New Ukelele player. Confused with Mike Lynch's book No. 1

Col50 said:
$20

That is a rip off price for a PDF or any electronic file.
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I strongly disagree.

I bought all 5 of mikes books (with some difficulty) for under $100, they are a great resource and reflect the enormous amount of work he put into the books.

Sure you can compile a disjointed library of instructional videos, however these books offer an enormous number of chord melody arrangements that can be referenced via PC or printed out singly or in book form.

I guess you will never change the mind of those who feel everything should be available at no cost, just bear in mind, you get what you pay for.

I suspect that those who feel they are over priced are probably not ready to use the material they contain.

Here's an instructional video of his chord melody arrangement of Streets Of Laredo from book four, at no charge I might add.;)
 
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Mike's chord melody books are available fairly easily, as long as you're willing to deal with Paypal and have a little patience. I've had the first four volumes of his chord melody collections for a while, but never got around to purchasing the fifth volume. I corrected that situation last week. All you need to do is go to his website, http://ukulelemikelynch.com/, and click the "Donate" button. Add the amount you want to spend ($20 for each volume) and specify exactly what you want and where you want the file sent in the Paypal comments field. Within a day or so, Collene, Mike's widow, will send you the file(s), usually with a nice personal note. She's told me that they are working on a more comprehensive and user-friendly ordering method, so it should improve soon. All of Mike's material is "in-print" as PDF files and can still be purchased from his site.

Yes, they're not cheap, but I've found them very useful, well-crafted and fun. Several of his pieces have become a mainstay of my repertoire.
 
Snargle said:
Mike's chord melody books are available fairly easily, as long as you're willing to deal with Paypal and have a little patience. I've had the first four volumes of his chord melody collections for a while, but never got around to purchasing the fifth volume. I corrected that situation last week. All you need to do is go to his website, http://ukulelemikelynch.com/, and click the "Donate" button. Add the amount you want to spend ($20 for each volume) and specify exactly what you want and where you want the file sent in the Paypal comments field. Within a day or so, Collene, Mike's widow, will send you the file(s), usually with a nice personal note. She's told me that they are working on a more comprehensive and user-friendly ordering method, so it should improve soon. All of Mike's material is "in-print" as PDF files and can still be purchased from his site.

Yes, they're not cheap, but I've found them very useful, well-crafted and fun. Several of his pieces have become a mainstay of my repertoire.
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Good to hear Larry, I had quite a bit of difficulty with the purchase, this was not long after Mike passed away, I guess things have settled down now.

I will edit my previous post.:)
 
BBegall said:
Just looking at that site and what is available it looks suspiciously like a rip off meant to cash in on the continued interest in this man. I wonder if his estate has anything at all to do with this? The offerings there don't include the chord/melody books I was referencing.
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BBgall:
Thanks for your sympathy, but to be fair, Mike's wife Collene just sent me a refund. So I wouldn't harbor any ill thoughts of a deliberate rip-off. OK, I was wondering myself, but the refund put those thoughts to rest.
Aloha!
 
Col50 said:
$20

That is a rip off price for a PDF or any electronic file.

There are masses of free Ukulele tutorials online that can help to get you going.

There are thousands of songs and PDF file books that players have created and made available, for the majority they are Transcribed songs and not rip offs of commercial books.

Tips
Download and printout a Free chord chart for reference.

If you also join UU Fb page you will find a song posted there with the appropriate chords used shown and above the song text is where to play a specific chord.

Just start off with simple down strums on a Bar, 1 2 3 4 whilst holding the chord. Change chord and repeat, keep doing this until your chord changes are swift and smooth.

Chords C Am F G G7 (and variations) will get you playing dozens and dozens of songs

Look up a song like Iko Iko and it only has a couple of chords so is simple and quick to learn.

Look up strum patterns and printout, practicethem

Learn Island pattern D - D U - U D U and this will set you up well for hundreds of songs.

So there you are using the Internet can be far faster and more rewarding.
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Col50:
Thanks for all the suggestions. All good stuff!
Vic
 
Choirguy said:
I disagree with you on this statement, although I agree with your other assessment that additional resources are available on the internet for free.

There aren't that many resources with Chord Melody, which is a great format that falls between being able to play chords and being able to play full-out tab. Chord Melody is created in such a way that it generally requires strumming with the right hand, and the left hand generally focuses on chords.

I've found hours of enjoyment with Mike's books, and as an iPad (Pro) owner, the "no strings attached" PDF format works incredibly well for me. It took time to create the arrangements and then to digitize them. I'd love to see a lower price point, sure, but knowing the payment went directly to Mike (C&M Productions was his company) made the purchase easier.

If you want to look at chord melody resources that are free, look at Spencer Gay's ukeeducation.org.
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Choirguy:
Thanks for the suggestions. I just bookmarked Ukeeducation.org, and will check it out.
I'll also visit the UU page "How the Ukulele Found You" very soon.

Vic
 
bunnyf said:
I’m with Choirguy. There aren’t alot of ukulele chord melody arrangements out there (at least not of the songs that he has included). I think they are a good value. Each book has a good number of songs. I can’t say for sure but I do believe that Mike’s family has tried to continue to make these books available because there is an ongoing interest in them.

Funny, but I was just playing Mike’s arrangement of “Four Strong Winds” today. His arrangements have also given me ideas on how I might want to arrange tunes for other instruments or in other keys. Mike’s videos were some of the first that I watched when I started out on uke years ago. He was a wonderful educator and uke enthusiast. I miss him and am happy that he lives on in the work he has left behind,
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Bunny:
Amen
 
Geekster2 said:
BBgall:
Thanks for your sympathy, but to be fair, Mike's wife Collene just sent me a refund. So I wouldn't harbor any ill thoughts of a deliberate rip-off. OK, I was wondering myself, but the refund put those thoughts to rest.
Aloha!
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Thanks. I'm actually very happy to hear that this is legit. I'd like to buy more of his chord melody books.

While not for beginners, it seemed to me that Mike's arrangements seldom have the kind impossible finger stretching chords that I so often find in other collections. His arrangements just seem more accessible to the advanced beginner or intermediate player.
 
Talk about a stretch try measure 27 in Akaka Falls. I have his books and really like the work and skill he put into his arrangements. I’m not a big fan of doing a Chord Melody but every few months when I think I might be getting sort of better, I try Chord Melody again. For now chords and singing are working. It’s not hard for most folks just me. I like assigning a finger to a string and not just using the thumb. Not being very good it’s much easier to hide mistakes with my voice.
 
I have most of Mike's book and I think they are worth every penny. They are intended for intermediate players. His arrangements highlight the beauty of simplicity. You can play them as written, or you can easily modify them as you wished. I started my first chord melody song on Mike's arrangement, and I started my first re-arrangement on Mike's arrangement.
I would suggest anyone who is considering getting his books to act now. There is no telling how long his family members will keep the website going.
 
I sent a message to inquire about purchasing more chord melody books (I have book 1) to days ago and I'm still waiting to hear back. I'd love to get all five.
 
Just to update, I tried contacting the Lynch site to purchase additional chord melody books (I have book 1) about a month ago and never heard back.

If anyone has any of these pdf books that they would be willing to share I'd appreciate hearing from you.
 
BBegall said:
Just to update, I tried contacting the Lynch site to purchase additional chord melody books (I have book 1) about a month ago and never heard back.

If anyone has any of these pdf books that they would be willing to share I'd appreciate hearing from you.
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I just went ahead and donated $60, asking in my note in PayPal for the first 3 volumes of the Chord Melody books. I’ll report back on what happens!
 
I didnt read the whole thread, so maybe this was said already by someone else

Mike died.
But his family still sells his books.
Its unusual, to "donate" first and later get the download link, but it works ... they need some time, sometimnes but you will get your book, dont worry

And i would say Chord Melody isnt something for beginners, but maybe something for advanced beginners, and those books are great.
 
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For anyone interested, Collene appears to still be there; I received the PDFs of volumes 1-3, plus volume 4 because I had overpaid. I’d rather get another volume than be refunded the $10 or whatever it was!

Perhaps it was due to this OP, but Collene made sure to tell me that the books were written with ukulele players who have the basics down in mind. She also provided several links and tips for working on the songs (like pick songs with melodies you know first, so you immediately know by ear if you’re fretting the wrong notes.

I can’t wait to print these out to start working on!
 
Gotta say, I’ve only skimmed through while at work, but I’m super happy with the value of these books/PDFs! Between the first three volumes there are at least 120 arrangements and original tunes. Notated clearly and in large enough font to see well, but it causes some songs to be multiple pages which I know bothers some folks. As someone who spent years counting 132 bars of rest before playing in orchestral pieces, I couldn’t care less about page turns.

Also, in the introduction to volume 1, I found this poignant passage:
C0CDB1DF-7AFC-4ADA-9739-13D12D67FB16.jpg

While this is good advice for any practice session, I can’t help but feel like it may have been overlooked by the OP.
 
I ordered books 1, 2, and 3 of his chord melody books. I love all three of them. I agree that they are not for a beginner. However, not difficult if you read music a little. I play piano and read music well. So I could play some of the numbers the 2nd month I had my baritone ukulele. Unless you are one who can play well by ear and do not need any one to guide you, the books are great. Learn the song the way it is written and then close the book and get on it. Do your own thing. Daahhh old me, I just play them as written.
 
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