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Brook Adams Press Kit
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his chicken
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marmalukeys
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Click on a title to hear an mp3...
The Hugh Masakela song. I remember the vocal version by the group called the Friends of Distinction.
That's me on the Ashbory bass too.
Play It!
Jean Sablon used to do this one with Django Reinhardt.
Play It!
That means Dark Eyes... I been workin on my Django. I put the changes in a looper than I make an intro and hit the pedal and go for it. This one turned out ok but Im still workin on it.
Play It!
The theme music for Monty Python's Flying Circus is in fact a march by John Phillips Souza and here it is.
Play It!
An old Jimmy Rogers song. I copped it from Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys.
Play It!
I stole the intro from the master, Django Reinhardt and threw in a little bit of Edgar Winter.
Play It!
The upcoming Swingin' Marmalukeys CD will have a version of this song with a cretinous vocal and worse things...
Play It!
I recently discovered Marissa Monte who I think is like a new Jobim...
And she plays ukulele
Play It!
Click here for a pdf file
Brook Adams is a ukulele madman with a strong voice and guitar chops too. He describes his collection of novelty songs, tv themes, modern pop and swing-era classics as a musical cartoon of the 20th century. Add warm tenor vocals and jazzy R&B flavored guitar for an evening of great entertainment. His latest gimmick is playing the Beatles' ABBEY ROAD album start to finish on ukulele.
Brook has played a lot in the Pacific Northwest where he makes his home. His festival resumé includes the Northwest Folklife, Seattle Bumbershoot, Oregon Country Fair, and the Portland Ukulele Festival. He played at the Portland premiere of the film Rock That Uke and opened for Japanese ukulele queens, Petty Booka. He has several CDs available; Evil Ukulele, String Theory and Love Death & Agriculture. He is recording a new CD due out in January with his band, the Swingin' Marmalukeys.
In addition to performing, Adams teaches ukulele workshops for beginners and more advanced players. The intro class teaches simple songs and the chords you need to play them. The advanced class teaches tricks and tips to make your playing more interesting and exciting. His relaxed style and friendly manner put students at ease for a class that is fun and entertaining.
Click here for a pdf file
EVIL UKULELE
Reviewer: jim freeberg
I love the playfulness, the creativity, the tasty licks and nothing being taken too seriously. If you love the uke as much as I do, you are very likely to enjoy it immensely!
Fun stuff that will have you humming along!
Reviewer: steve-o-reno
Great ukulele playing and fun songs. You'll be saying,"I didn't know you could play that on the ukelele". Plus two of the tunes have some of the best Django-jazz uke that I've ever heard.
...Fun gypsy uke music...
Reviewer: Wine Bottle Books
It's definitly a mixed bag--some of it gets pretty silly, and some of it (like the Django-inspired one and J'attendre) are really great, with excellent riffs and stellar uke playing. His versions of Purple Haze and New York New York are some of those "so wrong it's oh-so-right" songs we all love. The most important thing about this CD is, if you listen to it, you will certainly smile, probably laugh and definitly find it
impossible to stay at all depressed!
...Adept finger work,
quirky collection, upbeat, humorous
Reviewer: Laura Tamkin
I have played this for friends and there are always smiles; there is a deservedly silly version of "I think I Love You", fun covers of James Bond theme songs, and a surprising "Purple Haze", and others. These all being on Ukulele somehow deconstructs the piece or one's previous view of the piece...adept finger work on this unusual CD.
STRING THEORY CD
Reviewer: Wine Bottle Books
This music is like nothing else I've heard--gypsy jazzy happy sexy WITH ukuleles! Their version of Spiderman is incredible and totally worth the price of the CD (although, yes, it will get stuck in your head). I don't know how these guys developed their sound, but it's ingenious.
(such as they are)
Click here for a pdf file.
Brook Adams
Gypsy Swing, Retro-Pop, TV Themes and Cartoon Music.
Eugene, Oregon
www.brookadams.com
Evil Ukulele and Other Disasters(2005)
String Theory (2004)
Love Death & Agriculture (1994)
Durangatwangs (1991)
Private Language (1990)
Portland Ukulele Festival (2004, 2006)
Art and the Vineyard (Eugene, OR: 1994, 2004, 2006)
Oregon Country Fair (Eugene, OR: 1994, 2004)
Eugene Celebration (Eugene, OR: 1994, 2001, 2004)
Davinci Days (Corvallis, OR: 1994, 2004)
Oregon Premier of the Film Rock That Uke (2003)
Seattle Bumbershoot (1994)
Seattle Folklife (1993)
Salem Art Fair (Salem, OR: 1993, 1992)
Directed a vaudeville show for kids (Eugene, OR 2003)
Opened for the Sugar Beets (Eugene, OR 2004)
Opened for Taj-Mahal (Durango, CO 1984)
Played in Canada, France, Mexico and Guatemala
Ancient history but here they are for what it's worth...
alumnus John Shipe
wrote this squib.
Now he has his own band,
THE SCAPEGOATS
Thanks for the props John!
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Eugene, OR: 1997
Summer project
Sol Mo Cha Cha
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Seattle, WA: 1994
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Eugene, OR: 1994
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Eugene, OR: 1994
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Guatemala: 1991
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