KoAloha Scepter

The Scepter is the latest in the Signature line from KoAloha. If you know Japanese, let us know what this site has to say about it! Looks kinda Goth. Link

Triple Neck Uke

I've seen double neck ukes before, but I think this is the first triple neck I've seen. It was built by Japanese luthier Takahiro Shimo for Boo Tagaki. Link

If you don't know Boo about Boo, here's something from the YouTubes. Caution: cute overload.

Coolest Clock Radio EVAR

Here's a great gift for your favorite uke player: the Spongebob Squarepants Clock-it clock radio. It has four wake-up sounds, including ukulele! You'll wake up saying "I'm ready, I'm ready!" Link

Kiwi Uker Wins Songwriting Competition

Congrats to Jane Fisher, a member of the four-women ukulele band The Nancies, who recently won the Australasian Performing Right Association's "Uke Can Do It" songwriting competition for her song "Dreamin'". Link to News Article
Link to mp3 of The Nancies performing "Dreamin'"

Bear Necessities

Ben Lerman is a gay ukulele-playing comedian who wins the prize in my book for the best ukulele quip for 2007. Sez Ben about his "wooden boyfriend, Lenny":

"At the end of the day, Lenny is just a ukulele and nothing will ever change the fact that we are in love, but he can't give me everything that a real boy can. I mean, he's just a ukulele. He's got four strings, a short body and a large hole. And I'm looking for somebody with no strings."

NSFW Link

The Marauders

Meet the Marauders, an all-girl ukulele trio from Croydon, UK. A sweeter sounding two Maddies and a Gabrielle you'll never find. I love their cover of Help! Link

Bargain Ukulele Aloha Shirt

If you're looking for a cool shirt for your uke group or club, HawaiianShirtsPlus has this one on sale for Xmas. $20 (and for those sporting St. Nick-like proportions, available up to 4XL!) Link

humdinger of a ukulele

This just in…a new luthier from lovely Central Jersey, Dan Flannery, is building some killer ukuleles, his company is called Ukululu. Check out his six and eight string tenors…
About this lovely hummingbird-themed 6-string from his site:
“This is a 6 string tenor built around a hummingbird theme. We at UkuLuLu try to carry the design through the whole instrument: the soundhole, the head shape, the inlay, the fingerboard, the bridge, and even the choice of wood. In this one, the head is shaped like a hummingbird tail, the end of the fingerboard is like the end a wingtip, and the bridge is a pair of wings.
The six strings are really good for fingerpicking. It's still a ukulele, but it's got more bass to it than a 4 string uke”
And Dan Flannery says: "The sound holes and inlays are hand cut by the way. You can’t do custom work with a laser because it would be way too expensive. In fact everything is done pretty much by hand, though I do use a table saw for some of the straight cuts."


And there’s sound samples!

link.

I CAN HAS FLEAZ?

Ok, all you LOL Cat fans out there: We ran across this wonderful shot taken by animator/designer Mary Hawkins of her cat, Calamity, hanging out in her uke case. Submit a caption in the comments section at the end of this link. We'll publish our favorite! Link (Photo credit and a big Ukulelia Thanks to Mary!)

A winter wonder

The Big Chill has settled on Beantown. 20 degrees and windy today. The first dusting of snow fell the other day on the burg and already it looks mean and grey.
But the cold is something; it grabs you as you step out of Louies Bar and Grill and it slaps you in the face, reddens your cheeks and ears.

This ain’t no weather for long walks along the Charles.

Or busking. Singing outdoors for what the passerbys with give you.
Ian Schwartz is a ukulele player who does that in this town. On the streets of Boston and in the tunnels where the trains scream. In this weather he wears those fingers-sawed-off gloves and plays a tenor plugged in to a small amp. Big man. Towers over most of the people he is singing to. Weaves back and forth a little as he sings, kinda like a fighter.

link.

The Mysterious Amy G

As a former circus clown (Ringling, 1980) and uke fanatic, I of course find the intersection of the two artforms of particular interest.

For a couple of years I've run across the occasional new story about one Amy Gordon, occasionally of Cirkus Inferno and other Daredevil Opera Company productions. But I could never find much of anything about her, except that she plays the uke, roller skates, and looks darn cute with a stick of dynamite.


Then the other day I was poking around over on Midnight Ukulele Disco and ran across a couple of videos of one Amy G, who is not only a raucous and sarcastic ukulele lady, but looks darn cute in a grass skirt and pair of skulls. A quick Google search, and voila!, the web home of Ms Amy Gordon. I hope she makes a return appearance to MUD. I like her stuff. Link

Dan Zanes Flea

If you and your kids are fans of Dan Zanes, here's the perfect family gift for this year. Once again, Dan has teamed up with the Magic Fluke Co. to offer a custom "DZ" Flea:

"this exclusive limón model (lime green, dan’s favorite color) is a soprano-sized ukulele made in the USA by The Magic Fluke Company. assembled from sturdy australian pine & fiberglass and fitted with nylon strings, the dz flea offers easy playability and a beautiful sound. this is a real musical instrument, suitable for ages 3 - 203. each ukulele comes with:

• the new dan zanes “6 flea songs for spontaneous singalongs” songbook
• a sticker in the ukulele sound hole personally autographed by dan and hand numbered by The Magic Fluke Company
• ukulele instruction book from The Magic Fluke Company
• pitch pipe
• padded flea gig-bag

edition size: 500" (Only 50 left at the time of this post!)

Plus, save 15% on Dan's (super swell) CDs with purchase.

Link

Ukulele Body Bag

Here's a novel gig bag for your uke. And this blog has a step-by-step- how-to.

Step One: locate a French seamstress...

Sew one for your amis this Noel. Link

(via King David)

Carol of the Bells

By the way, if you can play this, and your name is not John King, you should be boiled with your own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through your heart. What a chestnut! Link

Update: Here's Prof. King playing it on one of Mike DaSilva's Santo reproduction ukes.

MUD: Video of Christmas in Michigan performed by Hailey Wojcik

Here's Wolverine State gal Hailey Wojcik with a paean to Christmas in the Water-Winter Wonderland. Link

(via Midnight Ukulele Disco)