Announcing

Cedar and Rosewood:
In Concert Together!






Yup, I'm getting me an Ohana CK-50GS with geared tuners...

(indignantly) Well, someone had to!

It's beautiful in the photos, right? Also, a friend of mine is trying to convince me to join his merry duo Fein and Dandee, and I figured I needed a concert uke with good projection at the very least. You know, start on the right foot. Get my ducks in a row. Dot my I's, cross my T's. Buy my O.

Is this how UAS (Ukulele Acquisition Syndrome) begins? Do I detect the early stirrings of an ancient primeval force awakening from its primordial slumber? Is there a twelve-step program for this?

Nervy Nellie

Saw Nellie McKay perform recently at the 10th anniversary of the Only Make Believe gala hosted by Sir Ian McKellen and honoring Chris Wearing, Bernadette P. Longford, and my ex and close friend Seth Rudetsky. McKay was oh so charming and lovely...and biting and feisty in her sung and spoken commentary. She capped her song "Mother of Pearl" played on soprano ukulele with a "Remember to NOT vote for Bloomberg tomorrow!"

And I didn't. Because I'm not interested in people buying my vote.

Jude Law and Chris Meloni were also in attendance, as was the world-renowned (in some circles) Sally Sheerin, my ex mother-in-law and unconvincing beard.

Hearting My SK-50MG

Hey Kids,

I recently stumbled upon this testimonial about my Ohana SK-50MG:

"I've been repairing, restoring and hot rodding instruments for more than 30 years now and during those years I've owned a LOT of Ukes. Everything from vintage to cutting edge; plastic toy to custom. There are a lot of very good vintage and custom Ukes out there but I'm willing to match my Ohana SK-50MG point for point; price, quality, craftsmanship, volume and tone to any instrument new or vintage. To all those other Ukes out there I say, bring it. But remember, my tail lights are all you're going to see because you just can't match my 50MG." --von, Luthier, Wild Fox Music

Those are fightin' words, von. (And what's with the lowercase "v"?) But from what I've seen and heard so far, von is dead-on.

BRING IT.

Kala KA-ASMC

Well, you guessed it. I bought a new uke online--a Kala all-solid mahogany KA-ASMC concert. It's beautiful, solidly built, and very playable. Unfortunately, it also lacks projection in the high and low ranges (my Ohana soprano is noticeably louder), and it suffers from buzzing at the lower frets of the C string. The instrument was set up by reliable musicguymic, so I'm confident that the problems lie with the 'ukulele itself... Hey, sometimes it's hit or miss with these mass-produced instruments.

So I'm returning it. I'll probably end up getting the concert version of my Ohana--the CK-50MG. That would be keeping it all in the 'ohana, eh?

Winking emoticon.

Coming...

Here Comes the Sun

Why Oh Why?

Is it just me, or do other people also have a love-hate relationship with Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World"? His voice is sweet and dulcet, and the arrangement itself is pretty wonderful. But it pains me to say that the butchering of the lyrics to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" is anywhere from jarring to ridiculous:

(altered lyrics in bold)
Somewhere over the rainbow
Way up high
And the dreams that you dream of once in a lullaby

Somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly
And the dreams that you dream of
Dreams really do come true

Someday I'll wish upon a star
Wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where trouble melts like lemon drops
High above the chimney top
That's where you'll find me

Somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly
And the dream that you dare to
Why oh why can't I?

These changes go far beyond the boundaries of artistic license and "making it one's own"--basic grammar and meaning have unraveled, and the rhyming scheme is bizarrely ignored and made awkward. There's a smack of disrespect here (however unintentional) toward the original lyricist and wordsmith E.Y. Harburg.

What a shame.