The Beastie Boys’ Fight for Your Right is pretty much the first bar of Smoke on the Water over and over. They’re all power chords, so you can play them on all four strings or, if you want to keep it simple, just on the G and C strings like the Smoke riff.
A link section of the site is probably long overdue. I was working on the assumption that I could just mention interesting sites as they came along. But I’ve been convinced of the benefit of something more permanent where people can go to find out what’s worth reading on the web.
With that in mind I’ve set up a Ukulele Links section. You can add your own site to it on an ‘I link to you, you link to me’ basis (which does mean you can’t add MySpace/Facebook and the like with their ‘You do know you’re leaving MySpace/Facebook, right? If you do you’ll probably get robbed and punched,’ pages).
Which is another reason why I did it. People were demanding a link in my sidebar in exchange for a link from their site. And I don’t just give those away. I’m really choosy about those links and their only really for people who inspired me to start the site and help be right from the beginning. So that part of the site should keep those people happy too.
There’s also a facility on there to submit articles. So if you’ve got something pressing to say – a gig or uke review, some playing tips – feel free to submit it. If it’s good stuff, I’ll certainly be linking to it from the main blog. You can also include a link or two to wherever you like with your article without the need for a link back.
The part of the site is brand new and is based on software I’ve never used before. So there’s a good chance you’ll come across a bug. If you do, I’d appreciate it if you let me know (in the comments or by contacting me). You can also suggest any categories you think should be there.
Time for another series of guitar riffs for the ukulele. The idea with these riffs isn’t to play the whole song, but to throw them in to your playing for a bit of light relief (like the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain on Orange Blossom) or just to prove that the ukulele can do more than just strumming Tiptoe Thru the Tulips. The riffs are arranged in the key that I find easiest to play on the uke, so aren’t necessarily in the same key as the original.
This set of riffs is a bit more heavy on chord riffs. Since they tend to work better on the uke, they’re a bit more suitable for full uke covers. And The Hives’ Hate To Say I Told You So works great on the uke in the original key. The only other part in the song is the G in the chorus.
Hot Potato Syncopators – I’m in the Mood for Love (MP3)
Hot Potato Syncopators – Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head (MP3)
Hot Potato Syncopators – Bye Bye Blues (MP3) via their website.
Some traditional ukulele fare from the Hot Potato Syncopators. The Hot Potato’s Duke Marmapantz is something of a ukulele legend being an occasional stand-in uke for the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain and mentor to Jimmy of the Bobby McGee’s.
Lest you think ukuleles and New Zealand are a new phenomenon, the first record entirely produced in New Zealand, Blue Smoke, was a uke-featuring hapa haole song recorded when the technology was just reaching New Zealand way back in 1993 (you can read the full, and more accurate, story here). And a slimmed down version of the WIUO recorded it at the Ukulele Cabaret
Suggested Strumming Pattern
Blue Smoke is in waltz time (3/4) so here’s a strumming pattern that suits it:
d – d u d u
The ukulele seems to be a big hit with the ad makers at the moment. A few that leap to mind are McDonalds, Travelocity, e.on and, of course, the Hawaii Chair. And the Wellingtons have got in on the action providing tunes for a series of Whitcoulls ads (including Ruby and Israelites). But Israelites is already seared into brain from another advert. So much so I always find myself singing What ‘m I gonna spread on my toast?.
Suggested Strumming
For the reggae strumming, make sure you keep the chords short and sharp. And emphasise the 2 and 4 beats. Here’s a simple strum you could use.
– – d u – – d –
Twiddly Bits
There’s this little run after, “… the Israelites.”
Which gets expanded with a few bends for the solo section where this is repeated:
New videos from the Corner Laughers, GUGUG, The Sweet Hollywiians’ Tomotaka Matsui on lap steel ukulele and plenty more. Read the rest of this entry »
MGM has the latest batch of Flea and Fluke ukuleles: Bamboo Fluke, Tie-Dye Fluke, Denim Flea, Camp Flea.
Fender Ukuleles turn up on eBay UK.
Some serious vintage charm to this Dobro Cyclops ukulele.
One of the Collings Guitars ukuleles cropped up on eBay.
Not often you see RISA ukuleles on eBay in the US but there are a few on there right now.
Ukulele photo of the week.
Jon Snow learns to love the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain (but can’t grasp the concept that there being no guitarist in the band).
Download a whole load of Garfunkel and Oates (Kate Micucci and Riki Lindhome). In the ‘Where are they now?’ file, Michael Barreto Hindert of The Bravery played a couple of songs on his ukulele for East Village Radio (uke songs at 35 and 44 minutes in the show). Popwreckening has Julia Nunes doing Mr Brightside.
Phase Two of the Ukulele Project needs your help.
Le Soir Sessions from Vetiver and O’Death.
An excellent choice of song for any ukulele group: dead easy chords and plenty of widdling for the flash Harrys.
Megan’s intro is based on the chords switching between the major and the 5 chord:
The twiddly bit that comes after that, and crops up a few times in the song, goes like this:
Or, if you want to play it fingerstyle, you can play it like this:
And there’s the little inbetweeny bit in the chorus:
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