When I was growing up in the 1970s and early 80s, the ukulele was regarded by most people as a toy, or a prop, and not worthy of serious study or consideration. Ukuleles looked silly and clownish when played by an adult, and would never be accepted in a serious musical arrangement. Primarily, this was due to its prominent use by novelty-comedy musician Tiny Tim in the late 60s. Some might argue that Tiny Tim had done as much to sully the reputation of the instrument as he had to promote it.

But in reality, that assessment isn’t entirely fair either to the ukulele, or to Tiny Tim (b. Herbert Khaury, 1932-1996). Tiny, it turns out, had an encyclopedic knowledge of the popular music of the early 20th century. His big hit “Tiptoe Through the Tulips” was a remake of an earlier hit by Nick Lucas in 1929. (Lucas had introduced the song in an early talkie movie, “Gold Diggers of Broadway.” It was a #1 radio hit for 10 weeks.) Tiny actually performed a plethora of old Vaudeville pieces in his regular set, and apart from his trademark falsetto vocal, was pretty faithful to the original early-20th century arrangements.

Similarly, the ukulele had been a staple in American and British popular music up through World War II. It was small, light, easy to move on and off stage, simple to play, and didn’t get between the performer and the audience in the way a guitar, violin or banjo might. As electric guitars became popular in the 40s and 50s, banjos and ukuleles began to fade from popular music (apart than the prominence of banjo in country and bluegrass). By the time Tiny Tim hit it big in 1967, Vaudeville music seemed quaint and old-fashioned -- perfect for a novelty send-up like “Tiptoe” --  and when his star faded soon after, the ukulele was indelibly linked to him.

The banjo ukulele was introduced in 1917 by designer Alvin D. Keech. It quickly became the uke of choice among Vaudevillians because it combined the size and simplicity of the ukulele with the bright projection of a banjo. The banjo skin under the bridge increased the volume of air moved by the instrument, making it easier for the uke to be heard over an ensemble or a rowdy audience. Banjo ukes were popular through the 20s and 30s, and their use declined as big-band music became more popular in the mid-to-late 30s, coupled with the rise of the electric guitar.

It was during this period that British Vaudeville actor- and singer George Formby (b. George Hoy Booth, 1904-1961) had his string of hits, becoming a bit of a folk hero of the British working class. Formby sang and played ukulele on stage, and tended to prefer a banjo ukulele for its volume and projection.

It was these recordings that influenced a young man named George Harrison to learn to play guitar, and to go on to some success of his own, beginning with his time with The Beatles in the 1960s. Later in life, Harrison championed the ukulele and made it an important part of his post-Beatles solo recordings, notably on his posthumous final album “Brainwashed,” released in 2002. When the surviving Beatles reunited for “The Beatles Anthology” in the mid-90s, George Harrison made tribute to Formby by ending the new single “Free As a Bird” with a banjo ukulele solo.

[Here’s a fun little bit of trivia for you: Between the Beatles’ music sets on their first Ed Sullivan show on 09 February 1964, viewers were treated to a scene from the Broadway musical “Oliver,” featuring none other than pre-Monkee Davy Jones as the Artful Dodger, and a performance by British Vaudeville singer Georgia Brown, who played .. you guessed it .. a banjo ukulele during her performance. Full circle, indeed!]

As the ukulele has become more popular again in recent years, due in part to its use by Harrison, Nellie McKay, Israel Kamakawio’ole and others, it’s getting easier to find ukes in places other than the toy section at Walmart. All three of the primary configurations -- soprano, concert and tenor scales -- are available from Hawaiian uke builders like Lanakai, Kohala and Kalos, and we’re starting to see offerings from traditional guitar manufacturers like Fender, Vox, Yamaha and Oscar Schmidt. In addition, more obscure configurations are starting to pop up again: baritone ukuleles, bass ukuleles, solid-body electric ukuleles .. and finally, banjo ukuleles are making a comeback.

I found my Oscar Schmidt OU1B “Banjolele” at Uptempo Music in Beaverdale. Dave Kouri, the owner there, has been selling Oscar Schmidt instruments for years now (they’re an official dealer), and has been well aware of my fascination with odd string instruments. When he got the OU1B in stock, he set it aside for a few days so I could get a look at it. I was glad he did.

The OU1B is a closed-back model, and like a closed-back resonator banjo from which it’s modeled, it’s quite a bit heavier than you might expect a uke of its size to be. The tone is very much like a traditional ukulele, but it has the “bite” and quick decay you’d expect from a banjo, and the skin and resonator do a great job of projecting the sound forward. I don’t have to play the banjo uke nearly as hard as I would a traditional ukulele, and this means I get a better tone with a lighter touch.

The concert scale of the OU1B is a bit longer than a soprano scale, so the strings require more tension to hold the same pitch. This means it’s not as easy to bend the strings out of tune simply by fretting them. And the longer scale length also means larger frets, which are easier for adult-size hands to work with. After playing the OU1B, I found myself wishing I’d gotten a concert-scale uke much sooner.

The OU1B has a mahogany tone ring and neck, with a flame maple laminate over the mahogany headstock. The geared tuners make it tune easily and hold pitch well. The head is tuned with 12 lugs, impressive for a head this size, and that makes it easy to get consistent tension all the way around the head. The resonator back is removable for maintenance, or so the uke can be played either as an open- or closed-back instrument. Where a traditional concert ukulele has 14 frets to the body (a soprano has 12 frets to the body), the OU1B has 14 frets to the heel, and an additional 4 frets to the tone ring. Quite a range for a little instrument!

Oscar Schmidt places the MSRP for the OU1B at $359 USD, but I was able to get mine brand new for just under $200. (What can I say? .. Dave treats me well.) I’d say it compares favorably with other modern banjo ukes at much higher prices, and of course it’s much less delicate than an antique instrument. Not to mention it’s a fun instrument to play, and it definitely catches its share of attention.