Roots Uker Lil’ Rev Overcomes Adversity with ‘Fascinatin’ Rhythm’
Roots uker Lil’ Rev’s fascination with the ukulele has led him on a journey covering hundreds of thousands of miles over two decades.
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Great Ukes: The Birth of The Baritone
From the Spring 2016 issue of Ukulele | BY SANDOR NAGYSZALANCZY Quick quiz: Among the four common sizes of ukuleles—soprano, concert, tenor, and baritone—which one is tuned differently? Answer: the baritone. While the first three are tuned in standard “C”…
Ukulele Travel Tips from Taimane [VIDEO]
By Greg Olwell Spring break, summer vacation, work trip, it doesn’t really matter when or where you’re taking your ukulele, but if you are traveling with it, take a few tips from Taimane Gardner. As a regular performer, she knows…
D’Addario Introduces Felt Ukulele Picks
By Greg Olwell D’Addario introduces the Ukulele Felt Pick, its first ukulele pick. These stiff felt picks combine the tone-softening effect of felt with a stiff center to make picking easy and warm. D’Addario also adds an elliptical cutout, which…
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Checking Out Two of George Formby’s Favorite Ukuleles
By Greg Olwell To many banjo-ukulele enthusiasts, the late British entertainer George Formby is the king who sits on throne. Multi-instrumentalist Andy Eastwood is one of the biggest banner-bearers of Formby’s legacy and he’s one of the people to check-in…
Winter Getaway to the 2017 Palm Strings Ukulele Festival
By Jim D’Ville Let’s see … who wants to head south to Palm Springs in late February, relax by the pool, and play some ukulele? I DO! And I did! The 3rd Annual Palm Strings Ukulele Festival was held February…
Gods of Uke: The Influence of Ukulele-Jazz Pioneer Lyle Ritz, 1930–2017
Jazz ukulele pioneer Lyle Ritz’s 2 albums for Verve, How About Uke? (1958) and 50th State Jazz (1959), were hugely influential among a generation of Hawaiian ukulele players.
The Birth of the Aloha Shirt
Who originated the aloha shirt? This is a topic that comes up frequently among lovers of all things Hawaiian, and like most popular inventions, it is claimed by many.
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Nominees Announced for This Year’s Best Ukulele Albums
By Greg Olwell Nominees for the Na Hoku Hanohano awards were announced in preliminary ballots and many ukulele players are among the nominees. The Na Hoku Hanohano awards, which is an awards program from the Hawaiian Academy for Recording Arts…
Lil’ Rev Raising Funds for Next Album
By Greg Olwell One of the ukulele community’s favorite performers has started a crowd-funding effort for his next album. Titled Sing Song Daddy, Lil’ Rev‘s next album will include 15 to 20 new songs written for ukulele and voice, with accompaniment by…