Tracklist
Anne Janelle – In The Morning
Claire Hastings – Come Spend a While wi’ Me (Thanks to Colin)
Bud Sugar – VIRAL
Ukulele Death Squad – Paris On A Train via @ukeist
Natasha Ghosh – New Rules
Gracie Terzian – Bitcoins from Heaven
Jan Laurenz – The Ukulele Song
Jonathan Lewis – Hard Times
The Ukelites – Lurleen Lumpkin Songs
It’s your last chance to get a Uke Hunt t-shirt. You can buy them in the US and the UK until 31st October. Both campaigns have hit their goals so you’re guaranteed one when you order.
New Releases
– Debut self-titled album from Les Guitares Magiques with lots of old-timey jazz and blues. With appearances from long time Uke Hunt favourite Winin’ Boy (thanks to Karl for the heads-up).
– Jazz, R&B and hip hop ukulelist Sam Trump has released a “reimagining” of his 2013 debut EP:
Sam Trump plays the Uke Redux. And the songs scrub up very nicely indeed.
Window Shopping
– The Ukulele Review discusses three Japanese custom builders.
– Ohana’s new Pequeno ukulele a Nunes-style soprano.
– A couple of handsome Pelem ukes with Indonesia-shaped soundholes: Flame Acacia Concert and Mixed Wood Tenor.
– Tim Laughlin Style-5K.
– Yoshida UC-STD Concert.
– Kamaka soprano 1916-21.
Here’s a selection of short Halloween-suitable bits and pieces for you to work up for the big day.
Those chord stabs are so great. Instantly recognisable even on ukulele. The bass line is a bit ridiculous on uke though!
This is a supremely creepy song. The riff is in C minor but uses an Ab note (an augmented fifth) which creates the uneasy, dissonant feel.
This is hellish to play on ukulele. If the devil were challenging me he’d definitely get my soul. You’re going to have to put in a lot of practice if you want that golden ukulele.
I was expecting this one to transfer to uke more easily than it does. It’s a bit fiddly to play (make sure you move your hand down the fretboard for the A-string, 5th fret or you’ll be stranded) and it requires a capo at the fifth fret.
Jump in the Line was originally written by calypso legend Lord Kitchener and first recorded by Woody Herman. But it was Lord Flea’s mento version that Harry Belafonte took inspiration from. Belafonte popularised the song and it got another boost when it was used in the iconic scene from Beetlejuice.
Now you’ve got your raunchy jello pudding pop costume together, here are some tunes you may wish to bone up on before the big night.
Addams Family Theme Tune
Chopin – Funeral March
Jonathan Coulton – Re: Your Brains
Dance Macabre
The Fall – Mansion
The Gothic Archies – Freakshow
Halloween Theme
Harry Potter – Hedwig’s Theme
The Last of Us II –
Through the Valley
London Bridge Is Falling Down (From Halloween)
The Misfits – Dig Up Her Bones
The Misfits – Halloween
My Chemical Romance – Welcome to the Black Parade
Mike Oldfield – Tubular Bells (from The Exorcist)
Ray Parker Jr – Ghostbusters
The Rolling Stones – Sympathy for the Devil
Gustavo Santaolalla – Last of Us Theme
Skrillex – Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites
This is Halloween (From Nightmare Before Christmas)
Tom Waits – Whistlin’ Past the Graveyard
Twilight Zone Theme
The Walking Dead Theme
Warren Zevon – Werewolves of London
The White Stripes – Little Ghost
And a tutorial on spooking up your playing:
Starting off Halloween week with what might be the most pompous and overblown song I’ve ever tackled on here. But it does bear out the idea that any song with a strong melody will work on ukulele. With a little bit of tweaking it survives the transition pretty well.
Most of the chords in the song you’ll be familiar with. If you don’t care for the D6 and E6 chords you can just replace those with straight D and E without a problem. When the song changes key in verse 5 I’ve suggested chord inversions further up the neck. That makes the chord changes easier. But if you prefer the shapes you’re more familiar with they will work perfectly.
You can keep the strumming pretty simple. In the quieter verses (1, 2 and 5) I just do one strum per chord.
Then in the louder parts I play this:
d – d – d u d u
You can hear that in the video below.
If you find that a bit tricky when the song is belting along you can make the chord changes easier by dropping that last up-strum to get:
d – d – d u d –
Here are some of the twiddly parts in the song crammed together.
The lead part above has the piano riff in the intro and verse followed by the lead part in the first break. And the back part below plays the guitar part in the verse (that provides a counterpoint to the piano riff) and the chords for the break.
With the newly retired David Beckingham stepping up his tabbing, I’ve decided to make Mondays officially Beckingham Tab Day. And the inaugural post is his version of Sibelius’s Karelia Suite.
I must admit to being entirely ignorant of this piece before David’s video. But according to Wikipedia Sibelius intended it, “to capture the quality of “naive,” folk-based authenticity,” which I’d say makes it ripe for a ukeing.
The Uke Hunt t-shirts have passed the minimum order so they’re going to get made. You can order them from the US or order them from the UK until 31st October.
New Releases
– Lil Rev has put together a delightful romp through various Americana styles on his latest album Sing Song Daddy.
– Head Corner Laugher, Karla Kane has released her debut album of songs inspired by England: King’s Daughters Home For Incurables.
– Isaac Balson’s collection of B-sides and outtakes.
– Not a new releases but I’ve just got around to playing Burly Men at Sea and it has an excellent ukulele-packed soundtrack.
Window Shopping
– Two 1920s Ditson ukes Style 3 Dreadnought and a Style 2 soprano.
– Martin Style 3K from 1937.
– Rebel Double Cream and Double Cheese.
– Hive Snakewood ukulele.
There is a lot going on in this song. Slate claims it has 18 key changes in it. But you have to be very generous to get that high. For the most part I think of the song being in C but using both C major and C minor. That’s not too unusual in a rock song. But it is unusual just how much they do it and how far they stretch things before returning home.
The one real key change comes in the solo/middle section where the F#m and E set up a repeat of the intro but this time in the key of A rather than C.
I’m throwing a whole bunch of different techniques at this song. In the smooth sections (the intro and middle) I’m using fake strums. In the loud bits (like the start of the chorus and the bridge) I’m strumming. In the bouncy sections (like the end of the intro and the, “Not to put too fine a point…” bit of the chorus) I’m using thumb and two finger picking. And at the end of the chorus, in the verses and the solo I’m using one finger per string picking.
It’s Uke Hunt t-shirt season again! Every year around this time I do a run of t-shirts. This year you can buy them from either the US or the UK:
I’m using Teespring again this year. It is sort of a Kickstart for t-shirts. So you put in an order for your shirt, if there are enough orders by the end of the campaign the shirts are made and sent out. You’re not charged anything until the end of the campaign (and you’re not charged at all if the shirt doesn’t reach its goal). This way of doing it means all the shirts are printed at once and exactly the right shirts and sizes are made.
So if you want one of the shirts they’ll only be available until 31st October.
I’ve been using Teespring for a few years now and it’s always worked well. My shirt came here (the UK) quickly and without any hassle. It’s nice quality. The one I have is four years old and it’s still in good shape. You can see it on a devastatingly handsome model in my recent videos.
In the US there are two different styles: the standard fit American Apparel crew-neck (at the top of the post) and the v-neck Bella Missy slim fit (directly above). Both are $22 plus shipping from the US
The UK shirts are described as “Unisex Organic T-Shirt”. They’re both £22 from the UK including VAT (if you’re in a different EU country VAT should be charged at your local rate).
For more information on the shirts and the system take a look at Teespring’s FAQ.
Receive the latest Uke Hunt posts in your inbox.
