He became famous outside Hawaii when his album Facing Future was released in 1993 with his medley of "Over the Rainbow" and "What a Wonderful World", which was subsequently featured in several films, television programs, and commercials.
Through his consummate ukulele playing and incorporation of other genres (such as jazz and reggae), Iz remains one of the major influences in Hawaiʻian music over the last 15 years
Fullblood Hawaiian born artist Israel released several CD's and got his break in US when a Radio DJ in California played his version of the Judy Garland written song 'Somewhere over the rainbow' from his 'Facing Future' album, a simple song with his voice and a Ukulele in a traditional hawaiian performance. Israel or 'Iz' is the most popular and legendary artist that came from Hawaii and never seem to be forgotten by the citizens.
He died 26th of June 1997 of heartfailure due to his massive bodyweight of over 900 punds (400 Kilos). Today, 'Somewhere over the rainbow' is widely used in commercials and movies and is still popular over 10 years after since that rainy day in California where people heard it on the radio for the first time. And the album 'Facing Future' has sold over 1 million on world basis.
The Fly
Israel Kamakawiwoʻole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He do it on the table, he do it on the floor
He do it on the eggs, he do it on the ham
He do it on the head of the little grocery man
The little grocery man, he run to get his gun
He said I'm gonna get this fly before this day was done
But before he can count from one to ten
There was a little fly, he flew into the store
He sh on the table, he sh on the floor
He sh on the eggs, he sh on the ham
He sh on top the head of the little grocery man
The little grocery man, he run to get his gun
He said I'm gonna get this fly before this day was done
But before he can count from one to ten
The little fly, he sh on the grocery man again
In the lyrics to Israel Kamakawiwoʻole's song, "The Fly," a little fly makes its way into a store and proceeds to defecate on various surfaces including the table, floor, eggs, ham and even on the head of the little grocery man. The grocery man becomes agitated and decides to get his gun to kill the fly. However, every time he attempts to do so, the fly defecates on him, frustrating the little grocery man even more.
The lyrics of this song can be interpreted in multiple ways but one possible interpretation is that it is a commentary on the never-ending cycle of frustration and futility, where individuals try to control their environment and resist the natural order of things but are ultimately powerless, leading to a sense of helplessness and frustration.
The fly in the song can be seen as a symbol of nature's unyielding power and the inability of humans to control certain aspects of their environment. The grocery man's attempt to control and kill the fly represents humanity's constant need to control and dominate nature, but the fly's repeated defecation represents the inescapable and inevitable forces of nature that will always persist.
Overall, "The Fly" is a humorous yet poignant commentary on the relationship between humanity and nature, and the power dynamics at play.
Line by Line Meaning
There was a little fly, he flew into the store
A small fly flew into a store.
He do it on the table, he do it on the floor
The fly landed on the table and the floor, leaving excrement behind.
He do it on the eggs, he do it on the ham
The fly landed on the eggs and ham, leaving excrement behind.
He do it on the head of the little grocery man
The fly landed on the little grocery man's head, leaving excrement behind.
The little grocery man, he run to get his gun
The little grocery man panicked and went to get his gun.
He said I'm gonna get this fly before this day was done
The little grocery man vowed to kill the fly before the end of the day.
But before he can count from one to ten
The little grocery man didn't have much time before something else happened.
The little fly, he do it on the grocery man again
The little fly landed on the grocery man's head again, leaving excrement behind.
There was a little fly, he flew into the store
The same fly flew back into the store.
He sh on the table, he sh on the floor
The fly landed on the table and the floor, leaving excrement behind.
He sh on the eggs, he sh on the ham
The fly landed on the eggs and ham, leaving excrement behind.
He sh on top the head of the little grocery man
The fly landed on the little grocery man's head, leaving excrement behind.
The little grocery man, he run to get his gun
The little grocery man, still panicking, went to get his gun again.
He said I'm gonna get this fly before this day was done
The little grocery man repeated his vow to kill the fly.
But before he can count from one to ten
The little grocery man still didn't have much time.
The little fly, he sh on the grocery man again
The little fly landed on the grocery man's head once more, leaving excrement behind.
Contributed by Grace T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.