Before we got underway, Ken showed off his new uke-guitar, or guitarlele, a hybrid (not unlike the Toyota Prius, except with no electric motor), a six-stringed beast, perhaps a little bigger than a big baritone uke. (note from Ken... actually it is a standard tenor-size body).

We had eleven attendees, with nine players and two groupies (Lisa and Jeannie). Geri had played with the group a couple of times in the past. It was Arlene's first session. She had been playing only a week. The first chords she learned were C Am F and G7, surely the finest chords in the alphabet, and with which one can handle "Down on the Corner" (Creedence Clearwater Revival), one of the first she learned, and our second song of the night. This was the 637th time I've heard this song since 1969 (I've been keeping track), and I was surprised to learn that I knew almost none of the lyrics save for the chorus. For example, they sing, "Blinky thumps the gut bass and solos for awhile." Never would have figured out that one.

Our first song was "Blue Moon of Kentucky" (Bill Monroe), a country/bluegrass number from 1947 and one of Elvis' first recordings. McCartney also has a version, along with many other people. It's the bluegrass song of Kentucky, pretty famous, though I had never heard of it. This was Vin's pick.

"Ruby Tuesday" (Rolling Stones) was fairly successful. (Let's keep this in mind for a future all-Stones evening.) I thought we were especially strong on the chorus.

"To Love Somebody" (the fabulous Bee Gees), one of their great pre-disco/pre-falsetto hits, was a little tricky as far as timing. We only went around once. Others demanded another penned by Barry Gibb, "Islands in the Stream" (if I'm remembering correctly) and began singing it, disrupting the proceedings for a full thirty seconds until reined in by Ken's firm hand. Could Chris and Chris have been the culprits, or am I slandering them?

To Love Somebody deserves another attempt, and an all-Bee Gees night should not be ruled out. They had a boatload of hits.

My favorite Bee Gees song, "New York Mining Disaster 1941", was the fifth of the night. It was their first hit (1967). No one seemed to know it. It had a Esus4 chord. I cheated with an E7, but Ken showed us how to get a real Esus4 chord with only a slight adjustment of the index finger from an E7. We're always learning.

Next was The Beatles "Baby's in Black", an easy song to play but a hard one to sing, especially the bridge. (Very high.)

Our penultimate ((the next to last) song was an odd, somewhat obscure David Bowie song from 1970, "The Man Who Sold the World". It probably was better known as a cover by Nirvana from an early '90s MTV Unplugged.

Most of us knew it not at all or not well. We spent quite a bit of time practicing it, and it became the most satisfying enterprise of the evening. The stronger players among us, Chris, Vin and Ken were picking out notes for the distinctive introduction. The rest of us strummed chords and sang. We had help in several ways: repetition and gaining familiarity, and watching or listening to the versions done by Bowie, Nirvana, and a Parisian ukulele club. The French video was a true inspiration. Instead of all strumming together, they took parts while one guy sang it. It was marvelous to see and hear how majestic a bunch of amateur musicians can make a song sound playing the lowly ukulele. I encourage everyone to click on Next Club Jam Session and watch this video.

Our last song was a holdover from a song Vin brought in two weeks previous, the Rolling Stones "Waiting On A Friend", from the excellent 1982 Tattoo You album. It was a much easier song than the previous one, using everyone's favorite ukulele chords (C Am F G7) in a simpler melody, a nice way to close out the proceedings at a quarter to ten.

-- Dan.

(additional note from Ken... Chris and Nathan also duo performed "Forget Me" by Cee Lo Green at the beginning of the meeting)