Henry Kaleialoha Allen is a Hawaiian steel guitarist and singer.

Biography

Allen was born June 11, 1933 in Hilo, Hawaii In 1941 his family relocated to

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...

. Allen graduated from

President William McKinley High School President William McKinley High School, more commonly referred to as McKinley High School, is a comprehensive public high school in the Honolulu District of the Hawaii State Department of Education. It serves grades nine through twelve. McKinley i ...

in 1952. He began his professional career working in Hawaiian hotels, joining the musicians union in 1953 and working with Alfred Apaka. He then moved to Los Angeles in 1956 where he studied jazz. He moved back to Hawaii at the urging of Apaka, setting up a company entitled Polynesian Promotions in

Lahaina Lahaina ( haw, Lāhainā) is the largest census-designated place (CDP) in West Maui, Maui County, Hawaii, United States and includes the Kaanapali and Kapalua beach resorts. As of the 2020 census, the CDP had a resident population of 12,702. Lah ...

on the island of Maui. In the 1970s he worked for the Kaanapali, Hawaii Hilton, producing music for dining and for evening dancing. He also produced music for the Royal Lahaina Resor, the Sheraton Maui, and the Westin Maui. He opened a

Planet Hollywood Planet Hollywood International Inc. (stylized as planet Hollywood, planet Hollywood observatory and ph) is a themed restaurant chain inspired by the popular portrayal of Hollywood. The company is owned by Earl Enterprises corporation. Earl Ent ...

in Maui in 1995. In 2015 Allen received the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by the

Hawai'i Academy of Recording Arts Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

while simultaneously receiving from the Hawaii State Senate a resolution of congratulations.

Career

Allen plays steel guitar and sings. He has toured internationally, achieving particular popularity in Japan. He composes and arranges

Hawaiian music The music of Hawaii includes an array of traditional and popular styles, ranging from native Hawaiian folk music to modern rock and hip hop. Styles like slack-key guitar are well known worldwide, while Hawaiian-tinged music is a frequent part ...

. For his production company he produces and directs "Polynesian spectaculars". He performs on a Fender double Stringmaster. He performed for various television series, including ''

Barnaby Jones ''Barnaby Jones'' is an American detective television series starring Buddy Ebsen as a formerly retired investigator and Lee Meriwether as his widowed daughter-in-law, who run a private detective firm in Los Angeles, California. The show was o ...

'', '' Hawaiian Eye'' and ''

Mama's Family ''Mama's Family'' is an American sitcom television series starring Vicki Lawrence as Mama (Thelma Harper). The series is a spin-off of a recurring series of comedy sketches called " The Family" featured on ''The Carol Burnett Show'' (1967–78 ...

'', and regularly appeared on the

QVC QVC (short for "Quality Value Convenience") is an American free-to-air television network, and flagship shopping channel specializing in televised home shopping, owned by Qurate Retail Group. Founded in 1986 by Joseph Segel in West Chester, Pen ...

shopping channel. He has released at least three albums, ''Blue Hawaii'', ''Magic of Steel Guitar'', and ''Memories of Hawaii''. He has worked with such artists as Alfred Apaka and

Martin Denny Martin Denny (April 10, 1911 – March 2, 2005) was an American pianist and composer best known as the "father of exotica." In a long career that saw him performing up to 3 weeks prior to his death, he toured the world popularizing his brand of l ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Henry Kaleialoha 1933 births 20th-century American guitarists 21st-century American guitarists American male guitarists Living people Musicians from Hawaii Steel guitarists 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians