My Influences:
Cliff Edwards (June 14, 1895 - July 17, 1971)
Ukulele-ist, singer, actor
Quite a while ago, a friend of mine (a ukulele player) turned me on to a guy named "Ukulele Ike." I went to Tower Records in King Of Prussia the next day to begin my search. Oddly enough, there was one "Ukulele Ike" CD hiding in the rack. Of course, it was listed under Cliff Edwards, "Ukulele Ike's" given name.
It was one of the best CDs I've ever purchased.
http://www.amazon.com/Singing-Rain-Cliff-Ukulele-Edwards/dp/B000001UPE
The recordings were a dream come true: one guy singing and playing the uke, another guy playing string bass -- no other instruments! I had begun studying both of those instruments just a few months before the purchase.
The ukulele playing was great -- Edwards used it for accompaniment in everything he did, playing all chord melody; not such an easy feat, while singing or mouth-trumpeting.
His singing was wonderful. By the time he made these recordings in 1943, his voice had aged beautifully and he was singing in his baritone register.
(The bass playing was also wonderful, -- I have yet to turn up actual documentation on just who the artist is, but the best guess I've heard is Joe Tarto - and that stands to reason.)
So, I enjoyed the album and began using it to teach myself the finer points of good bass playing, good ukulele playing and good singing.
Months later, I stumbled on some other recordings of Cliff Edwards. These were done in the 1930's with a bigger band or combo backing him. The ukulele was still there amongst the other instruments and so was that voice. This time, the voice was the older style (vaudeville, where Edwards originally rose to fame.) He displayed a powerful falsetto on these recordings as well as a great ability to project. (I learned another way to sing!)
To me, Cliff Edwards is one of the better examples of an older, higher quality entertainment. He sang, he accompanied himself while he sang, he made faces while he sang, he was comical and lighthearted through all of it and he projected a good spirit. He did it all with some notable skill, too.
It's been over ten years since I bought that first CD, and I've listened to it more times than a few previous housemates could take. I still listen to it and don't ever tire of it. Any time I listen to any Cliff Edwards recording, I bop around the house or in the car, feeling good. I start whistling and singing and humming and blowing some mouth trumpet. The stuff makes me happy in such effortless manner.
For that alone, I'm thankful to this great musicianer. I think it has had a notable effect on my own performance, as well. I attempt to play with a light heart in the hopes of entertaining an audience and, if I'm lucky, they'll walk away feeling better than they felt before listening to my music. If I'm really lucky and truly expressing the happiness inside, maybe those same listeners will walk away happy and light-hearted, too; perhaps, they might even share some of that joy with others around them.
That's the Cliff Edwards influence.
If you don't have any of his recordings, please do yourself a great favor!
http://www.amazon.com/Singing-Rain-Cliff-Ukulele-Edwards/dp/B000001UPE
And, of course, some links to help you research a good musicianer:
http://www.redhotjazz.com/cliffedwards.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cliff_Edwards
http://www.jazzage1920s.com/cliffedwards/cliff.php
http://www.geocities.com/~ukulele/ukuleleike.html
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"Behind the ostensible government, sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the People."
~ Theodore Roosevelt
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