"King" Benny Nawahi (1899-1985) was a Hawaiian multi-instrumentalist and ukulele virtuoso who toured extensively on the U.S. Mainland from the 1930s to the 1960s. He is one of several Hawaiian musicians responsible for exposing mainlanders to Hawaiian music in a live setting. He recorded extensively until suffering a paralyzing stroke in the late 1970s.
Although the peak of his popularity came in the 1920s and '30s, when he assumed the title "king of the Hawaiian guitar," Nawahi continued to perform until a stroke left his body partially paralyzed in the late-'70s.
As a member of his brother, Joe Nawahi's band, the Hawaiian Novelty Five, he performed on a passenger liner that sailed between San Francisco and Honolulu in 1919.
By the end of the decade, Nawahi was recording at a prolific rate, issuing singles on the Columbia, Victor, Q.R.S., and Grey Gull labels.
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