Hull Ukulele Group

As we enter 2023, we’ve had a few date changes – so anyone wanting to come along and play needs to check out the calendar link above to see what’s changed. In a nutshell, we can’t have the first Monday of the month in February, March and April or the second Monday in January. We have therefore moved those practises to the Wednesday.

We had our first meeting of the year in Jan and decided that we want to play a few more public performances and we might actually advertise that we are playing in advance.

As always we are adding new songs and going to keep a core of songs that we play well.

If you are interesting in learning to play or continuing in a friendly group, we meet a the Highway Pub on Willerby Road – check the calendar for the dates. It’s always 7:30pm to 10pm with a 15 minute break roughly halfway through the night.

Ta
John

I get asked often if the group has died and have we stopped playing live or even meeting in a pub.

The rumours about our demise are untrue. We meet once a week either a Monday or Wednesday and we have been playing live throughout the summer of 2022. We have, (at the most), over 20 players and regularly get 12 players for a night of tunes and ukulele chat.

To get used to playing live, we have been playing un-advertised/ un-authorised gigs in parks around Hull where there is a bandstand, (East Park, Pearson Park, Pickering Park), along with Ella Street Festival. We were even asked to play a party for a lady’s 70th birthday with a 60’s /70’s theme.

In keeping with the tradition of organisers getting the name wrong, at Ella Street Festival, we were advertised in advance, on chalk board timetables and over the speaker system on the day as “Hug Ukulele Group”. Me saying “Hull Ukulele Group – spells H.U.G.” seems to have been misinterpreted.

Playing live without advertising/ permission means that the only people who saw us were passing park users – typically dog walkers, child herders and bench regulars.

So, we’re not dead, we just don’t advertise our existence that much. 🙂
– John

We meet every two weeks on a Monday and the following week we meet on the Wednesday. This odd Mon/ Wed arrangement is due to the pub only being able to arrange us with other groups that use the room on a Monday. It’s seem so to work well for people who can’t make a particular (or regular) Monday or Wednesday.

In the past we have avoided Bank Holidays, but with the lockdown crippling us, I don’t care anymore.
A night having fun with a uke and friendly folk is great on a Bank Holiday and a “normal week day”!

Check the Calendar link at the top of this page for details of the practise night and when we play in public

Mondays tend to be social, where we relax a bit and try new songs.
Wednesdays, we tend to concentrate on a set list for gigs and go over songs and how to lay them and break them down.

I hope to see you one night. We are a friendly bunch. It’s not too formal and we don’t take ourselves seriously.

John

Recent meetings have been going well with a lot of people attending. I like the atmosphere and I’m impressed with the quality of the playing.

I’m not happy with the projector set up and I’m trying to publish as much music as possible so that people can print music or bring in their own devices with the music.

Here’s the links to the music I put on the screen last Monday (click to get the music).

Alright

Everybody’s Talking

Lady Madonna

Live Forever

Losing My Religion

Mad World

Norwegian Wood

Hope to see you at the next meeting.

With St Patrick’s day approaching and with all the parties that you will be attending and pubs that you will be singing in – I brought some songs that were suitable for an “Irish night”.

Black Velvet Band 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/black-velvet-band.pdf 

Cockles and Muscles 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/cockles-and-mussels-molly-malone-c.pdf 

Dirty Old Town (we need an harmonica!) 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/dirty-old-town-c.pdf 

The Irish Rover 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/irish-rover-the.pdf 

Teenage Kicks 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/teenage-kicks.pdf 

The Leaving of Liverpool 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/leaving-of-liverpool.pdf 

Whiskey in the Jar 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/whiskey-in-the-jar.pdf

The Wild Rover 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/wild-rover.pdf 

Zombie – Cranberries (we didn’t play this, because it makes me cry, but here it is) 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/zombie.pdf 

Now, for some reason I associate Country music with the Irish. I can’t think why. Something is clearly wrong with me – so I also brought a handful of country songs.

King of the Road 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/king-of-the-road.pdf 

Hey Good Lookin’ 
https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/hey-good-lookin.pdf     

You’re Cheatin Heart (extra points for borderline yodelling) https://hullukulelegroup.files.wordpress.com/2022/03/your-cheating-heart.pdf

See you at the next meeting.
John

Hello lovely people.

I have been meaning to do a video explaining the Fratellis “Whistle for the Choir”, but haven’t gotten around to it. It looks very difficult and it’s really not. They have daft chords in there that once explained, make perfect sense.

The music we played at the last meeting: (click on each)
Dancing in the Dark
Every Day is Like Sunday
Somewhere in My Heart
Man on the Moon
This is the Life – she starts singing slow and then it’s 6 words per second during the chorus
Whistle for the Choir

Whistle for the Choir – let’s see if I can explain it (Don’t worry – it’s not hard)
Forget the Dbm that has dark circles – play the one with white circles.
Dbm – press your first finger between the 3rd and 4th fret of the CEA string (the bottom three strings as you hold the uke). REST the tip of your finger on G string (The top one as you hold your uke). This mutes the top string. m444

Then to move to the E6 – simply move your finger across all 4 strings. 4444

E6 to Eb6 to D6 are all done by strumming once and move the finger that is “barring” the strings one fret down with each strum. 4444>3333>2222

The strumming pattern is

A – DDUDDUDDUDUDUD
Dbm – DDUDDUD
E6 – D
Eb6 – D
D6 – DDUDDUD-DD
E7 – DDUDDUDDUDUDU

(To be honest I tried a few strumming patterns that worked).

Hello lovely people.

Regular meeting tomorrow night. It doesn’t feel like two weeks since our last meeting – ‘cos it isn’t.

We’ll have an evening of song and chat with a pint or two.

Beginners welcome of course.

Next meeting – changed day/ date. Not 24th – but 26th!

The pub is busy on the next Monday night (24th) so the lovely landlady has suggested Wednesday night (26th).

Please cancel your operations, don’t visit those long lost relatives, forget that important appointment and come for a night of strumming at the pub with the greatest instrument ever.

It’s good for your mental health, it’s social, it great for developing callouses on your fingertips and keeping warm.

Beginners are welcome and if you are uncertain, just turn up and give it a try.

Next meeting 7:30pm Highway pub, Willerby Road 26th January.

Hello lovely peoples.
Next meeting is tomorrow night.
10th January 7:30pm to 10pm at The Highway on Willoughby Road HU5 5LH-

I didn’t want an update from me getting lost in all those “Happy New Year” messages last week, so I’m posting this here and now.

I’ve been ask if we accept complete beginners by a couple of people. We love new people. They add richness to the group and suggestions and talent.

If you just got a uke for Christmas and don’t know what end to blow into, please come along and we can help. We’ll show you the basics and give you the encouragement that you need to bring out the player within. We are a harmless bunch of enthusiasts and we would love to meet you.

For your diaries and so you don’t have to ask : here are the dates for the year:
10/01/2022
24/01/2022
07/02/2022
21/02/2022
07/03/2022
21/03/2022
04/04/2022
18/04/2022 – Easter Monday
02/05/2022 – Early May Bank Holiday
16/05/2022
30/05/2022
13/06/2022
27/06/2022
11/07/2022
25/07/2022
08/08/2022
22/08/2022
05/09/2022
19/09/2022
03/10/2022
17/10/2022
31/10/2022
14/11/2022
28/11/2022
12/12/2022
As you can see there are a couple of Bank Holidays that crash – we’ll have to decide what to do on those dates.

So I’ll see you tomorrow night and we can have the first strum of the year.

Ta John

Hello everyone. It’s that time again. Time for strumming and chat over a pint at The Highway on Willerby Road. Remember it’s every two weeks.

It will be the regular mix of new and old songs. As we approach bonfire night and Halloween, we’ll throw in some appropriate songs.

There will also be news of a small gig we’ve been asked to do and some decisions to make.

I really enjoyed the last meeting we had and had a good time. Thank you everyone.

At the last meeting I chose old songs that people are familiar with, but haven’t tried to play. These were songs from 1920s – 1960s. It makes this post a rather long one, but enjoy!

I said I would post them for people to practise at home. Here they are:

Whispering Grass – YOUTUBE

I Don’t want to set the world on fire – YOUTUBE

La Vie en Rose (in English – mostly) YOUTUBE
(you basically play along three times with the instrumental start and end).

Stormy Weather – YOUTUBE
(really slows strum)

Pennies from Heaven – YOUTUBE

Somewhere Over the Rainbow (Judy) YOUTUBE

Ain’t Misbehavin YOUTUBE

Finally – I have two versions of California Dreaming – YOUTUBE