It was 3:00 a.m. and Milan Bertosa was closing shop at his
Honolulu recording studio. A client called and said a friend wanted to record
something. Bertosa said it was late; he’d have to call tomorrow. The client put
his friend on the phone. “He was really sweet, well-mannered, kind. I gave him
fifteen minutes. In walks the largest human being I’ve seen in my life;
probably 500 pounds. First thing on hand is to find him something to sit on.
Security brings in a big steel chair. Then I put up some microphones, do a
quick sound check, roll tape, and he does a medley of ‘Over the Rainbow’ and ‘What
a Wonderful World’ with a vintage Martin ukulele. One take and it's
over." Israel Kamakawiwoʻole was morbidly obese, at one point weighing 1,115
pounds. He died in 1997 at age 38. ‘Facing Future,’ is the best-selling
Hawaiian album of all time, thanks to this one song.
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