Delta Strummers in concert 2015

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I'll get something up on youtube shortly; I need to edit some of the stuff I was given yesterday. Meanwhile, search on youtube for Delta Strummers and you'll see one of our rehearsals for this show; Audio isn't very good, and there were a few rough spots that got fixed before we went on stage.
 
This week we were digging out songs played and sung with grandkids. June 1st we play/sing for/with the kids at a local elementary school. These kids might be our biggest critics  ;D
 
I have video of 17 of the 25 numbers from our concert up on YouTube. I edited the videos to have just one number per clip. Go to YouTube and search on 'Delta Strummers'. Enjoy!
 
Tom said:
This week we were digging out songs played and sung with grandkids. June 1st we play/sing for/with the kids at a local elementary school. These kids might be our biggest critics  ;D

Nah, kids are easy.  Sing a song about farting & you've got 'em.  (I should write one!)

I'll check out the videos later.
 
LOL Russ, I know that first hand, but the school probably wouldn't like us singing it.
 
We now have 22 video clips up (one number per clip). I'm still 'missing' clips of several songs/tunes, including the rock & roll classic Apache. Our lead uke player (also a long-time lead guitarist) does a great job of picking this tune, while the band strums behind, trying hard to keep count and stay in sync.

The lead uke player also plays/sings another classic - "I Put A Spell On You". This is in 6/8 time, and I failed miserably to keep up during multiple practices, as did half the band. I/we finally convinced our Music Director to use a small ensemble to strum along with the solo.
 
I finally received a video of the instrumental 'Apache' played at our concert, and uploaded it to YouTube:

https://youtu.be/gCYHLa1tGIg

If you watch the band, we're only playing chords, but we're all focusing hard on counting, to stay in sync. This is especially true for me; I can keep up pretty well if I'm singing at the same time as I'm playing, but I can easily get lost on the instrumental numbers.

The soloist has obviously migrated a lot of his guitar skills to the ukulele. Watching this video, it's hard to believe that, at the end of his first night practicing with the band a year ago, I asked him how it went and he said "I can't figure out how to play this ukulele".
 
Tom said:
If you watch the band, we're only playing chords, but we're all focusing hard on counting, to stay in sync. This is especially true for me; I can keep up pretty well if I'm singing at the same time as I'm playing, but I can easily get lost on the instrumental numbers.

I wish that was my problem. When I sing along, it throws my playing off. Of course, it doesn't take a lot to throw my playing off. :)
 
[quote author=Daryl B]When I sing along, it throws my playing off.[/quote]

Interesting Daryl, I've had this discussion numerous times with folks I consider to be good musicians. My ears tell me when, for example, a chord change is coming, but I have no idea what the chord is and I have to look at a lead sheet. The musicians OTOH instinctively know what chord to switch to. The (vocal) melody usually comes out fine when I'm singing, and it helps keep my playing in sync. Lyrics also seem to come to me without having to think about them; Sometimes I couldn't tell you what the first word of the next song is, or what's the first word of the next line or verse, but I open my mouth to sing and out they come.
 
Thanks Larry. Prior to this guy joining the band, I had no idea tunes like that could (or should) be played on the ukulele. I have some interesting discussions with this guy about how he learns new tunes. He certainly has skills & talents I don't have and likely never will.
 
Apache was great!

If there's such a thing as a pedal steel uke or even a steel stringed electric uke Sleepwalk would work nicely too.  Or Wipe Out!  Uke seems to fit the surf guitar sound well.

Funny thing is that you can see who in the ensemble is having trouble with the rhythm.  If you've ever watched the string section of an orchestra all of the bows tend to be in similar positions at any given time.  Same with strumming a stringed instrument.  The good part is that it usually works out to sound pretty good.  From teaching group classes I've learned to spot it and mostly ignore it unless it's really bad.  It's really hard to keep the rhythem together in a group that large unless the leader is amplified enough that everyone can hear it.

I'm teaching a workshop this weekend and giving a one page song with 79 chord changes, some of which are evil and dreaded Barre chords.  it'll be fun.........  Been teaching this intermediate class for 20 something years, same students every year and they still whine when there's barre chords.  :eek:  I'm playing it with a knuckle I sliced to the bone while chopping onions and it still bleeds a little when I play. 
 
[quote author=8Muddypaws]Apache was great![/quote]

Glad you liked it. I can hear a couple of picked notes that are "different" from the original I recall by The Shadows. I've seen the soloist bend notes, but I don't know if that's what's going on in this case. He's brought a number of good instrumentals to the band. One that I found particularly tough to keep up with was I Got A Spell On You; I and half the band finally squealed loud enough that the Director relented and used a small group to back the lead.

you can see who in the ensemble is having trouble with the rhythm
.

Aye, I could see that on Apache, although a couple of folks appear to be doing a "different" strum from others, which makes it appear that they're way off. If it was that far off, I'd have noticed and passed the word along. I've been known to call 'time out' during a performance, although usually only when someone is playing a different song or in a different key  :eek:

If you look closely on Apache, I lost the beat a couple of times around 3:30, stopped, then came back in. I either lost count or concentration. This is a classic example of where singing would have kept me in sync, but I don't know any words for Apache  ;D

I'm teaching a workshop this weekend

Sounds like a lot of fun, but not the chopped knuckle part.
 
I'm taking a dozen bandaids and some liquid skin just in case.  I cut it right down to the bone with my sharpest knife.  I once cut the tip of a finger off, had it surgically re-attached and played a church gig two weeks later.  Same finger!  (Slow learner)

I just realized that I Put a Spell on You might be an interesting mashup/medley with Greenfields, much in the same manner as Amazing Grace and House of the Rising Sun works together. Weird idea but it actually sounds good.

I've been playing today as so far no blood.  I need to play harder!
 
If the band aids don't work, this stuff works pretty good.

Good luck! I can already feel the pain.
 

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