens are such popular compositions as "Voice of the Trade Winds", "Blue Shadows and White Gardenias", "Linger Awhile", "Hawaii Calls" and "Polynesian Holiday". Owens was also credited with helping to reinvigorate the tourist industry in Hawaii. In 1987, he was honoured with the Na Hoku Hanohano Lifetime Achievement Award, bestowed by the Hawai'i Academy of Recording Arts (HARA), a year after his death at the age of eighty-four.
His most famous composition and signature song was "Sweet Leilani" (inspired by the birth of his daughter), crooned by Bing Crosby, which won the Oscar for Best Song, after being featured in the film Waikiki Wedding (1937). It remained top of the charts for twenty-eight weeks and has sold more than twenty million copies to date. Among more than 300 songs written or transcribed by Owens are such popular compositions as "Voice of the Trade Winds", "Blue Shadows and White Gardenias", "Linger Awhile", "Hawaii Calls" and "Polynesian Holiday". Owens was also credited with helping to reinvigorate the tourist industry in Hawaii. In 1987, he was honoured with the Na Hoku Hanohano Lifetime Achievement Award, bestowed by the Hawai'i Academy of Recording Arts (HARA), a year after his death at the age of eighty-four.