Sing along songs for ukulele?

Not my favorites, but I have a couple of Bob Denver songs in my repertoire and people seem to sing along with. Country Roads is probably the one that most people jump in on most often. I really don't like Bob Denver songs, but everyone else seems to. I play them a lot. What the heck is a mountain mama?
 
Not my favorites, but I have a couple of Bob Denver songs in my repertoire and people seem to sing along with. Country Roads is probably the one that most people jump in on most often. I really don't like Bob Denver songs, but everyone else seems to. I play them a lot. What the heck is a mountain mama?

You must have watched "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis," "F-Troop" or "Gilligan's Island" recently. ;)
 
You guys got me. I won't go back and change it, that would just add to the fun. :) Sorry Cornfield, for sending your thread off on a tangent so quickly.
 
Last edited:
You guys got me. I won't go back and change it, that would just add to the fun. :) Sorry Cornfield, for sending your thread off on a tangent so quickly.

We knew who you were referring to RLLink, couldn't resist the opportunity to stir the pot.;)
 
It might depend on the age group, but playing Beatles music usually works, especially the older stuff. And there’s no shortage of material to choose from. :)

Jan
 
Not my favorites, but I have a couple of Bob Denver songs in my repertoire and people seem to sing along with. Country Roads is probably the one that most people jump in on most often. I really don't like Bob Denver songs, but everyone else seems to. I play them a lot. What the heck is a mountain mama?

I'm not enamored with either of the Denver Cousin's song catalogs.
 
Sweet Caroline

Brown Eyed Girl

Stray Cat Strut
 
Try "Don't Worry, Be Happy".
Even if they don't know it they'll soon join in with the " Do do do " bit.
Make up some verses to suit your audience - as long as they get to the chorus they'll be happy.
 
I'm preparing to retire after 40 years as a pediatric nurse (5 weeks and counting), but I will continue to be a music volunteer at the children's hospital. I'll help out for a few hours each week in the music room. It's pretty much an open/drop-in room, where the volunteers play music and sing for and with patient's and their families. We have a bunch of musical instruments (lots of ukes) that the kids can interact with. My goal in the next 5 weeks is to work on a set list of sorts for my volunteer days. Songs like all those mentioned so far. Songs that are universal favorites that everyone knows, plus songs aimed more at the kids....Disney tunes, and current pop tunes.
 
Many of these tunes are getting to be 60 years old, which is not such a bad thing.

If you are playing with a younger group of people, many of these tunes will be written before their mothers were born. Look up the lyric to the Beatle's tune: "Your Mother Should Know". If you have accidentally opened a video of a live Taylor Swift concert, you may realise that any of the songs in the Billboard top 100 are good sing along tunes, a lot of younger people know the words by heart.

Its not hard to follow the Billboard chart using a platform like FaceBook or Instathing, or just checking the Billboard chart once a week. Out of the top 100 there will be some tunes that do not fit what you want and there will be one or two that are perfect for your sing-along, once everyone learns the words. They will have words, or a least a chorus, that will be easy to teach to an audience.

So if you are hoping to endear yourself or your group to anyone born after 1980, maybe you would consider concentrating on material that has been released or recorded this century, dropped as they say in the hip newspapers.

I am not sure if Jim Beloff would read this, but maybe he would enjoy a project: "365.25 Tunes from the 21st Century"? Start the project this Saturday on 29 February 2020.

You have a valid point that most of the songs that I think of as popular are 30 plus years old. Last week, I worked up an arrangement for 91 year old Hoagie Carmichael song, "Stardust". I listened to a few Taylor Swift songs and even though I desire to be popular with the younger audience, just couldn't stomach any of it. I am trying to learn Ed Sheeran's "Perfect". The best I can tell it's in 12/8 time and it is best played in triplets.
 
Last edited:
I play mostly at Senior and Nursing Homes. The song I find that gets them going is "You are my Sunshine"
 
Top Bottom