KEN EMERSON

2005 GRAMMY AWARD CO-WINNER
Best Hawaiian Music Album
Slack Key Guitar - Volume 2

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Michael Messer in Guitarist Magazine says it all: "Bottleneck blues guitar, country Dobro-playing and pedal steel guitar are all direct descendants of this Hawaiian steel guitar style.  These days, only a handful of musicians around the world can play in this style...and Ken is The Man."[emphasis added]

Ken Emerson is one of the best, if not the best, Hawaiian guitar players living today! This accolade is well deserved.  His work with Gaby Pahanui, Moe Keale, Barney Isaacs, "Feet" Rogers, Billy Hew Len, Raymond Kane, "Aunty Alice" Namakelua, and numerous other musical legends of Hawaii instilled in him at a young age a love of traditional Hawaiian music.  Together with his brother Phil, Ken mastered the intricacies of this mystical and spiritual music.  Ken has also played with such notable musicians as Charlie Musselwhite, Elvin Bishop, Jackson Browne, the Gatlin Brothers and Boz Scaggs.

Ken's first solo album, "SLACK & STEEL" has received rave reviews. Wayne Harada states that Ken "immerses style and sole into slack-key and steel guitar, and what a soothing excursion it is...Plain, precise, powerful stuff here."  In addition to the greatly respected support of Mr. Harada, the Hawaiian Steel Guitar Association stated that it is "an absolute must!...it's rich in stylings, on instruments that are mostly collected, but hardly played anymore; you can almost believe you're listening to them on an old Victrola...Just GET this recording!"  John Berger comments: "The music is exquisite...[on] this world-class album."  The Haleakala Times dubbed Ken: "Pick of the Pickers: Ken Emerson....If you love steel guitar, or Hawaii's musical heritage - "Slack & Steel" is for you.

Ken Emerson (on the left) at the Grammys