Music blog

You may not have noticed it yet, but the ukulele is back. Now you could argue that it was never here in the first place and that in fact, this is the dawn of the first real ukulele era - but that would be doing a massive disservice to George Formby whose ukulele and window cleaning exploits earned him an honest bob.

I first noticed the resurgence of the uke a couple of months ago with the re-release of Noah and The Whale’s ‘Five Years Time’, a song which proudly boasts the humble ukulele as a key component. Since then the ukulele has been popping up everywhere. Israel Kamakawiwo'ole’s 1993 version of ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’ has suddenly been discovered by the social network generation, most probably because it is a gorgeous song but quite possibly because the sight of 758 pound Hawaiian giant playing a tiny ukulele is pretty comical.

You Tube has also seen a wealth of unlikely covers being given a run-out on the ukulele ranging from a version of Europe’s ‘The Final Countdown’ to a cover of Britney Spear’s ‘Toxic’. And don't forget The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, a collective that have been holding the flag for the ukulele since the mid-80s.

My personal contribution to the ukulele revolution has come in the form of buying a cheap plastic version for £20 and attempting to play a song that Jim Royle plays on the banjo in The Royle Family, something that predictably someone has already done far better than I ever could and has uploaded it onto what many people are now calling Uke Tube.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I'm putting my neck out here, but this could well be the dawn of the golden age of the ukulele. You heard it hear first.

7 of Uke-Tube's Greatest Moments:

o Noah and the Whale Five Years Time
o George Formby When I’m Cleaning Windows - if you listen to the lyrics carefully you can be certain that it laid the foundations for Robin Askwith’s sex "comedy" Confessions of a Window cleaner…
o The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
o Israel Kamakawiwo'ole Somewhere Over The rainbow

o I Want a Girl (Just Like The Girl)
- the song Jim sings on the banjo in the Royle Family

o KazooKeylele The final countdown

o (Not) Britney Spears Toxic