Most people I know who start a musical instrument automatically become collectors of that instrument. My brother-in-law signed up for guitar lessons a few years ago and already has, I think, four different guitars, not counting ones he’s bought and sold to other collectors, and I have no idea what my friend who’s just started playing the bagpipes is getting himself into. Getting different instruments does make sense. Even if they’re the same model two different instruments are going to sound different, especially if they’re older and have gotten more or less use and been stored in different places. And there are so many variations. In spite of that I told myself I was going to stick with the tenor ukulele I got last year and focus on playing it before I even thought about getting any others.
Then I saw this blue soprano ukulele—what most people think of as the standard size—in a consignment shop called Cool Stuff, Weird Things for twenty-five bucks. It was obviously old and a bit scratched up, but that was the appeal. It’s been through some hands and that gave it character, although I did have to tune it–the E-string in particular sounded like a surprised cat. The guy behind the counter looked it over and said, “Hey, this was made in Hawaii. You think Don Ho might have played this?” I said, “I thought I heard ‘Tiny Bubbles’ when I picked it up.” That made him laugh and he knocked five bucks off the price, which was nice because, for most sellers, even the chance that a famous performer might have touched an instrument would be enough to make them raise the rate.
This isn’t really about ukuleles, though. This is about consignment shops, or thrift stores, or whatever you want to call them. Cool Stuff, Weird Things is near me so I’ve browsed through it several times—sometimes finding cool things and weird stuff. When I told my wife I’d bought something there she said, “Please tell me it wasn’t the life-sized Elvis.” I started to say that I’d gotten the life-sized John Belushi, but that would have been worse. I didn’t even think about the buffalo head.
There are a few other thrift stores in the same neighborhood, maybe because the rent is cheap. Or maybe Nashville is just some kind of magnet for antique dealers. After all the American Pickers opened a satellite store here. The important thing is these shops are always fun, and they’re where I’ll be buying all my ukuleles from now on.
I’ll also keep an eye out for bagpipes.
I love browsing at weird, cool places. To me, that’s an ideal day — finding amazing stuff, interacting with interesting people who have awesome stories, having a good bite to eat somewhere and finally coming home and finding the perfect place for my new treasure before writing a story to go along with the day! Thanks for sharing. Do you do a good rendition of Tiptoe through the tulips on the ukelele? Mona
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The fun thing about Cool Stuff, Weird Things is it’s in a neighborhood of small thrift stores and also a really strange little used bookstore, and a very tiny coffee shop. The whole neighborhood is cool and weird. Also I haven’t yet managed “Tiptoe Through The Tulips”. Tiny Tim I am not. I looked that up, though, thinking that it must be an easy song to learn. It isn’t. In fact it’s got some chords I haven’t even learned yet.
Well, you know how much I love thrift stores! And there’s a set of jadeite shakers on a shelf behind that bison that I want so much!!
Now I need to go back and price the jadeite shakers and see if possibly I can find some way to get them to you. I’m not kidding about that. Also I think of you every time I go in Cool Stuff, Weird things because you also work with antiques and oddities. Keep an eye out for any ukuleles!
If you do go back, let me know how much, just for curiosity’s sake!
Thanks for sharing the weirdness and the coolness, Chris, as always. I have two ukuleles — they were both from my husband Michael (the first one I stole from him and the second one he gave me as a gift). How weird and cool is that?
That is wonderfully weird and cool! I think everyone’s first ukulele should fall into their hands through a series of coincidences. A first ukulele shouldn’t be purchased but acquired some other way.