The second track, “Ukelele Dreams”, showed that he had developed his technique even further, allowing the melody and the accompaniment to blend in a more fluid manner. The first, “Strumming Uke Blues” was- in spite of its title-a waltz with a slightly melancholic aspect, typical of the playing style Ferera had used in his previous records. The two sides were original compositions, with titles clearly signaling that they were intended for the ukulele. As in 1922, it consisted of two instrumental, unaccompanied solos. In 1925, he issued his last ukulele disc. Still, the steel guitar remained by far Ferera’s main focus. On “I’ll Have Vanilla,” Ferera launched into a 32-bar, 30-second solo, where his technique was put to its best effect, making his single uke sound like two! Among the two songs they recorded together, the Hawaiian-themed “On a Windy Day Way Down in Waikiki” probably explained the need for a uke. Singer Eddie Cantor also benefited from Ferera’s ukulele accompaniment skills. One of the earliest photos of a recording session shows Ferera playing steel guitar with his guitarist Anthony Franchini and the vocal group, the Crescent Trio. One version of “Twenty-Five Years From Now” even has Bernard enthusiastically exclaiming “Pick it son, pick it!” during the ukulele solo, the way Doc Watson would do several decades later. In addition to the customary short intros, sometimes he also performed longer solo breaks that showcased his wonderful technique. Though Ferera was mainly confined to ordinary, yet elegant, strumming accompaniment, his soloing skills were also occasionally on display. They co-authored two of the songs recorded between 19, “Twenty-Five Years from Now” and “De Ducks Done Got Me.” Presumably, Bernard wrote the lyrics and Ferera worked on the melody, with possible assistance from composer Jimmie McHugh for the first one. The collaboration with Al Bernard was more than Ferera simply providing the ukulele accompaniment. Building on the success of Wendell Hall’s songs, the pair made two recordings of “Ain’t Gonna Rain No’ Mo’.” In 1924, Ferera also recorded “It Looks Like Rain” with singer Ernest Hare. In 1923 Ferera teamed up with vaudeville and recording artist Al Bernard. The second was an interpretation of a hula, “Moanalua.” After these solo sessions, his ukulele playing was mostly used to accompany popular singers.Īndrew Molina goes from Hendrix to Satie on his Latest Record, EVOLV3 The first was Sylvester Kalama’s “Maui Girl” (). He had arranged two Hawaiian tunes as unaccompanied instrumental solos and played them in at least three different sessions. Franchini plays a Ditson Style 2, while Ferera holds either a Distson Style 0 or Style 1.Īt the end of summer 1922, Ferera recorded on the ukulele for the first time. Having lost his wife, as well as his main musical partner, Ferera eventually found his new accompanist in Anthony Joseph Franchini, an Italian-born guitarist.įerera, right, with his accompanist Anthony Franchini. In 1919, Helen Louise disappeared mysteriously from a ship sailing from Los Angeles to Seattle. In that era, Ferera and his wife were frequently accompanied on ukulele by Louise’s sister, Irene Greenus. When he started to play the ukulele is not known.įerera benefited from both the rise of interest for Hawaiian music in the 1910s and the expansion of the record industry, and along with his wife, guitarist Helen Louise, gained some fame as a musician and began to record prolifically as early as 1915. His main interest was the Hawaiian steel guitar, of which he became one of the first virtuosos. This difficult situation didn’t stop Ferera from pursuing a career as a musician, and he left for the Mainland at the turn of the 20th century. Reputed to be a violent man, his father reportedly even broke his son’s instruments on several occasions, forcing Frank to hide in order to practice. Though his interest in music arose early, his learning years were not easy, as he had to face the strong disapproval of his father. Frank Ferera, it seems, was the first to record solo ukulele.įrank Ferera (born Frank Ferreira, but often spelled “Ferera” on his records) was born in Honolulu in 1885, the son of Portuguese immigrants. From the Winter 2017 issue of Ukulele | BY VICTOR PRANCH ÉRE | PHOTOS COURTESY OF JONATHAN VECCHIĪmong those who pioneered the ukulele as a solo instrument, very few left recordings.
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