uke tales

pawn shop a frame sign

Uke Tales: My Pawn Shop Ukulele

I’ll never know why my interest in that ukulele had treaded so heavily on his last nerve, but I’ll certainly never forget that pawn broker or the uke he unexpectedly gifted me.

Uke Tales: Ken Franklin’s Pale Moon Tenor Ukulele

By Sandor Nagyszalanczy Uke Tales is an exploration of some of the author’s ukulele collection, which numbers 400+ instruments, and other instruments that have an interesting story.  I’ve long admired the lovely ukuleles that my San Francisco Bay Area friend…

Uke Tales: The Graziano ‘Beatle Bass’ Electric Uke

By Sandor Nagyszalanczy I’ve played in rock n’ roll bands since I was 13 years old, typically serving as lead singer and rhythm guitar player. But in the mid/late 1990s, I met a couple of talented musicians who were as…

Uke Tales: Ukulele Number One

By Sandor Nagyszalanczy Since this is my first installment for this new online feature, I thought it appropriate to tell the story of my very first ukulele. In 1956, when I was just two-and-a-half years old, my mother, father and I…