Karl-Marx-Allee is a huge boulevard built on the eastern side of Berlin. We walked along it many times throughout the winter of 2010 - 2011 when we stayed in the Friedrichshain area of Berlin. We passed by a musical instrument shop which had ukuleles displayed in the window and this planted a seed. For a time we weren't certain of securing an apartment over the winter as Christmas was approaching and apartments were scarce. The owner of the apartment we eventually stayed in wrote in her email that we could be "shure" the apartment was ours. Shortly after this we walked by the music store with the "Shure" banner up on display (see video).
By the time we reached Budapest in March, 2011 we now had a ukulele and this song came to life about our experiences in Berlin that winter. It was written on ukulele with melodica part originally before we created the piano-based version later that year in Milan. Shaker and handclaps were added in Nice in a tiny little sweatbox attic apartment (probably the most humid apartment we've ever stayed in!). We continued to work on the song whenever we were able to - programming the drum track in cheap hotel rooms in Paris while we looked for somewhere more permanent to stay - and recording the vocals in Bologna (see video) just after Christmas 2012. Eventually we were able to mix the song in Ventimiglia in February 2013. We hope to put some sort of brass on the next version but that's for another time... Enjoy!
