Ukuleles in Blue Grass ????

[Tim2723]

The Tiptoe thing always happens sooner or later in ukulele threads. I am a "more often and better" ukulele player than I am a mandolin player. If you ask me to play Tiptoe Through the Tulips, ya know what you are going to get?



Tiptoe Through the Tulips. It's a very nice song. It is only Tiny Tim's legacy that has cast it in a bad light.

Bravo, Bruce! Herbert Khaury did more to damage the reputation of that tune than anyone in history. He was actually a brilliant player and music historian specializing in tunes of that period, but was only recognized for his novelty act.

[journeybear]

It's really a great instrument, cursed to live in the shadow of a short, freaky hippie.

Somehow it behooves me to point out Tim was hardly tiny. He was 6'1"! Living proof (if any is needed) of the old saw, "It takes a big man to play a small instrument."

Jake Shimabukuro is to the ukulele what Toots Thielsman is to the harmonica.

Like it or not, Dylan has produced some of the most memorable, emblematic harmonica lines in rock history. I am well aware there are those who contend the whole notion of rack harp is abhorrent and proponents should be [ ___________fill in the blank with your preferred punishment___________ ], and some of his output is in Exhibit A. To them I reply, it is what it is, but check out John Hammond. he has mastered the technique to where it sounds like a hand-held harp.

But, um, this is a thread about ukes, so ... I just wanted to set the record straight. A tiny bit. As you were ...

God bless us, everyone!

[Tim2723]

Yes, Herbie was a tall drink of water. I'm also impressed by Shimabukuro, but to be frank, if he played on a six-string would we think him soooo much better than any other fine finger-style guitarist, or would he be just another of the thousands of impressive players? The fact that he does it on a uke is cool. That he does it on a low-G tuned tenor, well....it's just a four-string guitar in the wrong key.

[Jim Yates]

Like it or not, Dylan has produced some of the most memorable, emblematic harmonica lines in rock history. I am well aware there are those who contend the whole notion of rack harp is abhorrent and proponents should be [ ___________fill in the blank with your preferred punishment___________ ], and some of his output is in Exhibit A. To them I reply, it is what it is, but check out John Hammond. he has mastered the technique to where it sounds like a hand-held harp.

As did the late Willie P. Bennett.

[allenhopkins]

...John Hammond.,,has mastered the technique to where it sounds like a hand-held harp...

Continuing the hijack, the best "rack harp" player I've heard in the past few years is (surprise!), Jonathan Edwards, he of Sunshine fame:

[Bill Baldridge]

There are bluegrass police and there are nice people never say no police. I often find that neither has much tolerance for anyone who doesn't agree with them. My own policy at a bluegrass jam is to leave when either the third banjo or the bagpipe shows up.

[Rodney Riley]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=YHnMFo0G1A8

'nuff said

a little newer vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=zdOmEfjvxyo

[Mike Bunting]

Wrong post

[Jim Yates]

[Beanzy]

We've got a ukelele player in our community orchestra and I'm moving over from cello to mandolin to support her in some pieces.
There's a wee sub-section of the OT community over here who bring their ukes and do really well in jams, especially later on when people mellow a bit and the logs burn a bit lower. I've seen a few banjo ukes pop up, but then the George Formby comments are never too far away.
However the use of a uke by a BG band would be a novelty item.
In a Bluegrass jam I feel it would be a misunderstanding of what a Bluegrass specific jam is about.

As the pick holding issue is your thumb, you could experiment with a thumbpick but wear it on the index finger curled in as if it were holding a normal pick.

[stevejay]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvbGAKpUP88


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LValCUqCILU


Somehow I can deal with the trance quality they get, it could get boring, but I'm a fan anyway from years ago. Not Bluegrass, more oldtime modal

[Cue Zephyr]

To be honest, I'd be more inclined to take a mandolin where a uke is expected than a uke to where a mandolin is expected.

But the uke never became a serious instrument for me, even after watching some Jake Shimabukuro videos.

[Alex Orr]

At the risk of being accused of close mindedness, I'll say, "No, ukes just don't work in bluegrass." At a couple of our local jams we have people bring ukes every now and then and it's basically pointless. Even in a circle of 4-5 people the instrument gets drowned out - it never functions successfully as a lead or rhythm instrument in a legit bluegrass jam. Now, if you and say, a guitarist wanted to play tunes in the traditional bluegrass repertoire in a lower volume and more mellow reconfiguration, then, yeah, you could do that. If the jam was just folks with acoustic instruments who wanted to play folksy style music with no real emphasis on it sounding like traditional bluegrass, then maybe it could work there. However, take a uke to a serious bluegrass jam and try to really participate musically in a circle that has, say, a bass, two guitars, a mando, a dobro, a fiddle, and a banjo or two. See how well it fits in when running through "Gold Rush" at 200 BPM or cranking through "The Old Home Place" and then tell me if it works out nicely. There are a number of instruments that fall into the folk music realm that some folks seem to think should work just fine in bluegrass (I've seen more people lug dulcimers to jams than I can count) but that in reality make no sense in the style of music because bluegrass does sort've have some stylistic rules that, in general, preclude the effectiveness and desirability of certain instruments in the mix.

[Willie Poole]

Well said Alex, To me the uke is not a bluegrass instrument and I have heard many good uke players in my travels, in fact my first stringed instrument was a uke and it was a good stepping stone to better and bigger things like lead guitar in a country band and a mandolin player in my bluegrass band...They have their place in a few other kinds of music but not for me in bluegrass...EVEN IF ONE WAS AMPLIFIED it wouldn`t fit in....But then again I did see a fellow playing a wooden box a few days ago in a bluegrass (The Isaacs) band, yes a wooded box, he was sitting on top of it and banging on it like it was a bongo drum, wonders never cease, maybe he just wanted to get into the show without paying admission, I don`t know....

Willie

Willie

[mandopete]

Nope

[SincereCorgi]

Yeah, not for traditional bluegrass. But definitely in old time- Jere Canote has made a couple albums that show how nicely ukulele and violin get along on old time tunes. My father plays banjo uke at old time jams and it works pretty well. The main difficulty is that a uke in high G tuning requires a lot of jumping around up the neck for melodies, so fiddle tunes at speed are tough.

[JeffD]

Banjo ukes and resonator ukes are great in old time. I love the sound.

[Willie Poole]

I`m talking "true bluegrass, not this stuff that is being played and called "Bluegrass" now days...That's my story and I`m sticking to it...

[allenhopkins]

Surprisingly, though, there seems to be a "bluegrass ukulele" genre or sub-genre emerging; there's a Fred Sokolow book for Bluegrass Ukulele, and a quick search on YouTube yielded a bunch of vids claiming to show uke-ists playing in that style.

Concur with Willie, none of it sounded much like bluegrass to me. Some licks and repertoire taken from bluegrass, but not the kinda thing I'd expect from BG bands.

In old-time, a vigorously strummed ukulele or ukulele banjo is a great rhythm instrument. Check out the Horseflies, the neo-punk-old-timey string band.

[CES]

Saw a video on YouTube a while back with Chris Thile sitting in with Sometymes Why, playing a Uke on "Too Repressed." I recall some of the comments being that he was playing the Uke "like a mandolin." I guess there are "Uke police," too. Not posting the link given the "adult content" of the song (which is actually pretty hilarious, and easy enough to find if you're inclined). But, he wasn't playing bluegrass music ...

[jesserules]

I did see a fellow playing a wooden box a few days ago in a bluegrass (The Isaacs) band, yes a wooded box, he was sitting on top of it and banging on it like it was a bongo drum, wonders never cease, maybe he just wanted to get into the show without paying admission, I don`t know....

Willie

That would be a cajon (pronounced ka-HOAN), rhythm instrument used in flamenco music. Actually it is a wooden box, used to be scavenged packing crates that people would beat on, now they've been "instrumentified" & you can buy custom made, concert tuned, walnut with exotic hardwood trim, etc. cajons. If you wanted to.

But no, they aren't a bluegrass instrument. Heck, some aficionados say they're not even a flamenco instrument. (Anybody who thinks the Bluegrass Police are strict, go check out the Flamenco Police. Whew!)

[catmandu2]

(Anybody who thinks the Bluegrass Police are strict, go check out the Flamenco Police. Whew!)

That's right--trad bluegrass "arguments" are softball compared to that of flamenco puro--basically, eschewing all but the gitano