Eddie Vedder, Amanda Palmer and Magnetic Fields Join Ukulele Craze - NYTimes.com

The new saviour of rock and roll is… the ukulele?

The trend, building for a decade and now reaching a saturation point, is being fueled by a mix of Hollywood directors, corporate advertisers, professional musicians looking for a new sound and amateurs who have discovered how easy the uke is to use. Their aims may be completely different — selling deodorant and cars versus thrumming in a Brooklyn bar — but they are united in recognizing that the ukulele offers a folksy, hands-on kind of musical humility that’s hard to find in an age in thrall to “American Idol” and Guitar Hero.

“It symbolizes everything that the grand polished machine of the music industry is not,” said Amanda Palmer, a singer formerly with the punk-cabaret group Dresden Dolls.

Pffft. The US are well behind the curve on this one. Over here we have the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, and they’ve been wowing audiences with their musical schtick for positively yonks.