Jan/28/09
57comments

Ukulele Video of the Year 2008: Your Vote

The nominations for Ukulele Video of the Year are in and I’ve come up with a list of 11 videos as contenders.

I think it provides a pretty good overview of the ukulele scene at the moment: orchestras and solo acts; originals and covers; songs and instrumentals; pros and ams. Some surprises though. No Bosko and Honey. And I thought JuNu would make it this year.

Here are the links to the videos in reverse alphabetical order. You get one vote, so use it wisely. If you’re reading this via the feed or email click here to come over to the blog and vote. Voting closes at midnight Hawaii time next Tuesday (3rd February).

Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra – It’s a Heartache
Ukulelezo – Optional Accessory
Ukebucket – The Fourth Thursday of November
Rod Thomas – Same Old Lines
Sweetafton23 – I Believe She’s Lying
Seeso – Hotel California
Neal Paisley – Gossip
GUGUG – Surfin’ Bird
The Gentle Surprise – Gimme That Wine
The Barnkickers – Night Song
Jason Arimoto – Little Wing

[poll=3]

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  • Written by Woodshed
  • Filed in: YouTube
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57 Comments

  1. cardboardfrog January 28th, 2009 12:38 pm

    suddenly doesnt seem so easy to pick just one

  2. Woodshed January 28th, 2009 3:10 pm

    cbf: I know. Tough choice. I’m surprised how one sided the voting is at the moment. I even checked that the poll was malfunctioning.

  3. zymeck January 28th, 2009 4:49 pm

    gosh!! – that wasnt at all what i expected :0

    is there a secret facebook group i dont know about?

  4. zymeck January 28th, 2009 4:51 pm

    hahahah – yes there is!

  5. Woodshed January 28th, 2009 5:07 pm

    zym: Wow, they must really be paying attention. The votes for Rod started rolling in about an hour after I’d put the post up.

    Whereabouts is it? All I can find from my stats is one of those, “You are trying to leave Facebook. You’ll probably get mugged. Don’t do it.” pages. And there’s only 6 of them showing in the stats.

  6. Paul January 28th, 2009 6:07 pm

    Rod got my vote, and I honestly have nothing to do with any Facebook shenanigans. Go Rod!
    However, I’m a bit concerned that WIUO are going to get a surge when all our Kiwi friends awaken from their blissfully unaware slumber.

  7. Jimmy January 28th, 2009 6:11 pm

    Wow, I’m surprised I’ve never heard that Rod Thomas song and it’s so popular. I voted for my boy Narciso and I’ll keep my hopes high even though it’s looking low for now!

  8. Ukulele Video of the Year 2008 « Panther Red January 28th, 2009 7:08 pm

    […] Video of the Year 2008 Posted by acilius under Music | Tags: ukulele, Ukulele Hunt |   Ukulelehunt, the great and powerful, is running a contest for Ukulele Video of the Year.  My vote goes to […]

  9. Vote for the Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra at Uke Hunt « Kiwi by Proxy - Online Radio January 28th, 2009 7:11 pm

    […] a second to go to this site  http://ukulelehunt.com/2009/01/28/ukulele-video-of-the-year-2008-your-vote/ and vote for the best ukulele video of 2008 at the Uke Hunt blog (which the best uke vid of 2008 […]

  10. acilius January 28th, 2009 7:27 pm

    What a terrific collection! Thanks for this, Woodshed.

  11. Woodshed January 28th, 2009 7:45 pm

    Paul: And he got mine without FB. I’ve logged into FB twice today. I feel so dirty.

    Jimmy: He’s in third place. I wouldn’t put him out of the running. He has plenty of fans if he’s all that bothered about winning.

    acilius: Thanks for mentioning the vote on your blog.

  12. zym January 28th, 2009 8:22 pm

    @Al,

    I found it while i was at work, and could have sworn there was a link here….

    http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rod-Thomas/19312932128?sid=0ef609e2888cc75fe701b090cf706dac&ref=s#/pages/Rod-Thomas/19312932128?sid=365fdd46f11f624461590e336370b024&ref=s

    but for some reason is gone now :\

  13. LonnaB January 28th, 2009 8:22 pm

    This poll is fun to watch.

    I’m calling it for seeso. It’s early.

  14. Woodshed January 28th, 2009 9:20 pm

    zym: I hope someone’s pulling for him anyways. I want him to win. It’s a great song and he’s a top bloke.

    LonnaB: I think the NZ block vote is going to come storming through.

  15. J-Hob January 28th, 2009 10:48 pm

    So many great videos to choose from, it’s a really tough choice. I think I could have picked anyone of about 4 and in the end opted for Gugug – it’s a fabulously catchy song and I just love their style, although I suppose I’m voting for their sustained quality of videos over the whole year. Now that I think about it Rod Thomas does have the better video and is very funny, hmmmm….. I also really enjoyed the Wellington orchestra, great song and vid there too. MY BRAIN HURTS!

  16. Rod Thomas January 29th, 2009 12:07 am

    My vote, if she’d been in the final poll would go for this lady – http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Bt7vj0QV7hQ – that a friend told me about earlier.

    All the videos in this poll is great, and I’m just really pleased to be part of the site.

  17. Mike January 29th, 2009 12:23 am

    Well, here’s a New Zealander who didn’t vote for the WIUO (although they are lovely, lovely people, so I hope they’ll still be friends with me). Rod’s song and video are just too good. (PS: Same Old Lines is appearing in the second edition of Kiwi Ukulele, that’s how much I like it.)

  18. Rod Thomas January 29th, 2009 12:30 am

    A friend told me that I’d been shortlisted so I logged on to look and was slightly concerned about this “secret facebook” thing …

    A fan had posted a comment saying “vote for Rod” on the facebook artist page that Zym looked at, but I took the comment off as I thought thepoll was for ukulelehunt readers primarily.

    Anyway, all the videos are great and thanks to Ukulelehunt for sharing them all, and lettiny my music be part of it

    (I tried to post a comment a while ago saying this but it seems to have deleted itself so I reposted)

  19. Andy January 29th, 2009 12:41 am

    the Rod Thomas video is by far the best!!! VOTE FOR ROD!!!

  20. zym January 29th, 2009 12:55 am

    Thanks Rod – at least i know im not going mad!

    You got my vote – Can we expect some more uke songs in 2009?

  21. Boughter January 29th, 2009 8:25 am

    Sheesh, not making this easy. I had somehow failed to see Gimme That Wine this year and well, just too well done and funny to pass up (guess I’m the only one putting my money on the extreme underdog). Everyone on that list is fantastic though.

  22. Ann January 29th, 2009 9:40 am

    Ummm – according to my diary the 4th of Feb is a Wednesday and not a Tuesday (at least it is in NZ). Although when it’s Wednesday in NZ its Tuesday in Hawaii, although midnight on the 4th would be Thursday in NZ – it’s getting very confusing and there are a lot of supporters of a particular orchestra who want to get their votes in on time …

  23. Woodshed January 29th, 2009 9:58 am

    John: If it was YouTube Ukulele Act of the Year I think I’d go with GUGUG as well.

    Mike: Ooooh, how far along are you with vol. 2?

    Boughter: I missed that one as well. It’s good to see that everyone has at least one vote now.

    Ann: Yes, I got confused because I had to set the end time for the 4th in the UK. It’s until the end of Tuesday (the 3rd). Which I’m guessing is halfway through Wednesday in NZ.

    GMT end time = February 4, 2009 @ 10:00 am

  24. Leslie January 29th, 2009 1:02 pm

    I was just wondering if you ever received my uke video “Kinda Fonda My Red Honda?”
    Les

  25. QAsRevenge January 29th, 2009 1:03 pm

    Man, this is tough. I can’t decide whether to vote for the most skilled player or the most creative video. Think I’ll watch them all again.

  26. Woodshed January 29th, 2009 1:16 pm

    Leslie: Yes, I did send you a reply. I’ll resend it.

    QAdRevenge: Vote with your heart ;)

  27. cardboardfrog January 29th, 2009 2:00 pm

    rewatching it, i’m beginning to think i should of voted for jason arimoto, technically i think its the most impressive piece

  28. Woodshed January 29th, 2009 2:23 pm

    cbf: He’s definitely the most technically adapt player. I actually preferred his version of Lenny. But that’s democracy for you.

  29. Carrie January 29th, 2009 2:58 pm

    Man this Rod Thomas is doing quite well. That is a pretty sweet video I grant him that. Still, its no W.I.U.O. :-)

    Ya know…

    Before all of this voting came about I didn’t know this site existed.

    I recently bought a uke for 8 bucks at a thrift store but I haven’t had a chance to really do much with it. Cool thing is when I actually get around to playing it I know where to come for resources.

    So in short, this is a great site and great blog.

    Uke on.

    :-)

  30. krabbers January 29th, 2009 4:22 pm

    ukebucket , its a great song well sung

  31. Woodshed January 29th, 2009 9:30 pm

    Carrie: Thanks for the kind words. And thanks to linking to the vote on your site:

    krabbers: Certainly is. I would have gone for Pig Latin myself.

  32. Narciso Lobo January 29th, 2009 11:29 pm

    I think it’s safe to say that Rod has taken this by a landslide! Well, done, Mr. Thomas. You deserve it.

  33. grassshk January 30th, 2009 2:57 am

    Very tough choice. Wish I had not procrastinated and put up a nomination for Bosko&Honey doing “The House on Pooh Corner” with Keonepax but too late for that! I liked all of the choices and my two favorites were Rod Thomas and The Wellington Orch. but in the end had to vote for Wellington.

  34. Ann January 30th, 2009 6:12 am

    While I admire your confidence Narciso Lobo, the voting ain’t over yet!!!

  35. Woodshed January 30th, 2009 9:44 pm

    Ann and Seeso: I’m with Ann on this one. There’s still plenty of time left. And WIUO are slowly but surely catching up.

    grasshk: I was really surprised B&H didn’t get to the final. I had them down as possible winners.

  36. Tom Sackett January 30th, 2009 11:26 pm

    We need more categories, like the Academy Awards:

    Best Production Quality in a Video Containing HIgh Ukulele Content: Its a Heartache – Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra

    Best Performance that Would Have Actually Sounded Like That If You Heard it Live: Jason Arimoto – Little Wing

    Best Playing of an Actual Ukulele: Neal Paisley – Gossip

    Least Well-Chosen Entry by an Artist Who Did Some Really Great Stuff in 2008: Sweetafton23 – I Believe She’s Lying

    By the way, I don’t mean to damn WIOU with faint praise. Their performance was great. I just wanted to figure out what made their video stand out against the other ones I liked.

  37. Ann January 31st, 2009 6:32 pm

    This is so much fun!

    Thanks Uke Hunt – because of this competition I’ve discovered a great new website, I’m driving all my friends crazy trying to get them to vote, and Rod Thomas has gained a brand new fan – though the WIUO will always be No. 1 in my eyes!

    For those of us who are not so computer-savvy, is it just one vote per computer? My friends’ kids wanted to vote but when they come to this page there’s no option to – is that because their mum has already voted?

  38. The Gentle Surprise January 31st, 2009 8:45 pm

    Hey, I just found out this was going on!
    Anyway, don’t vote for me! The other stuff is better, and besides, doesn’t encourage such bad behavior.
    As they say, tho, it’s an honor just to be nominated. Thanks!

  39. zym February 1st, 2009 12:35 am

    Theres more than 1 computer in NZ?

    :D

  40. Woodshed February 1st, 2009 2:59 pm

    Tom: It’s enough to get one category sorted. And I’ll let you in on a secret. It’s not about finding the best of anything, just getting exposure from talented musicians.

    Ann: You can only vote once on a computer I’m afraid.

    Gentle Surprise: I think you deserve extra marks for doing half cut.

    zym: Zing!

  41. Matt OB February 3rd, 2009 11:31 pm

    hmmm… i was trying to vote but I couldn’t figure it out. I was gonna for “Ukebucket – The Fourth Thursday of November”, but maybe the voting is closed? Not sure.

  42. Indy February 4th, 2009 12:40 am

    I was trying to vote for Ukebucket also, but I can’t figure out how to vote either. I have the link but where do I vote.

  43. Indy February 4th, 2009 12:47 am

    Oh that worked after I posted…weird

  44. Deborah Cuzens February 4th, 2009 2:53 am

    Trying to vote for the wonderful Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra. Haven’t managed to yet, so trying again now!

  45. Deborah February 4th, 2009 3:01 am

    Mmmmm – still didn’t seem to be able to vote – is it because it’s already the 4th in NZ? How do know if my vote was cast??

  46. Deborah February 4th, 2009 3:03 am

    OK – That was weird – have voted now. Thank you.

  47. Mike February 4th, 2009 3:47 am

    Yay! Ukebucket

  48. Woodshed February 4th, 2009 7:45 pm

    Sorry to everyone who had problems voting. I hope everyone managed to in the end.

    Anyhoo, vote over. Rod Thomas wins.

  49. Steve Boisen February 4th, 2009 7:45 pm

    I just want to thank you fo including us on the list of nominees. It’s also nice to see my friends Seeso and Jason Arimoto included too.

  50. Woodshed February 4th, 2009 8:08 pm

    You’re welcome, Steve. I’m looking forward to more great songs from you this year.

  51. Ukulelehunt Announces Video Contest Winner « Panther Red February 4th, 2009 10:00 pm

    […] Posted by acilius under Music | Tags: ukulele, Ukulele Hunt |   I posted earlier about Ukulelehunt’s “Ukulele Video of the Year 2008 Contest.”  Now, the results are in.  Here’s the winner.   It wasn’t my choice, but I […]

  52. Tim Capper February 5th, 2009 9:29 am

    Congrats to Rod Thomas from me and the whole Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra.
    Thanks to everyone that voted for us too.

    I guess its just a heartache

  53. Woodshed February 5th, 2009 10:48 pm

    Tim: I don’t think being the second best ukulele video of the year is any reason for heartache ;)

    It’s a great video and loads of people absolutely love it.

  54. zym February 5th, 2009 11:12 pm

    cor!

    im going to have start bringing my autograph book everytime i visit this site :D

  55. Carrie February 5th, 2009 11:26 pm

    Good job Rod Thomas. It is a sweet video.

    I am disappointed that the W.I.U.O didn’t take first place but they have first place in my heart… hmmm that’s much of a consolation prize!

    Woodshed again, thanks for this great site. I will be making use of it to look for a new uke in addition to the one I already have. The one I have is OK I reckon… its a Leolani (I think its more of a trinket type uke…one you bring back from holiday) but it sounds good and I have already learned a song!

    Uke on!

  56. Woodshed February 7th, 2009 9:18 am

    zym: I’m pretty sure I saw Gary Wilmot hanging around the bins. He’s probably still there now.

    Carrie:Good luck with the uke. I’m sure it won’t be long until I’m featuring WIUO again.

  57. Ukulelezo « Panther Red February 8th, 2009 4:35 pm

    […] Ukulelezo’s “Optional Accessory,” in which she purports to have a mustache fetish,….   And deservedly so; here’s the video: […]

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