|
You
Kuuipo
The first words to "You Kuuipo" were written
on Maui in 1984. The title was inspired by a woman whom I met on
the island and whose name was, "Kuuipo". Friendships can exist
without complication and ours was no exception as she seemed to never
tire of sharing Hawaiian customs and stories. Often
expressing herself through Hula or in Hawaiian song it wasn't hard for
me to see her love for Hawaii. I tried to express this aloha for
the islands through my words and Kuuipo (Sweetheart) was created as a
symbol for what Hawaii means to me.
The final drafts to "You Kuuipo" and other lyrics in
the collection, "Maui Magic" were completed in San Diego in 1989 -
1990. This may have never happened had it not been that at the
time I was living in what had been the home of Mrs. Eleanor Makepa
Fojas Stewart. Mrs. Stewart had passed on several years before
this time.
There is a distinct "style" to a Hawaiian home
and hers was no exception as she had left her touch of aloha throughout
the residence. I believe this sense of warmth had much to do with
inspiring me to finish the final draft. From the Plumeria
blossoming by
the front door to the thick bamboo growing "out back", this spirit of
Hawaii embraced me.
I completed the lyrics and in 1990
shared my creation with Willie Kahaialii, a musician I had come to know
on Maui several years before. I am not one to readily write music
and I expressed this to "Willie" who I approached for
collaboration. Mr. Kahaialii is a talented individual and in one
week's time was able to translate what was in my heart into the song,
"You Kuuipo".
The text to You Kuuipo was registered as a
part of my collection "Maui Magic" in 1990 with the United
States Copyright Office.
Gilbert Belmudez - "Kilipaki" January, 2000
NOTE: "Kuuipo" is a simplified
spelling to avoid errors in Internet searches. Proper spelling of
the word can be found as both "Ku'u'ipo" and the more common,
"Ku'uipo". I am sure that experts and scholars in the Hawaiian
language understand the discrepancies.
The word Kuuipo, which I chose to use as a proper noun, is most often
used as a female birth name but can also be a simple expression of
endearment.
|
You
Kuuipo
From the "Maui Magic" Collection
Registered ©1991 by Gilbert Belmudez
On this island I found the ways
to see the beauty in passing days.
Flowers that impel my love.
"Moments"
some only hear of.
Loving under a waterfall.
Hearing the owl's midnight call.
Whispers
from the ocean shell.
Whispers
only you and I can tell . . .
. . . and You Ku'u'ipo
bring these moments to my mind.
For You Ku'u'ipo
are an island one of a kind.
In this land I found the ways
to see the beauty of passing days.
Rainbows, jewels of a misty crown.
Craters covered with a silken gown.
Stars that always shown so bright.
Scattered throughout the lovely night.
Where true love befell my soul.
True love that came
upon a grassy knoll.
. . . and you Ku'u'ipo
bring these moments to my mind.
For you Ku'u'ipo
are an island one of a kind.
One of a kind. |