Hi, Jack,
Well that was different, but I think it’s going to work. It was better having you and Tom next to me as usual; I am open to input about whether this is helpful for everyone else! It’s still a big room and I need to hear everyone else as much as you need to hear me. We will keep working on it. Please, everyone: speak up if you can’t hear, or have any ideas on how to make the meetups better.
All in all, this was a great practice and I know we will have a great outing on Plum Island! The list of songs is long; I have just updated both the alphabetical list and the setlist in order of play and will post those on both the website and the Meetup page for the event. I believe most will want to keep their book in alpha order – That way we can be flexible if we want to repeat strong songs or take something out of order. I will also put together a pdf of all the songs in alpha order and post that.
Thank you, Jack, for stressing the importance of signing up for this event, and also for arranging for how you will get there. For most people coming in with just their ukulele, music and a folding stand, the shuttle bus is your best bet. It will be very challenging for cars to get on and off the island between noon and 6:00, so if you want to be flexible, take advantage of the bus! Those of us carrying equipment will carpool in and likely be trapped for the duration. Which I am kind of looking forward to, but perhaps not everyone is up for that long of a day!
Michelle will provide some folding chairs, and is also kindly planning to provide some food for us.
Tom and Bill will be bringing the sound system, but those of us with microphones, stands and wires will bring those too as extras. No amps required, we will plug into the system. Special thanks to the Savages for all they do for us, with sound, percussion and bass, and general fun. You guys make everything Best.
As we have mentioned, we have learned we will share Michelle and Scott’s yard with another band: Hubcap Romeo will play first, from noon until 1:00. They will be sharing our sound system, so it should be fairly easy to transition from their band to ours. I am looking forward to hearing them, and we appreciate their opening for us!
Plumfest aside— we are looking forward to a fun and active Fall. We will be moving forward with new songs, polishing the old ones, and playing at some fun events.
For anyone that was not at AAAL and Rick’s this weekend: We had a brief meeting about future plans and goals. Two takeaways:
1. We encourage more involvement from all interested members, to do everything from suggesting a song, helping with the computer scrolling, to stepping up to lead a Wednesday with your own hand picked set of songs.
2. Next year’s Hogapalooza will include fewer raffles – we are happily not in need of funding at this time, but will still hold one raffle, likely a pot of scratch tickets, to give our annual donation to the library.
Thank you all, as always, for coming out each week and making this FUN. I love you all (even when I forget your names- that is Jack’s job).
Susan
———- Forwarded message ———
From: Jack Heffernan <jackheffernan69@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Sep 2, 2026 at 8:41 PM
Subject: SUP Recap 9/2/2026
To: Susan Ayer <clerkkent33@gmail.com>
Cc: Jack Heff <jackheff@yahoo.com>
Hi Susan,
Yes it’s September. The kids are back in school. The temps are dropping and the street lights are coming on earlier. But we still have more than two weeks left of summer. I’m going to cling to that.
We had 30 members in attendance this cool evening. We had a completely new setup with Susan and I on stage left. We also eliminated the separation between the dark side and the light side.
Now, we just have to learn to get along. Susan is always looking for ways to improve everyone’s experience. If you have any suggestions, don’t hesitate to pass them along.
We had a great time at the All American Assisted Living last Saturday. We had 14 members in attendance and the audience was very appreciative. They posted a nice write-up on their Facebook page.
For our new members, we have a presence on Facebook, Meetup, YouTube as well as the World Wide Web. You can find us by searching Seacoast Ukulele Players on whatever app you’re interested in.
This evening we went over a PDF of Plumfest songs that Susan thought we needed to work on. We only have one practice left before the big event at Michelle’s (The Blue) house. If you plan on attending this event make sure you sign up on Meetup. If you happen not to be on Meetup have one of your friends put you on as a guest. It’s important that we get a pretty accurate count on this for planning purposes. If all else fails, make sure you tell either Susan or me that you plan on attending.
Songs:
Blue Sky – practice
One After 909 – Susan suggested that we have one group singing a little higher than the other group through the verses.
I think I have this right Susan please correct as needed.
Good Day Sunshine – work on kazoo instrumental and the ending
Plum Island Escape – Michelle’s masterpiece – This is getting better. If you’re not familiar with the song please listen to the the original which is “Escape.” The verse and chorus are sung differently. It sounded like some people were singing the same way on noth. We will work on it more next week.
I believe that Susan is going to be working with Spider on a harmonica instrumental as shown on the song sheet.
Tipsy – I’m pretty sure that most people are unfamiliar with the song. I know I am. Please listen to the original and practice.
Don’t Cry to Me – getting Better
The rest seem to go very well.
Events:
Plumfest – Plum Island, MA – 9/12/2026 rain date 9/13/2026. Our performance will start at approximately 1:00 p.m. The opening act at Michelle’s place will be Hubcap Romeo. They will go on at noon.
Susan/Michelle will be sending out more info next week
Warner Ukulele Festival 2 – Warner. NH – 10/17/2026
South Berwick Library Performance – South Berwick, Maine – 11/14/2026
Seabrook Rec Festival of Trees – Seabrook, NH – 12/4/2026
Please see Meetup for all the details.
Thank you all for a great evening. Enjoy the Labor Day weekend.
See you next Wednesday,
Jack
Seacoast Ukulele Players 