![]() It flew in the face of pre-programmed pop music, and suddenly the uke was hip again. In 1999, the brilliant songwriter Stephen Merritt put the uke in the spotlight on his critically hailed triple album, "69 Love Songs," that he recorded with the Magnetic Fields. It quickly began popping up in TV commercials and in movies ("Finding Forrester," "50 First Dates," "Meet Joe Black" and on and on). Rotund Hawaiian singer Israel Kamakawiwo (aka Iz) recorded a sparse, dreamy version of "Over the Rainbow" using only his tenor voice and a softly strummed uke. The instrument, which first gained popularity after Portuguese laborers brought it to Hawaii in the 19th century, got a re-boot in the 1990s courtesy of the 50th state. Let’s be honest, there are just so many times you can listen to "Tip-Toe Thru the Tulips With Me" before you reach for your revolver. It is probably because the four-stringed instrument looks like a Hobbit’s bass fiddle.ĭuring the last half of the 20th century, ukulele-playing goofballs such as Tiny Tim and Arthur Godfrey helped reinforce the instrument's reputation as something trite and cutesy. Now that sounds like a great place to be.ĭespite those ringing endorsements by Beatles royalty, the ukelele is usually written off as a novelty item. Harrison used to hand them out to guests after dinner parties at his house and then stage a jam session. ![]() ![]() George Harrison, who once, I am told, played in a band with McCartney, was big fan of the uke, too. I have loved the sound of the ukelele ever since I was child and first heard Paul McCartney singing his lilting, melancholy ditty “Ram On.”
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