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Uke Special

• Stuart Bailie
• 25 Oct 07, 10:37 AM

So I finally bought myself a ukulele. I¡¯ve been harbouring desires for a few months now, and finally I just walked in and bought an economy model with a hard case and an autographed postcard from Malika Dudley, Miss Hawaii 2006. I¡¯m looking at the gal¡¯s fingernails and they seem impossibly long to play chords on that miniature fretboard, but hey, my Mahalo model was actually made in China, so let's not be too picky.

Anyway, I¡¯m glad I don¡¯t have to skulk around music shops any longer. The real musos are always in there, holding massive guitars and playing augmented minor chords that require six fingers. When I asked to see their ukuleles, they would often snort dismissively. One shop kept talking about a mythical shipment that was coming in from Honolulu, but after several months, I suspected he was having a joke at my expense. Yet I kept my cool, and now I¡¯m part of that amusing club.

It¡¯s hard to take life seriously when you¡¯ve got a little uke in your hand. The great stresses are diminished and the hilarity that comes with mastering another chord is hard to equal. My ultimate ambition is to play ¡®Frankly Mr Shankley¡¯ and perhaps ¡®Honolulu Baby¡¯, but for now I¡¯m leafing through a standard song book, checking out ¡®Careless Love¡¯, ¡®Â鶹ԼÅÄ On The Range¡¯ and ¡®Dixie¡¯.

The internet is a trove, and when I dug out the chords to ¡®Fisherman¡¯s Blues¡¯ my wife was astonished to recognise an actual tune. And of course the auction sites are full of rare instruments, some of them beautifully inlaid and accessorised. I¡¯m getting especially excited about the models made of genuine Hawaiian koa wood. Am I losing perspective already? I¡¯m only just started on the YouTube archive, but that¡¯s a life¡¯s work in itself.

There will be a ukulele special on my radio show rather soon. Stay tuned for further details.

Stu Bailie presents The Late show on Radio Ulster, every Friday from 10pm until midnight

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