Ya know I think Frank Zappa said it best when he said "You can't always write a chord ugly enough to say what you want to say, so sometimes you have to rely on a giraffe filled with whipped cream." To prove that the reverse of that is also true, I'm not going to say anymore. Just let the goodness wash over you from this video.
You might remember, from my January 18th post "Luna Tattoo Pineapple Soprano Ukulele (it’s new to me)", that I seemed a little surprised by Luna Ukuleles. Basically, I was a little stunned that something as cool as their Polynesian tattoo and floral designs had snuck right on by me. Well, I'm not feeling so flabbergasted now. Today I was contacted by Yvonne at Luna and that was apparently their first ukulele shipment. I think they've been making primarily guitars up until this first Uke foray. I asked about possibly reviewing one of these beautiful ukuleles but Yvonne informed that their first just flew out the door. So that seems like a good sign for their first effort. If you want to learn more about Luna, you can check out their website at www.lunaguitars.com. The Ukuleles are listed under Acoustics. You can also take a look at this neat flash animation that shows off their line of ukes (in exotic locations, no less). Yvonne tells me that they expect their next shipment around March 15th, so I might be able to get my hands on one around that time. If I do, you know I'll post a video/review so everyone can take a look and listen at these ukes.
Oh yeah, and I created a Luna Ukulele section on my site as well, where you can buy their guitars.
I've talked about the Uke Thong for a few months now and I kept promising that I was going to make a video to show you what it is, exactly. It has a pretty exciting name, right? I mean who wouldn't want something cute to match their Uke bra and garters.
Nah nah nah.. think "guitar strap" and you are closer to the mark. But, that's still good, though, because I've had quite a few people ask me how to modify their ukulele to use a guitar strap (don't do that). This is the solution for those folks and also for anyone who needs their right hand completely unencumbered for their "shredding".
Anyway, today I finally made the video because I remembered that I was supposed to send this particular Uke Thong to Jon Spencer after he wrote a guest post for the site ("Guest Post: Cigar Box Ukuleles with Jon Spencer" to be exact). A note to future guest post writers, I guess. If I promise to send you something, make sure and hound me about it. I'm liable to see a shiny piece of tin foil, chase it and then completely forget about my promise.
Anyhoo, as you might have gathered, the Uke Thong is the next best thing for those of you who need a strap for your uke. They are only $10.95 and come in variety of colors. If I had known this one was going to Jon, I suppose I would have gotten the Camo one. As it is, he gets pink and black checkers. But, if he still has his Vanns sneakers from 8th grade then he's likely to match, so that's a bonus. Here's an image of the Uke Thong and a link to where you can get them on eBay.
Uke Thong
And finally, without any more delay. Here's a video of me describing what you get when you shell out your $10.95. As you watch the video, keep the following in mind:
Ukulele Guy probably shouldn't do anymore close-ups. Or, if he does, he should probably shave and try to do something with his hair
Ukulele Guy (third person reference rules!) should have clipped a battery into his Uke. The flapping cord drives me nuts.
Try and count how many times you can say "That's what she said" during the video. I'm even considering having a contest based on that premise. Maybe giving away another Uke Thong? What do you think?
Somebody was nice enough to send me a link to The Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra's web site recently. However, they sent it as a Twitter Direct Message so it's a miracle that I ever saw it. Seriously folks, Twitter DM-land is just auto-responder-spammer hell. I have to be pretty drunk to go there on purpose. However, if you tweet @ukulele_guy, I'll pretty much always respond.
Anyway, I was check out the WIUO site and it looks pretty classy and professional. Heck, they've got T-shirts! Even kid's sizes, I think? Awesome. I always get pangs of jealousy when I see all these towns with their own Ukulele Orchestras, but I suppose I should just get off my ass and make the Missoula Montana International (because Canada is so close) Ukulele Orchestra. Maybe one day it will happen.
Well, my jealousy was compounded after I watched this video. I mean, they do The Coral covers? I freaking love The Coral! Any band that makes a video inspired by the 1973 version of Wicker Man is tops in my book. Anyway, enjoy The Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra doing The Choral's "Dreaming of You". The claim the video was made in 11 minutes with a budget of $5.98. But, for my $.02, I'd gladly watch this over and over again.
So, as you might have noticed this morning, if you follow me on Twitter that is, I discovered a rad little solid body electric ukulele. Or, that is to say, I discovered a whole bunch of them made by EleukeUSA. Frankly, I was a little embarrassed that I hadn't discovered them much earlier. Especially considering that they sell them on Amazon and, again, if you follow me on Twitter you will know that I'm obsessed with tweeting random Amazon ukulele-related items. (Ukulele Salad Tongs anyone?)
Anyway, I've talked with the good folks at EleukeUSA and they are going to send me one to test drive! I think I'm getting the K-Series Blue Ukulele. Here's a picture of this little beauty:
Eleuke Solid Body Electric Ukulele Concert MP3 - Blue CCK100BL-MP3
Eleuke MP3 Solid Magogany Concert Solid Body Electric Ukulele
I know what you are thinking, though? What does a $200-250 electric ukulele sound like? Well, here's an answer, in video form. This is Pedro da Silva pretty much melting faces with an Eleuke (Mahogany, I think?).
When I get my hands on my Blue K-Series, I'll definitely make some videos for everyone to check out. Don't expect such proficient wizardry as Pedro, though. But, I think I will test drive it through my Fender SuperAmp and all of the effects pedals I use when I play guitar in my Heavy New Wave band. So, that'll be fun! It will surely be my loudest video to date, anyway.
Anyway, expect more posts about Eleuke in the coming days. I'm pretty intrigued by the MP3 input on the Uke. I'm trying to think of weird ways in which to make use of that. So, hopefully I'll have it figured out by the time I test drive it.
Here's more information for those who are interested.
Peter from Easy Music Center, in Hawaii, just sent me an e-mail with a link to a video showing off the Seeing how small it actually is in the video is a little bit mind-blowing. Especially when you see it next to the Soprano (which completely dwarfs it). The guy who is playing the pocket ukulele looks like he is struggling a little bit, but I suppose that makes sense. It's probably a bit of an adjustment to get your hands used to that tiny thing [insert your own joke here]. But, at the end of the video, the poket uke player really starts kicking out the jams. Anyway, enough of my yakking. Check it out for yourself.
So, I was randomly surfing Amazon to see if there were any new Ukuleles available when I found a "Luna Tattoo Pineapple 21 Inch Soprano Ukulele". Huh? After the Kala Pocket Ukulele snuck by me earlier today I was feeling a little disheartened to see this purty uke. Mainly because I hadn't really heard of Luna before. Dang. I must be losing my edge (assuming I ever had one, I guess). Take a look and see what I mean by purty:
Luna Tattoo Pineapple 21 Inch Soprano Ukulele
According to the Amazon detail, this ukulele is made of Mahogany and the Polynesian Tattoo design on the body and fret markers was laser-etched on there. It's got Aquila Strings on there and triangle inlays. I mean, I'm a little surprised that it's only $69. It's freaking gorgeous! Also, if you are one of those giant Samoan guys who is covered in those rad tattoos, then think how great it will be to have a Uke that matches YOU! Heh. Ok, I can only dream that giant Samoan Tattooed guys are reading my blog. Some day, man... some day.
So, I was just doing random Google searches for ukulele (as I always do) and I came across a post on EasyMusicCenter.com talking about Kala giving someone a Pocket Ukulele. Huh? Pocket Ukulele? Do you mean a Soprano Uke? Well, apparently not. Check out this picture of the
Kala Pocket Ukulele
"Dear Kala, How the hell can Ukulele Guy get one of these beauties?" Seriously, I didn't even see them on the Kala website. I would consider punching a nun to get a shot at it, that's how desperate I am. Well.. maybe not a nun, but certainly an old lady dressed in black and white.
So, everyone was so psyched by that Ukulele Beatles site that I figured I'd try to find some more free ukulele tabs. It didn't take too long before I found The Big Muffin Serious Band. These guys are a busking band from New Zealand and they have two ukuleles in the band. They've been around since 1983?!
Well, anyway, they have a section on their site with over 100 pdf files of ukulele songs. Here are some of the highlights:
So, I think I tweeted this link before but I wanted it on the site as well so folks could find it. The site is called Ukulele Beatles Fun! and it's basically a bunch of (64!) flash pages for different Beatles songs. What's great is that it plays a version of the song and then shows you chord shapes while the song is playing. You can stop it, rewind, etc. Heck, you can even tune your ukulele and check out all the lyrics. Basically, it rules.
I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for The Beatles and also this site because it was the first page I found after I got my first ukulele (a Lanikai CK-TEQ). In fact, I used this site to learn my first song on Ukulele, "She came in through the bathroom window". But, in case you too are just starting out, I wouldn't recommend that song, it has some pretty tricky chord shapes and moves. But, I guess it's a testament to learning songs in this way that I was eventually able to stumble through it.
Anyway, best of luck to ya! Now, get out there and learn some Beatles!
Seriously folks, Twitter DM-land is just auto-responder-spammer hell. I have to be pretty drunk to go there on purpose. However, if you tweet 
