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ContentsSong Music Lyrics ChordsIntroduction, tips and tuning 2

1. Little Tommy Tinker 8 30 C2. Johnny One Hammer 8 30 C3. Funga Alafia 8 30 C4. Row, Row, Row Your Boat 9 31 C G75. Adieu My Comrades 9 31 F6. This Old Hammer 10 31 F7. Ten in the Bed 10 32 F8. Land of the Silver Birch 11 32 Dm9. Canoe Song 12 32 Dm10. In the Land of Oz 12 33 Dm11. Skin and Bones 13 33 Em12. The Ghost of Tom 13 33 Em 13. Cotton Eyed Joe 14 34 A14. Whistle Daughter 14 34 D15. Little Liza Jane 15 35 D16. The Wandering Cowboy 15 35 G17. Clementine 16 36 F C718. Swing Low, Sweet Chariot 17 36 F C719. Hush Little Baby 18 37 F C720. This Old Man 19 38 C G721. He’s Got the Whole World 20 39 C G722. Rock-a My Soul 21 40 C G723. Jack Was Every Inch a Sailor 22 41 C G24. Hey Lidee 23 42 D A25. Old Texas 23 42 D A26. Found a Peanut 24 43 D A27. Boll Weevil 25 44 F C28. Nobody Likes Me 26 45 G D29. Wade in the Water 26 45 Dm A730. What Shall We Do With the Silly Sailor? 27 46 Dm A731. Nothing But Peace 28 47 G C D32. He is Born 29 47 G C D Chord chart 48

Themes & VariationsBox 25109 Deer Park PO, Red Deer Alberta T4R 2M2

Email: tvinfo@telus.net Web Site: www.musicplay.caToll Free Phone or Fax: 1-888-562-4647

Printed in Canada © 2015Cover Design and musical arrangements by Craig Cassils

ISBN Number: 978-1-927062-60-9

Easy Ukulele Songsby Denise Gagné

Download Print Permission: The purchaser of this download is permitted to print ONE copy only of this publication. No sharing of this copy or the MP3s included is

allowed under international copyright law.

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IntroductionThis collection of easy songs for ukulele is designed to get you singing and playing the ukulele in the very first lesson! The chords used in this collection are introduced through a series of 15 one chord songs. Mastering the chords before having to learn to change chords eliminates much of the frustration that young beginners face. After introducing the chords used, 15 easy two chord songs are given. If your students find it difficult to switch chords, divide the class into two groups and have one group play one chord and the other group play the other. Practice changing the chords slowly without looking at the fretboard. When students are able to “feel” where the fingers go, changing the chords will be easy. The last two songs in the collection use three chords. A CD with recordings of all the songs is included.

Students will learn the chords and how to change chords using the folk songs that are given in the collection. In addition to the songs in the collection we’ve given links (in the projectable PDF included on the CD) to easy pop songs on YouTube that use the same chords. Students really enjoy playing along with pop songs. Where possible, links to the original artists’ performance and to a video with the chords and lyrics are given. An inexpensive student book/CD is available so your students can play along with all the folk songs and easily access the same YouTube links at home. This collection does not address reading notes and playing melodies - the focus is on learning songs to sing and strum.

The ukulele originated in the 19th century as a Hawaiian interpretation of the machete, a small guitar-like instrument taken to Hawaii by Portuguese immigrants. Since then, the ukulele has been commonly associated with music from Hawaii, where the name roughly translates as “jumping flea,” perhaps because of the movement of the player’s fingers. The ukulele gained great popularity elsewhere in the United States during the early 20th century, and from there spread internationally. It has been popular with performing musicians, and also in music education. SAMPLE

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Body

Sound hole

Bridge

FretsStrings

Tuning pegs

Neck

Headstock

Parts of the Ukulele

Ukulele is sometimes abbreviated to uke. The ukulele is a member of the guitar family of instruments. It has four strings that are played by plucking or strumming. Ukuleles are generally made of wood, though variants have been composed partially or entirely of plastic or other materials. There are four main sizes of ukulele: soprano (standard), concert, tenor and baritone. The soprano, concert and tenor are good sizes for the young beginner.

Tenor Ukulele Soprano Ukulele

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Playing ChordsThe Left Hand• The fingers of your left hand are numbered 1-2-3-4• The left thumb goes on the back of the ukulele neck• Press the strings using the tips of your fingers between the two frets

Chord DiagramsThe chord diagram is like a picture or map of the neck of your ukulele. It shows where to place the fingers to play a chord. The lines down represent the strings and the horizontal lines represent the frets.• The numbered circles show you where to depress a string and which finger to use• In this example, press down the first string at the third fret• Use your third finger

123

4

C

3

Strings 4 3 2 1 G C E A

Frets

FingerSAMPLE

7

Strumming• You can use either your thumb or your index (pointer) finger to strum• Some players like to use a felt pick• Strum all four strings in a smooth downward stroke.• Keep a steady beat as you strum• The best place to strum is the “sweet spot” near the area where the neck meets the body

strum strum strum strum strum strum strum strum

/ / / / / / / /

Try some different strumming patterns on a C chord. The letter d is for a down strum and u is for an up strum. • d u d u d u d u • d d u d du• d u d d u d • d d d u d u When you are playing a song, choose a strumming pattern that suits the style of the music.

Strumming the C ChordThe C Chord• A chord is sounded when three or more notes are played at the same time.• To play a C chord, press the first string down in the third fret with the third finger

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Tuning the ukulele is easy, especially since there are many apps available to help with this. An excellent tuner for mobile devices can be found by searching for “guitar toolkit.” It has instrument specific tuners for all stringed instruments, chord guides and a great metronome. A good free tuner is n-Track Tuner. There are many more free tuners available, but beware of in app purchases and plenty of adware.

In large classes of students, it may be more efficient to line up the students, ukulele in hand, and tune them yourself than to try have students tune the instruments. At www.musicplayonline.com there is a ukulele tuner. Log in, and then select Ukulele from the menu on the left. Click on the tuning peg to start and stop the sound. This book uses C tuning (standard) so click on Ukulele Tuner C.

Better quality ukuleles will stay in tune much better, so try to purchase good quality ukuleles. Always loosen the string and then tighten it up until it is in tune (from under pitch to on pitch). Instruct your students to never touch the tuning pegs once you have tuned the instrument.

Open string tuning: For easy tuning. start at the G with a tuner and move up. The melody will sound a little bit like “My dog has fleas.” Play a C chord to make sure the instrument is in tune with itself. Make music!

The strings are tuned as follows: String 4: G String 3: C String 2: E String 1: A

Tuning the Ukulele

&cœ

œœ

œ

G C E A

4 3 2 1

Pop Songs to Play on UkulelePlaying pop music is a huge motivator for students. The Projectable PDF file includes links to 32 pop songs with one, two, three or more chords that are easy to play. As soon as students are familiar with a few chords, try playing the pop songs that are included in the links. Links are included to the You-Tube channel, “Easy Ukulele Chords and Lyrics” to learn the chords, and to the original performers videos.

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& b 43 .œ œIn

DroveLight

How

ashesheI

œ œ .œ œcav -wasduck -missed

ern,andlingsher,

inliketohow

aatheI

F

œ œ .œ œcan -fair -wa -missed

yonyterher,

ex -andeve -how

ca -herryI

& b .œ Jœ .œ œva -shoesmorn -missed

tingwereingmy

fornum -justClem -

aberaten -

˙ .œ œmine,nine,nine,tine,

livedHer -HitTill

aringherI

C

œ œ .œ œmin -box -footkissed

eresa -her

for -with -gainstlit -

ty -outatle

& b œ œ .œ œni -tops -splin -sis -

nerester,ter

andsan -felland

hisdalsin -for -

F

.œ jœ œ œdaugh -weretogot

terforthemy

Cle -Clem -foam -Clem -

men -en -ingen -

C

˙ .œ œtine.tine.brine.tine.

Oh my

F

& b œ œ .œ œdar - lin', Oh my

œ œ .œ œdar - lin,' Oh my

.œ Jœ .œ œdar - lin' Cle - men -

˙ .œ œtine. You are

C

& b ..œ œ .œ œlost and gone for -

œ œ .œ œev - er dread - ful

F

.œ jœ œ œsor - ry Cle - men -

C

˙tine.

F

Clementine17. Clementine F C

Intro 4 bars

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& b c ..1 œSwing

.˙ œlow, sweet

F

.œ jœ jœ .œchar i ot,

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ

com in' for to car ry me

.˙ œ œ

home. Swing

C7

- - - -

& b .˙ œ

low, sweet

F

.œ jœ jœ .œchar i ot,

œ œ œ œ œ œ œcom in' for to car ry me

C7 Fine

.˙ œhome. I

F

- - - -

& b Jœ œ jœjœ œ jœ

looked o ver Jor dan and

œ œ œ jœ .œwhat did I see,

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ

com in' for to car ry me

.˙ œ

home. A

C7

- - - -

& b ..œ œ œ œ œband of an gels

F

œ œ œ œ jœ .œcom in' af ter me,

œ œ œ œ œ œ œcom in' for to car ry me

C7

.˙ œhome. Swing

F

- - - - -

26. Swing Low, Sweet Chariot 18. Swing Low, Sweet Chariot F C7

Intro 2 bars

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& cSoprano 1 œ œ œHe's got the

˙ jœ .œwhole world

C jœ œ jœ .œ œ œ œin His hands He's got the

& ˙ jœ .œwhole world

G 7jœ œ jœ .œ œ œ œ

in His hands He's got the

& ˙ jœ .œwhole world

C jœ œ jœ .œ œ œ œin His hands He's got the

& œ œ jœ œ jœwhole world in His hands.

G 7

˙ .jœ

C

13. He's Got the Whole World

He's got you and me brother in His hands,He's got you and me brother in His hands,He's got you and me brother in His hands,He's got the whole world in His hands.

He's got you and me sister in His hands,He's got you and me sister in His hands,He's got you and me sister in His hands,He's got the whole world in His hands.

He's got the whole world in His hands,He's got the whole world in His hands,He's got the whole world in His hands,He's got the whole world in His hands.

21. He’s Got the Whole World C G7

Intro 2 bars

He’s got the little bitty baby in His hands,He’s got the little bitty baby in His hands,He’s got the little bitty baby in His hands,He’s got the whole world in His hands.

He’s got you and me brother in His hands,He’s got you and me sister in His hands,He’s got you and me brother in His hands,He’s got the whole world in His hands.

He’s got the whole world in His hands,He’s got the whole world in His hands,He’s got the whole world in His hands,He’s got the whole world in His hands.

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& cSoprano 1 œ œ œ œ jœ œ jœRock a my soul in the

C

œ œ œ œ œ œ œbo som of A bra ham,

œ œ œ œ jœ œ jœRock a my soul in the

G7

- - - - -

& œ œ œ œ œ œ œbo som of A bra ham,

œ œ œ œ jœ œ jœRock a my soul in the

C

œ œ œ œ œ œ œbo som of A bra ham,- - - -- - -

& ˙ œ œ œOh, rock a my

G7 Fine

.˙Œ

soul.

C

˙ .œ jœSo high, you

œ œ œ œ œ œcan't get o ver it,- -

& ˙ .œ jœSo high, you

G7

œ œ œ œ œ œcan't get o ver it,

˙ .œ jœSo high, you

C

-

& ..œ œ œ œ œ œ œcan't get o ver it, You

œ œ œ jœ œ jœmust go in at the

G7

.˙Œ

door.

C

-

Rock-a My Soul 22. Rock-a My Soul C G7

Intro 2 bars

Chorus:Rock-a my soul in the bosom of Abraham,Rock-a my soul in the bosom of Abraham,Rock-a my soul in the bosom of Abraham,Oh, rock-a my soul.

2. So wide, you can’t get round itSo wide, you can’t get round itSo wide, you can’t get round itYou must go in at the door.

Chorus

3. So low, you can’t get under itSo low, you can’t get under itSo low, you can’t get under itYou must go in at the door.

Chorus

4. So high, you can’t get over itSo wide, you can’t get round itSo low, you can’t get under itYou must go in at the door.

Chorus:Rock-a my soul in the bosom of Abraham,Rock-a my soul in the bosom of Abraham,Rock-a my soul in the bosom of Abraham,Oh, rock-a my soul.

Spiritual

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& b cSoprano 1 ˙ jœ œ jœWade in the

D m

.œ jœ ˙wa ter,

˙ jœ œ jœWade in the

œ œ œ œwa ter, chil dren,- - -

& b ˙ jœ œ jœWade in the

D m

.œ jœ ˙wa ter,

œ œ œ jœ œ jœ

God's gon na trou ble the

Fine

.œjœ ˙

wa ter.

A m D m

- - - -

& b .. ..œ œ œ œ œ

DoClap

ityour

tohandsgeth

ander

œ œ jœ .œsingcan't

yourbe

song.wrong.

˙ jœ œ jœ

WadeWade

inin

thethe

.œjœ ˙

wawa

ter.ter.

A m D m

- ---

22. Wade in the Water

&#

42Soprano œ œ œ œ œNo - bod- y likes me,

G

œ œ œ œ œ œEv - 'ry-bod - y hates me,

œ œ œ œGuess I'll go eat

˙worms.

D

&#

S

œ œ œ œ œBig, fat juic-y ones,

œ œ œ œ œ œ œti - ny lit - tle wig-gley ones.

œ œ œ œ œWatch them wig-gle and

˙squirm.

G

&#

Sœ œ œ œ

Bite their heads off.

œ œ œ œSuck their guts out.

œ œ œ œThrow the skins a -

˙way.

D

&#

S

œ œ œ œI don't see how

œ œ œ œbirds can live on

œ œ# œ œworms three times a

˙day!

G

Nobody Likes Me28. Nobody Likes Me D G

Intro 2 bars

29. Wade in the Water Dm Intro 2 bars

Am

1

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1. Little Tommy Tinker CLittle Tommy Tinker sat upon a clinker.

He began to cry.

Ma! Ma!

Poor little innocent guy.

2. Johnny One Hammer C1. Johnny plays with one hammer, one hammer, one hammer. Johnny plays with one hammer, then he plays with two.

2. Johnny plays with two hammers...

3. Johnny plays with three hammers...

4. Johnny plays with four hammers...

5. Johnny plays with five hammers... Then he takes a rest.

The teacher is permitted to reproduce this page for students in one school or institution.

C

C

3. Funga Alafia

CFunga alafia. Ahshay, ahshay.

Funga alafia. Ahshay, ahshay.

Funga alafia. Ahshay, ahshay.

Funga alafia. Ahshay, ahshay.

C

Intro 2 bars

Intro 2 bars

Intro 2 bars SAMPLE

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G

1 23

C

3

F1

2

C71

G71

2 3

Am

1

Dm1

2 2

A1

2

D

1 2 3

Note: Some chords have been altered to fit smaller hands.

The teacher is permitted to reproduce this page for students in one school or institution.

Em

1

2

3

Cm

3 33

D7

12

E71

2 3

SAMPLE