When I got the invite to test drive Pick Smith’s Jam Kat I agreed, not knowing what exactly a Jam Kat did or who Pick Smith was. Twenty minutes of poking around their website got me only marginally closer to answering those questions, but I did eventually determine that the Jam Kat is a rather [...]
I’ve never been a particularly handy person. My friends know better than to ask for my help with home improvement projects, and my instrument repair skills are mostly confined to string changes. But after building Stewart-MacDonald’s soprano uke kit, I have a new found confidence in my abilities.
Owen Holt may not be a name you know, but he’s one of the great innovators of the ukulele. His Road Toad shop produces some amazing-shaped ukes, like the Sharkfin and Mana, that are some of the finest sounding ukes made today. But more importantly, he’s created a fifth uke to add to the set [...]
Title: Monkey Swing Monkey Doo
Artist: Doctor Sparkles
Label: Kevin Patrick Baiko
Year: 2008
It’s been a year since I rediscovered music by picking up the ukulele. Now I’m completely obsessed with this little instrument and in addition, all the accessories that go along with them. Ok, there really aren’t THAT many ukulele accessories… But, one accessory that I use every time I play is a tuner. As a [...]
I don’t live in a big city and it’s rare to find a ukulele store within 100 miles radius of my town. For that reason, I was super excited when I learned about a new ukulele store opening up only 8 miles from my house! Mainland Ukes in Nashville, Indiana is run by Mike Hater [...]
I think we can all agree that a ukulele is a really small instrument. But If you enjoy traveling and are also obsessed with packing as lightly as possible, even a soprano sized ukulele in its case can require too much room in your luggage. Not to worry though, I have a great solution for [...]
UAS (Ukulele Acquisition Syndrome) is a condition that once acquired can never be truly cured. I caught this disease very shortly after discovering the ukulele late last fall. In that time, I have purchased and reviewed instruments from several popular brands. But then something happened. I decided to have a custom instrument made – a [...]
- A guest review by Ben Hinkley
I received my Kamaka ukulele yesterday, and what an instrument it is. I bought it from Elderly Instruments, Lansing MI. I was offered a really polite and efficient service ordered on Friday morning of the 29th August and shipped to the U.K where I received it on Monday morning [...]
Well folks, my experience of wanting, ordering, and receiving my very first custom instrument is now complete. If you’ve been following along, I have been writing about my Boat Paddle Ukulele journey since the end of March when Jerry Hoffmann began building my custom concert sized uke. I won’t re-write that entire story as you [...]