Ukulele virtuoso Bill Tapia died Friday, a month short of his 104th birthday.

Born Jan. 1, 1908, Tapia died in his sleep at his home in Westminster, Calif.

Pat Enos, a close friend and caregiver, said Tapia had been in failing health since June when he canceled a planned trip to Hawaii to receive the Hawaii Academy of Recording Arts Lifetime Achievement Award.

It was a long lifetime indeed. Tapia was playing for tips at age 10 and was still performing at the age of 102. He was for years the only performer who could introduce a pop standard with the words, "Here’s a song I learned during World War I."

Jimmy Borges recalled Tapia as "a gem to work with. He had such hip chords on his uke, and his time was perfect for a 103-year-old guy. He was hipper than many so-called jazzers one-third his age."

Hailama Farden described Tapia as "our last link to the age of Hawaiian music during the growth of the hapa haole genre in the 1920s. This man worked for the greats like Harry Owens and Johnny Noble."

Makana paid homage to Tapia as the man "who allowed me the honor of sharing the stage with him on a myriad of memorable occasions."

Alan Okami, vice president of KoAloha Inc, manufacturer of KoAloha ukuleles, felt that the term "icon" didn’t do justice to Tapia’s contributions as a musician, teacher and entertainer.

"To say that (the) ukulele (community) has lost an icon would be a gross understatement for a man whose life and career spanned farther than Hawaii’s modern ukulele industry," Okami said. "He carried himself with dignity and grace, yet with a little bit of kolohe inside which made him all the more endearing to those that surrounded him."

Born and raised in Liliha, Tapia bought his first ukulele in 1915 from famed ukulele maker Manuel Nunes for 75 cents ("He wanted $1.50, but it was all the money I had," Tapia said 90 years later). Three years later he was playing for American soldiers who were stationed here during World War I; in 1918 he came up with a unique arrangement of "The Stars and Stripes Forever" that was copied and adapted by generations of Hawaiian musicians.

However, as time passed, Tapia found there was more work for him playing banjo and guitar than ukulele. He played ukulele for celebrity guests at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel but was known primarily as a guitarist for most of his professional career in Hawaii and then in California.

Tapia was retired and at loose ends when a fortuitous meeting with AlyssaBeth Archambault, who’d contacted him for help researching the careers of her Hawaiian ancestors in California, resulted in what has been described as "the unlikeliest career comeback in music history." With Archambault’s encouragement and promotional support, Tapia resumed playing the ukulele, recorded his first-ever full-length album, "Tropical Swing," at the age of 96 and was soon in demand for engagements on the West Coast and in Hawaii and Japan.

For the next six years he entertained crowds of all ages with his playing, singing and storytelling — the story about his encounter with Nunes and the time he got caught playing in a speakeasy during the early years of Prohibition were always crowd-pleasers.

He also became known for his colorful stage attire. Red was one of his favorite colors.

He continued to tour until late 2010.

Guitarist Jeff Peterson recalled that Tapia would call out key changes and other instructions with the precision of a band leader half his age.

"(He) was a huge inspiration to me," Peterson said. "He will long be remembered for his wonderful music as well as his stories about life in the islands and the colorful characters of Hawaiian music’s past. It was always great to learn from him. I will certainly miss spending time and performing with him."

Kale Hannahs, founding member of ‘Ale’a and Waipuna, said the deaths this week of Tapia and Bill Kaiwa showed the importance of "even more focus (being) put into properly documenting the lives and manao of our talented kupuna."

The documentation of Tapia’s life includes three additional albums: "Duke of Uke" in 2005, "Livin’ It Live" in 2009 and "Live at the Warner Grand," which was recorded during his 100th-birthday concert and released this summer.

Tapia was preceded in death by wife Barbie and daughter Cleo. Funeral arrangements are pending.