Jake Rodrigues
I thought it would be a good idea to share the pdf uke songbooks I use for teaching online with you all out in the community. I try wherever possible to set them in the original key so you can play with the original artist. Sometimes this is impossble or even pointless but as a rule of thumb it works well. I also try and keep my arrangements colourful and easy to follow and will occasinaly add TAB markings for riffs etc . The mix of songs is quite random and I use some songs in more than one book simply because they began their life as charts for teaching classes in uke and it takes me too long to edit them out etc. If your curious for something different to these try my Cream of Tartar page where I have set out my own songs & recordings as uke arrangements and come along to one my online shows or LIVE SHOWS when this blessed Covid things ends. Peace and Good Vibes to you all ! Jake
Here's the songbook I made to start learning ukulele it has the songs with 2 then 3 chords building up your skills slowly. includes-a comprehensive chordchart - Singing in the Rain ( Gene Kelly) - Iko Iko - Banana boat song - I fought the law ( The Clash) -Jambalaya -Jolene ( Dolly P ) - The Lion Sleeps Tonight - YMCA - Shotgun ( George Ezra)
A new songbook for the 2021 lockdown. Skill level goes from easy to hard ( so varied) most tracks play are in original keys so great for playing with youtube etc. Songs include: Imagine ( john Lennon) -I'm on top of the world (Imagine Dragons) -Heroes ( Bowie) -Towards the sun ( Rhianna)- Shake it off (Taylor Swift) - Someone you loved (Lewis Calpaldi)-Pompeii (Bastille)-Count on me (Bruno Mars)-Love is a Stranger in an open car (Eurythmics)-Ain't no Sunshine (Bill Withers) -Walk on by ( Dione Warwick)-Can't get you outta my head (Kylie)- Can't stop the feeling (Justin Timberlake)-Ukulele me (Stephen Merritt)- Dance Monkey ( Tones and i) Will the Circle be Unbroken (Carter family)- Dumb ways to die (Tangerine Kitty)
Another songbook for lockdown with easy to hard playing again most of these tracks play with the original recorded version : Love is a Stranger in an Open Car (Eurythmics) - Walk on By ( Dione Warwick) Everybody Wants to Rule the World ( Tears for Fears) - Will the Circle be Unbroken (Carter family) - Go Your Own Way ( Fleetwood Mac) - Blame it On the Boogie ( Jackson 5) - Build Me Up Buttercup ( The Foundations) -NoNo No ( Dawn Penn) Completely ( Caro Emerald) - Moonriver ( Audrey H) Basement Jaxx ( Do Your Thing) In the Hall of the Mountain King ( Grieg-TAB) San Franscisco Bay Blues ( Fuller/Clapton) - Love is Like a Butterfly ( DollyParton) - Roy Orbison ( You've Got It) - Till There Was You ( The Beatles) Don't Stop me Now ( Queen ) Can't Get You Outta My Head ( Kylie Minogue) - Ocean Eyes ( Billie Eilish) - The Charleston ( 1920's Classic)
An easy to medium songbook with tunes set in keys for playability rather than the original key. includes: Love is Like a Butterfly ( Dolly Parton) I'm a Believer ( the Monkees) Shine on Harvest Moon ( Laurel & Hardy) Someone you Loved ( Lewis Calpaldi) If I had a Pony ( Lyle Lovett) That Lucky Old Sun ( Louis Armstrong) These Boots were made for Walking ( Nancy Sinatra) The Charleston ( !920's classic) The ace of Spages ( Motorhead) September ( Earth Wind & Fire / Taylor Swift) Starman ( Bowie) So What ( Pink ) Free Falling ( Tom Petty ) Like A Virgin ( Madonna) Shake it Off ( Taylor Swift ) Waterloo ( Abba) Don't Stop Me Now ( Queen) Move Like Jagger ( Maroon 5) Waterloo Sunset ( The Kinks )
A variety of vintage songs for uke from Moonriver to the Lambeth Walk , Shoe Shine Suzie to I was born under a Wandering Star. Plenty of other cowboy tunes too like Rawhide. The Sun has Got his Hat On rubs shoulders with I'll See You in my Dreams ( you get the idea now ) . Perfect for the summer !
As you can tell by this picture Jake is but a small man in the big world of Ukulele's. Having drifted into ukulele playing due to his passion for vintage music Jake has been lucky enough to jam, experiment and learn uke from some great players. He now is a very busy player and teacher on the uke scene running a selection of Uke courses at London's largest adult education college The City Lit. He also teaches in several primary schools both as part of the keystage 1 & 2 curriculum and as an after school club activity.
Together with fellow performer/musician Gary Bridgens he conceived a crazy adult team building workshop called 'Uke Can Do It' where in excess of 300 at a time have learnt to play uke, sing and dance in under 30 mins. A great and bonkers act that has performed up and down the UK.
Jake was commissioned in 2011 to produce an original Ukulele performance/workshop for the Manchester International Festival called 'Super Duper Musical Hero' . This workshop was taken to schools in the Manchester area and was repeated in custom built Music Boxes as part of the festival where CBeebies presenters worked in conjunction with Jake to create an all singing and dancing ensemble Ukulele show each day. The success of this workshop was repeated the following year when it was re-comissioned by the Abu-Dhabi Music & Arts Foundation.
Super Musical Heroes is a mixture of playing the ukulele, dressing up, dancing a routine and creating a fun interactive performance. I was asked to create a song to engage and teach children aged 4-8 the ukulele. The song then had to work as a performance that could work be performed with a crowd.
So I wrote and recorded a song split in two sections. The first half was a song about the power of music to lift spirits and musically it used very simple one finger uke chords. We taught the song using 3 adult performer/musicians and used games and comedy to teach the kids (& mums and dads) the song and choreography in around 40 mins.
Then it was time to get costumes on and play the rock'n'roll backing track which could be played through the festival PA on the big stage. This was the second part of the song and the choreography & lyric were designed so the entire audience could join in the fun and action too. The workshop leader and a CBeebies presenter ( in this video 'I can Cook' Katie would then co-ordinate the fun and performance !