One of my unusual obsessions as a teen was The OC. When your a teen growing up in the grim north of England, the sun and beaches of California are somewhat appealing. It also had a killer theme tune. Let’s learn to play Phantom Planets one-hit-wonder California on the ukulele.
What Are We Learning To Play?
Below is a video of what you will be able to play by the end of this post.
Ukulele Tabs
The key to making this work is to make use of hammer-ons (h) and pull-offs (p). Hammer-ons are produced by plucking the note on the ukulele and then “hammering on” a finger at a higher fret. Making the sound of the higher note without actually plucking it again.
A pull-off is the opposite of a hammer on. They are produced by playing one note and then listing your finger off the string so that a lower note sounds. It’s important to drag your finger off as this will amplify the sound.
A |---2h4p2-4-------2h4p2-4-----2h4p2-4-6-2-|
E |-4-----------4-------------4-------------|
C |-----------------------------------------|
G |-----------------------------------------|
A |--------------------------------------2----|
E |-4--2-2--0-0--2-4-----4-2-2--0-0--2-4---4--|
C |-------------------------------------------|
G |-------------------------------------------|