‘Sway’ Dean Martin Ukulele
Sway Dean Martin Ukulele is a tune composed by Luis Demetrio and Pablo Beltran Ruiz in 1953. Dean Martin record the most famous English version in 1954 with lyrics by Norman Gimbel.
The tune is in two parts – in the first part the melody is contained in the first three frets – reaching frets four and five by the end of the second part of the tune.
Chord accompaniment is more interesting that usual with E diminished chord followed by an A 7th chord providing a tension and release effect. A Bb 7th chord takes the place of the E diminished in the second line – this can be played with the first finger of the left hand lying flat over all the strings (Barre) and the second finger holding down the note on the second fret of the third string. Alternatively’ if this is too difficult at first you could finger the chord like a normal G shape (but down one fret and over one string). If you use this fingering you will need to ‘damp’ the string nearest the floor to ensure it does not sound. This can be done by leaning your second finger on the second string over so it leans against the first string.
The strumming pattern is the familiar down down up up down – this only changes at the end of bar 16 – which is all accented down strokes. The audio should give you a feel of that.
To find out more about ‘Sway’ click here.
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The Bass part is written for Bass Ukulele tuned E A D G (low to high) or Bass Guitar. Alternatively this part can be played on the bottom strings of an ordinary Guitar. Attention should be given to the rhythm of the bass part – the notes themselves are not to difficult to play – but the combination of bass and chord rhythm give the tune it’s whole feel.
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