First Sunday featuring Ken Emerson

Ken Emerson has played his special blend of Blues/Jazz Hawaiian guitar for over 40 years.. Born into a musical family, Ken grew up with his fathers’ extensive record collection of jazz, swing, Hawaiian and world music styles. Living in the San Francisco Bay Area, He played the folk and blues songs of the early/mid ‘60s, learning right hand fingerstyle techniques that led to his development as a fingerstyle picker. With the explosion of the San Francisco sound of the later ‘60′s Ken also immersed himself into rock and electric blues styles. He was particularly drawn to bottleneck and slide guitar. In 1968 Ken’s family moved to Hawaii. Absorbing the Hawaiian culture, Ken began studying Hawaiian language and music emulating the great steel guitar players of the 1920′s and ‘30s era by listening to vintage Hawaiian 78 rpm records, zeroing in on the jazz and blues styles of Sol Ho’opi’i and Sol K. Bright. Soon Ken was playing alongside such legendary performers as Gabby Pahinui, Genoa Keawe, Raymond Kane, and Moe Keale. Ken was featured on Hawaii's first Grammy winning album as well as with mainstream performers like Donald Fagen (Steely Dan). Dividing his time between Kaua’i and San Francisco, Ken plays many Hawaiian venues and festivals and frequently does blues and jazz tours of the east coast of the United States as well as Europe and Asia.