Bill Sevesi
Encyclopedia
Bill Sevesi QSM
(born Wilfred Jeffs) is a musician and master of the steel guitar
who helped popularise Hawaiian style music in New Zealand
and the Pacific Islands
.
Born in Tonga
in 1923, Sevesi has composed more than 200 songs with over 20 albums to his credit during a career spanning six decades.
He began playing the Hawaiian Steel Guitar in 1936, and in later years his band 'Wilfred Jeffs and the Islanders' became 'Bill Sevesi and the Islanders.' He has performed all over the Pacific Islands, New Zealand, Australia and United States.
He has recorded some classic favourites such as Bye Bye Baby Goodbye (1958) as well as recording artists such as Daphne Walker (singer), The Yandall Sisters
and Annie Crummer
.
(1955) for his contribution to music in New Zealand, the Jerry Byrd Lifetime Achievement Award (1998) from the Steel Guitar Players Hall of Fame, Inc in Missouri, the United States and a Lifetime Achievement Award (2006) at the Pacific Music Awards, New Zealand.
he was a recording star on the legendary New Zealand Viking Records
label.
QSM
QSM is an acronym that may stand for:* QuickSilver Scalable Multicast, a networking protocol* Queen's Service Medal, a medal awarded by the government of New Zealand* Quadriceps Sparing Myopathy, a common name for the hereditary inclusion body myopathy IBM2...
(born Wilfred Jeffs) is a musician and master of the steel guitar
Steel guitar
Steel guitar is a type of guitar or the method of playing the instrument. Developed in Hawaii in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a steel guitar is usually positioned horizontally; strings are plucked with one hand, while the other hand changes the pitch of one or more strings with the use...
who helped popularise Hawaiian style music in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and the Pacific Islands
Pacific Islands
The Pacific Islands comprise 20,000 to 30,000 islands in the Pacific Ocean. The islands are also sometimes collectively called Oceania, although Oceania is sometimes defined as also including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago....
.
Born in Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
in 1923, Sevesi has composed more than 200 songs with over 20 albums to his credit during a career spanning six decades.
He began playing the Hawaiian Steel Guitar in 1936, and in later years his band 'Wilfred Jeffs and the Islanders' became 'Bill Sevesi and the Islanders.' He has performed all over the Pacific Islands, New Zealand, Australia and United States.
He has recorded some classic favourites such as Bye Bye Baby Goodbye (1958) as well as recording artists such as Daphne Walker (singer), The Yandall Sisters
The Yandall Sisters
The Yandall Sisters are a popular New Zealand/Samoan all-female singing group of the seventies who have made a major contribution to music in New Zealand...
and Annie Crummer
Annie Crummer
Annie Crummer is a New Zealand Pop singer and songwriter who has seen success in both a solo career and as part of various musical groups.She grew up in West Auckland. Her father, a Cook Islander, was one of her strongest musical influences...
.
Awards
Sevesi has won numerous awards including the Queens Service MedalQueen's Service Order
The Queen's Service Order was established by Queen Elizabeth II on 13 March 1975, awarded by the government of New Zealand "for valuable voluntary service to the community or meritorious and faithful services to the Crown or similar services within the public sector, whether in elected or...
(1955) for his contribution to music in New Zealand, the Jerry Byrd Lifetime Achievement Award (1998) from the Steel Guitar Players Hall of Fame, Inc in Missouri, the United States and a Lifetime Achievement Award (2006) at the Pacific Music Awards, New Zealand.
Viking Records
Along with fellow Tongan Bill WolfgrammBill Wolfgramm
Bill Wolfgramm is a musician specialising in lap steel guitar and popular Hawaiian music. He was born in the island kingdom of Tonga and is also of German descent...
he was a recording star on the legendary New Zealand Viking Records
Viking Records
Viking Records was an independent and prominent record label that featured many New Zealand and Polynesian recording artists.-Background:In the 1960s, the company was the largest locally owned record label in the South Pacific with its New Zealand head office in Wellington and a branch in Sydney...
label.