Do You Really Know the Songs You’re Playing?
Give Your Progress a Boost With These Tunes!
The best no-effort boost an ukulele player can give themselves is a familiar song. By learning a tune that is very familiar to you, you can spend less time thinking about how the song should sound and more time playing it.
In Single String Songbook, you’ll learn to pick the melody (and strum the chords) for 20 traditional and recognizable songs.
Single String Songbook For Ukulele
In Single String Songbook, I set out to bring my super-straightforward single string picking method to a complete collection of songs.
- Beginners can use this repertoire to get familiar with the basics of picking
- Advanced players can use this intriguing approach to challenge themselves and gain a new perspective
What is a single string song?
A single string song is a melody that is played entirely along the length of one ukulele string. Essentially, it’s the easiest, most straightforward way to pick on the ukulele.
Playing on one string has several benefits over other styles:
- Simplicity – Switching strings is one of the hardest parts of playing ukulele. In a single string song, you don’t make this transition
- Visualization – By playing everything in a line it’s very obvious what’s happening at all times
- Ear Training – With traditional, across the strings picking, musical ear and muscle memory often takes a back seat due to mechanical complexity. But when you’re only moving up and down one string, your ears, fingers, and eyes can easily begin building a working relationship with each other
All in all, this creates a very nurturing and productive environment for learning to pick the ukulele.
Repertoire
These 20 songs are selected to be familiar to most people living in the West. There are some classic Americana melodies, popular covers, nursery rhymes, hymns, and more!
- Aloha ʻOe
- Angelina Baker
- Camptown Races
- Down By the Bay
- Home on the Range
- I’ll Fly Away
- Itsy Bitsy Spider
- My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean
- Ode to Joy
- Oh My Darling Clementine
- Old Macdonald Had a Farm
- Red River Valley
- Skip to My Lou
- Sloop John B
- Take Me Out to the Ball Game
- The Water is Wide
- This Old Man
- Three Blind Mice
- Wheels on the Bus
- When the Saints Go Marching In
Notation
The songs are transcribed in a style that should be familiar – with a twist!
Tablature is the main feature, but since the songs only occupy one string, the TAB is adjusted to show a single line.
It’s the same as normal TAB, you just play the fret numbers on one string only (usually the A-string to start).
There is also standard notation, chord changes, and lyrics along with most songs.
FAQs
Do I need the Step By Step ebook?
Step By Step: Single String Picking is a guidebook that provides explanation, progression, and insight on the concept of single string playing. It was the inspiration to create this songbook. But you do not need the instructions in Step By Step to benefit from the tunes in this ebook.
If you’re the kind of person who likes to dig in and understand a concept completely, it would be a great companion resource for these songs, but it’s not at all required.
How many frets do I need?
Each melody fits within an octave, which requires 12 frets. This means they can be played on almost any ukulele.
What tuning is this book for?
The standard notation and chord changes are shown for GCEA tuning with the melodies played on the A-string.
HOWEVER, if you use the TAB you can play these melodies on basically any stringed instrument that has frets. Any tuning, any scale length. Baritone uke, guitar, banjo, mandolin, etc.