The De La Vegaz

"Shreddin' Hawaiian" is the De La Vegaz' tribute to Hawaiian guitarists, surfing and their family roots in Hawaii.

After the Orchestra's 1970 New Year's Eve show at the Rainbow Room in New York City, the first thing Don Jorge and Don David did to deal with the issues of Don Felipe's death was to travel to Maui in search of their family roots and play at the fabled Mahalo Club for a year.

The club was a legendary hang out on the North Shore for slack key guitarists, lap steel and ukelele players. No hodads (poseurs) found inside. It was at the Mahalo that the De La Vegaz would meet and play with guitar legend Roy Smeck, who had learned lap steel from Hawaiian guitar master Sol Hoppi. The De La Vegaz spent all their time over the next year atthe Mahalo.

Their great-uncle Salvador De La Vega first traveled to the area back in the late 1880s with Captain John Kidwell, who is credited with founding Hawaii's pineapple industry. Salvador and other Spaniards are credited with giving Hawaiians guitars and theaching them the rudiments of playing, and then allowing the Hawaiians to develop a style of their own. The Paniolo, or Hawaiian cowboy, is also a direct descendant of the Vaquero, the Spanish California and Mexican cowboy. Experts in Hawaiian etymology believe "Paniolo" is a Hawaiianized pronunciation of "español."

While playing at the Club Mahalo, the locals kept saying how amazing they could play, and the handle stuck: The Amazing De La Vegaz. It was only in Hawaii that the De La Vegaz would allow that title to be used.