Sweetpea sent us this announcement:

“Hey all! Do NOT forget to tease your hair and bring your uke to the Skinny’s Ballroom Ukulele Night, Wednesday May 18th (this Wednesday) 7pm. We will be strumming from the likes of Lionel Richie, Duran Duran and more! Your first drink is on Skinny just for bringing your uke in… the open mic portion does not have to be 80’s but dare to take on something new or new wave.)”

Place: Skinny’s Ballroom, 115 San Jacinto Blvd. Parking available directly across the street in the Austin Convention Center ramp. skinnysballroom.com

When: Wednesday, May 18, 7:00 to 9:00pm

Del Rey is one of the most impressive blues ukulele players out there, but she rarely comes through TX. Now her “BLUE UKE” workshop is coming to Guitar Tex in San Antonio (http://www.guitartex.com/) on Saturday, June 4th from 4-6 p.m. Attendance will be very limited, so make your reservation early. It will cost $30.00, and that will also get you a gift card for $30.00 to use on anything in the store at Guitar Tex.

Del will teach you how to play serious blues on the ukulele. She is extremely talented, to say the least, and has a wealth of knowledge about American “roots” music of all kinds. Recommended for moderate to advanced players.

There’s a good story, “Close to Perfect,” in Sunday’s Austin Statesman about Central Texas’s own Collings Guitars, which tells us that they also turn out about 350 deluxe ukuleles a year. Take a look, and watch the video. Interested in buying one? Elderly Music, in Ann Arbor, MI, sells them.

Probably many of you have heard about Eddie Vedder’s (of Pearl Jam fame) upcoming album, and that he’s often been seen playing our four-stringed friend. If you haven’t read it yet, check out this story in the New York Times. It gives a great overview of the ukulele’s position in music in 2011.

AUS’s own Jen was at the Old Settler’s Festival this past weekend to see, among other acts, ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro (known in ukulele circles as simply “Jake”). She writes:

I was fortunate to attend the Old Settler’s Music Festival on Saturday, April 16^th, and see Jake Shimabukuro perform, to a ‘stunned silent’ audience, for just over an hour.  It was a beautiful day and Jake and his Kamaka 4-string tenor ukulele kept everyone enthralled with gorgeous compositions and the stories behind them as well as the songs for which he put on his ‘basketball jersey’ to cover, including the song that put him on the map, “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.”  He also covered Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” and Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” both of which can be found on his latest album, PEACE LOVE UKULELE.  

After his set, I waited in line at the merchandise booth for a chance to chat with Jake and get an autograph and a photo.  I told him that I really enjoyed his performance and that I’d seen him at the Cactus Café, exactly three years prior.  He remembered that night well as Jimmy Buffet had turned up to watch him play, too.  Of course, I mentioned that I had co-founded the Austin Ukulele Society and he was enthused about it and asked what our turnout was like and what songs we played.  I also mentioned that I had emailed his publicist to see if he would possibly make a guest appearance at one of our meetings while in town for Old Settler’s but that I hadn’t heard back.  He (kindly) agreed to try and join us next time he comes to Austin, if we can coordinate a meeting around his appearance.

After spending the whole day at the festival, seeing many great musicians play, I can say (mostly unbiased) that his performance knocked more socks off than any other and clearly garnered new fans and love for our favorite four-stringed instrument. 

Peace, Love, and Ukulele! -Jen