Customer Reviews

Jumpin' Jim's Ukulele Masters: Lyle Ritz Solos: 15 Chord Solos Arranged by the Ukulele Jazz Master (Ukulele Masters Book & CD)

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I'll keep this short as I could write about how brilliant this book is for ages.

1. This is the best ukulele songbook in existence.

2. This is for Advanced players. If you are looking to take your ukulele playing to the next level, buy this book.

3. You will never look at the ukulele or you playing the same ever again after you play through this book. This is a good thing.

4. Buy it. Now. Don't lose the CD, you WILL need it to learn the songs.

A great music book. This book, which includes cd, is arranged by Ukulele Jazz Master Lyle Ritz. The disc contains all songs in the book, seven for tenor uke and eight for fluke. An electric base helps define the harmonies and the rythm. It's a bit advanced for me because I'm still learning the basic chords, but the finger charts are very easy to follow. The collection has songs spanning swing, jazz, ballad, waltz, bossa nova and reggae, most with written lyrics and a few without (instrumentals). Lyrics are not sung on the disc except for the last song "Where or When." The nice part about this disc is that listeners who aren't learning to play but simply want to hear the magical ukulele in the air will enjoy it as much as uke students. Mahalo

Warning: The ukulele solos in this book are for advanced players.
I've been playing ukulele since I was a kid, but only recently have I gotten serious about it. After about a week, I was able to play half of one song (Don't Get Around Much More). Whew! I'm looking forward to figuring out the rest of this song and learning more since they sound so nice on the CD. Infact, the CD is of high quality with an accompanying Bass. I would give the CD a 4 or 5 stars by itself. Having the arrangement to follow along definitely makes this a 5 star product.

Outstanding book and CD. Although not a beginners book, the combination together (Book and CD)provide a fun and real learning experienced with the ukulele beyond the basic strums.

This is an excellent source book for the ukulele enthusiast. With practice and patience, one can learn some of these classic song solos in the jazz ukulele stylings of Lyle Ritz, one of the greats in uke playing.

An essential book for all uke players.

This book is extremely challenging--and rewarding too. If you have the patience to stick with it, you'll like the outcome. The CD is definetely helpful when trying to learn some of the difficult rhythms and chord changes. Not for beginners.

Sophisticated arrangements. I've played the uke for many years and still found some of the chord voicing challenging on the fingers. However, if you stick with it you will be rewarded with a sound that will sure to please. As an added bonus, you learn new fingerings of old chords that will enrich the sound. Also a good case study on how to color basic chords and melody. Buy it and stick with it. You'll impress everyone including yourself.

Just got this book last December and I'm close to impressing myself with three songs! I've been enjoying Ritz' jazz pieces in "A Night of Ukulele Jazz" and I never dreamed I could learn to play "Bluesette" or "Where or When". I'm also learning "Just the Way You Are" which is a welcome newer song. I start and end my day by playing these songs and just marvelling at the music that comes out of my concert ukulele. I'm even trying to stretch my sopranos to play the songs. The arrangements are so delightfully rich that they will take years to master but the book and CD make the process of getting there enjoyable and very rewarding.

If you want to push yourself to discover your hidden uke virtuosity, buy the book and study the songs.