Live in London #2

These tracks were recorded at the live London concerts on the ongoing UOGB world tour. Audiences enjoy the live act, coming back many times, giving noisy standing ovations and making repeated calls for encores. Perhaps the Ukes have stumbled into, or cunningly woven, a crossover appeal which combines the melodic catchiness of light music, the quirkiness of doo-wop and disco, the toe-tapping momentum of old jazz and the no-nonsense “serious hedonism” of a stadium rock gig. Is it all about cover versions? Think about it, most orchestras play “cover versions”: Beethoven, Mozart, Elgar and so on, and there’s nothing wrong with a reworking of a classic tune. Knowing the tune makes it easy to appreciate the warped re-imagining which the Ukes can bring to bear on the material. The pieces on this CD are time-honoured compositions, mainly from the popular repertoire, all given the inimitable Ukes twist, with inventive, energetic and witty new perspectives. In 1985 the idea of a musical group made up wholly of ukuleles in various registers may have seemed rather peculiar, but as time has gone on, not only has the instrument become more widely used, but ensembles of ukuleles are much more commonplace. The roaring receptions which greet the Ukes shows, running the gamut as they do from tender poignancy to stomping grooves, are evidence for a resonance between the zeitgeist of recent culture, and the UOGB imagination.