Good morning, All,
Thank you Jack, as always!
It was an interesting evening, and I hope I did not lay on the new and difficult songs too thickly! We are looking forward to our October 4 performance in Warner, and need to explore our song options.
I think Cecilia has a lot of potential – we made progress with the percussion, and I think next time we will concentrate on a basic rhythm we can maintain throughout, then embellish as we keep practicing. Example, hand claps could add a lot, but the timing might be odd so we need to start with a solid beat. If that makes sense.
Sound of Silence also went pretty well; please do explore the picking on your own. It should be simple and consistent – maybe just a few of us can do that on the first verse, then everyone come in on the strums.
Stand By Me is a great song. We need a consistent approach, and I have been listening to John Lennon but will go back to the original too. Yes, I will add in the pauses with extra chords, or maybe deploy the dots again.
Love Shack…. you’re killing me! But I will not stand in the way of a determined posse of B52’s fans, should they gather. Jack has been trying to get me to do this song for a long time with zero success. I did try to learn Rock Lobster. We definitely need some crazy singers for either one.
I have been getting some fun song suggestions, NOT B52 related, from players, thank you! Keep them coming. Also, if you have songs from our list that you want to play, it will be helpful if you have them in mind ahead of time because I know it’s hard to choose a song by squinting at the list I am scrolling on the screen.
An addition to our schedule: We will be playing at the “purple house” craft fair in Epping again, on September 13 from 10 am until 1 pm. I will post that on Meetup soon. This was really fun in the spring, although it was rain-delayed to Mother’s Day which cut down on participation. The “stage” is a very small porch (fits 3 or 4 players), so I will be meeting with the organizer to look at options. Worst case scenario, a few of us will be in front on the grass, and we will also, as we did last time, take the opportunity to dabble in solos, duets and small group numbers. That helps with the long time frame, too.
Finally, anyone who is available is welcome to come to my house next Tuesday, Aug. 19, starting at NOON, for a cookout/potluck and backyard jam. You do not need to bring food, but if you do, just keep it simple. I will provide a few things for the grill, some basic drinks and a salad of some sort. Parking is a little limited, but for the afternoon it’s okay to be on the street. The other option is to park at the Santander Bank and either walk or have *Jack* shuttle you down to my house (it’s not far).
Address: 69 Pine Street, Seabrook. It is the street straight across Rte 1 at the light if you were coming from the library, then turn right at the Bar 17 restaurant, left at the stop sign, and then you are on Pine (Pine St actually comes in between the bank and the car wash, one-way going in). I am most of the way to the end, just past Dave’s Auto Body on the left side.
I am very hopeful it will not rain – my house is small but my yard is big. Please bring a music stand and the Play Outside songbook ( I do have extra copies). Also, I will add a few other songs we may want to practice (I will have copies for all) – if you want to do anything in particular that’s not in the book, just bring copies (probably 8 will be more than enough, as we can share). I will set up my amps and mics, bring yours if you like! You are all welcome to stop in at any point and stay as late as you like.
Have a great week, everyone! I hope to see you Tuesday.
Susan
———- Forwarded message ———
From: Jack Heffernan <jackheff@yahoo.com>
Date: Wed, Aug 13, 2025 at 8:17 PM
Subject: SUP Recap 6/13/2025
To: Susan Ayer <clerkkent33@gmail.com>
Cc: Jack Heffernan <jackheff@yahoo.com>
Good evening Susan,
We got out of there just before a thunderstorm hit this evening. We need the rain but we don’t need storms.
We had 22 enthusiastic players this evening. It’s nice to have such a fun appreciative group.
Susan brought forth another one of her excellent PDFs. We did well with a lot of the songs and others need work.
Annie’s Song – practice
Was a Sunny Day – practice
Mama’s Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys – Practice
Cecilia – This is a great song with great harmonies. We need to work on a little bit of timing and percussion. Bill’s shaker seemed to work. We need hand clapping as well as the muted drum. This will only get better over the next few weeks.
Sound of Silence – work on timing
Stand By Me – listen to the John Lennon version when you have time. Susan is going to work on the pauses. She may add dots to help with the timing.
When I’m Gone – not me personally but the song. Listen to it when you have a chance.
Daydream – practice
Hanalei Moon – Susan did a great job on this. We’ll need to listen to the song and continue to practice.
That’s Amore – I don’t even know what to say other than it needs a lot of work on timing. As well as hamming it up.
Love Shack – This was an excellent suggestion by one of our members. That said, we need to find some highly exuberant high-voiced attendees to back up the lead. Any volunteers?
We spent the remainder of the evening playing random songs selected by the group.
Events:
All American Assisted Living – Kingston – September 27th.
Warner Ukulele Festival AKA Mighty Ukes Summer Jam II AKA Suzapalooza II – October 4th – Warner, NH.
This year the Contookuleles will be hosting the event. So far we have a good mix of groups on board:
The Contookuleles
SUP!
The Kukuleles
The El Trio Demers
The Ukulele Songsters
The Port City Ukers
SNHUG
More information will be available in the coming months. The venue is approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes from Seabrook. We will be working on carpooling in order to have a good turnout.
We also want to work on some strong songs to showcase our great harmonies. We may include some kids songs since this is a family event. As always we are open to suggestions.
Have a great remainder of the week. Looks like cooler weather is on the way.
Take care,
Jack
Seacoast Ukulele Players 