There’s an argument to be made that Rock is dead. Certainly if you look at the charts, at what is popular, it’s been a very long time since there was anything approaching “Rock” hitting the peaks of popularity, and an even longer time since Rock music was the dominant popular music form.
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Rock has arguably become a tired cliché, a historical curio that has had its time and should be left to lie in piece. And there is definitely some truth in all of that. And yet. And yet.
Whilst new, original rock music may not be the popular force it once was (but it is for sure still out there, still going, still evolving) the classic rock sounds show no sign of losing their grip on the public consciousness. “Classic” rock is music that is almost part of the our music DNA, songs that are timeless, ageless, have always been there (except clearly they haven’t!), and are etched in the permanent rock of ages. Whilst you can make the point that much of it is – in objective terms – faintly ridiculous, grown men (mostly) who should know better, adolescent posturing that has no place in today’s enlightened society, the reality is that for pure escapist thrills, for losing yourselves in fist-pumping, scream-at-the-top-of-your-lungs anthems and self-indulgent soloing, there is nothing to beat a great rock tune.
And so, ladies and gentlemen, I present you with 28 of said classics, to be played on your humble ukulele. From the late 60s to the late 80s, these songs span a period of time where the rock star was king and strode the earth as an unchalleged deity, where excess and indulgence was taken for granted, and where thumping great tunes high on testosterone (and other more dubious substances) were the order of the day. If you’re looking for subtlety, then look away now (with maybe one or two notable exceptions) – these are tunes that turn it up to 11 and beyond. From the genuine, 18-carat classics of Free, Bachman Turner Overdrive and Lynyrd Skynyrd, through to hard rock from the likes of Motorhead, Black Sabbath and AC/DC, the 80s hair rock of Bon Jovi, Kiss and Whitesnake, AOR US giants like Boston and REO Speedwagon, and even the space-rock of Hawkwind, there should be something here for everybody.
And whilst these are far and away for your stereotypical ukulele tunes – George Formby would probably be turning in his grave, and there ain’t no room for Five Foot Two, Eyes Of Blue here – these are, I believe, songs that adapt well to the four-string wonder. So give them a bash, and sing the out loud. Enjoy!
Oh, and here’s the full list of tunes, together with links to individual song sheets, if a whole book is too much for you:
- 2-4-6-8- Motorway – Tom Robinson Band
- Ace Of Spades – Motörhead
- All Right Now – Free
- Born To Be Wild – Steppenwolf
- Crazy Crazy Nights – Kiss
- Dead Ringer For Love – Meatloaf
- Don’t Fear The Reaper – Blue Oyster Cult
- Don’t Stop Believin’ – Journey
- Free Bird – Lynyrd Skynyrd
- Here I Go Again – Whitesnake
- Highway To Hell – AC/DC
- Kayleigh – Marillion
- Keep On Loving You – REO Speedwagon
- Livin’ On A Prayer – Bon Jovi
- More Than A Feeling – Boston
- Paranoid – Black Sabbath
- Rockin’ All Over The World – Status Quo
- Run To You – Bryan Adams (in Gm, with riffs)
- Saturday Night’s All Right For Fighting – Elton John
- Silver Machine – Hawkwind
- Since You’ve Been Gone – Rainbow
- Start Me Up – The Rolling Stones
- Sweet Child O’ Mine – Guns ‘N’ Roses
- The Boys Of Summer – Don Henley
- The Boys Are Back In Town – Thin Lizzy
- We Are The Champions – Queen
- We Built This City – Starship
- Won’t Get Fooled Again – The Who
- You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet – Bachman-Turner Overdrive
Uke Tunes 