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Alvin Okami (KoAloha), one of my favorite ukulele makers!
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I have been a musician for as long as I can remember.--Back when my Dad sat me down behind a drum set & my feet couldn't reach the bass drum pedal. I started out on the drums & 'cut my teeth' on the tunes of the Beatles, Wings, ELO, AC/DC & ZZ Top, to name a few. (Quite the mix, huh?)
Once I got to junior high & high school, it was band--marching band, concert band, jazz ensemble.--I played every low-brass instrument there was until settling on the trombone. I discovered big-band music in the likes of Tommy Dorsey, Glen Miller, Duke Ellington... And I decided then & there, that I was born in the wrong era! How cool it would have been to be able to see & hear those guys then, in real life, as opposed to having to settle w/recordings now.
Later, I did the whole 'garage band thing' with a couple of my high school buddies. One of them gave me a '66 Fender Bass & told me that if I learned to play it, I could keep it. I picked it up pretty quick & still play to this day. Although in a fit of stupidity, and probably for gas money, I sold it for $100. (I know, stupid-stupid-stupid!)
Back in 2001 I bought a guitar & a DVD and thought I'd try to learn how to play. My Dad said to forget about learning the 'easy chords' like E, A, D, G, C. He told me to learn the F chord. He said that if I learned that one all the rest would be easy...
...So I sold the guitar & DVD and bought a cheap ukulele at the local guitar store. Hey, 4 strings/4 fingers, it's a perfect match! The guys at the music store couldn't even tell me how to tune it. I had to buy a book online in order to learn how to play. I learned the first 3 chords everybody learns starting out--C, F, G7. Whoa! Now I could play about 10 gazillion songs! (As long as they were in the key of C.)
I quickly became frustrated with the cheap uke as it was poorly crafted & the intonation and action were horrible. I splurged (so I thought at the time) & bought a concert Fluke from Flea Market Music. Wow, what a nice sounding instrument. Sure it looked a little strange with its triangular shape that stood up by itself, but it sounded 100 times better than the junk one that I had before!
It was all down hill from there.--With no hope of turning back, I jumped in with both feet! Scouring the internet, going to every music store I could, reading about the history of the 'ukulele, I was soaking it all up like a sponge. I had built up a pretty good collection of ukuleles, all from either eBay or when I had visited Hawaii a couple of years ago.--Then it occured to me that EVERY music store I went into (on the East Coast) had 1 of 2 responses when I asked if they had 'ukuleles:
1) "Nah, don't carry any. Why would you want one?"
2) "Yeah, here ya go".--Cue the entrance of the same cheap uke I bought way-back-when.
Not one music store I visited, in my travels on the mainland, carried 'ukulele in any kind of breadth & depth as it should be represented. That's when I decided to step up to the plate & open an 'ukulele store myself, here in the Richmond, VA area.
Most friends & family thought I was nuts: "An 'ukulele store? In Richmond? Are you off your meds??"
Of course I didn't listen to any of them. The Ukulele Shop was born & officially opened on October 1, 2006!
We instantly became an eBay Power Seller. The eBay community has extended a very warm welcome to me and for that I am very grateful.
What has been even more exciting is the response of the local folks here in the Richmond area. Thank you all so very much for your encouragement & kind words. Your business is certainly appreciated, even more so your trust! The neat thing is that this is just the beginning. Word is starting to get out and more & more folks are sharing their experiences with us. I look forward to many more years of meeting wonderful people & continuing to share the joy of 'ukulele with everyone, as well as hopefully bring a little bit of the Aloha Spirit to the east side of the island known as "the mainland".
Again, my sincere & heartfelt thanks to you all, for humbling me with your business & your trust!!
ALOHA!
ukulelerob
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