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Epicurus.com - Gently Weeps
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List Price: $16.98
Our Price: $16.98
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Hitchhike Records
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Average Customer Rating: 
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Binding: Audio CD
EAN: 0689076537841
Label: Hitchhike Records
Manufacturer: Hitchhike Records
Number Of Discs: 1
Publisher: Hitchhike Records
Release Date: 2006-09-19
Studio: Hitchhike Records
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Editorial Reviews:
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You'll forget all the Tiny Tim, Don Ho, and Hawaiian-music jokes about the ukulele when you hear Gently Weeps, which leaves behind the Roaring Twenties strum and plinky-dink sound of most such music. Jake Shimabukuro sets the tone with the lead-off track from which he takes the album's title, George Harrison's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," unfolding the vulnerable undertow of Harrison's epic lament. A string of covers follows, as Shimabukuro touches the serene with Schubert's "Ave Maria," evokes a Japanese koto on a Zen-like version of "Sakura," and turns "The Star-Spangled Banner" into a lament. But Shimabukuro's original tunes are just as full of plucked nuance, especially "Heartbeat Dragon," where he uses a slight delay to create a quietly joyful Celtic air. However, don't think it's all wistful melancholy. Shimabukuro whips it out on original tracks like "Let's Dance," alternating hard rhythmic chops with flamenco-like strums. His take on Erroll Garner's "Misty" is a little jive, though I'm sure the hot jazz middle-section pumps the crowds up. Chick Corea's "Spain" fares much better and still scores high on the flash quotient. You just can't keep a fret-burner down, even when his fretboard is toy-sized. You can't keep the Hawaiian out either. Its gentle sway turns up on the sweetly laconic "Angel." A few bonus tracks of generic fusion at the end detract from the solo purity and intimate mood that Shimabukuro creates, but Gently Weeps is a joy until then. --John Diliberto
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Inspirational
Comment: Great performances. Jake uses the uke's made by Kamaka of Ohau. Beautiful tone.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Ukelele virtuoso
Comment: Jake Shimabukuro melds Christopher Parkening, Bela Fleck, and Eddie van Halen onto the ukelele. His technique is flawless and he's just beginning to explore new directions for this instrument. Catch his video of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" on YouTube and you'll be hooked.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Amazing Ukulele
Comment: I had never heard of Jake Shimabukuro before, but I was sick with the flu and up watching Conan O'Brien When He played " While My Guitar Gently Weeps. I was amazed, I was never aware that anyone could make a ukulele sound that way!
I'm, apparently not alone in this assessment, because when jake finished his set, O'Brien came over and told him, quote, " That was my favorite performance on this program.... EVER ". It was mine too. I bought the CD the same night, It's become one of my all time favorites. Try listening to it, I don't think you can go wrong.
Customer Rating:
Summary: One of the most beautiful recordings I have ever heard
Comment: I love it. All my friends love it. I have never played it for anyone that was not just blown away by it! Hard to believe it is a Uke Jake is playing, but then, it really is a very large one. At any rate his musicianship, taste, and selection of material just cannot be faulted on this recording.
I have thousands of CDs and I rate this among the very best of them.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Not Jake's Best
Comment: This is Jake's first solo CD (without a band) and I bought it solely because of the song "While my Guitar Gently Weeps" (I like the version on "Heartbeat" better). This album has a different sound than the rest of Jake's CDs. As far as the songs go, a lot of them are pretty slow. Jake has redone a few of his old songs like: Spain, Wish on my Star, and Let's Dance. If you are trying to experience "Jake" I would recommend "Heartbeat" or "Crosscurrent" over this album any day.
3 ½ Stars
Best Songs:
* While my Guitar Gently Weeps
* Spain
* Heartbeat/dragon
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