What Ukulele Players Really Want to Know [Paperback]

Barry Maz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2011

The bestselling beginners guide to the ukulele aimed specifically at new players or those thinking of taking up the uke!

Many ukulele guides available are far too prescriptive and quite simply don't provide the answers to the common questions a beginner has. Whilst they concentrate on useful technique and provide sample songs to play, they tend to leave the new player with a lot of questions unanswered.  You want more, right?

Barry Maz, ukulele player and author of the Got A Ukulele website has collated and expanded on his popular beginners guides to provide new players with a comprehensive resource of advice, tips and tricks for the ukulele. Not a tutor book or a 'how to play' guide, this is more an owners manual for the ukulele!

With 29 detailed sections dealing with everything from the shape and size of the instrument, to strings and even how to grow your fingernails, the book provides no-nonsense advice from a seasoned ukulele player, written in a friendly style.

The book draws on Barry's own experiences in starting out with the ukulele, and the mistakes he made so you don't have to! Also included is a handy reference section and ukulele glossary to help with those terms that may not be so familiar to the beginner. Barry advises that his book is best read in conjunction with other tuition methods or in advance of purchasing your first instrument, to bring a spot of welcome light relief to your practice and development with the uke. Happy strumming!

** In the book review on Ukulelia.com, Gary said "While the book is indeed aimed at absolute beginners, it is in fact pretty comprehensive, covering all the issues likely to nip a the heels of someone starting out: everything from how to pick out your first uke to advice on humidifying your instrument and fingernail care. It is not an instructional guide; there are plenty of how-to-play books out there. It's more of a user's guide, filled with the kind of info you'd eventually pick up from hanging out with a bunch of veteran players for several months but which is all a mystery to someone starting out by themselves." **

ALSO AVAILABLE

• MORE OF WHAT UKULELE PLAYERS REALLY WANT TO KNOW - more tips for beginners! 
• CHORDS THAT UKULELE PLAYERS REALLY WANT TO KNOW - Uke Chords on your Kindle

Editorial Reviews

Review

While the book is indeed aimed at absolute beginners, it is in fact pretty comprehensive, covering all the issues likely to nip a the heels of someone starting out.  --ukulelian.blogspot.com

About the Author

I'm a thirty something guy based in the UK, who for the past 25 years has dabbled with acoustic and electric guitar. Don't consider myself a great player of either, but have a large repetoire of songs, and have busked, jammed and gigged with friends many times. About 2 years ago I decided on trying the ukulele, mainly because a couple of artists I really like (Loudon Wainwright and George Harrison) play or played ukulele. I had previously tried to pick up the Mandolin, but struggled learning a whole new set of chords due to the differing tuning. It struck me that the beauty of the uke for me was that the chord shapes were pretty much the same as those for guitar (albeit playing chords a few steps higher) As with most uninformed beginners, I bought myself a bottom of the line Mahalo - and boy did I regret it! It was really only good for firewood, hard to keep in tune, frets out of place and sounded horrible. Even so, I stuck at it and found that I could indeed master the chords quickly. I put together a repetoire of uke songs to learn and found myself hooked. The quality of the uke was the problem, and after much debate (and saving!) I bought myself a Flea ukulele from the Magic Fluke co - and from that point on, everything changed! This instrument was an absolute joy and since that time I have bought several more ukes, and gigged with them. I'm not a technical player, just a strummer and singer, but its great fun. Anyway, in thinking back to my initial foray into uke, and the shocking instrument I ended up with, I thought I'd start a blog about the uke in general, but with a slant aimed at providing beginners, or those interested in getting a uke a solid set of advice on the pitfalls. The blog proved hugely popular, and I extracted and expanded on a lot of my guidance and published an ebook aimed at absolute beginners. The ukulele really is an instrument for everyone - its quick to pick up the basics (I could get anyone playing a song in 30 minutes) and really gets people talking.

Product Details

• Paperback: 150 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (April 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1461059941
• ISBN-13: 978-1461059943
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 8 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #915,220 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Barry is a well known player in the ukulele community and founder of the website Got A Ukulele, now one of the most popular resources for new ukulele players.


For the past 25 years he dabbled with acoustic and electric guitar, but was switched on to the ukulele several years ago on account of a number of his musical heroes championing the uke (the likes of George Harrison and Loudon Wainwright III amongst others).

Like most beginners, Barry started with a cheap and nasty uke which was a struggle to play, so he started to explore better quality instruments. The more he played, the more he enjoyed this humble little instrument and decided to start sharing his experiences on the internet. The response was massive with the site being hugely popular today. He doesn't so much write about 'how to play', but rather shares his love of the instrument and provides advice to new players on how to live with a ukulele.

He doesn't class himself as a great player, just a strummer but has an infectious love for the instrument and a desire to help other new players who are just starting out. Following the success of the blog he was persuaded to put down his best tips and advice for new players into a series of books. They hit the shelves at just the right time with great success (his first book going on to become the best selling music book on Kindle at one point in 2011)

The ukulele really is an instrument for everyone - its quick to pick up the basics (most beginners can easily be playing a simple song in 30 minutes) and it really gets people talking.

Keep strumming!

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Valuable Uke reference--GREAT Kindle edition December 26, 2011

By Joanna Daneman #1 HALL OF FAMETOP 10 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

First, thanks to the author Barry Maz for making this book available for the Kindle and at an attractive price. If you have a Kindle and a uke, you should have this book.

This is NOT a "how to play" method book. There are plenty of books for that, plus video tutorials available for free and for pay all over the Web. (check out Ukulele Underground.) This is a reference book on how ukuleles are made, the sizes they come in, the variations, the woods used to make them and other subjects, such as stringing.

The string section was in particular very helpful for me. The types of material (nylon, fluorocarbon) are discussed, how they affect the sound, and when you might want to employ them. For example, if your ukulele has a naturally bright (loud) sound, you may want to put on the Worth brand brown fluorocarbon strings which will mellow out the tone. If you have a ukulele and you are not fond of the sound, try restringing it first.

There is a section on electronics (pickups, mics) a section on training your fingertips to harden against blisters and pain and a section on common notation for ukulele transcriptions. There is much more. It really is "what you want to know."

I think this book is a must-have for any player.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Exactly what I was looking for! October 13, 2011

By Brian K. Miller

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a complete, thorough, and yet concise description of how ukuleles are made, the most common woods they are made from, and the history of the ukulele. There are tutorial chapters on basic techniques used for playing and maintaining the ukulele along with internet links for key ukulele websites. The writer discusses his own experience encountering the ukulele for the first time, buying his first ukulele, and learning from his mistakes. A few of the brands he refers to are no longer available, but by and large his desciptions of the nature of the different ukulele makers is clear, concise, and accurate. An excellent introduction to a thoroughly modern, largely misunderstood, and frequently underestimated musical instrument.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book January 27, 2011

By S. Flanaghan

Format:Kindle Edition

Have just started playing the ukulele and saw this book advertised on a forum.
Its a great, compact little guide that has really helped me out as a beginner.
Good price, and highly recommended