Seeing Analu Aina and Mel Amina on stage without Uncle Moe was poignantly bittersweet.  

A stool with a lei-draped microphone took center-stage.  We know Uncle Moe occupied it throughout the evening, just as he did during his previous visits to The Shannon.

Uncle Moe passed on to Heaven three weeks after his concert at The Shannon in 2002.  It was to be his last mainland concert.

The Shannon Center's theatre manager, David "Dave" Palmer, and Internet 24-Hour Hawaiian Radio host and personality Aloha Joe Seiter warmly welcomed Moe's friends and fans. A number of true-blue friends and fans traveled great distances to honor Moe Keale, including a couple who came all the way out from the Midwest to pay tribute to Moe. 

The gracious Leialoha Lim `Amina, esteemed kumu hula of Hâlau Nâ Lei O Kaholokâ, opened the night's festivities with solemnity, elegance and grace. 

The solemnity was appropriate, as for most of us, this was our memorial service for Uncle Moe. Mel Amina and Analu Aina have suffered two major losses in a short time.  First, cousin  IZ (Israel Kamakawiwo`ole) in 1997, then Uncle Moe in 2002.  We felt their losses and ours, too, and the tears flowed as Mel and Analu touchingly recalled the special times they shared with Uncle Moe.  

These remembrances were good for the soul, especially when shared with those who were like-hearted in their love for Uncle Moe.

ALOHA Is...  

Three times, Uncle Moe traveled to The Shannon with Mel and Analu for concert performances which were consistently intimate and endearing. Each time, unfailingly, he shared the wisdom of his teacher and mentor, Pîlahi Pâkî.  

Uncle Moe's lessons continue on as Mel and Analu are carrying on his tradition by teaching the "ALOHA Is..." Lesson.

Mel did the Aloha Chant with such feeling.  This time, it was especially being chanted for Uncle Moe.

(Donna) Leialoha Lim Amina,
kumu hula and Mel's wife, who is an exquisitely beautiful and graceful hula dancer.

Leialoha is the widow of Skippy Kamakawiwo`ole, who was Uncle Moe's nephew (his sister's son) and Israel Kamakawiwo`ole's brother.  She is now the wife of Mel Amina, Skippy's and Israel's cousin on their father's side.

She is also one-fifth of the Nâ Hôkû Hanohano Award winning Lim Family from Kohala on the island of Hawai`i.

With Uncle Moe's picture projected in the background, Mel and Analu performed a song that recalls King Lunalilo's visit to America, No Ke Ano Ahiahi followed by Eddie Kamae's E Ku`u Morning Dew and a Moe favorite, He Punahele No `Oe. 

As we listened, we recalled Uncle Moe's infectious laughter, outrageous sense of humor, quick wit, unbounded joy and eternal optimism.  

We reflected on his talent and charisma, his contagious Aloha. We dearly missed his Hawaiian-ness. 

As Uncle Moe would have said it:  "BOO-T-FULL!"  He must have been proud of them.  Singing with full hearts and with that nahenahe (softly melodious) sound that was so characteristically Moe's, they did his songs justice. 

We were reminded that "Hawaiian music celebrates the goodness of the land; that it chronicles old ways and gives direction to those yet to come; that it may indeed be that one tenuous thread binding all Hawaiians to one another."

If we 'talk story' long enough, many of us from Hawai`i learn that we're related to each other by blood, hânai (adoption), or marriage!  

Now you know why we neva eva talk stink about each adda...

Rheta Thelan, 
Moe's booking agent.

Aunty Rheta Thelan, Uncle Moe's booking  agent, treated the audience with a lovely hula. Her warm smile, full of Aloha, lifted spirits. 

In the audience were E.L. and Ruth B. Shannon, for whom the center is named.  

Ruth B. Shannon

Mahalo, Mr. and Mrs. Shannon!

We have much enjoyed your beautiful performing arts center.  We especially love its Robinson Theatre and everything about it: its intimacy; its fine sound and light system; manager Dave Palmer and his crew, as well as the Friends of the Center and student volunteers. 

"The Shannon" is a gem. 

Most of all, we love the Aloha Series!  We Hawai`i transplants are grateful to you, Dave and Aloha Joe for returning us to our homeland with our hearts and minds through the music of Hawai`i and its hula. For those hours in your center, Hawai`i is not so far away and our Hawaiian hearts are warmed, thanks to you and your center. 

You are helping to keep an endangered language and culture alive, and for that, we cannot thank you enough.  Mahalo and Aloha.

Uncle Moe looking over Mel's and Analu's shoulders.  

Having learned from a master storyteller, Uncle Moe, Mel and Analu have carried on his tradition of telling jokes and stories.  

Like Uncle Moe, they got a lot of smileage out of the audience.

Kalani Kupau, a free spirit who plays a mean and smooth bass, joined Mel and Analu, who also proved their prowess as storytellers.  Between songs, they regaled us with nâ mo`olelo o `Anakala Moe (Uncle Moe stories).  They were told with much humor and great affection; as the audience tittered with laughter, even Uncle Moe must have been chuckling with us.  

"Success is in the details" was a lesson Uncle Moe learned well from a master perfectionist, Jack Lord of Hawai`i Five-O. A little bit of history: Working on the set, Moe was offered a recurring role by the show's casting director.  He turned it down, but Jack Lord wouldn't take his "No" for an answer.  In the 12th and last season, Moe played the character, Truck Kealoha, one of Steve McGarrett's inner circle. 

From Jack Lord, Uncle Moe learned discipline, preparation and staying within the budget.  Teachers come in all forms for the willing student.

Analu and Mel kept us in stitches as they good-humoredly demonstrated their perfected slap avoidance maneuvers. You see, each of Uncle Moe's sensitive, heartfelt songs were a part of his life and he took personal pride in their best delivery. Like his teacher, Jack Lord, Moe could be a stickler. Any musician who wasn't paying attention or slacking off was fair game for Uncle Moe's (friendly) "slap on the head."   

Mel's `ukulele class, under the direction and instruction of Mel Amina and Kalani Kupau, did great! 

There was a `ukulele workshop and a hula workshop led by Mel and Leialoha Amina earlier in the day.  We would have loved to have participated, but this, alas, was graduation week.  With great regret, we had to pass on these wonderful opportunities to learn from these experienced teachers of music and dance. Next time, fo' shuah!

The workshop participants were integrated into the show and the `ukulele students did a remarkably fine job of playing, "Don't Get Around Much Anymore."  Thumbs up and shakka sign, Mel and Kalani.  Your students did you proud.

Along the way, we learned that `ukulele master and stylist, Moe, called C major 7, "C".  Whose gonna argue with Uncle Moe? 

Mel Amina, Analu Aina, and Kalani Kupau sang with melodious and tight four-part harmonies.  4 parts, 3 guys. How did they do that? 
That you, Uncle Moe?

Between songs, Mel and Analu shared stories about Uncle Moe's beach boy days, when he got to meet and like people from all around the world.

As the story goes, according to Mel and Analu via Moe, when the beachboys got hungry but lacked cash to buy food, they'd "borrow" beach towels from the tourists taking dips in the ocean, then like good guys to the rescue they'd give them back to the hapless dripping wet tourists -- for a gratuity, of course. (Maybe too much information for this mostly "tourist" audience!?)

Ok, ok, another Moe-ism:  What did Moe call four beach boys with one `ukulele?  Beach Boy Music!  What characterized it?  Lots of soaring harmonies to make up for the lack of instruments.

Bill Kaiwa,
Uncle Moe's dear childhood friend and fellow entertainer.  

Bill was with Moe two weeks before he passed into the spirit side. "He was feeling fine, looking fine," Bill was quoted as saying at the time."I was shocked."

Bill Kaiwa, now a rancher at the isolated Kaua`i ranch of Kipa Kai,  was  a long-time friend and golf buddy of Moe. We learned that Moe excelled at forgetting to return borrowed golf clubs. Bill Kaiwa's connection to Hawaiian music and culture comes from his life as a paniolo, or Hawaiian cowboy, learning many traditional songs. Bill, as we were soon to learn, is a multi-talented entertainer.  

"Bill Kaiwa was a featured performer for more than 20 years during the heyday of Hawaiian music in Waikiki. He was also a regular on the "Hawai'i Calls" radio program." ~J. Junker

He took to the stage with great panache and presence.  He sang -- and jauntily danced -- his hit and signature song, "Boy from Laupâhoehoe" (also known as the Laupâhoehoe Hula) composed by Aunties Irmgard Aluli and Mary Kawena Pukui. In 1959, over 150,000 copies of this song were sold, earning him a GOLD record. All together, Bill has recorded over 18 albums.

Bill Kaiwa crooned as the band played on...and we were transported to the romantic and rhythmic Hawai`i of our youth.

We were treated to Bill's renditions of  Loa`a Ko Puni Kauoha about the aphrodisiacal hînano blossom, Pîkake and Latitu. 

Latitu will never be the same after Bill enlightened us to its kaona (veiled meaning).  What a thoroughly  kolohe (rascally naughty) song it is! As Bill explained, "It is about a sea captain with a wife who possesses a snug harbor, one which accommodated a multitude of boat pilots..."  

Hawaiian music can sound utterly guileless and innocently coy, yet be so delightfully naughty!  Hawaiian songwriters are masters of metaphors.

Sponsors (a travel agency representative and Don Sato, sales manager of Hawaiian Air) and MCs: 
 Aloha Joe & Dave Palmer.

Right after the intermission, a lively raffle ensued, with Aloha Joe and Dave Palmer presiding.  Those two are an act of their own!   A trip to Hawai`i, bottles of wine, shirts, caps, and knapsacks were happily claimed by the lucky ones. 

Luck was still on our side, although we didn't win a single prize. During the intermission, we relieved Aloha Joe of four copies of A PLACE CALLED HAWAI`I 2,  a compilation CD, declared by the Star-Bulletin music reviewer, John Berger, as a winner. The next day was Father's Day, and since our kids were feting us, we bought these winning CDs as treats for them.  They too love Hawaiian music and this compilation of assorted artists' songs is a real prize.

Spirit of Polynesia: With songs and dances of Samoa, Tahiti, and points South, we joyously  'traveled' to  Polynesia. 

Uncle Moe worked for The Royal Caribbean Cruises four times a year.  As the ship sailed from the mainland to the Islands, Moe sang his songs, educated passengers about Hawai‘i and its people, and shared with them his Aloha. 

The troupe, Spirit of Polynesia, frequently accompanied him on cruises. With Uncle Moe, they pushed to educate and perpetuate island culture through music, song, and dance. 

Its members came all the way down from Northern California's Bay Area.  In tribute to Uncle Moe, they gave their exciting performances their all.

Lovely hula dancer, Kathy, dancing to the music by Bill Kaiwa and the Moe Band sweetly  reminded us of the beauty of Kaua`i.

Mel, Analu and Kalani then treated us to IZ standards, including Lover of Mine/n Dis Life and Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World. Great songs.  Great vibes. And their vocals are awesome.

As members of the IZ Band that performed on IZ's FACING FORWARD CD, Melvin Amina and Analu Aina are now proud awardees of GOLD records!  

The Moe Band then performed the hapa haole classic, Sophisticated Hula, with finesse.  This song was written in New York by Analu's grandfather, Sol K. Bright, who was an international entertainer/band leader and a producer and director of Hawaiian shows.

This was followed by Bill Kaiwa singing Nani Kaua`i, as only a native son of Kaua`i can, with Kathy dancing the hula.  

Leialoha Lim Amina, Bill Kaiwa and the Moe Band made for an exuberantly breath-taking corroboration of hula, singing and musical talents. 

Bill's sheer force of personality is memorable. He established an immediate rapport with the audience and the joy in his performance was a pleasure to watch. With a voice that is in excellent form, the gentleman can sing!

We were then mesmerized by the beauty of the hula danced by Leialoha to Bill's singing of Muli Wai. There is not a single Lim family member we love only half-way.  Each has this wonderful human warmth and generosity of spirit. Leialoha is no exception. Like the rest of her family, she is a gifted performer. Her hula is heavenly!

Leialoha's Hula Class:
A study in effective, efficient and fun hula instruction 

Earlier in the day, Leialoha had her workshop work cut out for her. The turn-out was bigger than expected.  It was amazing to see what expert professional instruction and years of hula experience can produce in a single afternoon.

Her students poured their hearts into their performance, dancing to Uncle Moe's "South Sea Island Magic." These ladies and one guy were downright outstanding, and they managed to knock socks and rubbah slippahs off! 

To Bill and Mel, Analu, and Kalani, Kathy and Leialoha, the audience paid the ultimate compliment: 
"Hana Hou!"

With Uncle Moe's visage peering over their shoulders, Bill closed the evening with the Moe Band, singing mellow tunes like Dreams, For Your Love, Sincerely, Blue Moon and Silhouette. His songs made us sigh a lot as we reminisced on those good ol', carefree days.

What an excellent singer and entertainer Bill is!

Even if the hour was late, the applause was enthusiastic and hearty shouts of  "Hana Hou!" (ours included) resounded through the theatre for more. It is the Hawaiian phrase meaning "Do it again!" or in English, "Encore!"

Finale: An Uncle Moe Lovefest

All night, the Aloha flowed back and forth between performers and the  audience.

The Aloha was HUGE.  Not only did the musicians, singers, and dancers show overwhelming respect and love for Uncle Moe, they went ALL OUT, pulling out all the stops to provide us with a feast of entertainment.

EVERYONE had put forth their best effort ito honor Uncle Moe, including the audience.  

Warm, responsive and appreciative, Shannon audiences are special. Perhaps it was because the intimacy of the theatre was coupled with the intimacy of the event. This night, this Uncle Moe-loving audience was EXTRA special. 

For Aloha Joe, who loved and was loved by Uncle Moe. 
>> Aloha Joe's thoughts on Moe
>> Joe & Moe Cruisin'

And thus concluded a most satisfying and entertaining evening of tribute to Uncle Moe Keale. 

No doubt, this was one of the most heart-warming tributes that we have ever experienced, one we will long remember for its eclectism and excellent mix of performances, served up by the entertainment `ohana (family) that Uncle Moe put together himself.  

The night ended with a multi-media show of Uncle Moe's services and beach boy send-off. This tableau of pictures provided a sense of participation and closure for those of us faraway from home.

Multi-media show of Uncle Moe's funeral and beach boy services at Kawaiâha`o Church and Kûhiô Beach, Waikîkî

When the house lights were turned up, I could see how Aloha is non-discriminatory. The performers on the stage and the audience members were a melange of humanity united by a common bond -- their Aloha for Uncle Moe. This observation gave me pause to reflect on how many different lives Uncle Moe had touched in his life.

Together, just minutes away from midnight,
we held hands and sang Hawai`i Aloha. It has never felt so meaningful. 

The last slide projected was one of Uncle Moe smiling.  

It was a night to remember, and a night for remembering.

This night was truly a celebration of Moe Keale's life, in the form that Uncle Moe loved best, the entertainer that he was. 

We missed seeing him in 3D and hearing his familiar, one of a kind voice. While his passing is still an indescribable loss, this tribute to Uncle Moe could be best described as joyously healing. 

The star of the show was definitely there. That stool was well-occupied. Grinning ear to ear, Uncle Moe wouldn't have missed it for anything! 

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