Billie Jean

[siSonc02]

AWESOME AND UNIQUE!

[Annemmpie]

This guy is really good

[yaisum]

I'd like to know how he gets the bass kick that first comes in at 0.22. That's a hell of a deep sound from a box the size of a shoe box, pickup or no pickup.

[NoizmakerZack]

This guy came to our school not too long ago.

[thebigtmac]

u know ur a boss when u have a cutaway on ur uke

[y24x]

Gordon Mayer then became black

[caskaziom]

theres a white ukelele doing stand-up in the corner

[squebyzebra]

Which Ukulele does James play?



[iamjurell]

@squebyzebra It's a custom built G-string uke. Top freaking spec. Unfortunately they don't offer the James Hill signature model anymore now that he doesn't use their ukes exclusively.

[tommytankvideo]

This is my favourite billie jean cover EVER

[MattGilroy]

I think if Cake covered Billie Jean, it would sound a lot like this. James is the king of baby guitar.

[magicmulder]

Best thing I've seen this year. :-)

[avalita139607]

it almost sounds like beatboxing

[sarajoy000]

looooooooove this

[mondoman712]

What uke is that?

[avalita139607]

this just sounds magical

[jcb82]

Nobody gets that he's trying to get them to say "dweeeeheeeheeee" when he pauses.

[TheSuicycle]

super build-up. mind blowing. U could hear the audience gasp. great voice , too. If you were not attached to the 'integrity of the song', you might note that it peaked early, and it's possible to shorten the song. or is that blasphemy?

[caneprod]

I have that ukulele hanging in the back! :D

[rphunt2002]

good work. assuming a looping pedal is used here. that uke is gorgeous.

[gordonmayer]

@rphunt2002 no loop pedal. no nothing. just his on-board pickup right into the board.

[rphunt2002]

@gordonmayer oh yeah, looking more closely i see what he's doing now. cool. thx!

[BabyOnBoard888]

ha they say 'woah' when he only does the basic plucking. FTW

[OmegaMikePL]

Masterpiece of a masterpiece!

[GotNothingToDoHere]

Damn! His voice remembers me Les Claypool singing style!

[98RamMagnum]

I bet it smelled like years of unwashed hair and clothes in the building he's in.

[elenamorning]

If only he weren't so cute...

[TheSuicycle]

@elenamorning I thought his geeky look was a big plus.  his skillz and even his voice were against type

[elenamorning]

@TheSuicycle no big surprise, I love the geeky look. Dark hair + glasses, hubba hubba.

[DavidEdwardSchnell]

inkredible

[muckluck87]

he played at my school today we was amazing!!!!!

[evilmurderproduction]

hell yea

[iiiiiiRYiiiiii]

Good until the vocals come in.

[AvantTrash]

Dusty Strings is one of the best Acoustic & Uke stores I've ever been to. I wish I had thousands of dollars to buy something there.

[squealyparsuperstar]

im dat babys daddy

[Ajizi]

dat_talent

[joeyblondewolf3]

I are the one.

[britkid182]

JEALOUS

[pest0711]

How does he do it?

[kandy16love]

Sorry got to see it live not hot

[kandy16love]

I hot to see it live it was amazing

[Banzugor]

nope, chuck testa

[mr1god21]

i watch this everyday!

[y24x]

Chuck Norris taught him how to play the ukelele

[sowa12]

@y24x

No, James Hill didn't want to teach Chuck Norris.

[6Carlos9]

and i am the one....billy jean aint ur mutha*%! son!!! gordonmayer is the beauty queen

[MrKennyBones]

@Puddelpai No, it just makes me itch inside, just feels backwards and wrong. I'm not saying he's not awesome, he clearly is. And I'm not arguing, just saying. Usually, I prefer hearing "errors" when artists play, cause you can tell they're human. And humans make mistakes. It's just that this particular thing where people get the 1 and 2 mixed makes me itch inside. It's like hearing a disharmony. I know music isn't absolute and you shouldn't follow the rules, but beats are. It's like math.

[Puddelpai]

@MrKennyBones okey, yeah, i can understand you now ;)

[MrKennyBones]

@xngr I don't really care if people are better than me, a lot of people are. You can't really care about that kinda stuff. It doesn't matter if it's his version or not, the 1 and the 2 needs to be at the right place, it isn't a beat if it's not. It's nothing to argue about. And you can feel it as well, it just feels backwards. And yes, he does groove after a couple of seconds :) I'm not arguing, just saying. The same as when people clap at concerts, they always clap at the 1, just feels weird.

[xngr]

@MrKennyBones First off, sorry for being a little harsh, you turned out to be quite reasonable.

I still don't know what part you're talking about, though. The trill-intro-thing? I think that isn't really meant to be in any kind of time. As soon as Billie Jean starts the "bass" ist on the 1 and 3 and the "snare" on 2 and 4, like it's supposed to.

[ilbeporcelain]

Love this



[bigjoelindley]

Jewkulele

[Elefkelem]

Bene.

[PerhapsPossibly]

Would have liked it a lot more if he sang. :/

[Airstrip19]

@PerhapsPossibly He sang the chorus, just in a lower vocal register, not Michael Jackson's falsetto.

[frefredy]

They said it : swag !

[Countlesscrossings]

singing was too mainstream for him.

[sapikinek]

oh god. how the hell hes doin it?

[italoschwabe]

Impressive!

Aren't there really no drums somewhere in the background?

[TakedownO44]

i seen him live back in nova scotia where he's from. best Ukelele player in the world hands down.

[vaaanavi]

you bamf you! 

[lacaman]

badass MF :)

[xerone10]

Ray William Johnson should really feature this on =3

[1dalmation1]

@xerone10 not...not really...no...no he shouldn't...

[mkserify]

And I was like " DAFAK!!! HOW????"

[nikoletina1994]

i finally can the text of this song :P

[xoFiroza]

thanx memebase :D

[liutcm]

very very good

[NotificationOfLife]

he's playing for white people.

[tauempirekid]

Michael Jackson came back alive as a ukelele

[DonPortulinus]

Dafuq?

[WhosAlx]

he's won the game.

[Dreihkon]

@WhosAlx And I lost it.

[casemanprice]

Thats amazing

[commandodude1265]

this man probably has so many panties thrown at him.

[marenfarroparamore]

Like a boss.

[jmarinotripp240]

avoiding lawsuits like a boss

[GRUNGEGRUNGERULES]

that guy is the fucking master

[ZeroResolution]

And.... he's not using a looping machine?

[63chicago6]

So fresh, man

[kcajy]

Amazing Ukulele player? Nope, Chuck T.. wait. Yep, pretty much an amazing ukulele player

[xLTjossex]

This is so much better than the orginal.

[GrosstadtGorillas]

he does not always use his brown ukulele, but when he does he plays mj.

[GunSinMovies]

@SpartanvdK Indeed, memebase.

[xallthethings]

@SpartanvdK

say no more :D

[ClydeWJones]

@xallthethings Snap snap, click click, wink wink... Know what I mean?

[xallthethings]

@ClydeWJones

haha, hell yeah :D

[Commando61]

@SpartanvdK Clever girl . . .

[Drhumiliation]

@SpartanvdK No

Aliens

[MrAwesomeAwesomness]

@Drhumiliation Nop Chuck Testa.

[Instrumentationable]

When the song ended I clapped.

[TakedownO44]

GOD DAMMIT SO FUCKING GOOD AHHH!!!!!!! im seeing him on saturday :P

[curtarmmar]

Dude, so fresh

[mcjordan015]

FREAKKKINNNNNNG CORDINATIONNNN !!! DO ME A KID WHILE DOING ME A PANCAKE AND MASSAGE !

you probably can..

[Shadownx15]

Holy Shit O.O'

[davishollow]

Would be even cooler if he could moonwalk while playing...

[findemaxa13]

@davishollow now that would take superhuman awesomeness

[Ashachou]

This guy is a God.

[mikka58]

amazing talent , James Hill you are the master of the Ukulele

[saddesp]

really, really awesome. i would never imagine a cover of BJ like that - it's superb!

[GrantLaw74]

Very entertaining!



[fluffytuff]

I love not only the way he plays it, but his arrangement of the lyrics as well. Very nicely done, James.



[TheGosu]

No offense to the singer cause he's mad good with his own perspective of Billie Jean.

But I wanna get the instrumental version.

[WineCountryUkeFest]

James will be performing at the Wine Country Ukulele Festival Sept. 9. and teaching a workshop during the day on Sept. 10. And, for a special treat, you can see him playing in the Flea By Night Band (and not necessarily playing the 'ukulele) Saturday night, Sept. 10. It's all happening in the beautiful Napa Valley of California.

[VSulita]

muiiiito bom!!

[egiapalyak]

wow. just... wow.

[crazyman822]

where can I get this as a studio recording??

[musicnab]

I would love to see this guy live!

[sdeputydiver]

very innovative!!!

[RuslSH]

so gooooood man!

[weedychild]

even the lyrics r played bi his uke. thats how intence he is

[hermie1994]

This performance made Michael Jackson black again.

[z3cka]

so those are the lyrics... interesting

[tzimompakoulis]

@z3cka hahahahahahahaha...nice comment....hahahahha...you rule...

[atung323]

Gordon Mayer, John Mayer.......THEYRE BOTH GOOD D:

[oortega19811]

im looking right at you and still cant figure out what the hell your doing haha

[IncredibleEverything]

@jkappler22 But he is Canadian ;)

[jazztrumpet87]

@IncredibleEverything pfft, none of the JUDGES on America's Got Talent are American either.

[SnowboarderX9]

@IncredibleEverything Soon, they're coming out with Canada's Got Talent, so...I think we have our first winner.

[RexButtafuoco]

:35 "NICE!"

My thoughts exactly

[RyanFalls]

and.. then I came

[Singsonggirl]

Mr. Hill, if you don't have a girlfriend but are looking for one... I'M HERE!!!

[ChmarkoT]

@Singsonggirl

smooth.

[bxsosick]

u have to remember, no one can sing this song with the same energy as michael jackson did

[inuyashaboy9]

so much awesomeness its ... T.T

[piasauevey]

this is my dream guy.

[KayKBayZ]

Unbelievable!

[pepachet]

Awesome!

[Kroitk]

Not only is he awesome at it, but the only reason he's playing on a small instrument is because he's compensating for something big.

His talent.

[rgoodwinau]

Amazing!

[TheScientist0000000]

First person in history ever to get laid by way of ukulele.

[piranaut]

@TheScientist0000000 watch jake shimabakuro

[dedicateddad]

Beyond Excellent!

[DarnMechanic]

boring

[platovaya]

MJ would dance to this! I bet he would appreciate it! :D

_YANA_

[STALKERyxxx]

great skils, awesome vocal!

[tuollaf]

fucking incredible. so damn good.

[findemaxa13]

is it just me or does he do all of this sort of sarcastically?

[volaju2071]

If you looked up WIN in the dictionary, it has this video next to it.

[findemaxa13]

lol he almost said "be careful who you do"....

[Pdalprat]

Is he using a Loop Station or s'thin?

[MadddSkillzzz]

@Pdalprat No loop station. It's all in the fingers. I think he uses tapping for the bassline.

[MrgudMne]

Epic! 

[1Jackwillis1]

This is.. this... this is amazing.

[Marcotsu]

HOW THE.

[Navywalrus09]

Oh my G...

*head explodes*

[MerAdames]

AWESOME!!!!

[rafaelbnl]

He looks so casual about it...effortless.

[Maiasatara]

Brilliant! And oh so cool…

[speedymichel]

How…the…hey is he doing drums, base and melody? This f'in amazing!

[JohnBlaney]

That is fantastic!

[lanciauxrayz]

i love the licking part 0:47

[sabryyoaky]

AWESOME!

[Lemonizer26]

Thats what I call coolness O.O

[DarkErinia]

OMG, what a voice. Gave me goosebumps O.O

[WildArmACF]

gotta give you your props for this XD

[TongueSnap]

I demand a studio version this instance

[ccce612]

I know what Mikael Akerfeldt do when he isnt playing Opeth. Amazing!

[XGamerFangX]

theres another ukulele doing standup in the top left corner

[akosiCoco]

You deserve to be subbed...

[iKlaush]

@akosiCoco My thoughts exactly.

[pgmfuentes]

how he do bass sound?

[bombydruful]

@pgmfuentes i'm pretty suresa he's making the bass sound by tapping with his thumb on the downstroke that he does by the bridge.

[judomayyyniac]

I want to marry him.

[woingenau300]

Oh my god this is brilliant!

[Shovelware]

Loved it.

[wolfeje]

Is this low g tuning?