November 2009 – Page 7

Cigar Box Ukuleles (WTF?)

So, I got a tweet from PedroFFerrai asking, "Cigar box uke? Wtf?" WTF, indeed, my friend. I hadn't heard about cigar box guitars or ukuleles until I read it in this issue of Make Magazine (which is an incredible magazine, by the way).

Make, Volume 4: Technology on Your Time (Make: Technology on Your Time) (Paperback)

Then, just a few weeks later I see a guy selling them at the local farmer's market. I bought my first one for $99 and it's a real beauty. Here's some pictures of her:

The details are my favorite thing about this guitar. For example, both the bridge and the nut are made from elk bone. The fret markers are 22 shell casings. Oh shoot! I didn't take a picture of the input jack. Yup, that's right. There is a piezo in there so you can plug it into your amp. It's not an awesome sound, but you can still make it pretty fun. I'll upload a video of it soon.

So, some weeks later I'm at a show and I see a guy playing a cigar box guitar that's similar to mine by the amplified sound is really great! I talk to him and it turns out that the fella that made my first cigar box guitar has taken it up a notch. He's getting pickups hand wound for him now. So, of course, I had to get another one commissioned. I think it was like $250 and here's some pictures of it:

This one isn't technically a cigar box guitar because it's made of old barn wood. The tuners are recycled from some old broken guitar I think. All in all, it's a real beauty, but I'm still working on the tuning for it. It has a floating bridge that I can never seem to get where I want it. Also, the guy that makes these guitars is more of an outdoorsman type and not so much of a luthier. So, they are pretty rugged and rustic. But, I like the challenge of playing them. It makes you feel like you should be in the Mississippi Delta and also blind (possibly considering selling your soul at the crossroads and whatnot).

So, you want one of these buy you don't want to buy the Make Magazine. Well, for heaven's sake, don't just buy the magazine to learn how to make the guitar (although, if you like fun projects and general nerdiness, then you really should subscribe, it's my favorite magazine!).

Check out some of these links:

Get building!

Book: Jumpin’ Jim’s ’60s Uke-In

This was one of the first Ukulele songbooks I ever bought. Up until this point I was searching on Youtube and Google and whatnot trying to find guitar tabs and then translating the fingering to learn fun songs. While that was certainly educational, it was also a bit of a hassle. So, I decided that I needed a good book and I wanted one with fun songs (especially Tiptoe Through the Tulips, by Tiny Tim). Then I found Jumpin' Jim's '60s Uke-In: Ukulele Solo (Paperback).

Jumpin Jims 60s Uke-In: Ukulele Solo (Paperback) — Jumpin' Jim's '60s Uke-In: Ukulele Solo (Paperback)

Check out the songs you can learn (from the description on Amazon):

Jumpin' Jim's '60s Uke-In is a collection of 25 fab songs from the 1960s arranged for the very first time for ukulele. It includes lots of big Beatles hits (All My Loving * Eight Days a Week * Here Comes the Sun * Michelle * Penny Lane * Something * When I'm Sixty-Four * Yellow Submarine * and more) as well as other classic '60s tunes, such as: Daydream Believer * Georgy Girl * Happy Together * Moon River * Those Were the Days * and more. Features an appreciation by George Harrison, a foreword by Jumpin' Jim, a chord chart, and a groovy, psychedelic cover.

This thing normally sells for $14.95 (and I find some at Amazon for that price) but then I found it listed for $10.17. That's a great deal!

Lanikai LU-21 Soprano Ukulele

dropDavid, on Twitter, asked me the following, "hey uke guy 😀 i need professional advice, should i buy the lanikai lu21 concert uke? is it a good buy for the price?"

Well friend, I think you are gonna be psyched. Let me start out by saying that I have been the proud owner of a CK-TEQ Lanikai Ukulele for about 5 years and I absolutely love it! I know we aren't talking about me or my ukulele, but look at this pretty thing!

Lanikai CK-TEQ Tenor Curly Koa Acoustic Electric Ukulele

Anyway, I did some research on the Lanikai LU-21 and it looks like a pretty great ukulele for the price.

$49 is a great price for your first ukulele and looking through the reviews, it sounds like a good value. There were a total of 12 reviews with an average rating of 4.5 stars. Not too shabby! Lanikai ukuleles are well made and they sound great. Like I said, I'm totally in love with mine. I don't think you'll be disappointed at all.

Another uke you might look at is the Oscar Schmidt OU2 Concert Ukulele. It's only $7 more and it looks beautiful. I've never personally played one, but I hear people say that they are quality instruments.

Update: Lanikai LU-21TE Acoustic-Electric Tenor Ukulele Rosewood Fretboard

So, this morning I headed over to Musician's Friend to see what was on clearance. Oftentimes their ukulele deals don't get the big splash that their other specials get, but it's still worth the search because sometimes you find something really special. For example, today I found this
Lanikai LU-21TE Acoustic-Electric Tenor Ukulele Rosewood Fretboard.

It's only $99.99 and that includes free shipping! Also, there are 10 reviews and the average rating is 4 1/2 stars! Someone was just asking me, on Twitter, about good deals on Tenor ukuleles. Well, this is it! You need this one!

From the product description:

The Lanikai Tenor Ukulele features Shadow electronics for rich, amplified tone. It has Nato top, back, and sides. Rosewood fingerboard and bridge with die-cast geared tuners and binding on the top.

Lanikai ukuleles including the LU-21TE uke, have great playability, sound, and aesthetics at a price that will surprise you.

I, personally, own a Lanikai tenor acoustic-electric and I love. But, I'm pretty sure I paid $399 for mine. Dang!

Update: Some of the reviews of the pick-up in this ukulele aren't especially favorable, which is weird because the overall ratings are very high. But, I think this is boiling down to price. It's a little bit tricky to find a tenor acoustic/electric ukulele for under $200. The other Lanikai model that hits this price point is the Lanikai S-TEQ.

Lanikai S-TEQ Spruce Series Tenor Acoustic Electric Ukulele

But at $189, it's nearly double the price of the Lanikai LU-21TE over at Musician's Friend. Also, after doing some reading, I believe that it uses the same pick as the LU-21TE, so it might not be the best way to spend your extra $99.

To make it more confusing, if you want to spend a little bit more, you could get the exact ukulele that I own, the Lanikai CK-TEQ.

Now, I know that $279 is a lot of money, but it's only $90 more than the Lanikai S-TEQ, albeit it's $180 more than the Lanikai LU-21TE. I've owned my CK-TEQ for something like 5 years and I play it almost every day. I love it to death! So, I'm not sure if that makes your decision any easier, but it looks like the world isn't exactly overrun with budget acoustic-electric ukuleles. And, that's unfortunate. I can tell you that the CK-TEQ doesn't use the same pickup system as the other two ukuleles. Mine uses a 9-volt battery, and not a watch battery and I don't have any complaints with it. I like the sound I get out of it when I go into an amp or PA.

Anyway, I wish you the best on your acoustic-electric tenor ukulele purchases. It might be time to talk to Santa, right?

Youngsters and their Big ukulele band!

So, a few weeks back I read an article about kids making their own ukuleles from an old margarine tub and a piece of wood. I believe one of my British twitter friends turned me on to it. When I remember their name, I'll mention it here. Anyway, it sounds like the six month project is finally complete and the kids had their performance! Huzzah!

From the Evening Telegraph's article, Big ukulele band is utterly brilliant, comes this picture and quote:

The performance in Willow Place, Corby, was the result of six months of work under the Corby Ukulele project across the Corby area, getting youngsters to create their own instruments from a piece of wood and an old margarine tub.

I LOVE IT!