A Supergroup, what the ukulele community needs

Kimosabe

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A modest proposal:

I was thinking about Jake and wondering what you would have if Jake were a member of a group. Suppose you had a killer bass player, a percussionist, a great rhythm ukulele player, baritone or tenor, and Jake as a lead player like a lead guitarist, and all or most of them capable of singing in harmony and throw in some very nice songwriting. You’d have something like the Beatles without guitars but rather ukuleles. This would bring a lot of attention to the ukulele and its possibilities.

No, I’m not smoking anything, just thinking what if.

I guess the idea I’m playing with is rather than having players like Jake having one person shows you put them in groups where they work with equally talented players, but don’t dominate the show.

There have been Hawaiian super groups that included ukulele players, the Crater Boys for example, but they were only a duo.

Leeward was part of Hui Ohana with Dennis Pavao. Gabby was in a supergroup in the Hawaiian Renaissance. But where are our supergroup ukulele rock groups, the Cream of ukuleles?

Young dudes and dudettes out there, get kicking!
 
Definitely cool. Thanks. Fun. Nice videos. I like the use of the sax and the uke bass works. Would like to hear some Beatles or Everly Brothers like harmony with some super uke group, but that’s my taste.

The one improvement I’d make is to not be afraid of using an electric uke and feeding it through a guitar amp, get that rock guitar sound. We don’t always need that chunkity chunk rhythm sound. You can make the argument that that’s what guitars are for but I’ll say that’s also what ukes could be for.
 
You know the problem with "Super" groups is that the members of these groups just end up hating each other due to personal and musical differences yet just stay together for the money.

Where's the "Mahalo" in that?

Sorry to be a buzzkill, yet there's nothing wrong with keeping ukulele music more relaxed than that.
 
Well there’s a lot of truth that many of these super groups fall apart because of super egos clashing, but sometimes they just last long enough to produce some wonderful material. I think that’s where the aloha lies.
 
Aloha Kimosabe, have you heard of Beat-lele? They do a pretty good job of Beatles covers with ukuleles and a cajon.

Hope to see you around sometime! You still on Oahu?

 
Long time, Pueo. Hope all is well. Very sweet. Are these the guys who were playing at the last Waikiki Ukulele Festival, down Diamond Head end? If they are the crowd was really enjoying them. The cajón works well with ukuleles, not too overpowering but solid, organic.

Now we need a group like this that can write their own material. I know I’m asking too much but Jerry Santos and Robert Beaumont were definitely heading in this direction on that first Olomana record. Some great songs, singing and playing. Let’s put Jake into a group like that. Probably best to ask him first though. He might be busy at some garage party.
Aloha.
 
Not a super "group" but these guys are pretty good.



The guy playing uke could have a real future... lol!

John
 
Good example, mjh42. I think your average bloke on the street needs to know that an ukulele can be played like what you provided. It certainly doesn’t always have to be played like that but a group should have variety. The Beatles and the Stones used electric and acoustic instruments. Sometimes you just want Carlos Santana to play in a different style. Break it up.

Very nice playing. I’m going to listen again. Might have to grab Mr. Pi’ikea Vasquez and put him in our supergroup. I bet he also plays very well acoustically. If you played a tape of him for your average rock fan they probably wouldn’t guess it was a ukulele being played. Some of Ohta-san’s bossa nova work hides the fact that he’s playing ukulele.

This kind of leads back to an earlier topic on the UU: Do you seek out ukulele music? My answer is that I seek out music that sounds good to me.
 
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The video of Mr. Pi'ikea Vasquez was what inspired my to buy my Godin......I cannot play the instrument to that level yet......but I can aspire.....and enjoy...I've enjoyed all the video's in this thread.....as I enjoyed playing my Koaloha this evening and likely will plug in and turn it up tomorrow evening with the Godin.....the ukulele has a voice within the playable scale but also as varied as the makers and the players......
 
The video I posted earlier of Pure Heart was a re-union of the band Jake planned with in the late 90's. Jake has played in bands and has jammed with other musicians. I kinda doubt he would be interested in putting a uke based supergroup together. It won't have the commercial success of rock supergroups of the past. It would be a niche market. I could see Jake doing something similar to what Carlos Santana did with Supernatural years ago. Bring other artists from different genres together and record a really diverse album. Personally, I think that would be the way to go.

John
 
Pure Heart is/was a monster supergroup in Hawaiʻi. Did Nashville Sessions not count? I'm a little confused. Guess we're wishing for a specifically ROCK group?

Think about it: did we have rock music before the electric guitar? Would we ever have gotten the Beatles or the Stones or TOOL or Lenny Kravitz if those guys were writing and performing on acoustic guitar? I doubt it. The sound would be completely different because THAT'S the instrument - it's limitations and advantages come with it.

ʻUkulele is an acoustic instrument. It lends itself to Hawaiian and acoustic music. IN MY OPINION, anything else can very easily be a novelty. That said:

ʻUkulele in Hawaiʻi is specifically NOT exciting or remarkable. That's why we have amazing music that utilizes the instrument in a musical context as-is. There's zero novelty because it's ordinary, like driving a Honda. If that's the instrument you play and you're in a band playing music that you love - great! Nobody really cares whether you play the uke or electric guitar to get your sounds.

Anytime there's an ʻukulele-based *wish*, you end up with something like Beat-lele that comes across as a novelty. Don't get me wrong, they're really good, but I can't not think of them as a "you-ka-lay-lee" band because of what they do.

FWIW, my buddies and I have a rock band called Kingside (two of us on uke). It's one of my favorite musical projects to play in and I think we're quite above average. But we rarely play anywhere because we're just another band as far as Hawaiʻi is concerned. If we wanted to market ourselves as a novelty ʻukulele band we could probably tour all over the world playing at ʻukulele festivals and make tons of money. :rolleyes:

I think most great players recognize this pitfall immediately and make the choice to play the most authentic music possible, NOT partake in a novelty band. Thus the lack of "supergroups."

James Hill basically took the best stab at rock I've heard on the instrument with Old Silo. But because he didn't market himself as a novelty, I feel like he kind of got swept under the rug by the uke crowd. And to everyone else he was just another guy playing folk-rock music.

Pick your poison: riches and fame playing what you think people (i.e. uke enthusiasts) WANT to hear or keep working the day job making the music YOU want? True, authentic talent that actually makes it big is so rare that I think it's hard to comprehend for people outside the industry.
 
I am not sure an ukulele super group would make it outside the Ukulele enthusiasts world, it could be fun to hear.
It is quite peculiar that many of the most prominent i ukulele-heroes dont seem to sing. I wonder if they would in a band.
 
A modest proposal: I was thinking about Jake and wondering what you would have if Jake were a member of a group.

You know the problem with "Super" groups is that the members of these groups just end up hating each other due to personal and musical differences yet just stay together for the money.

The first thing I thought of when I saw the title of this thread is a group made up of stars. I recently saw a documentary on The Highwaymen, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and Kris Kristofferson. One major point was how well they all got along because at the time they formed, they all had great success and weren't competing, they were just enjoying performing together.

My group would be any four of Jake, Taimane, Daniel Ho, James Hill, Eddie Vedder, Jason Mraz, Kris Fushigami, Brittni Paiva.


This is Michael Kohan in Los Angeles, Beverly West near the Beverly Center
9 tenor cutaway ukes, 5 acoustic bass ukes, 11 solid body bass ukes, 11 mini electric bass guitars (Total: 35)

• Donate to The Ukulele Kids Club, they provide ukuleles to children in hospital music therapy programs. www.theukc.org
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George Harrison

Roy Orbison

Bob Dylan

Jeff Lynne

Tom Petty

A Supergroup does not get any better than The Travelling Wilburys and not an ego in sight.

A Uke Supergroup sadly would not be a worldwide Supergroup just a USA Supergroup.

Jake came here to the UK this year and could not fill a small (1000 seat) Theatre never mind The Royal Albert Hall in fact three of his five planned shows ended up being cancelled.

A Uke Revolution is needed before we can get to a proper Uke Supergroup, it is starting here in the UK since every major City and Town has active Uke Groups, there are three such groups where I live but sadly we are not in the Supergroup league but we are keen.
 
The Super Groups we think of were people of our time, playing the instruments of our time.

Electric guitars & drum kits were what made our Super Groups; small jazz orchestras/bands made the Super Groups of a previous time; & before that, you had orchestras; so I think you need to think of when a uke is the instrument of the time, then you will find your uke Super Group.

Personally, I don't see why people couldn't use solid body electric ukes instead of guitars in a group anyway, apart from not having the lower strings, but that's where the electric bass uke would fit. :)
 
I don't know any about super groups. I have been lately enjoying how nicely ukulele is taken in latin music genre. It suits there so well and players need not be jake or others superstars, just ordinary musicians that blend their playing so well into a song's context.
 
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