On this evening before Christmas Eve, having already played every Christmas song we could ever want to play in weeks previous, Jen, Ken, Vin, Bonnie, Arlene, Tim, Scott, Sam and John assembled for an OPEN JAM.

1. Rubber Duckie, Ernie, 1970 (Arlene) [paper copy]

2. Cautious for Nauseous, A. Krassner, 2016 (Arlene)

Taken from the melody "Shimmy Like My Sister Kate," this is one of Arlene's originals. There have been so many songs over the years written about love, heartbreak and longing, but precious few about vomiting. I found this refreshing.

3. Have You Ever Seen the Rain, CCR, 1971 (Arlene)

Always good to hear. It's one of my favorites by Creedence.

4. Theme from New York New York, Frank Sinatra, 1980 (Arlene)

5. Surfin' USA, Beach Boys, 1963 (Arlene)

It took a minute to figure out the groove of the song, but we finally got it. Lotsa tacets.

6. When You Wish Upon A Star, Jiminy Cricket, 1940 (Arlene)

Very pretty. There was an Eb dim7, which turned out to be pretty similar to a B7.

7. Comes a Time, Neil Young, 1978 (Dan) [paper copy]

Here was a simple song that about half of us knew.

8. Rainbow Connection, Kermit the Frog, 1979 (Ken)

This was fine up to the impossible key change.

9. Bring It On Home to Me, Sam Cooke, 1962 (Dan)

I saw an old guy in Penn Station sitting on a box and singing this song into a microphone, with a young guy accompanying him on electric guitar. It sounded so good that I made a mental note to learn it when I got home. It has all our favorite chords. I heard Lennon's version of this on his 1975 Rock and Roll album before I ever heard the original.

10. Cry Baby Cry, Lennon/Beatles, 1968

What an unlikely, creepy and off-kilter number to try on a uke. Fantastic.

11. Hotel California, Eagles, 1976 (Sam/Scott)

Sam accompanied us on the bongos.

12. Comfortably Numb, Pink Floyd, 1979 (Sam)

This was one of the more melodic songs from the wall, especially Gilmour's sections.

13. Stuck in the Middle with You, Stealers Wheel, 1972 (Vin)

Stealers Wheel was Gerry Rafferty's band before he became a solo act. This Scotsman was a guy I largely overlooked when he was most popular in the late seventies. But he did several songs that have great merit: Baker Street, Right Down the Line, Home and Dry, Get It Right Next Time, Whatever's Written In Your Heart. Have a listen on YouTube.

14. Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey, Paul and Linda McCartney, 1971 (Ken)

This was the hit single from my all-time favorite album, RAM. I've been wanting to try this for ages.

15. Happy Xmas, Lennon, 1972 (Jen)

Back to back songs from ex-Beatles can't be a bad thing.

16. Psalm 23, J. Reedy, 2016 (Jen)

Here was an original song penned by Jen, based on the 23rd psalm from the Old Testament. ("Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death.....") Ken played it. Jen sang it. Really lovely. I have always messed around substituting jokey lyrics to popular melodies, but have never been able to compose an original melody.

17. Mrs. Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter, Herman's Hermits, 1965 (John)

I wouldn't have been surprised if this was written in the twenties or thirties. (It wasn't.) Buy Herman's Hermits Greatest Hits as a late Christmas present for yourself. There are at least a half dozen you'll know.

18. Runaway, Del Shannon, 1961 (Dan)

We ended on a high note with this solid rock and roll standard.

For next time, the theme will be the COLD. If there is COLD in the title or the lyrics, or some description of winter, ice, refrigerated meat lockers or anything you could reasonably explain as having to do with coldness, The Ukulele Board of Elders will accept it. However, if you picked Led Zeppelin's Kashmir and explained that the night Robert Plant wrote it he got a little chilly and had to put on a sweater, that would be a stretch.

-- Dan.