Founding member of the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, Kitty Lux has died at the age of 59. Kitty made a huge contribution to the ukulele world and the current scene wouldn’t be the same without her. I’m sure all ukers will join me in sending love to her family and to her bandmates. Videos […]

Austin, Texas guitar and ukulele maker Bill Collings died this week. Collings began making guitars in the 1970s and launched a line of beautifully made ukuleles in 2009. Window Shopping – This September Fender are releasing a whole batch of cheaper ukuleles: the Seaside, Rincon, Zuma and Montecito. You can see some here and here. […]

You might have seen me raving about Jonathan Lewis’s campanella tabs in the past. He’s back with a new tab ebook Classic Folk Songs for Fingerstyle Ukulele. This one has much simpler arrangements but still up to his high standard. I was very kindly gifted this two vintage tiny ukuleles made by Cy Tuff. He […]

New Releases – Debut solo record from Tobias Elof: Ukulele Meditation. As the title suggests, it’s more contemplative than his usual rapid-fire playing. But a very beautiful album. – Tasty Ukulele Songs by Crispy Jones Videos – The excellent PBS/BBC series American Epic (covering the earliest folk and roots music of the USA) has included […]

In the Movies – Graham Jones’s film Sunshine Ukulele is about, “the impact of the internet upon music and movies.” Which makes the ukulele a perfect subject for it. You can watch the whole thing free on YouTube. – Zarha Lowzley’s scene playing her uke in Trainspotting 2. Window Shopping – Lichty Archtop U121. – […]

Manchester is the heart of the UK’s music scene. And it’s hosted some legendary moments in live music including Bob Dylan’s Judas moment at the Free Trade Hall, the Sex Pistols gig at the Lesser Free Trade Hall (sparking the music careers of the Buzzcocks, Morrissey, Mark E Smith, Jay Division and Magazine), the epicentre […]

The online portion of the Art on a Ukulele campaign has kicked off with proceeds going to The Hepatitis C Trust. There are various levels of reward. I’ve gone for the Art on a Plectrum and have my fingers crossed for a Pam Glew eye-pick that will go great with my collection of Illuminati memorabilia. […]

Ukes – New Zealand maker Duke have launched a Kickstarter for their tenor DUKE10 acoustic/electric banjolele – A collection of plastic ukes via Antebellum Instruments with the classic Emenee Flamingo and Mastro TV Pal. Plus the not so classic Mattel Strum Fun Getar. – Custom KoAloha Red Label. – Kula “Fisherman” tenor. – Hive’s redwood […]

Jonathan Lewis launched his excellent and challenging ebook Irish Tunes for Campanella Ukulele a couple of years ago with a guest post about campanella ukulele. It was well worth a buy then and he’s been adding to it since and he’s just updated to the final version which includes 40 tunes (16 jigs, 11 reels, […]

Videos – Mandy Harvey: singer and ukulelist who has been deaf since 18. – Taimane has tips for travelling with your ukulele. – Manitoba Hal on spicing up your blues. – Hawaii Music Supply visits the Pono factory. Ukes – Some fancy fret marker inlay from Ko’olau: shark fin style and wifi style. – Hive […]