or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
or
Amazon Prime Free Trial required. Sign up when you check out. Learn More
Sell Back Your Copy
For a $2.00 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
The ukulele : A visual history
 
 
Tell the Publisher!
I'd like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

The ukulele : A visual history [Hardcover]

Jim Beloff (Author)
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

List Price: $24.95
Price: $17.32 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $7.63 (31%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.
Want it delivered Tuesday, June 5? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details

Book Description

September 1, 2003
This updated and expanded edition addresses the instrument's growing popularity with information on the latest virtuosos, uke luthiers, songbooks, CDs, and more. It features dozens of additional pictures of vintage ukes and sheet music. A colorful, fun-filled look at this intriguing musical instrument containing 200 color photos of rare and unusual ukuleles, The Ukulele is a must for all new uke fans and an essential upgrade for those who bought the first edition.

Frequently Bought Together

The ukulele : A visual history + Ukulele: The World's Friendliest Instrument + The Daily Ukulele (Fakebook) (Jumpin' Jim's Ukulele Songbooks)
Price For All Three: $51.73

Show availability and shipping details

Buy the selected items together
  • In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • Ukulele: The World's Friendliest Instrument $11.32

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The Daily Ukulele (Fakebook) (Jumpin' Jim's Ukulele Songbooks) $23.09

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details



Editorial Reviews

Review

"Visual" is the key word in the title of this thoroughly engaging look at a whimsical, diminutive instrument that's had much more influence on pop music and culture than one would initially guess. With its elaborate illustrations and eye-popping, color-drenched photos of ukuleles, famous players and manufacturers, sheet music and a wide variety of other memorabilia, The Ukulele traces the history of the instrument from its birth to present day with a fun text that's equally rich in trivia and history. As the instrument moves from turn of the century Hawaii to popularity on the Mainland, it helped boost tourism in Hawaii, influenced Tin Pan Alley songwriters and performers as diverse as Arthur Godfrey, Tiny Tim and Joni Mitchell, and became a key icon in advertising, even when the product had nothing to do with ukuleles. Author Beloff, the associate publisher of Billboard magazine, has written several ukulele songbooks and recorded a CD of original ukulele songs, and there couldn't be a better tour guide for time travel through the evolution of this wacky little instrument. His profiles of some of the great ukulele players and key manufacturers are particularly interesting, and he presents an intriguing look at Hawaii as a culture through the images projected of its most famous export to the rest of the world. Great fun and a good read. -- From Independent Publisher

The Ukulele is an entertaining look at this whimsical, diminutive instrument and its influence on popular music and pop culture worldwide. Elaborately illustrated, the color-rich book brings to life the "jumping flea" in a unique showcase of rare ukuleles, famous players and manufacturers, and witty memorabilia and artwork. With a fun-to-read historical narrative, The Ukulele traces the instrument's evolution from its 1800s roots to the current ukulele festival in hawaii and beyond. Richard in folklore as well as documented history, the uke's birth took place on August 23, 1879, when a ship arrive din Hawaii carrying 419 Portuguese settlers. Hawaiian music would never be the same again! --Midwest Book Review

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 130 pages
  • Publisher: Backbeat Books; 2 edition (September 1, 2003)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0879307587
  • ISBN-13: 978-0879307585
  • Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 0.8 x 9.4 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #352,118 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Now in a revised and expanded edition, The Ukulele: A Visual History by Jim Beloff is the fascinating and informative saga of this widespread and popular musical instrument. From the history and spread of the Ukulele since its origin in Portugal, to the great ukulele players, to the sagas of businesses that manufacture ukuleles, to the ukulele's impact on musical culture worldwide, and more, The Ukulele is simply packed from cover to cover with full color photographs. The Ukulele: A Visual History is a most enjoyable learning experience for anyone curious about this unique and popular instrument.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
One of kind title September 1, 2005
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I absolutely loved this book and it fills a void with information about the 'ukulele that is not available elsewhere. The pictures are excellent and the writing is quite enjoyable. It's the sort of book that you're likely to read more than once. The only drawback is that I wish the book were bigger so that it would have lasted longer. On the less-than-positive side I was a bit disappointed that it didn't deal more deeply with the contemporary 'uke scene and glosses over some of the major players of today. Perhaps in the next new edition it will contain more of this type of info.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
great book, full of colour photos, covers from the most basic to the most up-market instruments. Excellent history of the instrument and also of the well known players, such as George Formby. Discusses some of the speciallised techniques used by these people. I look on it as the ukulele enthusiast's bible. Thoroughly recommended!
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?

Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
The ukulele is actually the descendant of a four-stringed musical instrument known as the machete or, less accurately, the braguinha from the Portuguese island of Madeira. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Tiny Tim, Arthur Godfrey, Herb Ohta, Tin Pan Alley, Augusto Dias, Los Angeles, Ukulele Festival, May Singhi Breen, Ukulele Ike, Bing Crosby, Langley Ukulele Ensemble, George Formby, United States, University of Hawaii, World War, Kamaka Hawaii, King Kalakaua, Major Kealakai, Panama Pacific International Exposition, Warner Bros
New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:



Books on Related Topics (learn more)

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(1)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums



So You'd Like to...


Create a guide


Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject