I’ve been promising these for a long time and you may well have seen a few of them crop up on various ukers. To be honest, the whole thing has been a nightmare. I’ve been looking at companies that print t-shirts and deliver them. And I’ve found that most of them are terrible. That’s why today is only half a launch of the t-shirts.

If you find yourself in North America, you can buy the shirts on Spreadshirt.

There are two designs: The Under-Bear and The Ukulele Hooters both designed by Art Grootfontein. As modelled by the delectable Jodi Mathews and the gorgeous Todd Baio.

They’re both available as skinny fit and relaxed fit. If you’re going for the skinny fit (by American Apparel) make sure you’re very generous with the size you select.

That’s the good news. The bad news is for anyone outside North America. The shipping from Spreadshirt will cost more than the shirt and that, in my opinion, makes them not worth getting. I’ve tried a number of other companies with no luck. The European Spreadshirt finds it impossible to print designs on a coloured T-shirt. Red Bubble took more than a month to deliver the shirts and the quality wasn’t good enough.

If anyone knows of a reliable service in Europe that will print T-shirts and handle orders and delivery, please, please, please let me know about it. Until I find something, you’ll just have to walk around topless.

UPDATE: Due to popular demand… I’m currently testing out Comboutique for the shirts in Europe. I can’t say whether they’re any good or not. But if you want to take a chance, you can buy them here.

Download

As you might have guess, there’s going to be a fair proportion of 80s cheese in the keyboard riffs for ukulele series. And it doesn’t come much more 80s than the theme tune to Beverley Hills Cop. The 80s must be the only time in pop music history that it was fashionable to be German.

Keep the notes in this one short and muted by resting the underside of you picking hand just in front of the bridge.

Kym Campbell – Back to You (MP3) via MP3.com.au
Kym Campbell – Rolls That Way (MP3) via Triple J

Australia has become a bit of a hub with folky singer-songwriters such as Angus and Julia Stone, The Waifs and Missy Higgins. And Kym Campbell very much fits in with that sound. Which is perhaps why she moved to Australia from Seattle before kicking off her music career. And, armed with a few ukulele songs, she seems to be doing well over there.

Visit KymCampbell.com

I do worry a great deal about keyboards coming into fashion again. If we tolerate this, it’s only a matter of time before we’re wearing shoulder pads, watching Dallas and having competitions to see who can spunk the most money up the wall.

Having said that, Daylight by Matt and Kim is a damn fine song.

Like Kids by MGMT, I’m playing the E and A strings with half-up strums.

This week’s videos include Ingrid Michaelson covering Bon Iver, Argyle Smile playing with dominoes, Tinyfolk, a girl called Jose, Watercolor Paintings and some adorable ukulele puppets. But this week I’m particularly taken with Tristen and Emily Ritz’s HoneyBody and the Moonbees.

One video that didn’t make the cut is this clip of Tiny Tim freaking out a room full of kids. “The whole world is drowning A-ho-ho ho-ho.”

Btw, if all the videos don’t show up then refresh the page. They are all there somewhere. Read the rest of this entry »

After getting my hands on a Kala soprano, I’m now a complete Kala convert. So I’ve now got two Kalas on my shopping list: Read the rest of this entry »

Perhaps I’ve been distracted by the Ukulele Strums broo-ha-ha, but the links are looking a bit thin this week.

If this is what happens on all the trams there, I am moving to Toronto.

MP3s: Love.Stop.Repeat has Toad’s uke cover of In the Aeroplane Over the Sea. Tullycraft have Darren Hayman phoning it in.

This Star Wars uke video has the capability to destroy your mind.

Heregoesnothing by Nevershoutnever and 2 Atoms in a Molecule on Uker Tabs.

What Madeline Ava has written on the back of her ukulele.

What happens when a pirate covers 99 Red Balloons on uke?

Here’s a photo I’m fascinated by. Although I’m not quite sure why.

Download

I’m pretty sure this one is just a heavily effected guitar. But I snuck a non-guitar riff through in the guitar riff series, so it’s payback time. Besides, it’s a lot of fun to bust this one out. I’ve included the definitely-a-guitar part as well.

Download

There’s a debate on the best way to play this on Uker Tabs, so here’s the way I think it’s best to play it. My version includes the melody and the chords. I think it needs that extra bit of body on the ukulele.

Where there are notes played on the E and A strings, I’m doing a sort of half-up strum with my index finger.

And why not do your ukulele up like this to match the tune.

The How to Play Ukulele Strums ebook has been a big hit with people. It’s already sold over 250 copies. And if you want to get your hands on it, don’t hang about because the price goes up from $14 to $17 at the end of tomorrow (Wednesday 22nd July).

Here’s what people have been saying about it:

Thorough and thoroughly fantastic book! Thanks as always.

I’m sure my flatmates will be very grateful for it as well. With time, my practicing will (hopefully) sound like actual music rather than the sort of abstract noise that it was before and my flatties can stop voluntarily banning themselves from home until it’s clear that I’ve moved on to another task for the day.

In all seriousness: the book is wonderful, Thorough, easy to understand, and funny (as always). I am completely indebted to you for saving me from the depths of ukulele despair.

– Carrie Griffin

I shall be recommending the ebook to our Monday Ukearist ukers as I know many of them are interested in improving their strumming. I’ll also be unashamedly stealing your mnemonic way of teaching!

– John Hobson

Al’s topped himself this time which I wouldn’t have thought possible after the blues book.

This is a great read for beginners, but there are some strumming patterns at the end that are brilliant and will take some work to get the hang of.

When I started playing four years ago, I had no idea there would be such a great wealth of information available. Al’s books, in my opinion, are better than anything I’ve found elsewhere, as far as written instruction goes. And, he is rather hilarious when he wants to be.

– Lonna Brockway

I’ve already read this ebook more than 6 times and found something new with each read. A very important aspect for me was that the book covered basic things essential for strumming that are left out in other ukulele methods, such as rhythm and time signatures.
The examples and the videos are really helpful and you can even test out your newly acquired sense of rhythm through the exercises.
If there one book to buy on ukulele strumming, then it is definitely this one.

– Armelle

Read more and buy it here.