Blood on the Saddle
I love this parody of ‘Western’ cowboy songs (whose origin likely includes college glee clubs). It has enjoyed quite a bit of popularity with actual ‘Western’ folk artists (I recently bought a record of such, just because it had this track on it). However, the most famous recording comes from Tex Ritter.
- Blood on the Saddle (pdf)
I like to program this song around Halloween; I’m a big fan of the humorous side of the holiday, I even have my own Halloween album and website for kids.
Two by Two : Round for 4 with Ukulele Chords
Two by Two (pdf)
An original round celebrating the Noah’s Ark story from Genesis. Provided with Ukulele, Baritone Uke & Guitar Chords.
FYI: One of the early ‘approved’ toys for children to receive at Easter time was a Noah’s Ark playset.
Another ‘Ark song,’ a spiritual, “The Old Ark’s A-Moverin’,” can be found in the 123 Ukulele Play Songbook.
Pineapple Ukulele to Resonator Rescue
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- My wife swears she didn’t sit on it! But has no explanation for how her uke came to be cracked in on the surface. Rather than complain, I took the opportunity to have a DIY project this last weekend.
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- Routed out the damaged wood on the top.
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- Found a bowl we never use (a wedding gift) that fits the space.
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- Had to remove part of the bowl so the bridge would make it onto the flat of the bowl.
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- I read somewhere that forks work great for this.
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- Stringing it up.
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- You’ll notice I had to put a dowel through the bowl to provide support against string tension.
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- Still debating whether I want to drill holes in the bowl.
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- It sounds pretty good. Like a really quiet distorted guitar.
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- I do wish it was a little louder, but it is once again playable. 🙂
Kingsfold : New Ukulele Tablature
- Kingsfold PDF (Ukulele Tablature Solo)
This famous tune has been used for hymn-texts such as “If You Could Hie to Kolob,” “O Sing a Song of Bethlehem” & “I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say.”
Arranged in a mostly ‘campanella’ style, a la John King.
Two Chord Christmas Songbook now on Amazon and Sheet Music Plus!
- Amazon : http://amzn.to/VBBhSi
- Sheet Music Plus : http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/19839731
- eBook : http://bit.ly/PYxihv
34 beautiful Christmas songs that sound great with just two chords each! Chord charts for ukulele, guitar and baritone ukulele included. These songs have been hand-picked for greatness from over a hundred possible selections (and those found amid hundreds and hundreds more). There are no ‘filler’ songs here; each stands on it’s own for solo or group singing. Many are lesser-known carols, but every one is a gem. So, whether you’re a soloist, in a small group, or the leader of a large community, you’ll find some great songs to add to your Christmas caroling repertoire.
Contents:
- Apple Tree Wassail
- As Joseph Was A-Walking
- Behold that Star
- Carol of the Bagpipers, The
- Cherry Tree Carol, The
- Child of God
- Christ Child’s Lullaby, The
- Christ Was Born on Christmas Day
- Christmas Eve is Here
- Cold is the Morning
- Come Running You Shepherds
- God Bless All
- He is Born (Il Est Ne)
- Hear Them Bells
- Hey, Ho, Nobody Home
- Huron Indian Carol
- I Saw Three Ships
- I Saw Three Ships (alternate)
- Mary Had a Baby
- O Christmas Tree
- O Leave Your Sheep
- O Little Town of Bethlehem (Forest Green)
- Pat-a-Pan
- Quickly Now, O Shepherds
- Rise Up Shepherd and Follow
- Sleep of the Infant Jesus, The
- Star in the East
- Still, Still, Still
- Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day
- Truth from Above, The
- Wassail! Wassail all Over the Town!
- Welsh Carol
- What Shall We Give?
- Wondrous Love
Where is He? – Matthew 2:2 (Round for 3)
Though this round could be sung by anyone, I wrote it with 3 men in mind, representing the wise men from the east. Chords for ukulele, guitar and baritone ukulele are provided for an optional accompaniment.
Merry Christmas!
Text from Matthew 2:2
Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.
The Two Chord Christmas Songbook eBook released
My new Christmas songbook is now out; 34 hand-picked songs, each requiring only two chords. Charts are included for ukulele, guitar and baritone ukulele. Check it out here: The Two Chord Christmas Songbook
I’m a Giraffe
Round for 3 by M Ryan Taylor. Includes chords for ukulele and baritone ukulele.
Words:
I’m a giraffe, A giraffe am I; When I stand on my toes my nose bumps the sky.
Thirteen for Halloween : Ukulele Edition
New for 2012! The long-awaited ukulele editon of Thirteen for Halloween (link goes to tradebit.com) is now available for instant download. This Halloween songbook contains ukulele chords (C tuning) AND chords for baritone ukulele.
Includes all the songs from the Thirteen for Halloween album:
- Welcome Said the Spider
- The Ghost of John
- Three Little Ghostesses
- Mactavish Is Dead
- Skin and Bones
- Queen Nefertiti (The Mummy)
- Old Witch, Old Witch
- Witch, Witch, Where do you Fly?
- Im a Mean Old Witch
- Unlikely Company
- The Ghost Ship
- Were Back!
- Five Little Pumpkins
Get the matching “Frankenstein on the Beach” ukulele t-shirt (link takes you to printfection.com)!
For more Halloween fun, visit ThirteenforHalloween.com. For more ukulele awesomeness, visit UkulelePlay.com.
March of the Spiders – Easy Ukulele Chord Solo by M Ryan Taylor
From my ‘work in progress’
entitled The Giant’s Heart:
- March of the Spiders (PDF Tablature)
Back story: I’d been working on a new opera entitled The Giant’s Heart, but when I got to the scene about the giant spiders I knew I wanted the spiders to be represented musically by fretted string instruments, but beyond that I was stuck. I halted work on the opera and the next Winter got into the ukulele. Some time later I was messing around and thought, “That’s the march of the spiders” (when they go up the mountain to chase away the she eagle that is sitting on the giant’s heart).
Its taken me a while to get it down on paper, as I use Finale and it is not really that tablature friendly, but I’ve decided to bite the bullet and just push through the learning curve and the hurdles the program makes you go through.
Hope you enjoy!
‘O Sole Mio
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jrv1OGtkUFw
One of the most famous Italian (Neapolitan) songs of all time and sung by everyone from the Three Tenors to Elvis Presley (as It’s Now or Never):
- ‘O Sole Mio (for Voice and Ukulele)
The Stars and Stripes Forever : Ukulele Chords with Words by John Phillip Sousa (3 keys available)
The original cover art for "the stars and stripes forever" with words penned by Sousa himself.
Here is John Phillip Sousa’s famous march, The Stars and Stripes Forever, with words he penned himself. I originally started singing this with an old recording of Sousa’s own band, but don’t always want to haul sound equipment around and I love singing it. The melody covers a two-octave range, so you do need some pipes, but if you’re ukulele is strung with a low-g, you can play the melody solo while having another player fill in on the chords.
- Stars and Stripes Forever – Eb (Original Key) : With this key you could actually sing along with a recording of the march, but I’ve always found a couple of spots high for my voice.
- Stars and Stripes Forever – D (Easier)
- Stars and Stripes Forever – C (Easiest) : Now that I’ve transposed it down, I’m loving how this key feels in my voice (I’m a baritone), and the key makes it super easy to play.
Have fun with it!
Ex amore victoria!
Ryan
We Wish You a Merry Christmas Sheet Music for Ukulele and Voice
Ukulele Ornament on Amazon
First off, the music:
I love this song and I love the fact as a teacher that it cycles you through so many useful chords in a progression that will ‘bless your life’ for use with future songs. This one page PDF of We Wish You a Merry Christmas for Ukulele (and Voice) also contains a nice-sounding fingerpicking pattern that shows off the cool chord progression of this song. Here’s a basic roadmap of the song:
- The Thumb (T) alternates between the 3rd and 4th strings while the Index and Middle fingers (I/M) work together as a unit to pluck the 1st and 2nd strings at the same time. The pattern has three beats: T on 3rd string, I/M on 1st/2nd, and T on 4th string – the pattern then repeats.
- See the score for a slight alteration of the pattern on the words “Happy New Year.”
- An alternate strum pattern is provided for the middle verses of the song. I think it’s a fun contrast to play this part really fast (it brings out the humor of this section).
- On the final chorus you return to the fingerpicking pattern.
It’s all there in the instructions on the sheet music.
This arrangement was created for the Utah Ukulele Circle which meets in American Fork on Tuesday nights. We performed it twice in 2011; Christmas in the Rotunda at American Fork Library and at Heritage Care Center a couple of days later for the old folks there.
Merry Christmas!
O Holy Night for Ukulele, Voice and optional Bass
Ukulele Angel Ornament on Amazon
First off, here is a free version of “O Holy Night” with the words, melody, and ukulele chords:
- O Holy Night – Voice & Ukulele Chords (Free Version)
A premium version of this ukulele arrangement (for advanced beginners and intermediate players) with suggested fingerpicking and strumming patterns in tab and traditional notation, as well as melody, words and chords can be downloaded through tradebit. There is also an optional bass part for duos or ukulele ensembles. A preview is available on these pages:
This arrangement was created for the Utah Ukulele Circle which meets in American Fork on Tuesday nights. We performed it twice in 2011; Christmas in the Rotunda at American Fork Library and at Heritage Care Center a couple of days later for the old folks there. I added the Bass Part for future use, as I’m also a bass player.
Merry Christmas!