The Ukuleles of "One Ukulele" #1: My Jake Cordoba

Every ukulele has its own story - well, that's what this "One Ukulele" concept is all about. My plan is to contact the members of the ukuleleunderground who contributed images for the video and have them write a little something about their ukuleles. As I wait for the stories to come in, I'll talk a little about the few of mine that made it to the final cut. And that first one, pictured to the left, is my Jake Shimabukuro signed, highly modified Cordoba 20TM-CE all mahogany tenor.

The most unique thing about this ukulele, of course, is its "Aloha, Jake" signature, which I got after seeing Jake for the first time in November 2009 at the Ark in Ann Arbor, Michigan. While I did not see a lot of people toting ukes to Jake's 2010 concert there a few weeks back, sad to say there were about six of us "Middle Aged Guys with a Ukulele" who sought to sharpen their axes under Jake's pen. Being such a wonderful person, Jake signed every one of them, along with the CDs and shirts and any other items us fans could think of.

Maybe a ukulele with Jake's signature demanding being something more than a $179 Guitar Center special (not to say anything bad about either Cordoba or Guitar Center), but a short time later I was awakened to a very strange pinging sound - as I looked around in my darkened room, there sat my Jake Cordoba in an ill-fitting guitar stand, his rosewood bridge separated from the sound board and dangling from the strings. Oh, no! I'd never seen anything like this.

Fortunately, I happen to know Dan Voight, an up-and-coming, super-talented mandolin maker who I knew could easily reunite body and bridge. As we talked a little more, Dan suggested we make an entirely new bridge (at something like $40, which is incredibly cheap for a custom made bridge). Dan also did not like how the undersaddle transducer separated the saddle from the bridge's surface, so he took the transducer and its connectors out, leaving the "unplugged" preamp and phono jack alone but inoperable.

Because it was so hard to see the fingerboard markings, I also had Dan put some nice pearl dots along the side of the neck. That, along with the bridge, a new bone nut and saddle, and an upgrade to Worth clears worked out great. It was an all new instrument worthy of its famous signer.

While the instrument had more sustain and felt better than stock, I still wanted the action a little lower. Living very close to Dave Talsma, I took it to him; he shaved down the saddle and re-worked the nut and now it plays like butter. Dave also put my electronics back in but, being the cheap stock setup, I really need to upgrade to a Mi-Si, if I can ever afford it. Oh, and the stock tuners, which are horrible (at least on my model) need to be replaced as well, but I could use some help here with suggestions for a good brand. I ordered a set of Grovers but was very disappointed as one of the four was much too sticky as it turned.

While it's still a work in progress, my simple ukulele has become a relatively super work that has been touched by three masters - Jake, Dan, and Dave. I used it in my "Tip Toe Redux" video and was very, very happy with the sound and playability. Once I get that Mi-Si, it will no doubt be my axe of choice.

MBK

PS: I should note that the actual picture of my Jake signed Cordoba in the video is the one taken with it snuggling up with my Lanikai S-TEQ spruce top tenor, signed by Danielle Ate the Sandwich, who I saw a few weeks ago at the Ark.

Helping Another New Uker

Going to Elderly Instruments in Lansing, Michigan is never just about looking at ukuleles and accessories that I can't afford. It's also about the people you meet. Indeed, I've never gone there without talking music with at least one or two people, whether it was the couple from Chicago a few months ago who taught ukulele, the two ukulele players a while back who were visiting from Nova Scotia, or the guy a couple years back who was stopping there on his cross- ountry motorcycle trip.

Yesterday's trip to Elderly was no exception. I had just got done talking with the repair department about a Mi-Si undersaddle pickup (very cool) and returned to the wall of ukuleles when a guy about my age (Middle Aged guy, but without a ukulele) stopped me and asked me for help. I don't know if he thought I worked there or he could just sense my ukulele knowledge, but I was glad to answer his question, which was "What makes a good ukulele." Seems his son, who is about 11 or so, wants to get one.

Before I had the chance to get too philosophical, his son came over with a Lanikai koa wood concert ukulele, all nicely packaged with a gig bag, tuner and chord booklet. I told the two that Lanikai makes a great product (I own an S-TEQ myself) and that we should open this one up and take a look. True to form, the Lanikai played wonderfully, had good fit and finish, and, due to the koa, had a wonderfully traditional tone. I told them this would be a fine first start and they should not think twice about buying it (and, like real Elderly salepeople, I'm not on commission, so this was an honest opinion - heck, I don't even work there).

I don't think the father was ready to buy that day, but I think he will, and, more importantly, I think it means we have a new ukulele player in the making. I asked him why he wanted to play ukulele, and he said because of a person he saw in Alabama who uses it on some of their songs; I am assuming he meant the band, but is there a famous ukulele player in Alabama he could have been talking about? Does it really matter; someone inspired him to play and the father is doing the right thing encouraging that interest and making a small investment in what will most likely be a very happy pairing of young man and ukulele.

There's another thing I really like about this story. In a room full of guitars and a store that has even more acoustics and some of the coolest electrics around, here is a young man choosing to start with ukulele. A sign of the times, I guess, a part of our culture. Another ukulele and a turn I like to see taken.

MBK

Lanikai S-TEQ Makes Me Happy

The first thing I noticed about the Lanikai S-TEQ spruce top tenor—the thing that made me fall in love with it, actually—was its incredibly low action. I sampled two identical models at Elderly Instruments in Lansing, Michigan and both played effortlessly. This smooth-as-butter playability is the Holy Grail for those like me who come from a steel string background, but there’s something else magical about this ukulele; it sounds good, too.

Every time I play this ukulele, plugged or unplugged (but mainly plugged), I get a great reaction. People crowd around to get a closer look and compliment me on how rounded and deep it sounds. They seem totally surprised to hear this big of sound from such a small box..

The fact that it looks so good is just icing on the cake.

The S-TEQ is the electric, cut-away version of the Lanikai S-T, which I assume stands for spruce tenor. The top is solid spruce with a beautiful, tight grain pattern. Back and sides are mahogany (most likely laminated, although the spec sheet does not say). Rosewood fingerboard and tie-bridge along with maple binding round-out the good looks and solid feel of the instrument and the 18 frets were level and immaculately manicured. A little excess glue on the fingerboard are about all I can complain about in regards to fit and finish.

Electronics on the two I sampled were Belcat UK2000 undersaddle transducers with 9-volt active preamps. The quality of the Asian-made electronics on the two ukuleles varied a bit, with one sounding quite trebly while the other was more rounded and had a better bass. I have seen other S-TEQ’s advertised with a German-made Shadow P3 active systems; not having compared a Belcat to a Shadow, all I can say is I was more than satisfied with the bassier of the two Belcat models.

The only real complaint I have is a somewhat loose “C” string die-cast tuning machine (looks like a Grover, but it’s not marked) on one of the samples. That the nicer tuners were on the more trebly example shows some of the trade-offs one encounters when purchasing lower-line instruments, but, again, the overall quality and sound was so good on both, these are just not very big concerns.

At bottom, I’m very pleased with the S-TEQ. At only $189 with the Belcat, this is one of the best values in all of ukedom. I have been fortunate to play a wide variety of ukuleles at Elderly—from $30 to Mahalos to thousand dollar Hawaiian makes, and I have yet to find one that feels and plays as smoothy and effortlessly as the S-TEQ.

While the tone may not snap out like it does on ukuleles costing hundreds, if not thousands more, it certainly holds its own, beating nearly everything in its price range. To quote the company slogan, this Lanikai "Makes me happy."

-Lamb Chop