Will putting helium in a guitar turn it into a ukulele?

The songs people most want to learn to play on ukulele (#1 will leave you completely unshocked).

Ukuleleist Iam Tongi has won American Idol.

Window Shopping

– RIGuitars Bo Diddley style uke.
– Lichty build a family of ukuleles from one tree and a uke with eight steel strings.

Patreon

A massive thanks to all Uke Hunt’s Patreon backers for keeping the site up and running this month. And double thanks go to these legendary patrons of the arts:

– Arthur Foley
– Colleen Petticrew
– Dennis Boutsikaris
– Elizabeth Beardsley
– Ivo
– Jameson Gagnepain
– Jeff K
– Jeff Otto
– Jon Kenniston
– Kelby Green
– Kie77
– Lisa Johnson
– Mary
– Monika Kolodziejczyk
– Moses Kamai
– Nevylle Carroll
– Pat Weikle
– Pauline LeBlanc
– Robert
– Thorsten Neff
– Tina Knight

If you join Patreon at the Concert level or higher, you’ll get access to all previous exclusive tabs including May’s: Jimi Hendrix’s Little Wing

The Magnetic Fields – The Book of Love (Tab)

The Magnetic Fields were one of the bands that got me to take the ukulele seriously. So it’s long past time I did a version of The Book of Love. It seems that (thanks to its use in the finale of Scrubs) Peter Gabriel’s version is the best known. But, on this occasion, the original remains my favourite.

This arrangement uses a few elements of the Gabriel version (including the slower tempo and a few bits of filigree) but mostly sticks to the original.

It’s a very simple song with the same chords the whole way through: G – C – D11 – G. D11 is just a standard D chord with the g-string left open.

The intro and solo are just me noodling around with the melody and chords. With the intro in the first position and the solo higher up the neck. Lots of scope for your own take on these.

I’m using one finger per string picking for this up to the last bar of the solo. There I switch to strums for the final chorus.

Links

Buy the original
More 2000s tabs and chords
Uke Hunt Patreon

Tina Turner – Proud Mary (Tab)

A version of Proud Mary in tribute to Tina Turner. It’s one of those covers that completely eclipse the original version. It’s so perfect it’s hard to believe it wasn’t written for her.

Links

Buy the Tina Turner version
More 70s tabs and chords
Uke Hunt Patreon

Uke Hunt turned 16 years old a few months ago.According to WebMD a 16 year olds, “can tell and write involved, incredible stories. They are better able to explain, describe, sum up, and argue.” Which will be a first around here.

A massive shoutout to everyone who has generously supported the site via Patreon over the last year. Not only are they the reason the site is still up and running, they’ve also suggested almost all the tabs I’ve done (and 100% of the ones people enjoy).

Here’s a round-up of my favourite tabs and the goings-on of the last year.

May 2022

In tabs:: R.E.M. – Man on the Moon, Nico/Jackson Browne – These Days, Bob Marley and the Wailers – One Love, Keane – Somewhere Only We Know

Patreon tab: Freight Train (Elizabeth Cotten)

June 2022

– Favourite videos of the year so far.
– Australian PM, Scott Morrison’s uke humiliation, lead to losing MPs being dispatched by a ukulele robot overlord.

In tabs: Marvin Gaye – Let’s Get It On, Radiohead – Karma Police, The White Stripes – We’re Going to Be Friends, TLC – Waterfalls and some quick tunes from TV and YouTube.

Patreon tab: Running Up That Hill (Kate Bush)

July 2022

– I reviewed the tabbing software Guitar Pro 8. My updated thoughts: the ability to add an audio file in line with the tab has significantly improved the accuracy of my tabs. I wouldn’t go back to working without it.
– Big Chord Quiz 8.
– Ukulele moms are an embarrassment.

In tabs: Johnny Cash/NIN – Hurt, Neil Diamond – Song Sung Blue, Alanis Morissette – Hand in My Pocket

Patreon tab: Under the Bridge (Red Hot Chili Peppers)

August 2022

In tabs: The Weeknd – Blinding Lights, Radiohead – Creep, The Chordettes – Mr Sandman, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Theme.

Patreon tab: You Can Call Me Al (Paul Simon)

September 2022

– An airborne ukulele lesson resulted in headlines like “Terror In the Sky!” and “Why the Hague Exists”.

In tabs: The Beatles – Oh! Darling, What Shall We Do with a Drunken Sailor?, Jim Croce – Time in a Bottle

Patreon tab: Classical Gas (Mason Williams)

October 2022

– A rundown of spooky tabs and chords.

In tabs: Otis Redding – (Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay, Dido – Thank You (Tabs), Norma Tanega – You’re Dead (What We Do in the Shadows)

Patreon tab: Thriller (Michael Jackson Ukulele Cover)

November 2022

In tabs: Harry Styles – As It Was, The Smashing Pumpkins – 1979, R.E.M. – Endgame, Mazzy Star – Fade Into You

Patreon tab: Nobody Does It Better (Carly Simon)

December 2022

– Ringo hated George Harrison’s ukuleles.
– Bob Odenkirk tweeted one of my least popular videos.

In tabs: The Beatles – You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away, Slade – Merry Xmas Everybody, Del Shannon – Runaway (Tabs)

Patreon tab: River (Joni Mitchell)

January 2023

In tabs: Nirvana – Heart-Shaped Box, Billie Eilish – ocean eyes, Garbage – Only Happy When It Rains

Patreon tab: Exit Music (for a Film) (Radiohead)

February 2023

Patreon tab: Tiny Dancer (Elton John)

March 2023

In tabs: Burt Bacharach – I’ll Never Fall in Love Again, Afroman – Because I Got High, Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Maps

Patreon tab: Don't Stop Me Now (Queen)

April 2023

In tabs: Green Day – Basket Case, Miley Cyrus – Flowers, Dooley Wilson – As Time Goes By, Johnny Nash – I Can See Clearly Now

Patreon tab: Feel Good Inc (Gorillaz)

The Smiths – Panic (Tab)

A version of Panic tribute to Smiths bassist, Andy Rourke.

Intro: A short jingle-jangle intro. I originally played it an octave up to accommodate the original. But this version is much easier to play and keeps the vibe of the original.

Verses: The verses are all very slightly different. The trickiest part comes in bar 17-18 with some quick triplets. The first will require a bit of alternate picking. The third verse starts using the g-string to play melody notes (beginning in bar 38).

Bridge: Keeping the barre across the strings even when you don’t need to makes this section easier to play.

Chorus: Even more melody notes on the g-string in this section to keep it rocking. Plus the chords are a little more filled out with a G between the C and D.

Links

Buy the original
More 80s tabs and chords
Uke Hunt Patreon

The B-52’s – Love Shack (Tab)

Love Shack isn’t the most uke-friendly song but it is a ton of fun to play.

Intro: Playing the melody using strum blocking i.e. strumming but muting everything but the string that’s playing the melody. That means you can play single notes but still keep things energetic and forceful.

Verse 1: Starting with Kate Pierson’s part played high up the neck before switching to Fred Schneider’s part lower down the neck. Schneider’s part is very talky so the melody here is somewhat created.

Pre-Chorus: A nice easy little section.

Chorus: The section I had most trouble playing. It’s tricky to combine the guitar riff and the vocal line smoothly. The second chorus is a little different from the first and third.

Verse 2: Four bars of talky section, four bars of strum blocking then some simple strumming to finish with.

Bridge: The section that works least well on the uke. I thought about leaving it out but it’s too iconic. It’s starts with a reworking of the bass riff then goes into a shortened version of the “Bang, bang, on the door” bit. I’ve even included an attempt at the “Tin roof, rusted” bit. Although I wouldn’t blame you for missing any of this out.

Links

Buy the original
More 80s tabs and chords
Uke Hunt Patreon

Watch on YouTube

Tracklist
Kainani Kahaunaele and Kaniualono H?pai – Kiuwail?lehua
Chris Jones and the Night Drivers – Riding the Chief
Jon’s Ukulele – Darling Cory
Laura Anglade – Hold My Hand
4stringboy – Slow Dancing in the Dark
Deno x Einer Bankz – Hold Me Down
Charming Disaster – Disembodied Head
George Elmes – Planet Uke
Billie Eilish – hotline

Iggy Pop – The Passenger (Tab)

Iggy Pop’s The Passenger is a straight-forward basher. There’s the same chord sequence the whole way through:

Am – F – C – G

Am – F – C – E7

The E7 chord is a bit of an oddity. In my arrangement I’m avoiding playing the g-string (by muting with my thumb) to keep the chord ambiguous as the whether it’s major or minor.

Later in the song (starting on bar 48) the melody hits a G note which clashes with the Ab in the E7 chord. So in those cases, I’ve substituted in a G chord to make it sound more natural on the uke. And I’ve stuck with that G chord in the final chorus as well.

The one slightly fancy touch comes in the second half of the intro (bars 5-8). This riff based on the lead guitar part which I thought it deserved showcasing.

Links

Buy the original
More 70s tabs and chords
Uke Hunt Patreon

Koji Kondo – Zelda Medley (Tab)

Shamefully, I haven’t played a Zelda game since A Link to the Past. So these arrangements are heavily influenced by that era.

Zelda’s Lullaby: A chill start to the medley with gentle picking and a soft Cmaj7 chord. There is a big leap up the neck in bar 6. But this part is slow enough that it’s not a big challenge.

Main Theme: Ramping up the pomposity and changing the key to F. There’s another big jump in 16. This one is at a quicker tempo so it’s more of a challenge. From there, you get the descending note until you hit the C.

Ilia’s Theme: Back to a more relaxed feel. This time, the challenge is a big stretch between the 4th and 10th fret in bar 23. If you’re struggling there, you can change the A-string, 10th fret to A-string, 7th fret in bars 22 and 23. It changes the feel a little but it still sounds nice.

Kakariko Village: The challenge here is to emphasise the melody notes so it doesn’t just sound like a melody-less picking pattern. Otherwise, nothing too difficult.

Hyrule Castle: Switching to C minor and more pomposity. Where the Main Theme is grand, this one has some menace with the chromatic notes on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th frets. 8-Bit Music Theory did an excellent video on this tune.

Song of Storms: A final key change to E minor and the trickiest section of the piece.

Links

Buy Zelda music
More game theme tabs and chords
Uke Hunt Patreon

Meghan Trainor is playing a uke with strings made of human hair to promote some hair goop.

Kala have teamed up with British luthier Pete Howlett to create The Revelator.

Ukulele duo, Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer have a musical All Wigged Out about Marcy’s cancer diagnosis. You can read an interview with the pair about it here.

We’re now getting ukulele specific social media scams.

The first woman to row solo across the specific used her downtime onboard to play the uke.

Patreon

A massive thanks to all Uke Hunt’s Patreon backers for keeping the site up and running this month. And double thanks go to these legendary patrons of the arts:

– Arthur Foley
– Colleen Petticrew
– Dan
– Dennis Boutsikaris
– Elizabeth Beardsley
– Ivo
– Jameson Gagnepain
– Jeff K
– Jeff Otto
– Jon Kenniston
– Kelby Green
– Kie77
– Lisa Johnson
– Monika Kolodziejczyk
– Moses Kamai
– Nevylle Carroll
– Nick Parsons
– Pat Weikle
– Pauline LeBlanc
– Robert
– Thorsten Neff
– Tina Knight

If you join Patreon at the Concert level or higher, you’ll get access to all previous exclusive tabs including April’s: Gorillaz’ Feel Good Inc.