On this cool and sunny evening we gathered to sing and play songs about the weather. We were joined by Sally (who we warmly welcomed back after a year of absence), Jack, Larry, WendySue, Ting, Dan, Eric, Betty, Frank, Louise, Bill, Dawn (a newbie), Patricia, PJ, Arlene, and Ken.

I used to have a friend who was completely obsessed with the weather. He would just stare out of the window for hours just watching the clouds float on by, and he was transfixed with any changes occurring in the sky. Some people are fascinated by the weather, some people have their favorite weather person and channel, and some just blindly endure whatever may come. Just remember when all else fails, you can always talk about the weather.

Here are the songs we played:

1. SNOWBIRD, Anne Murray, 1969 (Ken).

This song looks simple, but it was a bit tricky. We originally tried it in G, but we tried it again in C and it wasn't too bad. On the TV show, Family Guy, Stewie (the baby with the football head) is apparently fixated with Anne Murray. Supposedly he kidnaps her and flyyyys away with her. This is a jilted lover's song which we will probably revisit during next jam session about men scorned.

2. SINGING IN THE RAIN, by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed, 1929, (Betty).

Easy four chord song. Dan has a cheat that works pretty well. He said you can play F and C7 and skip everything else in between. I love watching Gene Kelly get soaking wet singing and dancing to this song.

3. APRIL SHOWERS, Al Jolson (Betty).

Standard chords. Arlene lead us through this one but the chord sheet needs some help.

4. WINDY, The Association (Betty).

This song has a funky weird strum. It's a pretty good catchy tune. There's a three-part harmony when it says "Above the Clouds". Nice pick, Betty!

5. HERE COMES THE SUN, Beatles (Anne).

Anne is away in New Hampshire this week. This was a bit difficult to play and no one practiced the tab part. Maybe Anne brought her uke along with her and has mastered this song for us to hear when she returns. No pressure, Anne.

6. HERE COMES THAT RAINY DAY FEELING AGAIN, The Fortunes, 1971 (Dan).

Dan did a great job singing and Louise, who came to uke club to be cheered up after recovering from oral surgery, also liked this song. It was mostly [C] and [Bb], which I still struggle to play. "You've Got Your Troubles, I've Got Mine" was the other big hit from The Fortunes. Nicely done.

7. RHYTHM OF THE RAIN, The Cascades, (Bill).

Bill made another great chord sheet. Always a fun song! Love the "pitter patter, pitter patter."

8. CRYING IN THE RAIN, Recorded by the Everly Brothers, Written by Carol King & Howard Greenfield (Bill).

Pretty song. Nobody was familiar with the song, but Arlene said it has potential. I agree!

9. SUNSHINE ON MY SHOULDERS, John Denver (Jack).

What a lovely song! I still get upset thinking of John Denver in that fatal plane crash. What a tragedy. We didn't play this so well. It has easy chords, but rhythm is key.

10. GOOD DAY SUNSHINE, The Beatles (Jack).

This was a good Beatles song with a G7 walkdown. We played it well.

11. RAINDROPS KEEP FALLIN' ON MY HEAD, Hal David and Burt Bacharach, 1969 (Jack).

Ukulele arrangement by Austin Ukulele Society. Great song to play at the nursing home!

12. FIRE AND RAIN, James Taylor (Me).

We played along with Aldrine from Ukulele Underground. I think it was a little too difficult. Maybe we should've played it slower without Aldrine.

13. RIDE CAPTAIN RIDE, Blues Image, 1970 (Ken).

Dan lead us through. What a great tune! Not too shabby.

14. HAVE YOU EVER SEEN THE RAIN, Creedence Clearwater Revival (Bill).

Great song to play and sing to. We had people dancing in the library lobby to this song!

15. PROUD MARY, Creedence Clearwater Revival (Larry).

Thinking of Tina Turner's version of this song. Great song to dance to! We did a decent job on this one. The ukulele police had to fine Larry 50 cents because this song violated the weather theme.

16. ONE PIECE AT A TIME, Johnny Cash, (Larry).

This is a funny song that sounds just like "Boy Named Sue." It's about a man with a large lunchbox who builds a Cadillac one piece at a time. The ukulele police had to fine Larry 50 cents because this song violated the weather theme.

17. BLUE EYES CRYIN' IN THE RAIN, Fred Rose, 1945, Performed by Hank Williams, (Jack).

We sang this song well. I think he had Willie Nelson in mind.

18. BLUE SKIES, (Jack).

This song is played at a relatively slow tempo. Pretty song.

19. SUMMER WIND, by Heintz Meier and Johnny Mercer, 1965, Performed by Frank Sinatra (Jack).

Brilliant song. Love the lyrics, especially 'my fickle friend."

20. BLOWIN' IN THE WIND, Bob Dylan, (Jack).

We played a super fast happy ukey version of this one with only one minute left in the jam.

Ahh, we made it through the night unscathed. Our next theme night jam is "Men Scorned." See ya in 2 weeks!

Cheers,

-- Jen.