Ralph’s Blog Archives – 2001
Ralph Shaw, our Illustrious Leader, writes:
My purpose in starting this uke-log of the meetings and activities of the Vancouver Ukulele Circle is to give those people who are unable to be at the a meetings a chance to get a flavour of what they missed. I can tell you now that not all the information will be entirely accurate. As I sit down to update this uke-log in the days after any given meeting I will be sure to have forgotten some key moments and one or two worthy performances and I hope that feelings won’t be hurt. I will do my best but if you notice any omissions or major inaccuracies please feel free to email them to Wendy Cutler so that corrections can be made.
These are the write-ups from previous years. Current year entries are on
Ralph’s Blog page.
Other years: see Blog Archives
Vancouver Ukulele Circle Meetings 2001
Tuesday, December 18, 2001
VUC Christmas meeting! Twenty-five people, including Rosemary Campbell (organizer of the Moveable Music School). A great night. Biggest turnout so far!
We sang Christmas songs together. I sang We Three, and we watched the Inkspots in Abbott & Costello’s Pardon My Sarong.
Lots of people brought food. After the break, Bernie sang Jingle Bell Rock, and then Bernie, Wendy, Virginia and I did English Country Garden, and My Little Grass Shack (with the Kitsilano words) from our Moveable Music School Class. Rosemary Campbell sang Sailboat in the Moonlight, with Ken Hatch on trumpet and a few of us on uke. Jack Herb did Somebody Stole My Gal. We ended with more Christmas songs.
November 20, 2001
Ten people. Valdemar came to listen – Ralph’s neighbour). We played some, then listened to Formby sing his “swing medley” which includes Sweet Georgia Brown. We watched a clip from Pennies from Heaven, where Steve Martin plays a baritone uke while lip-syncing to Life’s a Bowl of Cherries.
We sang Slow Boat to China, and several Christmas songs with lovely harmony by Lorene on Silent Night, and finished with Dream a Little Dream of Me.
October 16, 2001
Eight people. Had an amplifier and tried out Ralph and Bob’s pickups. Worked on songs, especially Slow Boat to China (Bob suggest “Slow Poke to China!”).
September 25, 2001
Our 1-year anniversary! Present were Gary Shilling, Guy Costanzo, Brian Lohnes, Bernie David, Wendy Cutler, me (Ralph), Aletha, Virginia Ise, Paul Hoosen, Barb Mortell, Robyn.
We worked on the repertoire songs plus we introduced Me and Bobby McGee and Granddad’s Flannelette Nightshirt. Paul brought On a Slow Boat to China, and that was quickly accepted into the repertoire. Aletha and I took photos of the group to celebrate our 1-year anniversary.
August 21, 2001
Ten people present, including Ken Hatch with a new tenor resonator uke and his trumpet, and Bernie David, who was there for the first time. We worked on repertoire building. We watched a 1932 Betty Boop, and a Bimbo cartoon that was brought by Lorene.
July 17,2001
Ten people. We tried Dream a Little Dream, in F, and listened to Louis Armstrong’s version in G and Doris Day’s in C. We decided we would do it in G.
Virginia brought a CD of possible repertoire songs. Wendy brought lemon cake and we had tea.
June 19, 2001
Ten people. We watched some of Tiny Tim – Street of Dreams, that Virginia brought, and suggest some repertoire songs. Bob Doucet entertained us with a great couple of songs – one seemed an obscure blues song, but Wendy just happened to have the words and chords in her little folder! Lenore brought a Tipple. I brought the latest issue of Vellum.
May 15, 2001
Fourteen people, highest turnout so far, including Jim Lewis, who is a member of the Formby Society.. We watch a video of Shagra the Lip-syncing Horse (with my playing of English Country Garden).
We sang some songs, and then Virginia, Karen, Bernie and Wendy performed our songs from the Moveable Music School (Over the Rainbow/Wonderful World medley, and Summertime. We agreed to decide on a repertoire of songs.
Robyn had the idea to make the Bb chord easier to play: Do this – take the 1st string out of its slot in the nut and put it in the same slot as the 2nd string; now both strings can be played with one finger!
April 17, 2001
Nine people. Brian offered to take over the duties of music librarian. I also took my Dixie uke, which Brian wants to buy. We played Hula Hands, and listed to a version by Junior Brown. We played some other tunes and watched the 2nd half of the Roy Smeck video.
We agreed to pay $1 per person to go towards various costs such as photocopying.
March 20, 2001
Seven people plus new people Rob and Danae (and their 5-month-old son Makai). They bought their ukes on Maui and also had lessons there. They brought some songs for us to try, including Surf, Lovely Hula Hands. Aletha and Erin were there and we sang Octopus’s Garden, and the Seaplane Song. Brian brought City of New Orleans.
Finally set up the video and watched the first half of Wizard of the Strings (Roy Smeck). Guy brought the “Uke Cat” uke chording method.
February 20, 2001
Ten people, including Ragnar and Craig from the Moveable Music School uke class. Brian did Walk the Line, Lorene did Alley Cat, Paul played along with Palolo on a CD of Michael and Eleanore Dunn. Aletha came, and Kathleen Pavewick. New songs – Ezekiel, Joshua Fit de Battle, Worried Man.
January 16, 2001
Eleven people including Neil Bailey, another baritone uke player, and Eleanore Dunn, who came for the first time since the first meeting and brought Michael Dunn, who provided wonderful accompaniment on slide guitar, as well as helping Neil out with chord changes.
We watched the first 20 minutes of the Uke ’96 Expo. We sang some tunes together, and Eleanore and Michael played a tune called Moana Chimes, which was really lovely. I announced the Moveable Music School ukulele class.
