Way back when, I remember mastering three chords on the ukulele–in the blessed key of C–so I could sing and play a few songs for the injured veterans at my local VA Hospital. I am in nursing school and my fellow students and I are doing our first semester clinical rotation, learning all we can about giving sponge baths to naked men…
During our lunch break I grab my little soprano what-ever-it-is ukulele and serenade a ward of guys, imprisoned in their hospital beds…maybe for the duration. The music is a lovely respite for them, albeit fleeting. And I like how I feel doing it.
Good-bye nursing school.
I cobble together a music career, playing piano and guitar, but never forget that sweet little ukulele. It has called to me over the years. Come back lady…come back.
Then one day my husband Craig adopts one and brings it home. Like a new puppy or something. Soon enough I get my own, strap on a leash and take it to my gigs. Just like that, Craig and I fall madly in love with the ukulele. What was once a curiosity, a passing fling, has become the hot spot in our lives.
What is it about the ukulele that makes it SO friendly, SO joyful to play? This humble little thing, with it’s plastic strings–only four of them–that can snap you out of a bad mood or give you a second wind when it feels like your life is grinding into the dirt. What is it about the ukulele that gets big people singing along and little people discovering they can sing along? Maybe for the first time.
I have asked myself this question over and over and finally decided the ukulele is a mystery to be played, not solved! So why not write a song about it? Put those feelings of “ahhh” into words and music. And here it is:
“OO-KOO-LAY-LAY”
This tune is from my first ukulele album “Are You Having Any Fun?” A couple months ago I did an arrangement for my ukulele class, The CC Strummers. Thank God they liked it (I mean, you never know…) and we gleefully learned it together. Then I started getting reports from the grandmoms and granddads in our classes how they are singing the song and teaching it to their little ones…and big ones. Then they show me the home videos on their smart phones, the spontaneous duets, and my heart just goes “ahhh.”
The CC Strummers and I debuted “OO-KOO-LAY-LAY” at The Santa Monica Ukulele Festival last month. My husband Craig shot the video and I had more fun than is legal adding the lyrics so you can sing along, kind of like watching the bouncing ball. CLICK HERE to see the whole spectacle and to “put a smiley, smiley, smiley in your day-ay.”
I want you to learn this song and take it to the streets! So I’ve attached the ukulele chart below. It’s a gift that I hope will keep on giving.
Of course I’d love for you to download the song from iTunes, Amazon or CD Baby so I can make a whopping 70 cents! You know the old joke: How do you make a million dollars playing the ukulele? You start with two million dollars.
You may want to check out my album “Are You Having Any Fun?” too. Listening to it will make you feel mighty fine!
And a little of THAT goes a long way!
Cali
From Cheryl B:
“Thanks so much for sending this song. I LOVE it!
…you are the best instructor I’ve ever had at a festival. I use what you taught me every day.”
Cali
From Lucy I.
“Love the song “Oo Koo Lay Lay”–and thank goodness you gave up nursing to make music–although you prpbably would have been a good nurse–well–their loss and the music world’s gain. Besides music is good for mental health. We are so lucky to have you! Your blogs are really interesting too. Thank you for sharing your stories. You spread happiness and fun wherever you go.”