Jimmy Borges leaves a legacy of music — and aloha

Jimmy Borges, Hawaii’s gentleman of jazz, died May, 2016, at age 80, having faced his recurring cancer with the same gutsy attitude that propelled him from hardscrabble Kalihi to the glittering stages of Las Vegas. His velvety voice and charisma sustained him through 60 years on stage, but what struck listeners most is how the jazz singer spoke to them through song.HONOLULU ADVERTISER

 VIDEO Hawaii jazz legend Jimmy Borges shares a story about composer Kui Lee, then sings a beautiful medley of Kui Lee's classic song along with the mainland standard by Victor Schertzinger. This was recorded on 6/27/14 at the 7th Annual Red Clay Jazz Festival on Kauai. Jimmy was accompanied by Betty Lou Taylor on keyboards, Dean Taba on bass, and Noel Okimoto on drums. Unfortunately, due to the recorder battery running low, the last portion of the medley is missing a section.