Have you ever met someone so humble and grounded that you’d never guess how profoundly influential they were in their profession? I did.
In the late 1980s, I worked in Waikīkī as a valet at Halekulani. Every Friday night, I parked the car of a man named Mr. Byrd. Except for his slick-back hairstyle, he was unassuming, carrying his musical equipment to House Without A Key where he regularly performed. He was a kind man who always tipped us five bucks on the way out. I had no idea of his incredible influence in music.
It wasn’t until he died in 2005 that I learned about Jerry Byrd’s legacy. He was a legendary steel guitarist inducted into the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame, recognized as a pioneer of his craft and one of the greatest in the world. Byrd worked with country music icons like Patsy Cline, Chet Atkins and Hank Williams, but his love for Hawaiian music began when he was 13, long before becoming a headliner in Nashville.
In the 1970s, Byrd moved to Hawaiʻi, where he taught steel guitar and performed with local artists, including Melveen Leed, Danny Kaleikini and Don Ho. His teachings helped shape the Hawaiian music scene and influenced artists worldwide.
Through a PBS Hawaiʻi film, Puʻuwai Haokila: How Hawaiʻi Shaped Modern Music, I learned even more about Byrd’s far-reaching impact and how his work helped bring the steel guitar into bluegrass, blues, jazz and rock. Byrd’s contributions helped solidify the Hawaiian sound in global music and elevated the steel guitar to new heights. Byrd passed away at the age of 85. His legacy lives on, and is so widespread that steel guitarists worldwide still cite him as their primary inspiration.
Please join PBS Hawaiʻi for the premiere of Puʻuwai Haokila: How Hawaiʻi Shaped Modern Music on Thursday, May 29, at 7:30 pm. You’ll discover fascinating insights into Hawaiian music and meet the humble man with the slick-back hair (whose car I parked) who influenced artists across the globe.
