Monday, July 13, 2015

Farewell, Founder

This, courtesy of Bill Robertson:
"For those who knew him, the great Robert Wheeler passed away this morning.
"Anyone who was part of what in the 90's and early 2000's was a pretty intimate ukulele scene on the mainland knows of Robert Wheeler. In the pre-YouTube era, when there was only one festival around (the Ukulele Hall of Fame Museum's Uke Expo), only one website forum (Jim Beloff's fleamarketmusic.com) and only a few luthiers, Robert Wheeler loomed large. People knew him as a profane, funny, irascibly eccentric ointment fly, ukulele collector, and instrument historian. He owned some 300-plus ukuleles, each one of which had a story behind it that was either academically historic or personal. And he was the "founder" of a "religion" called Ukulele Consciousness.
"Robert's contribution to my documentary Rock That Uke (2003) made it the successful study in ukulele eccentricity it is, and his comments consistently got the biggest laugh in every screening I witnessed, a fact that gave him no amount of pleasure. We remained good friends through the years, visiting each other from time to time wherever we were living in the country, and his friendship is something I treasure deeply. I will miss him more than I can say.
"If you want to read some of Robert's musings on life, sex and all things ukulele, he wrote a column called "Ukulele Consciousness" on the old Rock That Uke website, which I haven't updated in many years. But the direct link to his column's archive is here."
Here's a nice tribute, courtesy of Mark Occhionero:



Yes, boys and girls, back in the wild a wooly days, back when there were only about three uke books in print and your trusty editor was souring the corners of the World Wide Web looking for anything about the ukulele (the same search results kept coming back for the same 6 ukulele websites back then, and I developed a novel search hack that uncovered all kinds of treasures: it's now a real live search engine, Bananaslug), back when we used to have to hard code our posts on Blogger, back before Jake released his first solo CD and I used to catch him at his regular gig at Chai's Island Bistro in Honolulu, back, as Bill Robertson said, before there was YouTube, there was the Founder. One of about 142 other crazed enthusiasts scattered around the country, in whose company I found myself. Only bumped into him once, at the West Coast Uke Fest (and if you were there, you know that was decades ago, Internet Time).

It was kinda fun back then, knowing pretty much everyone on The Scene. And the new people we "discovered" became friends. Now, hardly anyone with a uke needs discovering. But back then, there was a known universe. And at the center of that universe there was a consciousness. Ukulele Consciousness. And it's high priest was the Founder.

Enjoy the ride, Robert. Say hi to Herbert Khaury for me.

PS:

If you want to know just how much cred the Founder had, this is from 1987. That's back when Danielle Ate the Sandwich was Danielle Drank the Bottle.



PPS

If you want to know how un-mainstream the uke was until just a few years ago, buy Rock That Uke. (Thanks, Bill!)

13 comments:

Agen De Nature said...

Obat Sipilis Dan Kencing Nanah Di Apotik

Agen De Nature said...

Do you love someone because of face / face, his wealth and position, but love because of the kindness and sincerity of his heart because amongst it all, just the kindness and sincerity of heart remain. Obat Sipilis Paling Mujarab Di Indonesia

Agen De Nature said...


No one can change the past, but everyone has a power to change the future.Obat Kencing Nanah Ampuh

koko said...

Prudence in judging other people’s opinions is the hallmark of mental maturity.Nama Obat Penyakit Kencing Nanah Di Apotik

Agen De Nature said...

Obat Sipilis Ampuh
Obat Sipilis Paling Manjur

Jual Obat Sipilis Ampuh said...

THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION. VERY USEFUL INFORMATION FOR ME
Cara Mengobati Penyakit Kencing Nanah pada Pria dan Wanita
Gejala Penyakit Kencing Nanah Pada Pria Dan Wanita
Penyakit Kencing Nanah Atau Gonore Dan Pengobatanya

Obat Sipilis said...

Terimakasih Atas Informasinya. Obat Penis Keluar Nanah
Obat Penis Keluar Nanah Herbal . Obat Penis Keluar Nanah Ampuh

John said...

cheap oakley sunglasses
celine bags
ugg boots sale
coach outlet
gucci outlet
coach outlet online
air jordan retro
louis vuitton
cheap uggs for sale
coach outlet
louis vuitton outlet
ray ban outlet
uggs clearance sale outlet
ralph lauren uk
abercrombie & fitch
michael kors handbags
hollister kids
ugg outlet
michael kors outlet stores
coach factory outlet
north face jacket
ugg australia
oakley sunglasses wholesale
michaek kors handbags
nike roshe run
cheap oakley sunglasses
adidas originals
uggs for men
ugg outlet store
the north face
20151127yuanyuan

Herbal Denature said...

Terimakasih Sebelumnya Gan, Artikelnya Sangat Bermanfaat.
Obat Penis Keluar Nanah
Mengobati Penis Keluar Nanah
Menyembuhkan Penis Keluar Nanah
Merontokan Kutil Di Kelamin

Cream temulawak said...

Body Slim Herbal
Natasha Slimming Suit
Walet Gold
Gluta Panacea
Acai Berry
WSC Biolo
Serum Vgrit
Fruit Plant
Magic Eve Bra
cream sari
Fatloss
whitelight
Sabun Beras Thailand
Cream Temulawak

Sabun beras Thailand said...

Paket Susu Domba
Anion Blue
Fit and Slim
Eve Bra
Natasha Slimming Suit
Serum Vitamin C dan E
Gluta Lapunzel
Gluta Panacea
Body Slim Herbal
Body Slim Herbal Tea
paket kojic
Golden Underarm
Sabun Thailand

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
 
Top 50 Ukulele Sites