Jake Shimabukuro To Tour The UK!

I am probably a little bit late to this party, but I don't usually put up gig or tour announcements on Got A Ukulele. This one is a little special though. Jake Shimabukuro is touring the UK for the first time ever. You heard that right - THE Jake Shimabukuro.

That is pretty massive news actually, with Jake being probably one the most well known and highly regarded players of ukulele on the planet. And this is his first time in a proper tour of the UK.

He is playing four dates:

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Epiphone Les Paul Ukulele - REVIEW

Something of an 'about time' ukulele review this one. The Epiphone Les Paul Ukulele has been around for a few years now, and although I have played many of them, I just haven't seemed to have one long enough to write a detailed review up.  It must also be said, this musical instrument was probably the one that was most requested as a review on Got A Ukulele. Now is that time, and I suspect this one will divide opinions.

The Epiphone Les Paul ukulele, as the name suggests, is an instrument designed to look like the iconic Gibson Les Paul shape guitar. I feel I should get one thing out of the way before getting into the meat of this review. I don't like the concept of making ukuleles look like famous guitars. They are not guitars. They are ukuleles. Why not come up with novel designs that are original? I get that this is going to be highly subjective, but it's just me. I mean, as ukulele players we all have to deal with the claptrap that is 'oh it's just a small toy guitar', so why play a uke that looks, well, like a small toy guitar? I think the style of it, whilst clearly 'Les Paul' in design looks a bit silly. It's not Les Paul guitar - Les Pauls are big heavy things. To me this is just a novelty. Glad to get that off my chest.

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DJ Morgan Mahogany Soprano - REVIEW

Aside from the many factory made ukuleles I have reviewed on this site, it is always nice to get to test something handmade and bespoke. I've been doing that for the last couple of months with this mahogany soprano model from DJ Morgan.

Dave Morgan is a UK luthier, based in Dudley in the midlands who hand makes a range of instruments in a traditional style. He is a small volume builder so these are not available in huge numbers (another nice thing about them!)

This soprano is made from all solid woods, and comes in at a fantastic price of just under £300 in this spec. We have a traditional double bout shaped body made from reclaimed solid Brazilian mahogany and they really are some nice pieces of wood. Nothing gaudy (hey, this is mahogany) but nice, subtle and with a  lovely orange glow. The top and back are made from single pieces of wood and the sides are in two pieces with an unbound, yet still book matched, join at the butt. A closer look at the edges of the sound hole show that this is a nice thin top too.

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