Where is the biggest Ukulele club in the world?

By all accounts it is Santa Cruz, CA.  Membership approaching 2000.

Lynn has been a member of UCSC (the Ukulele Club of Santa Cruz), not to be confused with UCSC (University of California at Santa Cruz) since it first started meeting at Bocci’s Cellar.  In September, 2005 I had just finished a film project and Lynn invited me to the club with the question in mind…Would we want to make a film about the club?  I brought my little pro-sumer camera that night, just in case the answer was yes, and since Lynn mentioned that ukulele great Bill Tapia would be there that evening.

The energy and excitement in the room that night was palpable.  200 people all in one room, all playing ukulele, all happy as children at a playground.  The answer was clearly yes.  Yes, let’s make a film.  Yes, let’s try to capture the joy and merriment, the frivolity and diverse talent that is the Ukulele club of Santa Cruz.  Let’s try to understand, why here?  Why now?

Here’s a bit of what happened that night.

Check back for some of Bill Tapia’s music in a later blog.