Despite its diminutive size, the ukulele is a beloved instrument. Among the celebrity musicians who have had a great affection for the uke was Beatle George Harrison.

A contemporary master of the ukulele, Jake Shimabukuro, has done a terrific version of Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.” In fact, it made him a YouTube legend.

The Hawaiian musician has been called the “four-string Samurai” as well as the “Hendrix of the ukulele.” His mastery of the instrument is inspiring. His music is a blend of rock, pop, jazz, blues and classical.

Shimabukuro, whose most recent album is titled “Live,” is coming to the Seattle area this week for two shows.

The first is Friday (March 12) at the Edmonds Center for the Arts. Click on this link for the details. (This show is sold out.)

A second show is Saturday (March 13) at the Admiral Theatre in Bremerton. You can find the details here.

For a selection of videos, as well as music samples, visit Shimabukuro’s Web site.

And you can watch a video of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” as well as videos of other songs, by following this link to his MySpace page.