With the theme of world music, we had John C., John D., Vin, Mark, Suzala, Jen, June, Ken, Arlene, Joe, Cris, Tom, WendySue and Bill as players.

1. Oye Como Va, Tito Puente, 1963 and Santana, 1970 (John)

We eased our way into the evening by playing along with a guy from the Ukulele Underground. It's only Am to D, never varying. It was great fun to play this.

2. Istanbul (not Constantinople), They Might Be Giants, 1990 (Dan) [handout]

Another two-chord song, Am to E7, it was trickier than the previous one due to a couple of changes in the tempo. You could play along with They Might Be Giants on YouTube if you're brave enough to use the partially-difficult chord Fm. (They use Fm to C7.)

"Every gal in Constantinople

lives in Istanbul,

not Constantinople.

So if you've a date

in Constantinople,

she'll be waiting in Istanbul."

3. Alouette (Joe)

Everyone knows this melody but not the French lyrics and not the translation. They're talking about plucking a lark. How horrible. It's supposed to teach children the names of the parts of a bird (neck, beak, wings). Can't they come up with something a little less violent to present to children? To be even-handed, though, consider our lullabye, Rockabye Baby. It's about an infant falling from a great height to his death. Should those be the last images in a child's mind before he drifts off to sleep? Anyway, it's very easy to play. It could have been our third song in a row with just two chords.

4. Hawaiian War Chant, Prince Leleiohoku, 1862 (Joe)

5. Jamaica Farewell, Harry Belafonte, 1957 (Joe)

We played this well, only getting tripped up at the very end. Jimmy Buffet also does a nice version.

6. Molly Malone aka Cockles and Mussels (Joe)

Here's another we did well. I never knew all the verses. It turns out Molly contracts an illness and dies. The Irish can be pretty morbid in their songs. We'll give the French and the Irish a pass on their lyrical content. They come up with melodies that can't miss.

7. Lazy Mary, Lou Monte, 1958 (Joe)

This is sung in English and Italian. I hear it's a bit off-color, but I don't know the translation. Some of the English lyrics are funny.

"Lazy Mary, you better get up.

We need the sheets for the table."

8. Quando Quando Quando, Pat Boone, 1962 (Arlene)

Very nice, smooth sound. No one is having their feathers pulled out or succumbing to disease.

9. The Lion Sleeps Tonight, Tokens, 1961 (Tom)

The melody was taken from Africa. Pete Seeger may have had something to do with bringing it to America, but it's the smash hit by the Tokens that most of us know. It's been a staple of oldies rock radio for decades. (Neil Sedaka was in the Tokens, but left before they did this one.) There are lots of possibilities for harmonies and taking different parts, but we basically bulldozed our way through.

10. Pachalafaka, Soupy Sales, 1965 (Dan) [handout]

Sweethearts in Istanbul (not Constantinople) whisper "Pachalafaka!" into each other's ears. How thrilling. Oh, to be young and in love (and in Turkey). When I was six, I thought Soupy Sales was hilarious. We had this 45 and played it often in our house.

11. La Bamba, Ritchie Valens, 1959 and Los Lobos, 1987 (Jen)

"In order to dance the Bamba, it's necessary to have a little grace." Usually it's played with three chords, but we shrunk it down to two. It started as a big mess, but we finished well.

12. Guantanamera, Sandpipers, 1966 (Jen)

The Sandpipers are Yanks singing in Spanish, but in the middle they translate into English. My hearing-aid wasn't turned up all the way, but I believe I heard them tell of a sincere hombre pining for his girlfriend, a terror detainee locked in the Marine prison at Guantanamo Bay. (I might have gotten that wrong.)

13. Banana Boat (Day-O), Harry Belafonte, 1957 (Vin)

"Work all night on a drink of rum." John C. produced a tambourine, and a shaker in the form of an apple. Very Caribbean.

14. Oye Como Va (again)

I didn't realize there are only a few lines of Spanish which keeps repeating. It is possible to learn this without sweating too much.

15. Back in the USSR, McCartney and the Beatles, 1968 (Arlene)

There were several unnecessary chords in this version, muddying the waters. People weren't too enthusiastic about this one. Why not? We could simplify it and do a good job. It's a straight-ahead rocker. Nothing tricky. (I sang this at my wedding.)

16. Sobre Las Olas (Over the Waves), Juventino Rosas, 1888 (Vin)

We watched a YouTube video of Vin doing a lovely picking/strumming performance. You'll recognize the melody. It's played at carnivals and on merry-go-rounds.

17. That's Amore, Dean Martin, 1956 (Arlene)

Arlene showed us a good trick. When playing C, sometimes put your finger on the G string, second fret. When playing G7, sometimes lift your finger off of the A string, second fret (converting it to a G7sus2). This wasn't difficult and it adds interest to your playing.

18. Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport, Rolf Harris, 1960 (Arlene)

The library internet went down so we used a chord sheet from our jam archives.

19. Pachalafaka (again)

20. Bring Me Sunshine (Ken) This was the hit from last session, not part of the world music theme.

21. Eh Cumpari, Julius LaRosa, 1953 (Ken)

We did the English version.

Guess what we're gonna do at the next session. Yes. Woodstock. That's some cool beans. There are some fantastic performances by the Jefferson Airplane, Sly and the Family Stone and Santana. Let's see how they'll sound on the ukulele. Pick any song from the entire career of anyone who played that weekend. It doesn't have to be one they played at the show or on the album. There are plenty of good choices from John Sebastian (Lovin' Spoonful), Joan Baez, Canned Heat, Arlo Guthrie, the Who, etc. It's hard to believe that happened over 45 years ago.

-- Dan.