Later in life, Hawaiian steel guitarist Sol Hoopii became a born-again Christian and spent many years traveling and using music to help him evangelize. During that time he made several records. Here are a few from my collection. These aren’t as “hot” as his earlier work, but there are a couple upbeat b-sides.
This last side “To You, My Lord, Aloha” was an adaptation of the song “To You, Sweetheart, Aloha”. I found this record on ebay and amazingly it was autographed on the paper sleeve. In trying to verify it’s authenticity, I realized the other signature on the record label itself was a of a man named Ray Odegard who toured with him apparently accompanying him on piano. I found a newspaper clipping in an online archive that dates their tour together to withing a couple months of the date on Sol’s signature. The inscription reads “Aloha Neu Loa (very much love) to Sister Jensen Sol Hoopii 3/17/50 John 15.13“. Sol died 3 years later on November 16, 1953.
here’s a video clip of him from near this time:
