I'm not a Pearl Jam fan. That may have to change after listening the this album. I am an ukulele fan and player. When I saw this getting a mention on Morning Express this morning, I took a look a the description and immediately downloaded it. And I'm very impressed. Eddie Vedder has a great voice and it matched with the ukulele very well. It is not easy to get seriousness and a touch of sadness with the bright sounds of the instrument, but he managed to bring it together in a nice folk tune way. This music would fit with any folk song collection and is certainly helping promote the ukulele in a big way!

Simply put, this is an amazing and beautiful collection of songs that feels like a journey through the heart and soul of Eddie Vedder. It's not Pearl jam, and that's a good thing: there's something vastly different about writing, composing, and performing songs with a band as opposed to a solo effort. It's not the "Into the Wild" soundtrack, either; although that collection of songs was beautiful in its own right, for the most part the songs that Eddie wrote for it were meant to be told from the perspective of Christopher McCandless. Instead, this is a truly unique effort that gives the reader a starkly personal view of Eddie on a level heretofore unseen in his vast collection of work.

The covers here are lovely, particularly the lighthearted "Tonight You Belong to Me" and the wistful "Sleepless Nights." On both, Eddie's voice works perfectly with the guest vocalists, avoiding the feeling of forced-collaboration that often afflicts these type of duets. "Dream a Little Dream" is a nice way to finish the album, a minute-and-a-half rendition of the timeless classic that features Eddie channeling his inner Tom Waits.

But the real treasures here are Eddie's original songs. These are songs of love and loss, and for anyone who has ever gone through either, they are simply heartbreaking. On "Once in a While," he laments: "Once in a while will you try to give one little thought to me? / Though someone else may be nearer to your heart, / Will you dream of the moments I shared with you / Before we drifted apart?". Anyone who has ever lost love too soon can certainly identify. On "Without You," the sentiments are just as painful: "I'll keep on healing all the scars that we've collected from the start. / I'd rather this than live without you."

This album certainly isn't for everyone, but for those who have a longing for intimate, stripped down, breathtaking music, it doesn't get much better than this.

Okay, I'll admit I've known about this album for a while, but never gave it any serious consideration. It popped up while I was searching Amazon for a ukulele for my daughter. I thought to myself, "What kinda crap can that be, Eddie Vedder and a uke." Like most people of my age, Tiny Tim is the first thing that pops into my head when I think of a ukulele. But today, the scales fell from my eyes. I heard "Without You" on a local college radio station while I was driving home from work and I was gone, totally gone. I stopped at the nearest store a bought a copy (sorry, Amazon, but I COULDN'T WAIT). I slammed it into my car's CD player and realized that there is a depth to the ukulele that I never imagined. The sweet simplicity of the ukulele is a great counterpoint to the complex and sometimes painful emotions that make up the lyrics to these songs. And Eddie's voice is a revelation--I love Pearl Jam, and always have, but this is no Pearl Jam. My estimation of Eddie as a songwriter and musician has gone way up.

Please, if Amazon suggests this for you, don't be as dismissive as I was. Get it and listen to it with an open mind, and more importantly, an open heart.

Oh, and incidentally, my daughter loves her ukulele I got from Amazon, it's a quality instrument with a lovely tone. It's a Lanikai Pineapple soprano ukulele, but she's got a ways to go before she sounds as good as Eddie!

"Ukulele Songs" is an odd but charming little album. Eddie Vedder sings and plays the Aloha State's signature instrument on 14 brief tracks (a 15th cut is the sweet instrumental fragment "Waving Palms," and a 16th cut, "Hey Fahkah," is just a false start and a swear word). The whole program lasts a mere 35 minutes. If Vedder's tremulous baritone and the whispery strum of a solo ukulele are sounds you enjoy in isolation, then you'll be pleased by their combination on this very spare set. "Sad songs on a happy instrument" is how he describes them. The two actually complement one another quite well, just as they did on "Rise" from his 2007 soundtrack for the film "Into the Wild."

Most of the songs are wistful Vedder compositions, including the first track, an acoustic cover of Pearl Jam's "Can't Keep," which brings to mind "Soon Forget" from their 2000 album "Binaural." He also throws in four Tin Pan Alley tunes dating from the 1920s and 30s: "More Than You Know," "Once in a While," "Tonight You Belong to Me" (backed by Chan Marshall of Cat Power), and "Dream a Little Dream of Me." Glen Hansard of The Swell Season joins in on "Sleepless Nights," the first single, and "Longing to Belong" - one of my favorites - features a cello, but the rest of this low-key hum-along is just Eddie and his uke. The playing is pleasant if unspectacular, but that's appropriate, since the focus here is on the songs. Eddie Vedder is a very good ukuleleist, but he's no Jake Shimabukuro.

I liked this outing a lot. I have eclectic tastes, a fondness for all things Hawaiian, and considerable respect for Vedder. Evidently a very personal project, the album has a soothing, hypnotic feel. It's certainly not going to please everyone, and it will probably trigger anything from boredom to consternation among those fans expecting a grungy howl-fest instead of Eddie unplugged. But I'm sure he's not worried in the least. He's always been an iconoclast, more concerned with being true to himself than to anyone's expectations, and he's never shied away from risk or controversy. For that I admire him all the more. If you were hoping for a Pearl Jam release, though, console yourself with the fact that the whole crew is in the studio right now recording a new one.

Eddie Vedder thought he should try something different in his newest album,yes, the Ukulele. I love the sound of this instrument, but it only works in small doses. A full album, not so much. Most of these songs are lyrically brilliant and the version of 'Cant Keep' is great, but the entire album sounds repetitive as if you cant judge the songs because of the similar music material. This was a challenging thing for Vedder to do this album and it worked, its just not great is all. Any Pearl Jam fan will probably grab it and maybe you'll love it, I tried hard but as I mentioned its just to repetitive. Props for Eddie for trying something new, which many bands and solo artist are scared to do these days where they fail. Does this album fail, not at all. Cant wait for the new album. Casual PJ listeners be warned.