Manitoba Hal Brolund in Alrewas, UK

"Manitoba Hal" Brolund had just done a weekend, top of the bill of all the artistes at the Great Northern Ukulele Festival in Pontefract, Yorkshire - and then, Lordy Lordy, he came down to Alrewas for our uke group Go Ukulele Crazy and gave us a workshop and the most fabulous concert of blues. It was magnificent. A grand Ukafrolic!

First the workshop - how to play 12 bar blues backing on ukulele, with a Robert Johnson turnaround.

Yummy pork rolls and cake, then the concert.

A whole concert, just Hal, with his dual-neck RadioSonic ukulele.

We were privileged to have Hal, one of Western Canada’s top acoustic blues players, sing and play his heart out for us that night... and believe me, Hal's singing is every bit as good as his playing - what a performer! First up was a real favourite, "Let The Mermaids Flirt With Me"... then a whole raft of songs from his various albums....

Among them We had .44, Atlanta Moan, Gopherville, High Fever Blues, All Around The World, I Hear Music, The Thrill is Gone, and we all joined in playing 12 bar blues with Sweet Home Chicago.

Accomplished player, lovely singer, great stage presence and rapport with the audience - Hal left Alrewas with lots of new fans that night - and lots of new fans of the blues, too...

Thanks to Joanna Stevenson of Go Ukulele Crazy (above with Hal) for organising! Fabulous!

And thanks for dropping in!

Time, time, time.... and coming up - Manitoba Hal!

I know. I've been neglecting you. It's lame, but - just not enough hours in the day to do everything I want to do. It is my oft-repeated mantra that since I retired five years ago or thereabouts, I have never been bored, and that's true; I don't "do" bored; what with the things I want to do, the things I need to do and the things I ought to do, to say nothing of the things I'd love to do but have no hope of doing, I don't have time to be bored. I simply can't find time for all those things, not all of them. And I do count my blessings daily that I'm able-bodied and able-minded enough to actually do them. One of the things I love to do is to write my blog, sharing my ukulele journey and my ukulele likes with anyone who stumbles across it or even follows it on purpose! (Whoever you are, thank you!) But - the blog has suffered.

You see, I've been a busy bunny, visiting places, visiting people, strumming a bit of uke, the usual housework... and I just don't know where the time goes. I just know it goes. It flies away particularly rapidly during the summer months, and we have been out and about a lot this summer, including trips I've already told you about... there was Morecambe with the George Formby Society at the Morecambe Winter Gardens at the end of July, and before that a huge highlight was the Ukulele Festival of Great Britain in Cheltenham in June.... something I planned to write far about than I did...

Well, the last week has see no less than two great Ukafrolics! I'll tell you about the second one first... it's all about Manitoba Hal Brolund.... and it's coming up next......

As Autumn Leaves start to fall, Peter Moss catches the Girl from Ipanema! Medley

Peter Moss really is a great player. I told you back in May how he has returned to his first love, the wooden uke... and all about his lovely new Pete Howlett custom tenor. His new medley of great old songs, Autumn Leaves and Girl from Ipanema really does hit the spot.... it's all there..... and watch for the interesting chord progression to link the two songs!



I love the change of tempo in Autumn Leaves, and with those jazz chords and Latin rhythms it really lifts the mood. As a result of watching this, I've been playing Autumn Leaves all evening! Fantastic song - but I haven't been playing this version of course! A rather simpler one....

Written in 1947, music by Joseph Kosma, words by Jacques Prevert....

Thanks for dropping in, folks - I'll be back....