Until a few years ago, most Americans
thought of the ukulele—if they thought of it at all—as a fake
instrument. It was just a toy, something your grandpa might've played in
the living room during the family cocktail hour, or a prop for
vaudeville routines. The uke had a few high-profile partisans over the
years—including George Harrison, who reportedly brought them to friends'
houses as gifts—but as far as the rest of the world was concerned, the
ukulele stopped with "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" and Tiny Tim.
Ten or 15 years ago, things started to change. (...)
"It's like a little chord machine," Beloff said. "There are all kinds of musically sophisticated things you can wring out of those four strings." He pointed to old players like Lyle Ritz—of the elite session band the Wrecking Crew, who played for Phil Spector, the Beach Boys, the Byrds, etc.—who made extraordinary ukulele jazz records. Beloff and his wife are about to release a songbook with ukulele arrangements for works by Vivaldi, Bach, and other baroque composers. (...)
Eddie Vedder, who has composed on the ukulele for years, found his first serious one on a surfing trip in a remote Hawaiian town. He went to the liquor store for some cases of beer and was sitting on them, waiting for a friend who'd gone to the grocery store. "I turned around and there was this ukulele hanging on the wall, right above my shoulder," he said, "just like a parrot on a pirate." He bought it and started fooling around in the sun. He'd left the case open on the sidewalk and people started throwing money into it. A new relationship was born.
"Instruments can be friends, and there's a big transition playing an instrument when it becomes your friend," he said. "You remember the day when it isn't a guest/host relationship. Most instruments take a while before they let you play them. The ukulele is different—it's a really gregarious little friend. And for its size, it's really forthright and giving. It doesn't have a Napoleon complex."
A good ukulele sounds gregarious. Vedder told one story about a night playing casually with a fellow musician. The friend was in the corner, trying to write something dark and evil-sounding on the ukulele, like it was a challenge. But he couldn't do it. They stayed up all night trying—and partying. "In the fog of the morning, he was vomiting over the balcony," Vedder said. "The uke had won!"
by Brenden Kiley, The Stranger | Read more:
Photo: Collings Guitars
