Our February meeting, held on Valentine’s Day because it fell on our regular meeting date, was surprisingly well attended. We had something between 30 and 40 people in the room, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves (what a great group, hey?). We sang our special Valentine’s Day edition of the classic ukulele number “Tonight You Belong To Me (in G).” (This link will take you to Bob’s Presentation Arrangement that he used at the meeting. A Presentation Arrangement usually has extra fun stuff, so check it out.)

Bob also led us in a revised version of one of the group’s “oldies” (from our first meeting two years ago–can you believe it?)– Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire”– in C . Bob told us that the original song on record was odd as far as the beats went, but of course Johnny Cash could get away with that sort of thing. This new presentation version was intended for us mere mortals. This version lets us sing the “Da-da-da-da-da-da-dah dah” trumpet lines, too. It was fun to strum and sing as a group–Bob says he was surprised at the high energy of the February group.

We also had plenty of performers who wanted to show off their stuff. Thanks much to Woody, James, Ray, Jack, Erin and her friend (whose name we didn’t get), Larry (we think that was his name), Bob, and Jeanie (and yours truly, Walter). Everyone who performed seemed to have a great time.

We of the AUS are really happy to give anyone who wants a chance to play us a song they’ve been working on, and as someone who has made plenty of goofs during his performances but keeps getting up to try again, I (Walter) can tell you that the AUS audience is extremely forgiving of mistakes. I haven’t seen anyone among our listeners who has been caught yet rolling their eyes. If you come to a meeting, you can see how much everyone finds joy in our minuscule instrument.

If you are wondering about our March meeting, at this time we plan to hold it in our regular location at our usual time–Memorial United Methodist Church at 6100 Berkman Drive, Austin, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 14. If there are any changes (which is doubtful–we always seem to get together at the planned time), we’ll let you know, but until we do we hope to see you next month.

Oh! We’re still selling our AUS T-shirts, so get one before they’re gone. Email us at austinukes[at]gmail[dot]com to get the details.

You probably know by now that AUS’s February meeting has been scheduled for Valentine’s Day evening–yes, Thursday, Feb 14, and from 7 to 8:30 as usual. Hey, the restaurants are all full that night, right? Take out your understanding date on the night before or after–or bring him/her to the meeting. And it’s in the usual spot–the Memorial United Methodist Church at 6100 Berkman Drive, Austin, just east of I-35.

Plus, here’s our bittersweet Valentinish song–“Tonight You Belong to Me,” which, ever since it was used as the big number that Steve Martin sang with Bernadette Peters in Martin’s first feature, “The Jerk,” has become a standard part of the uke repertoire. It’s way fun to play and sing.

After you download it and read through it, you’ll notice the phrases in parentheses. Then listen to the performances below (the first one by the two girls who made it a hit in the Fifties, Patience and Prudence, and the second by Bob and the Pine Beetles), and you’ll hear the “echo” built into the song that makes it a lot of fun to sing. Grab your partner or friend and try it out, because Bob will be leading us in those parenthetical echoes at the meeting.

Oh, and here’s the version from “The Jerk.” The uke you hear was played not by Steve Martin–who we know is an excellent bluegrass banjo player–but by the famous uke player Lyle Ritz:

Have fun with it! See you at the meeting.

Well, I don’t know about fantasmic, but everyone who attended sure appeared to enjoy themselves at our January AUS meeting on Thursday evening, January 10, and Lil Rev’s workshop and concert on Thursday evening, January 17.

At our January 10 meeting, Bob taught the group how to play and sing “Barely Breathing,” a really big hit for Duncan Sheik in 1997–although when Bob asked the group whether they knew the song, many people did not raise their hands. Selecting the song was part of AUS’s effort not to always sing pre-1980 songs–we want to find good ones from the last thirty years, too. We had a good time with “Barely Breathing” anyway–it wasn’t a difficult song to catch on to. Here’s Bob’s Barely Breathing – Presentation Format to see what he shared.

If anyone has a suggestion for a song from later than 1980 that lends itself to group ukulele playing, please drop a line to austinukes@gmail.com and let us know. We’re always looking for new stuff.

There were plenty of folks ready to share a song in the open non-mike session, when everyone has a chance to show off their stuff. Many thanks to  Steve, Jack, Ian, Bill and Kathy, Kendra, and Ray and Sandra for doing what they do so well.

We then had to deal with a problem. Our next meeting, if we follow the second-Thursday-of-each-month schedule we’ve been using, falls on February 14. Did we want to hold our next meeting on one of the biggest date nights of the year? After some discussion, we decided that yes, we did.

So if you want to come to the February meeting, perhaps you can bring your partner with you. Wouldn’t an AUS meeting be a great stop on a wonderful Valentine’s evening out?

Next, on the evening of Thursday, January 17, the fabulous uke teacher and performer Lil Rev presented to a group of about 25 of us an exceptional class (it was supposed to be 90 minutes long, but ended up being closer to two hours, and nobody minded a bit) in blues and country licks and how to play them.

Rev stressed that no matter your level, it’s not hard to master little bits of music, such as intros, turnarounds, and outros that you can add to a great many songs in many styles. Of course, you must be willing to spend some time practicing and building up the muscle memory you need to be a good (or better) player.

When you’re starting out as a player, he said, the most frightening words you can hear at a blues or folk jam is when the group leader nods at you and says, “Take it.” Unless, of course, you’ve been practicing.

After a stretch, Rev played us some songs–some instrumental, some vocal, some blues, some Tin Pan Alley–and showed us how much he has practiced (a lot). He played almost every song on a different ukulele, from a soprano to a baritone resonator. If you weren’t there, and if you ever get a chance to see Lil Rev play a concert, don’t miss it.

The Austin Ukulele Society is thrilled to host one of the hottest ukulele performers and teachers touring the US today: Lil Rev! He’ll be conducting a workshop and house concert right here in Austin on Thursday, January 17.

But don’t forget that the Thursday (Jan 17) of the workshop and concert will be preceded by our regular AUS meeting on Thursday (Jan 10) from 7 – 8:30 p.m. at Memorial United Methodist Church at 6100 Berkman Drive, Austin 78723. Here’s our January song, “Barely Breathing” by Duncan Sheik, a big hit from 1997. Here’s a YouTube video that lets you sing and play along, because it’s in the same key as Bob’s lyrics-and-chords sheet:

Now for the Workshop: Hot Licks for Ukulele–90 action-packed minutes of classic rock, blues, and jazz hot licks for ukulele! You’ll learn intros, endings, turnarounds, licks, fills, riffs and how to use them. Get important soloing tips from Rev, as well some juicy music history. There will be handouts and feel free to bring a recorder with you so you can retain these fantastic licks and stories!

The Instructor and Performer: Lil Rev–No, he doesn’t wear a clerical collar–his full name is Marc Revenson. A Milwaukee native and resident, Lil Rev is an award-winning multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and music-historian who teaches and tours the continental US. He was inducted into The Traditional Old-Time Country Music Hall of Fame in 2003 and voted Best Folk Singer in Wisconsin in 2004. Check out his blog (http://fountainofuke.blogspot.com/) and website (http://www.lilrev.com/) for videos and sample tutorials.

Where: Dirty Sixth Studios–610 North I-H 35, Austin, TX 78701
www.dirtysixthstudios.com
The photography studio of the Austin Ukulele Society’s own Jeanette Warner! Austin cool and funky, downtown, right off 6th Street.

When: The fun kicks off at 7:00pm
The workshop runs from 7:00 until 8:30pm, followed by a short stretch break. Then a full solo set of ukulele music by the incomparable Lil Rev!

How Much:
Workshop only, $25
Concert only, $10
Both, $30 (save 5 bucks!)
Please RVSP via email to austinukes@gmail.com to reserve a spot in this special event, as space is limited!

So… It’s two Thursdays in a row… the AUS meeting on 1/10 and the Lil Rev event on Jan 17. Hope to see you at both of them.

First of all, I (Walter) apologize for getting these pictures onto the blog so tardily. But I hope you enjoy them and realize what you missed if you weren’t there–lots of food, lots of song, lots of ukuleles. We gathered on the evening of Thursday, December 13 (our usual meeting date) at Susan and Ted’s house in South Austin (many thanks to them for hosting us, by the way) and sang our previously arranged December songs with Bob leading us–“Blue Christmas,” “Rocking Around the Christmas Tree,” and the Phil Spector version of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” a big hit for the Crystals in the Sixties. We managed pretty well with no projector.

There were also a good number of us who sang and played songs, both holiday and non-holiday themed. Let’s have the pictures do the talking.

Remember, our next meeting, back at the Memorial Methodist Church, is scheduled–tentatively–for Thursday, January 10, 2013, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Watch here for more details.

Warm holiday greetings, ukulele friends!

The Austin Ukulele Society is thrilled to host one of the hottest ukulele performers and teachers touring the US today: Lil Rev! He’ll be conducting a workshop and house concert right here in Austin on Thursday, January 17.

The Workshop: Hot Licks for Ukulele
90 action-packed minutes of classic rock, blues, and jazz hot licks for ukulele! You’ll learn intros, endings, turnarounds, licks, fills, riffs and how to use them. Get important soloing tips from Rev, as well some juicy music history. There will be handouts and feel free to bring a recorder with you so you can retain these fantastic licks and stories!

The Instructor and Performer: Lil Rev
A Milwaukee native and resident, Lil Rev is an award-winning multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and music-historian who teaches and tours the continental US. He was inducted into The Traditional Old-Time Country Music Hall of Fame in 2003 and voted Best Folk Singer in Wisconsin in 2004. Check out his blog (http://fountainofuke.blogspot.com/) and website (http://www.lilrev.com/) for videos and sample tutorials.

Where: Dirty Sixth Studios
610 North I-H 35, Austin, TX 78701
www.dirtysixthstudios.com
The photography studio of the Austin Ukulele Society’s own Jeanette Warner! Austin cool and funky, downtown, right off 6th Street.

What Time: The fun kicks off at 7:00pm
The workshop runs from 7:00 until 8:30pm, followed by a short stretch break. Then a full solo set of ukulele music by the incomparable Lil Rev!

How Much:
Workshop only, $25
Concert only, $10
Both, $30 (save 5 bucks!)

This will be a fun-filled evening of instruction and entertainment not to be missed! Please register by responding to this message – space is limited!

Here’s our third song for the Dec 13 party / meeting; it’s the Crystals’ (i.e. Phil Spector’s) version of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” to accompany the other two songs, “Blue Christmas” and “Rocking Around the Christmas Tree.” We hope to see you there, ready to sing along–remember that there won’t be a projector, so learn it in advance if you plan to join the strumming.

Also don’t forget, if you want to join us, drop a line to austinukes[at]gmail[dot]com, to get the address, and let us know if a) you’re bringing a potluck item and b) whether you plan to sing a solo number. Ho, ho, biddy boom boom.

It’s the time of the year that some folks call “the most wonderful time,” and others call the most stressful, but whatever you call it, we hope you will join us for our Second Annual Potluck and Ukulele Jam. It’ll be held on Thursday, December 13^th, 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm. As it was last year, AUS members Susan and Ted have generously offered to host the gathering at their home in south central Austin. Hooray, Susan and Ted!

This event takes the place of our regular meeting at the Memorial United Methodist Church, so don’t go there this month. Instead, to obtain the address, drop a line to austinukes[at]gmail[dot]com and tell us you’ll be attending.

We’ll be singing a few holiday songs together, but we will not have the regular projector setup. Thus you will probably want to refresh your memories of Blue Christmas and Rocking Around the Christmas Tree, our holiday songs from last year. There’ll be another song or two coming soon, so watch this space.

Bring a dish to share, and BYOB. If you’d like to do a solo song, holiday-themed or not, bring that along, too. And of course bring your uke. Hope to see you there.

On November 8, AUS held its monthly meeting at the Memorial Methodist church. It’s always good to get together. All who were there appeared to enjoy themselves very much, at last as far as I could tell. We had the usual T-shirt sale (Don’t have one yet? Order yours for $20 each from austinukes[at]gmail[dot]com). We also heard about an upcoming January workshop and performance from Lil Rev, a Wisconsin uke player who’s touring though Texas, to be held in south Austin. I’ve seen him perform; he’s a lot of fun. Watch this space for more news soon about the workshop and the accompanying performance soon.

At the Nov 8 meeting, we spent more time than you would imagine (if you know the deceptively simple song only casually) on the old Creedence Clearwater song Proud Mary. If you aren’t a polished player, the intro alone takes some attention, but our group rose to the challenge. Bob just sent me the Proud Mary – Presentation Format (i.e. the PowerPoint version he presented at the meeting) with more information about strumming and chording the song. Try it out, whether you were there or not

As usual, we had a crew of folks providing a number of stimulating solo spins. Woody sang the old Jim Croce number “Operator.” Joe sang a number I wasn’t familiar with, but the title seemed to be something like “She loves my dog more than she loves me.” Gary played a uke version of the “One Note Samba.”

Bill and Kathy played an original song by Kathy that they also played at the “Ukes for the Cure” show. Jack performed Neil Diamond’s first hit song from the mid-Sixties, “Solitary Man.” Bob sang “You’re Not Alone,” and yours truly (Walter) performed that old 1920s chestnut, “Let’s All Sing Like the Birdies Sing.”

It was tres fun, and if you are a ukulele player and you aren’t coming to the meetings, you’re missing out. So come!