This instrument is for a fellow upright bass player! Even though I built it the same for him as I would anyone else, maybe the kinship comes through somehow. The wide grain Oregon spruce top (from Camp Westwind) defies all traditional logic. Despite it’s fast growth and wide grain, it is very stiff, allowing me to thin it down to where it sounds incredible but remains stable. It also has a lot of visual character, which ukulele customers appreciate more than other customers, I think. The curly walnut back and sides comes from the scrap bin at Goby and is a perfect foil for the spruce top. The grafted pistachio fretboard, headplate and bridge come from California orchards and the fir neck is from and old floor joist.

“Hi Nicole and Aaron,

I’m really loving the new uke! My previous baritone is an old no-name mahogany so this is an upgrade in every way. I like that it’s comfortable to play in the higher registers and the curve at the neck heel is perfect for quickly finding the 10th fret C. If I want to strum loudly I can rest my arm on the body to get some “compression,” but lift my arm off for more dynamic range when fingerpicking. The neck is really comfortable and I like the thick fretboard, just looks amazing. Thank you so much for your dedication to your craft. I had never played a Beansprout before but I knew if it sounded that good over the internet then it must be special. Right on!

Attached is a picture of me with uke. Best of luck for the future!

- J. M. ”