Guitar Gear

The other day, my cousin Willie texted me to let me know that he was in town for a few weeks. In his text, he mentioned that he was thinking about selling his dad’s baritone ukulele and got it appraised at Gryphon Stringed Instruments in Palo Alto. I’ve known this uke for many many years. My uncle Roy – Willie’s father – used to play it with the Hawaiian music group he was with and I remember many family gatherings where my ohana would sit and play and this uke was one of the instruments.

So when Willie told me he wanted to sell it, all those memories came in a flood and I knew I had to have it. On the one hand, I knew he probably needed the money, but on the other hand, it was a family heirloom and it would be a total shame for it to leave our family, especially considering its history. So I told him that I’d like to check it out and I would buy it for what Gryphon would offer.

Willie brought it over to the house yesterday and as soon as I took it out of its case, even though I hadn’t even played it, I could feel my beloved uncle’s spirit in it, and I had a Wayne’s World moment… Oh yes! It will be mine!

Of course I had to play it. But once I picked it up, I got lost in its sound, and I immediately hit upon a riff and just went from there to where I went right to my office and laid down what I was playing (recording below).

I don’t know the exact provenance of the instrument, but I do know that it was made in the 70s as that was when my uncle purchased it. Apparently there’s date coding in the body somewhere, but I haven’t looked as of yet. As for the build, it is made entirely of Hawaiian Koa – even the fretboard.

As for how it sounds, it has a haunting voice which gave me this image of walking on a steep mountain trail in the tropics. Even with the strings being a decade old since it hasn’t been played since my Uncle Roy passed away, it still sounds incredible!