This is one of my favourite current songs, by rising Canadian recording artist Andrew Allen from B.C.
His song “Your Time to Shine” was the theme song for the 2012 B.C. Winter Games.
I embedded his video for this song in my blog. You will need to listen to it to hear the chunk sound that pretty much gives way to a finger snap sound. If you can master strumming and snapping your way through my arrangement then you have accomplished something I have not. I can do it but not for the entire song. My advice: go slowly.
Elvis during his first television appearance on the Stage Show with the Dorsey Brothers, in New York, New York, January 1956.
Sometimes I like to play a few 50’s songs together, especially if they were written/composed by the same artist and sound alike, or if they have the same beat or shuffle. I like to alternate the verses and chorus’s for each song, and I have a great time, and everyone seems to know the words to at least the chorus’s, so nobody cares!
It’s when I type it out on paper and share it with someone, that’s when they point out the one glaringly obvious oversight. Yes, these two songs are from 2 different music styles. The first song is a strait up classic rock song, although it does not follow the classic 4-chord repetitive pattern, and the second song is a 12-bar blues song that was an R&B hit. However, they have the same shuffle strum and once you start playing them together you might agree with me.
I am no DJ, so my mixing is not proper, LOL. I actually go back to the first song for the ending, so maybe this is falls into the category of “mash-up”?? Although I know that term refers to a song created by blending two (or more) pre-recorded songs together, the argument was that a “medley” should consist of at least 3 songs played together in the same Key in a continuous manner.
So for that reason, I titled it Blue Suede Shoes/Flip Flop and Fly.
The first song was obviously an Elvis tune, but the second one is attributed to Joe Turner, 1955. This was his follow-up hit to Shake, Rattle & Roll of 1954. However, Elvis performed it on his first television appearance in 1956, as part of a medley that included Shake, Rattle & Roll and I Got a Woman. Other famous recordings of Flip, Flop & Fly were made by Bill Haley in 1956 on his album Rock Around the Clock, the Downchild Blues Band in 1973, and the Blues Brothers on Briefcase Full of Blues, 1978.
This is a great one. You play Csus4 with just one strum, trust me it will sound the way you remember it. After becoming accustomed to playing that one plus the Gsus4 you might find yourself throwing it into other songs as they come up. Also, this is a great campfire song.
Great arrangement. It has a little mini tablature right in the middle of it, for notes to pick on just the A-string and the E-string for the guitar lick part of the song. After you practice it a while to get it down pat, you will find you can throw it in there with perfect timing while performing. A little bit of a challenge there, but manageable and adds to your growing skills set. 🙂
This is one of my weepy favourites: we can only play this one at certain times and not around certain people, ie. not during break-up recovery. At first glance, you might feel overwhelmed by the amount of chords but that is just the Dr. Uke style. The lyrics with just the chord letters will be on page two. Advice on the chords: not necessary to play the full F7 chord, just play it as 2310, and on the last line, I like to morph the last 2 C7’s into something I don’t know the name of – but sounds better – which is to bar the first fret and press the first string in the third fret (C note). Or 1113, then add that as well after the final F6 with an F chord as well for finalé. It’s a great little jazz arrangement, you could go on and on with it because it has lots of potential, and the chords are easy – who doesn’t like Am7? LOL
These already published online songs won’t be included in my next songbook, which is generally a reflection of my own arrangements and personal taste with regard to wording, strumming, timing, morphed chords, intro’s, outro’s and sentiment.
So! This week I have been surfing the net, conducting searches, while muttering “Arpeggiated? What????” to myself.
After hearing Girl Crush by Little Big Town over the radio repeatedly, I realized I can sing it in my voice range and looked up the lyrics. It’s relatively new to the ukulele chording community, however, comments and instructions confused me. The advice I read was “remember to arpeggiate the chords”, so that the chords sound right, and also for the proper timing of the piece.
Wow. Arpeggiate? That is some slang-ization of a musical term! An arpeggio in music theory means you play certain notes in a scale individually, following a rule or pattern. For the C scale, the notes could be 1, 3, 5, 8, 5, 3, 1 (c, e, g, C, g, e, c). In fact, while I was studying piano when I was younger, one of my favourite books, which neither my mother nor I can find, was Arpeggio Exercises for Piano. I loved it. It was full of wonderful patterns of all kinds of scales. I can still play some of them today. Here’s another example: 1, 2, 3 – 2, 3, 4 – 3, 4, 5 – etc.
When applied to a chord – according to my recent internet researching – we arpeggiate the chord by playing the notes individually in a pattern instead of strumming. If that involves all four strings of the ukulele, then we also play that string as an open string indicated by a 0.
Here is the exact wording as gleaned from a site called Stack Exchange, found under Music: Practice and Theory (www.music.stackexchange.com):
An arpeggio is simply a chord played one note at a time. So if you’re playing in an arpeggiated style, then instead of strumming the chords, you’ll play each note of the chord one at a time.
Below is my rendition of the C chord in both strumming and this arpeggiated style, for comparison.
Strumming a C chord:
Arpeggiated C chord:
Here is the pdf of the song Girl Crush by Little Big Town. It’s 2 pages: the first page is the words with the change of the chords positioned; the second page has each arpeggiated chord laid out.
How awesome is this? I am still learning, at 50!!!
For some reason, my sense of incomplete ukulele education is holding me back from doing something I really, really want to do: for the JHUI (James Hill Ukulele Initiative) and get my ukulele teachers certification! (http://www.ukuleleintheclassroom.com/)
This has been on my mind for literally months, possibly even a year. There is always this doubt in the back of my mind. Someone recently asked me if I registered for the Level 1 this year, and I flat out confessed that I think I should be the person taking the lessons from the Ukulele in the Classroom teacher, and they laughed. I only half meant it. I ordered the entire set of books and CD’s, poured over the website every day for a week and then talked myself out of it.
So here is what I decided to do: register online for the $9 membership to James Hill’s The Ukulele Way. After 4 hours I can honestly say, I am so, so glad I did this! So far, his online lessons are filling in the gaps in my ukulele education. Just from the first 2 lessons, I learned what the pentatonic scale is and how it has been applied to songs!!! Actual songs! It makes so much sense the way James Hill lays this out for you. And I must say that James is an amazing teacher.
And so, for those of you out there who are teetering on the edge of self-doubt: sign up for online lessons or buy some books to go through in order to gain that confidence of musicianship.
I also really, really like Brett McQueen’s website, Ukulele Tricks, which is actually about learning proficiency, not showmanship tricks like ukulele flippies or anything. That’s just the title. On that site you can sign up for different kinds of lessons, strumming, picking, etc. and he also runs online workshops you can sign up for. He also posts instructional video’s on his Youtube channel and will personally answer your email!
There are many of them out there. I’m sure that just by checking out the websites of your favourite ukulele players, one of them may turn out to be the mentor you are looking for. Have fun!
A wise ukulele performer once told me that writing out your list of songs is the smartest thing you”ll ever do for a performance. In fact, I bought this person’s book, The Ukulele Entertainer, and it is dog-eared, corner-folded, highlighted, underlined and post-it-ed to the max. It is a well-loved copy! And Ralph Shaw is the author.
This book is full of great anecdotes regarding playing, learning, performing and other aspects of the ukulele such as replacing strings and making ukulele wine. A-hem! I’m serious now! I’ve been fortunate enough to meet Ralph twice at festivals and workshops and I keep forgetting to bring my book for him to sign!
Always In My Gig Bag
However, I highly recommend his book because it is literally jam-packed with tons of information, tricks, tips and stories. It even has illustrations! You can order it directly from him, also available in E-book form, here: Ralph Shaw’s website.
So one of the reasons I bought it was because it claimed it would show you “How to create a killer set list”. And there is a sort of “belief” that goes along with that idea, where you want to draw your audience in and capture them, then you can do your performance songs, and you can end with a couple of ideas. One idea is to end on a high, with an exciting and happy song, or you can end on a sing-along song that everyone knows, because singing along makes the audience feel good about them selves. For myself, having never busked (and Ralph is a veteran of busking on Granville Island out in BC), I have only used this technique for playing songs at my parent’s house, usually on Labour Day Weekend. They sometimes have a porch full of their cronies after the fireworks, and I entertain them a little bit with just a few songs. A couple I chose because they know every word and I know they enjoy singing along. Others I chose because I know my father will enjoy them and others because I want to show off, just a tiny bit. Those would be the lesser known Hawaiian songs.
My “set list” is on post-its stuck to a piece of paper. And I swap them out periodically. It is made up of songs that I have (most of) the words memorized to. Sometimes, I get the order of the verses mixed up, so that is why I have the first lines and then the numbers 2 and 3 circled under the first song on the right, Peaceful Easy Feeling. My father loves The Eagles, so that is for him. I start out with Peace Like A River, and I read the lines for each verse before I start, because I always mix the order up on those, too. And the pattern for the song is underneath that, which I use as an Intro, and after I play the pattern through once, I’ve got it and can concentrate on my singers-along.
Five Foot Two, I always have some kind of mental block going on there, where I will be telling myself, “I know it starts on C and then there’s a whole bunch of 7th chords….” and that’s as far as I get. So I write out the chord progression so that I can “hear” it when I give it a once through. I don’t have to worry about getting the words right for this one, generally EVERYBODY knows the words and enjoys singing them out in a raucus manner. Lots of fun. Everyone knows the Rollerskate Song and You Are My Sunshine, most people know Dream Baby and You’re Sixteen. I sprinkle the ones they aren’t going to know in between those: Pineapple Princess, Drop Baby and Coconut Island. I save the best for last with Drift Away and Hey Baby, which my hubby knows by heart and sings in the style of DJ Otzi, very loudly. So there’s my high ending.
The best part is: people complimenting my mother on having such a talented daughter! ;-P
Drift Away is another song that epitomized my late childhood/early teen years.
An iconic 1970’s song, Drift Away was a chart topper when recorded by Dobie Gray in 1973.
According to Wikipedia, it was written by Mentor Williams and originally recorded by John Henry Kurtz in 1972. A newer version by Uncle Kracker became a major hit in 2003. And I just learned this, an artist by the name of Narvel Felts also recorded a version of the song which charted on the Country Hits list also in 1973. He changed the lyrics, “I want to get lost in your rock and roll” to “I want to get lost in your country song.” Other famous performers have covered this song, and I have the CD which has Michael Bolton’s version. It’s about an 8 out of 10 (Dobie Gray’s being a 10/10).
I was most interested in getting a good representation of the opening RIFF and the rendition of it that follows throughout the song. I have found it on the internet in various keys, but never with the RIFF in the key of C and the song in the key of F. It turns out this is the best key for my singing voice: that is all. I was very proud of yesterday’s post: I managed to produce a sheet of words and chords in the same key as the video I found to represent the melody of the song. That probably won’t be the case today, ha ha ha!
For your listening amusement, here is the video of the originally recorded version by John Henry Kurtz. There is little comparison to Dobie Gray’s version:
This is the best I could do, as the only “Official Video” of the song I could find had some wierd website plastered on it. So you’ll have to grin and bear the accompaniment of lyrics on this version by Dobie Gray:
DRIFT AWAY
RIFF: │ C Cm G7sus2 Cm │ C–C5 G7 G7 C │
[F] Day after day I’m more con-[C]fused
[F] Still I look for the [G7] light in the pouring [C] rain
[F] You know that’s a game that I hate to [C] lose
[Dm] I’m feeling the strain
[F//][F] Ain’t it a shame
Chorus: Oh, [C] give me the beat boys and free my soul
I [G7] wanna get lost in your rock and roll and [F] Drift Away (Repeat)
RIFF
[F] Beginning to think that I’m wasting [C] time
[F] I don’t under-[G7]stand the things I [C] do
[F] The world outside looks so un-[C]kind
[Dm] Now I’m counting on you
[F//][F] To carry me through
Chorus
Bridge: [Dm] And when my mind is free, [F] you know a melody can [C] move me
[Dm] And when I’m feeling blue, [F] the guitar’s coming through to [G] soothe me
[F] Thanks for the joy you’re giving [C] me
[F] I want you to [G7] know I believe in your [C] song
[F] Your rhythm and rhyme and harmon-[C]y
[Dm] You’ve helped me along, [F] making me strong
Chorus X2 (Second time, first half is No Chords, just clapping the beat)
[F] Nah, nah, nah, nah, Oh
Won’t ya [C] take me, Oh [G7] take me, Oh [F] take me
Aloha dear followers! I almost had a song ready to post today when a friend called and caused me to re-route my efforts to Beauitful Kauai.
This song was composed and copy-righted in the 1960’s by Rudolph “Randy” Haleakala Farden. It was a hit and made famous by Don Ho in 1967 or 1968. I believe it can be found on his Tiny Bubbles album. This information can be found at the following 2 websites: http://www.huapala.org/B/Beautiful_Kauai.html and http://www.squareone.org/Hapa/b1.html.
Recently I was in Hawaii for 10 or 11 days as part of a group of ukulele enthusiasts who went around to ukulele factories and store and had several workshops with famous Hawaiian artists, etc. We were sent a large document of about 30 songs beforehand that were to be used at a big group jam. This song was one of those provided.
The video is by Mark James, and if you print out my sheet you will find that my chords correspond almost perfectly with his rendition of the song. I can’t help you with the hula dancing though! This song became a hula dance standard thanks largely due to the efforts of Kawai Crocket and the Lei Kukui Serenaders.
This was the year of my first crush, first kiss, first fight with a best friend (over a boy). First school dance, first school graduation, first time in heels, first time with glasses (and a retainer?? hmm maybe that was Grade 7…). The music was something else. My sister had a transistor radio in her room and I routinely dialed it to the American station, Rock 104. They would play Steve Miller Band, the entire album, and then flip it over and play the entire other side! They also loved Meatloaf and Bat Out Of Hell. This exposure to the cutting edge of the top music of the time felt delicious to me.
Songs from the Grade 6 Graduation dance: Stairway to Heaven, Summertime Blues, lots of classic 50’s rock, Slow Dancin’ Swayin’ to the Music….Jerry Rafferty, Stever Miller and others. And Dr Hook. In particular, Only Sixteen, which they had recorded in 1972, but which was a hit in 1976. Funny how that works out! And oh, how we wished we were sixteen! I remember believing along with my girlfirends that this was one of thee most romantic songs, ever.
Flash forward to today, and I find out it was written and recorded by Sam Cooke in 1959. Huh. That’s Ok, I really like Sam Cooke’s songs, too!
Only Sixteen ~ Sam Cooke, 1959
She was [G] only six-[Em]teen, [C] only six-[D]teen,
[Am7][D7] I loved her [G] so.
But she was too [Em] young, to [C] fall in [D] love
And [Am7] I was too [D7] young to [G] know
We’d [G] laugh and we’d [Em] sing, and
[C] do the little [D] things
[Am7] That [D7] made our hearts [G] glow.
But she was too [Em] young, to [C] fall in [D] love
–
And [Am7] I was too [D7] young to [G] know
[Am7] Why did I [D7] give my [G] heart so [Em] fast?
It [Am7] never will [D7] happen a-[G]gain!
But [Am7] I was a [D7] mere [G] lad of six-[Em]teen –
[A7] I’ve aged a year since [D7] then!
–
She was [G] only six-[Em]teen, [C] only six-[D]teen,
[Am7]With [D7] eyes that would [G] glow.
But she was too [Em] young, to [C] fall in [D] love
And [Am7] I was too [D7] young to [G] know.
–
(Then [Am7] Why did you [D7] give your [G] heart so [Em] fast?)
Whoa, it [Am7] never will [D7] happen a-[G]gain!
([Am7] You were a [D7] mere [G] lad of six-[Em]teen -)
[A7] I’ve aged a year since [D7] then!
–
She was [G] only six-[Em]teen, [C] only six-[D]teen,
[Am7] With [D7] eyes that would [G] glow.
But she was too [Em] young, to [C] fall in [D] love
And [Am7] I was too [D7] young to [G] know.
–
She was too [Em] young, to [C] fall in [D] love
And [Am7] I was too [D7] young to [G] know.
–
She was too [Em] young, to [C] fall in [D] love…….
And [Am7] I was too [D7] young to [G] know.
This is a fun, light-hearted song by country band sensation Zac Brown Band. Their hit from 2008, following up their quirky 2005 hit, Chicken Fried.
Even though Toes is considered one of the Top 100 Songs of Summer, the song was met with critical acclaim being compared to Jimmy Buffet’s song material. But if people like a song, they like a song. Was Garth Brooks criticized for Two Pina Coladas? I don’t think so!
The official video featured cameo appearances from such heavy-weights as Kid Rock:
TOES ~ Zac Brown Band, 2008
INTRO: [C] [F] [C] [G] [C] [F] [C] [G] [C]
STRUM: Calypso; D Du uDu; or Island rhythm
Pre-Chorus:
I got my [C] toes in the water, [F] ass in the sand
Not a [C] worry in the world, a cold [G] beer in my hand
Life is [F] good today; [G] life is [C] good today [G]
–
Well the [C] plane touched town, just about [F] 3 o’clock
and the [C] city’s still on my [G] mind.
[C] Bikinis & palm trees [F] danced in my head
I was [C] still in the [G] baggage [C] line.
–
[C] Concrete and cars are their [F] own prison bars
[C] like this life I’m livin’ in. [G]
But the [C] plane brought me farther, I’m [F] surrounded by water
And I’m [C] not going [G] back a-[C]gain.
–
Pre-Chorus
I got my [C] toes in the water, [F] ass in the sand
Not a [C] worry in the world, a cold [G] beer in my hand
Life is [F] good today; [G] life is [C] good today –
Chorus:
[N.C.] Adios and vaya con [F] dios! Yeah, I’m leavin’ [C] GA
and if it [G] weren’t for tequila & pretty senoritas
I’d have no reason to [C] stay.
[N.C.] Adios and vaya con [F] dios! Yeah, I’m leavin’ [C] GA
Gonna [G] lay in the hot sun ‘n’ roll a big fat one,
and grab my guitar and [C] play.
–
The [C] 4 days flew by like a [F] drunk Friday night
as the [C] summer drew to an [G] end.
[C] They can’t believe that I [F] just couldn’t leave
and [C] I bid a-[G]deiu to my [C] friends.
–
Cause my bartender, [F] she’s from the islands,
her [C] body’s been kissed by the [G] sun.
And coconut replaces the [F] smell of the bar
and I don’t [C] know if it’s [G] her or the [C] rum!
–
Pre-Chorus
I got my [C] toes in the water, [F] ass in the sand
Not a [C] worry in the world, a cold [G] beer in my hand
Life is [F] good today; [G] life is [C] good today –
Chorus 2:
[N.C.] Adios and vaya con [F] dios! A long way from [C] GA
Hey, and [G] all the mu-chachas they call me big papa
when I throw pesos their [C] way.
[N.C.] Adios and vaya con [F] dios! A long way from [C] GA
Hey boss, [G] do me a favor & pass me the Jaeger
& I’ll grab my guitar & [C] play.
INSTRU: [C] [F] [C] [G] [C] [F] [C] [G] [C]
–
CHORUS 3:
[N.C.] Adios and vaya con [F] dios! Goin’ home now to [C] stay
Cause Senior-[G]itas don’t care-oh. When there’s no deneiro,
you got no money to [C] stay.
[C] Adios and vaya con [F] dios! Goin’ home now to [C] stay
–
. . . I’m just gonna kick it on the lake
–
With my [C] ass in the lawn chair, [F] toes in the clay
Not a [C] worry in the world, a P-B-[G] R on the way
Life is [F] good today, [G] life is [C] good today….
This is one of my favourite current songs, by rising Canadian recording artist Andrew Allen from B.C.
It’s 1976, my favourite year: Grade 6!
This is a fun, light-hearted song by country band sensation Zac Brown Band. Their hit from 2008, following up their quirky 2005 hit, Chicken Fried.
Cat's Ukulele Songs 