OK Go – Needing/Getting (Chords)

I’ve had quite a few requests for the ukulele bit in this OK Go video. So I went ahead and did that and the chords to go along with the slappy-tubes and dildo-piano (dildano?). The chords are actually based on the studio version but works perfectly well with this version (and we’re spared the extended outro).

Suggested Strumming

You can use this strum all the way through.

d – d u d –

Twice for each chord. Except for the long D chords in the intro riff.

Twiddly Bit

Here’s the intro ukulele bit:

All down strums for this bit.

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Two videos this week from Hawaiian legend Cyril Pahinui backed by Peter Moon on ukulele. Also up is Lisa Hannigan covering the song everyone is covering at the moment, The Leftover Cuties covering Regina Spektor and Phredd covers a guy in a skin-tight superhero outfit he found in a spaceship.

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Signed charity ukuleles: One signed by Seth Rogan, Aziz Ansari, Judd Apatow, Bruno Mars, Patton Oswalt, Charlyne Yi and others. And one just signed by Tune-Yards.

Ukulele badges (via Ukulele Porn).

Miniature banjo.

Some ukes from the 20s: slightly abused 1920s Gibson, 6-string Favila Wimbrola, Martin Style 2 koa taropatch.

I’ve been dying to hear more about Indonesian protest punks Marjinal since, let me see, the 26th June 2009. They give ukuleles to street kids and teach them to play so they can earn money busking. Now there’s a Kickstarter to make a documentary about them. I kicked in straight away.

Trailer for a Jake Shimabukuro documentary. According to the video description, “the World Premiere of this captivating documentary –PLAYING ONE NIGHT ONLY!” Bummer.

Remember that time in 2012 when someone decided to make a ukulele out of an iPad and and an iPhone and it sounded like a goat dragging a bag of conkers over a sheet of corrugated iron? Yeah, that was pretty funny.

The ‘… for Dummies’ people have an offer on their books every March. Right now on Amazon UK you can pick up a copy of Ukulele for Dummies at half price.

Howlin’ Hobbit has a new album of standards out Standards Issue. You can get it on his website – it’s currently ‘pay what you like’. It’s an excellent record, so great ukulele lines. Well worth throwing something in the hat.

Eff Barzley did a lovely ukulele session for I Am Fuel, You Are Friends.

Bossarocker is starting up a uke-up in Levenshulme (Manchester).

Garfunkel and Oates sum up the Independent Spirit Awards.

Vintage ukuleles (and a mandolin) in old movies (thanks to Ron Hale).

Strings made of spider silk (via HVDC).

On Uker Tabs: Johnny Flynn and Laura Marling, The Fruit Bats, Cake and The B***les.

The uke is so easy to play a chimpanzee or a dog or a duck or a cat could do it.

Keith Allen prepares for his meeting with Nick Griffin by playing the ukulele in the European Parliament (that link might not work outside the UK).

I’ve already put up the chords for this song. But when Voxdog sent me his arrangement for an instrumental version I had to put it up here and do my own version.

My version is very similar to Voxdog’s. But I’ve shaved out quite a few of the sections and I take fewer trips up the fretboard (it makes it a lot easier to play while staring into space).

I encourage you to do your own take on the arrangement as well. This one is a good place to start for doing that too. The melody is really strong so as long as you have that going on you can fill in the backing in any way you like the sound of.

There are more of Voxdog’s arrangements here: Mele Kalikimaka, Sweet Child O’ Mine and Here Comes the Sun.

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Coldplay – Yellow

I did a similar thing with voxdog’s tab for Yellow. His tab is above. I read through his and busked together my own version based on that.

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Podcast #14 in your face. And it’s a bumper, all female edition to celebrate International Women’s Day including an interview with ukulelist and cookbook compiler Rose Turtler Ertler.

Tracklist

1. Ukulelezo – Bikini Song

2. Armelle Europe – Maelström

3. Savannah Smith – Comeback Baby

4. Livi Yiu – Romantic Lullaby

5. Mary Agnes Covery-Krell – I Gave Your Unicorn A Black Eye

6. Wendy Solomon – Odious Michael

7. Kendra Korshak – Bye Bye Brooklyn

8. Rose Turtle Ertler Interview Part 1

9. Rose Turtle Ertler – Follow Me Down the Way

10. Rose Turtle Ertler Interview Part 2

11. Rose Turtle Ertler – Hiccup

12. Team Stephanie – Far Love

13. Ruth Wilksinson – Strange Bird

14. Salwa Azar – Fire and Ice

15. Isla Maclean – Dance With Me Tonight

16. Corner Laughers – Twice the Luck

17. Shelley O’Brien – Turn Into Spring

18. The Balconettes sing about a personal problem

You can get in touch and submit tracks for consideration if you follow the rules (particularly the one about file format) via:

Facebook
Soundcloud
Email at podcast@ukulelehunt.com

No surprises that I got a few requests for the chords to the ukulele video of the year.

It’s a very simple song. Just one section repeating. And I’ve written up the simple chords as Rodrigo left them in the comments. But you can fancy up the G chord part by switching between the the fourth and fifth fret on the A-string (make that a bit easier to play by just playing the g-string open).

Suggested Strumming

Rodrigo is doing all down strums for his section but with the off-beats emphasised.

d D d D d D d D

Or you can follow the mandola part which goes like this:

d u d u – u d u

Download their album free on their website.

I don’t usually put up album cover videos but I had to make an exception for the uke track on David’s Lyre’s new album. You can get it on Bandcamp on a ‘pay what you like’ basis. It’s well worth throwing in a few quid – it’s an excellent album.

Also up folkiness from The Staves, hula dancing with Da Ukulele Boyz, some Bach from Richard Durrant and more besides.

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Classical and traditional tab site PDF Minstrel now has a sister site with modern tunes PDF Uker.

New Releases: Jacob Borschard has completed the Beach Boy’s album SMiLE with vocals and ukulele of his own and you can download it on his website, Garfunkel and Oates are Slippery When Moist.

If you’re ever thinking of doing one of those ‘cute ukulele girls‘ bits you might want to read this first.

George Clooney, “hums a Hawaiian ditty while playing the ukulele”. Apparently.

Portlandia demonstrates the relative portability of instruments with Joanna Newsom and a ukulele.

Pictures: Brian May, Robert Lindsay on a bike, Ukulele Squirrel

Since I put up two videos played on my aNueNue harp ukulele I’ve had a steady stream of tab requests. Strange since most people requesting them don’t even own one. My arrangement of Albatross wouldn’t work on a standard ukulele. But my version of Here Comes the Sun certainly could.

It works so well on ukulele I was convinced it was written on one. It uses a capo on the 7th fret of the guitar which makes it the same tuning as a D-tuned ukulele (George’s favourite) and fits just fine on four strings. But according to Eric Clapton in the George Harrison documentary it was written on guitar.

For the harp version I’m tuned as aNueNue suggest with the bass strings as C, D, E, F and the uke strings in low-G tuning.

Standard Tuning Version

Here’s a slightly adapted version for a standard tuned ukulele. Use D-tuning or slap on a capo at the second fret if you want to be in the same key as the original.

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