Jake Shimabukuro on "The World" Today

"The World" on public radio today will air a feature on Jake:

"The ukelele (sic) has just four strings, and a very limited range. But one Hawaiian musician has taken the humble instrument out of its customary setting, and even scored a pop hit in Japan. A master musician demonstrates the power of the ukelele, from Beatles tunes to speed metal."

Check your local listings for airtime. Here's info for KQED. (Thanks, Jennifer!)

New comic strip at Uke Club

Uke club has a great looking comic book about ukulele playing today. It looks like it'll be a regular feature of the site. Link

Nirvana for Ukuleles!

TGIF: "Smells Like Teen Spirit" as performed by The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. Link to mp3

Open Source Ukes

Ran across this amazing site when poking around on the King David site.

"The Internet Archive is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that was founded to build an ‘Internet library,’ with the purpose of offering permanent access for researchers, historians, and scholars to historical collections that exist in digital format."

A search on "ukulele" turned up some real gems, like this 1918 Edison recording of an 'ukulele/mandolin duet, Ragtime Echos with the mysterious Marie Caveny on uke. Not to mention some Cliff Edwards classics here.

Take Your Uke on Your Trip!

Well, it's officially Summer, ukefans. So while you're off on your vacation rambles, be sure to snap a shot of your uke in front of local landmarks. Then send your snaps to Jerrold Connors, host of Ukulele Boogaloo and creator of Jiminy Kokopo's keen uke method book. Check out Jerrold's wonderful gallery of travellin' ukes, and don't miss the outstanding collection of chords, lyrics, and tabs! (Perfect stuff for your long car rides...) Link

Six-String-Son-of-Nunes

Over on Frets.com, a drop dead gorgeous 1914 six-string koa uke made by Leonardo (son of Miguel) Nunes. Link

Uke Building Class at Windward Community College

For $275, Vicente Arkangel will teach you how to build your own uke, materials included! What a deal! Link

RISA-Uke-Ellie

Check out the "Uke'Ellie," the new electric uke from Rigk Sauer, maker of the UkeSolid. Like the UkeSolid, the Uke'Ellie produces essentially no audible sound (until you plug it into an amp or amplified headphones), making it a perfect travel instrument. Link

Buffett fans get Jake, too

Wayne Harada has a nice piece in the Honolulu Advertiser about Jake's road experiences with Jimmy Buffett. Link

Debut Release From Folk Uke

Cathy Guthrie and Amy Nelson, aka Folk Uke, were also gracious enough to send us their self-titled debut CD. (A word of caution: with it's liberal peppering of four-letter words, this album is not kid-friendly. It's all wonderfully done, but "Shit Makes the Flowers Grow" is just not something you want your four-year-old singing for company...) Also on the disk is a delightfully folksy rendition of "Tonight You Belong to Me."

Backing instrumentals are provided by Cathy and Amy's dads. (Who I wouldn't mention at all except Fathers' Day is coming up, and who wouldn't want to have Cathy's dad or Amy's dad for a dad. Poke around on the Folk Uke site and you'll know why.) Link
(Thanks, Cathy and Amy!)

James Hill CD: "A Flying Leap"

James Hill was kind enough to send us a reviewing copy of his latest CD, "A Flying Leap." I've heard James perform live and have heard clips of his recordings, but this is the first CD I've heard all the way through. An incredible variety of material and styles here.

Best reason to buy: (Just one?) James's version of Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing." James has a chord soloing style that is uniquely his, and I can't wait for him to publish a book of arrangements so I can rip him off. Link (Thanks, James!)

Jake and The Dominator in Sacto

Dominator has posted pix of Jake Shimabukaro's recent appearance in Sacramento to his site. Link

Attn Parrotheads: Jake Touring with Jimmy!

From today's Honolulu Star-Bulletin:

Jimmy Buffett can barely contain his excitement: Ukulele phenom Jake Shimabukuro performs with him for seven concerts beginning Wednesday in Virginia.

"I can't wait until when Jake walks out onstage and sees 26,000 screaming people," Buffett says from Toronto, where he performs tonight.

Link

Uke as weapon

A sad detail from a sad story: "The couple separated earlier this year and 35-year-old Jaylin Kema has a restraining order against her husband through January 2008. In court papers, she said her husband had been abusive, smashing ukuleles against her with such force that he once broke a tooth. On another occasion, he chased her with a machete, according to court records." Link

Uke Review this Friday in Portland, OR

On Friday, June 3:

1st FRIDAY UKE REVUE! Hosted by JIM D'VILLE and starring uke king, LYLE RITZ with bassist, RON GREEN; guitar & uke duo, DAVIS & D'VILLE! kinetic synch of THE ARTICHOKE NO-JUG BAND & remarkable Special Mystery Guests! TIX ON SALE NOW!

When:
7PM FOOD & BAR by CASSIDY'S, 8PM SHOWTIME. $18 Advance Tix on sale at Artichoke Music (service charge on credit card tix purchase). Limited Seats, Non-Smoking, All Ages Welcome.

Description:
The fate of the 1st Friday Variety Revue has taken a ukulele turn for June! Come enter the world of uke passion with stars, mystery guests & old favorites playing the increasingly popular ukulele! Come see & hear what it's all about, you'll be glad you did! True to form, the 1st Friday Uke Revue follows the tradition of vaudeville on the Backgate Stage with a lineup of entertainment at its finest presented the old-fashioned way.

Verve recording artist, author & teacher, LYLE RITZ brings jazz ukulele to new heights with bassist, RON GREEN. DAVIS & D'VILLE..The fine combustion of the elegant guitar work of LAURA DAVIS combined with the sparkling articulation of ukuleleist, JIM D'VILLE makes high octane fuel that gets your motor

The SPECIAL MYSTERY GUEST is traditionally a favorite set at 1st Friday with a spotlight on the prodigious UNDISCOVERED or someone TOO FAMOUS to pre-announce for the room. You never know (and you might never forget!) it could be YOUR favorite...

Don't miss this great chance to get an unusual earful of music of the highest order in the world of ukulele!

Fine food & drink brought to you by CASSIDY'S at 7PM Doors. Show starts at 8. Limited seats, non-smoking and all ages welcome! Link