Jimmy Borges: Emma Veary is, for me,   the epitome of Hawaiʻi's greatest female vocalist.

She's the best.

She's the very, very best.

(nat singing) DeSoto Brown:  For Emma Veary a very classy person and performer,   to be at the very classy Halekulani  hotel was really the perfect match.

Jimmy Borges: Halekulani was one of Hawaiʻi's   elegant historic hotels.

It was one of the  first hotels in Hawaiʻi on Waikīkī, on Waikīkī,   and it goes way back and it has a lot of history.

Emma goes way back and has a lot and has a lot of   history.

What better place than having Emma sing  at the Halekulani?

It was a perfect marriage   of two treasures of Hawaiʻi becoming one major  treasure every time she came up there and sang.

Robyn Kneubuhl: I think mom shared a lot with   her audience.

She used to sort of wear period  piece holokū's and talk a little bit about the   history.

And she was very elegant.

And so, I think  that all fit really perfectly with the Halekulani.

Jimmy Borges: Ladies and gentlemen,   at this time, it gives me extremely great  pleasure to introduce one of the great   voices of all time that has ever sung a  Hawaiian song or a Broadway song.

Please   give a nice warm round of applause to  welcome the one and only Emma Veary.

(piano playing) (Singing The Song Is You) I hear music when I look at you, a  beautiful theme of every dream I ever knew.

Down deep in my heart, I hear it  say, I feel it start, then melt away.

I hear music when I touch your hand, a  beautiful rhapsody from some enchanted land.

Down deep in my heart, I  hear it say, this is the day.

I alone have heard its lovely strain.

I alone have heard this glad refrain.

Could it be forever inside of me?

Why can't I let you know?

Why can't I let it go?

Why can't I let you   know the song my heart would sing?

A beautiful rhapsody of love and you and spring.

The music is sweet, the words are true.

A song is you.

I hear music when I look at you.

A beautiful theme of every dream I ever knew.

The music is sweet, the words are  true, the song is you.

(clapping) Emma Veary:  Mahalo.

Oh, what an honor.

What an honor  to be here this evening.

And of course,   they were saying I was here like 30, 40 years ago,  and that song was one of the songs that I used   to open my show with at that time over there.

And  today, this afternoon, evening, we want to weave a   lei of memories for you go down memory lane and  visit some of the lovely music from yesteryear.

(Singing I’ll Weave a Lei of Stars for You) I'll weave a lei of stars for  you.

To wear on nights like this.

Each time you wear my lei of stars,   I'll greet you with a kiss.

The moon is green with   jealously.

And all the planets too.

For when you wear my lei of stars,   the fairest one is you.

The moon is green with   jealousy.

And all the planets too.

For when you wear my lei stars, the fairest one   is you.

The fairest one is you.

Oh, mahalo, mahalo.

I look out in the  audience tonight and I see all of these   legends of Hawaiian music.

Thank you all  for coming to visit with me tonight.

I'm   not going to mention names, because I might  forget.

I'm at that age where you forget.

DeSoto Brown: The history that   the Halekulani has, it goes back to  1917.

It still retains its original   building from the 1930s the main  building that's there today.

Emma Veary: Around 1973 was my first visit to the   Halekulani.

There was a tree there that was in the  middle of the room, and we had to work around it.

Robyn Kneubuhl: It was very elegant.

The   tree.

I remember the tree, it was right by  the ocean, very elegant, but also tropical.

Emma Veary: And people really   loved it at the Halekulani, because it  was very, very old, old Hawaiʻi.

You know?

DeSoto Brown: When you went to the Halekulani Hotel, you stayed   in a bungalow or a smaller building, almost like  a home, set within a whole a lot of vegetation.

Emma Veary: It wasn't like being   at a hotel.

It was like performing  at someone's beautiful home.

Jimmy Borges: And Emma always   produced.

Emma always always hit the highest  level of proficiency and emotional intensity   every time.

And always looked like a  queen when she sang, she was elegant.

Robyn Kneubuhl: There's nothing like going to see someone   that you love play music in their special place.

You know, you kind of associate so many things   with that.

So, I think that the Halekulani and mom  are pretty, pretty tight in that way.

You know?

Emma Veary: While I was working here, there was a lady   that played in the that area.

Her name was Maddy  Lam, and she was, I thought she was very fun.

She   was lovely.

She wrote some very beautiful Hawaiian  music.

But she used to come and she had a clock.

She would go out when she was supposed to be on.

She would go out, put the clock on the piano,   she would play the piano, and when it was her time  to get off, she picked up the clock and left.

And   she did this all evening.

And Maddy wrote, since  we are laying here, another beautiful song,   but she this song that I'm going to do was  made really popular by Uncle Kahauanu Lake,   another legend in Hawaiian music, and he's just  gone on to better places.

So here is Maile Lei.

(Singing Lovely Maile Lei) Maile lei, lovely maile lei.

You weave your magic charms, around Hawaiʻi nei.

Every day in your subtle way, you tease  the tradewinds with your fragrance.

Maile lei.

You lure the sun beams to shine down, and hula   just for you And then you flirt   with all the flowers, of every colored hue.

Where e'er you go, you will always know,  My lovely maile lei.

Oh, how I love you so.

My lovely maile lei, oh how I love you so.

Oh, my, here we go.

(Singing Kamehameha Waltz) Kū kilakila ʻo Kamehameha Kuʻu home hoʻonaʻauao  I ka laʻi o Kaiwiʻula Uluwehi i   ka lau kiawe A he home naʻu i aloha  A e haʻaheo mau loa ai E ola mau ʻo Kamehameha Nou e Pauahi lani nui Ka manaʻo e hoʻoho hauʻoli nei  Ola ia ʻoe nā kini pua O Hawaiʻi kulaiwi  Na hana lua ʻole a ka puʻuwai O   ke aliʻi aloha Kau kou inoa i ka wēkiu  A nou kuʻu mele nei Kū kilakila ʻo Kamehameha Kuʻu home hoʻonaʻauao  I ka laʻi o Kaiwiʻula Uluwehi i ka lau kiawe  A he home naʻu i aloha A e haʻaheo mau loa ai  E ola mau ʻo Kamehameha E ola mau ʻo Kamehameha Oh my, thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

My goodness, we are getting up there.

I think I'm   probably one of the oldest performers now today,  right?

I think I am.

I'm 81 and, yeah, I'm 81 and   we keep trying, we keep trying.

You know, somehow  I am now singing songs of friends of mine who   have gone on, and this next medley is a beautiful  medley written by Aunty Irmgard Farden Aluli.

And   we were great, great buddies.

And she wrote some  very lovely stuff, and here are two of her songs.

(Singing One Little Dream of You) I lie awake at night, the hours go slowly by.

I count the fireflies and dream about your eyes.

Those little words we spoke, when we said goodbye,  One little dream of you.

I hug my pillow close, the teardrops seem to know.

That all I can't disclose belongs to you alone.

May heaven high above, watch over you.

One little dream of you.

(Singing E Maliu Mai) E maliu mai e kuʻu ipo me ke aloha pumehana E maliu mai e kuʻu ipo me ke aloha lei makamae  Koʻu ʻiʻini, naʻu ʻoe, me kou leo nahenahe E maliu mai e kuʻu ipo me ke aloha lei makamae (Singing One Little Dream of You) I hug my pillow tight, and dream into the night.

Dreaming of all your charms, and that you're   in my arms.

These dreams   I dream are true, and I'm here with you.

One little dream of you.

One little dream of you.

Mahalo.

Mahalo.

Jimmy Borges: She's singing   now in her 80s, early 80s, as good  or better than I've ever heard her.

Robyn Kneubuhl: She's simply amazing   for her age, for 81 to be able to sing the way  she does.

I'm always, you know, it's kind of,   it's really hard for me to sing after I hear mom  sing.

She's so beautiful, but she's always been   that way.

I mean, she's always had this  gift of being able to sing effortlessly.

Emma Veary: Here's another oldie but goodie,   and I'd like to ask my daughter, Mahealani Robyn  Kneubuhl to come up and join me.

(clapping) (Singing A Million Moons over Hawaiʻi) A million moons over Hawaiʻi.

A million tunes to lullaby me.

An endless garden paradise is mine, Where every flower reveals your face, divine.

A million lips playfully taunt me, A million arms show that want me.

My eyes may doubt that this can be And yet my heart will always see  A million moons over Hawaiʻi.

A million lips playfully taunt me.

A million arms show that you want me.

My eyes may doubt that this can be,  And yet my heart will always see A million moons over Hawaiʻi.

A million moons over Hawaiʻi.

Mahalo.

Robyn Kneubuhl: I could see mom   just fall right back into it, just  like she used to do.

You know,   it's sort of like everything falls away, and she's  right there in the music and in the place.

So,   it was a real honor for me to be able to  see her there, and then to get up and dance.

Emma Veary: So right now we would like to do Pua Pakalana.

(Singing Pua Pakalana) Kuʻu lei nani oʻe pua pakalana E kuʻu lei   po i naʻole Fragrant flower,   tender blossom, pua pakalana.

Woven with memories of you.

Ho hau hea oʻe he maliʻu mai He ala honehone i ka puʻu wai  Kuʻu lei nani oʻe pua pakalana  Wraped in your lei of love.

Well, you know, you never  get the two girls together,   because they're always in different parts of the  world doing different things and and Kathy said,   mom, can I dance to I said, love to have  you come on up, you know.

So, I said, okay,   I'll get the three of us up there, you know,  the Veary women up there on stage together.

And it was a really special time for me to be  able to see them together, dancing together.

E kuʻu lei po i naʻole Fragrant flower, tender blossom, pua pakalana.

Woven with memories of you.

Ho hau hea oʻe he maliʻu mai He ala honehone i ka puʻu   wai Kuʻu lei nani oʻe pua pakalana  Wraped in your lei of love.

You are my lei of love.

Mahalo.

Mahalo girls, thank you.

Thank you very, very much.

Well,   Randy.

Here is my friend, Randy  Hongo, at the piano.

Thank you.

I'd like to now, oh, when I was here those  years ago, the men who worked with me are gone,   but there are two ladies still left,  myself and this very beautiful lady   who used to play the harp for me at that  room, Nyle Hallman.

Oh, my, it's exciting.

Yes, Nyle and I are left.

The others have gone  on.

They decided they don't like it here.

They're   gone, but we're still here as that song goes,  right?

But, so Nyle, we'll do something.

You know,   we are such a cross section of nationalities  here in the islands that it's amazing, really,   and we all intermarry and carry on.

And right now,  we'd like to do something very different.

We'd   like to send our love and blessings to the people  in Japan, and we would like to do some traditional   Japanese music for you, which is so very beautiful  on the harp.

So, here is Nyle Hallman at the harp.

(harp playing) (Singing Sakura, Sakura) Sakura, sakura, Yayoi no   i no sora wa, Miwatasu kagiri,  Iza ya iza ya, Mi ni yukan.

Oh, the memories came back what what used to be,  which was, I think, a special time in in Hawaiʻi,   that era of the 70s, 60s, 50s, when, when we  had grand rooms to sing in, and beautiful music   that we didn't try to improve on.

You know, you  sang the pure Hawaiian and the pure hapa haole.

So, now we're going to do a Hawaiian song for you.

It's a very beautiful song.

It's called Kuʻu Lei Aloha.

(Singing Kuʻu Lei Aloha) A ʻo ke ʻala ka i hiki mai Na ke   ahe lau makani Hali mai i oʻu nei  Hiki kou aloha kau mai ka haliʻa  Aia me ʻoe ka haliʻa Ka ʻanoʻi a neia puʻuwai  Hoʻokahi mea nui O ka leo o ke aloha  Ke pani mai olu au Maha nei puʻuwai.

Nou hoʻokahi E kuʻu ipo nohea  Kuʻu lei aloha E kuʻu le makamae Mahalo.

Mahalo Nyle, thank you so much.

It was a thrill for me, because I looked  out into the audience, I went, oh my gosh,   all of my old friends, those that are still here,  musicians and dancers, were all there, you know.

And it took me back to a different time, different  time and space, and they were thrilled to be   there.

It brought that old Hawaiʻi feeling back to  all of us that was present that evening.

You know,   it's like going back in time to a very lovely,  beautiful time in the history of Waikīkī, I think.

Robyn Kneubuhl: You know, we were   so fortunate growing up to hear all kinds of  music from Mom gave us a great appreciation,   and one of my favorite things to do  is sing in Portuguese.

Of course,   I've just learned how.

So, if you happen to  speak Portuguese, I'll apologize ahead of time,   but this is a song called Voce  Vai Ver by Antonio Carlos Jobim.

(Singing Voce Vai Ver) Voce vai ver,  Voce vai implorar me pedir pra voltar E eu vou dizer, dessa vez nao vai dar  Eu fui gostar de voce, dei carinho, amor pra valer Dei tanto amor, mas voce queria so prazer Voce zombou e brincou  Com as coisas mais serias que eu fiz Quando eu tentei com voce ser feliz  Era tao forte a ilusao que prendia o meu coracao Voce matou a ilusao libertou meu coracao  Hoje e voce que vai ter de chorar Voce vai ver (guitar playing with musical vamping) Voce zombou e brincou Com as coisas mais serias que eu fiz  Quando eu tentei com voce ser feliz Era tao forte a ilusao que prendia o meu coracao  Voce matou a ilusao libertou meu coracao Hoje   e voce que vai ter de chorar Voce vai ver  Hoje e voce que vai ter de chorar Voce vai ver, voce vai ver.

Voce vai ver.

Emma Veary:  Oh my gosh.

Oh, you make your mother so proud.

I love that kind of music myself.

And you know,   here is a song that people sing it all over the  world, but for me, it is a lament of someone   wanting to go home.

And I've never heard  it sung like I would like to hear it sung,   because I feel like the words are just lovely.

And you know the song, you know the song.

So,   I'm not even going to introduce it, because when  I start singing it, you will know what it's about.

(Singing My Little Grass  Shack in Kealakekua, Hawaiʻi) I want to go back to my little  grass check in Kealakekua, Hawaiʻi  I want to be with all the kanes and  wahines that I used to know so long ago.

I can hear the old guitars  playing on the beach at Hōnaunau  I can hear the old Hawaiian saying,  komo mai no kāua i ka hale welakahao.

It won't be long till my ship  will go sailing back to Kona  It's a grand old place that's always  fair to see, you're telling me.

I'm just a little Hawaiian girl who loves  an island boy and I wanna go back to my fish   and poi.

I wanna go back   to my little grass shack in Kealakekua, Hawaiʻi.

Where the humuhumunukunukuapuaʻa go swimming by.

Where the humuhumunukunukuapuaʻa go swimming by.

Where the humuhumunukunukuapuaʻa go swimming by.

Mahalo.

Mahalo, plenty.

Randy Hongo is just a dear.

Randy Hongo is a  very an, excellent performer in his own right,   you know.

And with him, I could say, let's do  Broadway.

And he says, what do you want to do,   you know, which is lovely, and  he doesn't need any music.

It's   not easy to find somebody that does  all of the music that I like to do.

(Singing Lei Lokelani) Ua ʻike maka au I ka nani o ia pua  Pua hoʻohihi naʻu Puia i   ke ʻala Aʻu i kui a lawa I lei noʻu e haʻaheo ai  Lei lokelani Lei aloha, lei makamae Oh, my goodness, you can't blame me for  trying, at least I try.

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh.

Well, you know, I just lost a very dear friend,  and he was like a brother to me, and this next,   next two songs I would like to dedicate to him.

So Aliʻi, wherever you are, this is for you.

(Singing I’ll Remember You) I'll remember you, long after  this endless summer is gone.

I'll be lonely, oh, so lonely,  Living only to remember you.

I'll remember you.

Your voice is soft as a warm summer breeze.

Your sweet laughter, mornings after, ever after.

I'll remember you.

To your arms someday I'll return to stay.

Till then, I will remember too.

Every bright star we made wishes upon.

Love me always, promise always, You'll remember too.

(piano playing) (Singing Through the Eyes of Love) Please don't let this feeling end.

It's everything I am,   everything I want to be.

I can see what's mine now.

Finding out what's true, since I found  you, looking through the eyes of love.

Now I can take the time.

I can see my life as it comes up shining now.

Reaching out to touch you, I can feel so much.

Since I found you, looking through   the eyes of love.

And now I do believe,   that even in the storm, we'll find some light.

Knowing you're beside me, I'm all right.

Please don't let this feeling  end, it might not come again.

And I want to remember how it feels to touch you.

I can feel so much since I found you,   looking through the eyes of love.

Jimmy Borges:  Ladies and gentlemen, Miss Emma  Veary.

Golden throat.

Emmy Veary.

What Emma did for a lot of people  was brought back to them.

Oh,   my goodness.

I remember when I was 22 and I  heard her sing, and I heard her sing that,   and it brings back great, great memories,  you know.

And it takes you into a nice place.

Robyn Kneubuhl: To be able to do what you love,   to share it with people, it can actually be  sort of transforming so many things.

It can   be healing, you know.

It can conjure up  all kinds of memories and and I've seen   and heard a lot of people that used  to come and listen to mom, you know,   and they'll still have pretty intense feelings  about her voice and and her performance.

Emma Veary: Well, it brings   back such beautiful memories of what used  to be that is no longer you know?

And to   go be able to go back in time and be able to  share that and experience that again is magic.

DeSoto Brown: If something is there, that's   the same, it's going to make a huge difference  to you.

You're not as thrown off balance.

So,   you can look around and say all that's changing,  but fortunately, this isn't, and this is where   I feel comfortable, and this is what I like, and  thank God it's still here, and let's not lose it.

Emma Veary: There's nothing   like that feeling.

There's nothing like  it.

It's a warm, caring, the people were,   it just was a different time.

They don't people  don't take time to enjoy life anymore.

They're   so busy rushing around trying to do, do too  much and just to relax and say, you know,   I am here.

I'm alive.

It's a wonderful world.

People don't take time to do that anymore.

Jimmy Borges: Then that light on Emma, that,   that evening glow, and her visage, her face,  and then she opens her mouth and she sings,   and I was taken away.

I was a kid again.

You know?

This 76-year-old man became a kid.

One more time, Miss Emma Veary.

(Singing Kuʻu Pua I Paokalani) E ka gentle breeze e pa mai   nei Hoʻohāliʻaliʻa mai ana iaʻu  E kuʻu sweet never fading flower I pua i ka uka o Paoakalani ʻIke mau i ka nani o   nā pua O ka   uka o Uluhaimalama ʻAʻole naʻe hoʻi e like  Me kuʻu pua i ka laʻi o Paoakalani ʻIke mau i ka nani o nā pua O ka uka o Uluhaimalama  ʻAʻole naʻe hoʻi e like Me kuʻu pua i ka laʻi o  Paoakalani Mahalo.

God bless.

Jimmy Borges: The magnificent Emma Veary, ladies and gentlemen.

One of our glorious treasures of Hawaiʻi, 81 years  young, with a voice like that.

That's amazing to   be able to have a vibrato like that, if you're  lucky, when you have it at 20.

Miss Emma Veary.

(clapping)