Day 4 - “SD Bound”: The guys awake early to clean up russ_buss’ apartment in SF and head off to the airport for a (Virgin America!) flight to San Diego. In San Diego, they make it over to Pacific Arts Dance Studio where Aldrine teaches two workshops - a Beginner/Intermediate ukulele workshop and an Intermediate/Advanced ukulele workshop. The turnout is more than anyone could ask for and the team meets a LOT of awesome UUers and many new faces for a night of uke-ing.

Day 5 - “Mo’s”: Easily the longest and busiest day of the trip. The guys leave the hotel in search of things to do in San Diego. They have lunch with Joey Jr. at Phil’s BBQ, then chill at Pacific Beach. They hit up Reel Picture, the company that pressed and printed Aldrine’s CD, before heading back to the hotel for a warm-up jam with BJ and Bugoy. Everyone meets up at Mo’s Island Grinds, for a gig with Almost Islanders. A spontaneous after-hours jam arises with legendary band, Pau Hana, and the guys get to hang out with some hilarious brosephs from YT. Insane.

Day 6 - “Huntington”: Last day of the Tour. The UU Crew packs it up for the drive up to Huntington Beach. They stop off in Irvine to have lunch with Ryan’s brother Stephen before making their way to Island Bazaar, one of California’s largest ukulele shops. The entire place gets packed to the rafters with UU members and ukulele enthusiasts from across the LA Metro Area and everyone has a blast.

Honestly, the UU California Tour was the most fun that we’ve had in a long time. The entire experience was, in a lot of ways, life-changing for all of us and we have everyone who came out to the shows and supported us along the way to thank for it. As soon as we can make it happen again, we will definitely be back for more!

The BIGGEST MAHALO humanly possible,
-UU Staff.

Day 1 - “Arrival”: After a several rough flights and the airline having lost nearly all of their baggage, the guys arrive in San Francisco and head over to DaSilva Ukulele Co. for the first gig of the tour. The venue was wonderful, the people there were awesome, and the overall atmosphere made everything worth it (For more videos (and pics) from this performance, Click Here. *Thanks Ame!*)

Day 2 - “Break Day”: The gang wakes up late and spends what’s left of the morning trying to locate the lost luggage. They meet up with Russ_Buss who, knowing SF like the back side of his hand, shows them around the city. Everyone winds up at Russ’ apartment where Aldrine makes banana ketchup spaghetti and a 4+ ukulele jam session ensues.

Day 3 - “Hukilau”: The last day in the Bay area for the tour. The guys head up to the Kala Ukulele Company warehouse in Petaluma where they pick up a couple ukuleles to give away on the tour. They head over to the Hukilau Restaurant to check it out and setup for the gig. Bay area UUers pack the Hukilau and everyone has a grand ol’ time. (For more videos from this performance Click Here *Thanks Ame! - again!*.

*If you would like UU to appear in your city/town/area of residence, please let us know by posting a comment below!!

THANKS again to everyone who came out to see us in the Bay area, helping us to kick off this unforgettable tour. We hart all of you!

Aloha,
- UU Staff

Got questions about this lesson? Join the discussion - HERE!

It’s the first of the month and you know what that means - a brand-spankin’-new episode of UKE LESSONS! This time, Aldrine takes it slow, walking you through the chords, strumming, and picking for the song “Breakdown” by Jack Johnson (for more info on Jack, his musical abilities, and his amazing powers of charity and compassion, check out his site HERE).

As always, if you have any questions about this or any other lesson, hit up the fine people over at the UU Forum, or shoot a e-message to Aldrine at askaldrine(at)gmail.com ! Big MAHALOS for watching and being a part of the revolution. Stay tuned for more …

Aloha,
-UU Staff

Join the discussion about this technique HERE.

Hey there UUers! Ready to master something that will rock your friends’ socks off?? In this week’s episode of UKE MINUTES, Aldrine teaches a relatively simple technique that packs a lot of punch - Two-String Pulloffs!

Check out the video, master it, and show us what you got in the Forum. It may take a little while to get yourself familiarized with this one, but put in some time and it will definitely be worth it. When you do finally get this down , feel free to incorporate it into your solos, but remember to do so sparingly. With the two-string pulloff, a little goes a long way.

Have fun with this, and let us know what you think!

Aloha,
-UU Staff