ANDY IONA

Andy Iona was born in 1902 in Honolulu. His parents were already skilled Hawaiian music virtuosos from Waimea, Kauai. Young Andy only wanted to compose and perform music and quit Kamehameha School at a young age. He went on to be accepted as a solo saxophonist in the Royal Hawaiian Band and later led Johnny Noble's orchestra at the Moana Hotel.

Andy moved to the mainland in 1921 and later that decade took up the steel guitar. He appeared on the radio on KFI in Los Angeles and then joined the staff of KHJ. He was a gifted performer, arranger and composer. He toured the country and opened the famous Hawaiian Room at the Lexington Hotel in New York, playing there for many years. He scored the film Honolulu, which starred Eleanor Powell, and made dozens of recordings.

His compositions still popular today include "South Sea Island Magic," "Maui Moon," "Million Moons Over Hawaii," "Naughty Hula Eyes," "Sand," and many others.


Biographical material from Tony Todaro, The Golden Years of Hawaiian Entertainment (Tony Todaro Pub., 1974).