Puff the Magic Dragon Ukulele Tutorial

by | Sep 17, 2018 | Video lessons

With Jenny’s Puff the Magic Dragon ukulele tutorial, let’s get our ukulele strumming with this fun and famous song. Since the song’s chart-topping release in 1962, Puff the Magic Dragon has remained popular to young and old audiences.  So don’t miss the opportunity to learn to play the song on ukulele.

PUFF THE MAGIC DRAGON UKULELE TUTORIAL

Because the song has only six chords and has fairly easy strumming pattern, beginners will be able to play and follow along comfortably.

First of all, you will need these chords: C, Em, F, Am, D7 and G7.

Secondly, the strumming pattern is D-DU-UDU (D-down, U-up). When you’re first learning the song, you can do all down strums then switch to the more complex strum later on.

Finally, Jenny does a bit of fingerpicking arrangement in some parts of the song that you can also try. So let’s now head on to the video of Puff the Magic Dragon ukulele tutorial below:

 

SONG HISTORY

Did you know that the song Puff the Magic Dragon is based on a poem, which was itself inspired by another poem? While studying at Cornell University, Peter Yarrow, who wrote the music for the song, found a poem on a piece of paper left on his typewriter.

It turns out that a friend, Leonard Lipton, came to Yarrow’s place after a visit from the library where he read poems by Ogden Nash. Inspired by Ogden Nash’s poems, particularly The Tale of Custard the Dragon, Lipton had ideas for a poem. To get the poem out of his head, he typed it on Yarrow’s typewriter. But he later forgot about it.

CHART-TOPPER

Years later, Yarrow revised some words on Lipton’s poem. He then used the poem as lyrics for a song in which he also wrote music for. Subsequently, Yarrow, with his group called Peter, Paul and Mary, recorded Puff the Magic Dragon. It was released it in 1963. The group included the song in their second album called Moving without much expectation. To their surprise, the song took off and climbed to number two on the Billboard Hot 100 list. Yarrow later found Lipton and provided him half the credit for writing the song.

ADAPTATIONS

And the rest they say is history.  The magic dragon Puff and his friend Jackie Paper became not only characters of a beloved song but also part of childhood tales. A television animated special released in 1978, followed by two sequels in 1979 and in 1982, featured Puff, Jackie and a land called Honalee.

In 2007, Eric Puybaret, with Yarrow and Lipton, published an illustrated book adapted from the song but with a clever happy ending. And according to some reports circulated in December 2016, Fox Animation is working on a movie based on the song. It is to be directed by Trolls director Mike Mitchell.

Rainbow-colored cartoon dragon soaring through a starry sky.

RUMORS ABOUT DRUG REFERENCES

Of course, an article about the Puff the Magic Dragon song is not complete without addressing the long-time rumors about the song having disguised references to drugs or marijuana. Both writers, Yarrow and Linton, have frequently denied this rumor. Linton reiterates his poem was inspired by an Ogden Nash poem about a dragon and it “is really just a lot like Peter Pan”.

Yarrow and his group, for their part, claimed the song did not have hidden meanings. They viewed the song as an acknowledgment to the “the loss of childhood innocence”. While Jackie Paper and Puff had been inseparable, the end of the song alludes to Jackie’s discovery of other toys which led to “one grey night” when “Jackie Paper came no more.”

AND BACK TO PRACTICE…

Therefore, the song is not a bad influence for children but a great learning song. After that short break reading fun facts about the song, let’s head back to practice and strum along with Puff the Magic Dragon ukulele tutorial.

Happy strumming!

 

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  1. Teach a Rest Position

Create a standard position players use whenever they are listening:

  • Place the ukulele flat against the body.
  • Rest the strumming hand gently on the strings.
  • Keep both hands still.
  • Look toward the leader.

Call it “rest position” and demonstrate it at the group’s first meeting. Use the same phrase consistently: “Ukuleles in rest position, please.”

This physically mutes the strings and gives everyone a clear visual signal that playing has stopped.

  1. Use One Attention Signal

Choose a signal that can be seen or heard across the room. Possibilities include:

  • Raising one hand
  • Playing a short, distinctive chord
  • Saying, “Rest position”

Explain the signal before rehearsal begins: “When you see my hand raised, finish the chord you are playing, mute your strings, and look up.”

Avoid competing with the group by repeatedly talking over the instruments. Give the signal, pause, and wait until everyone is ready.

  1. Set a Clear “No Noodling” Expectation

Many players noodle because they are excited, nervous, practicing a difficult chord, or unaware that it is distracting. Address the behavior without embarrassing anyone.

Try saying:

“Between songs, please mute your strings so everyone can hear the instructions. We’ll always give you a moment to check chords before we begin.”

Then build short, intentional practice windows into the session:

  • “Take 20 seconds to find the opening chord.”
  • “Quietly check the change from C to G7.”
  • “Let’s try that strum together once.”

Players are more likely to stop playing at random when they know when practice is welcome.

  1. Amplify the Leader, Not the Entire Room

In larger groups, a small microphone, portable speaker, or amplified ukulele can save the leader’s voice and make directions easier to follow. Amplification should provide clarity—not to overpower the players.

Test the equipment before the session, position the speaker where everyone can hear it, and keep spoken instructions short. A microphone cannot replace an attention routine, but it makes a good routine much more effective.

  1. Create Predictable Transitions

Noodling often fills uncertainty. Tell players exactly what is happening next:

    1. “Finish the final chord.”
    2. “Rest position.”
    3. “Turn to page 14.”
    4. “Find a C chord.”
    5. “Watch for my count-in.”

Use a visible or audible count-in before every song. Once players learn that nothing begins until the leader counts them in, spontaneous starts become less common.

6. Operate iPads for music.

Many ukulele groups read off iPads, and everyone buys the same app. forScore is one of the common ones, but don’t get anything until the group leader tells you which one they use. From there, the leader or the singer/songwriter shares the music by AirDrop, so everyone is reading off the same page. Corrections land with the whole group at once, and nobody is working from an outdated copy.

 

A Simple Group Agreement

At the beginning of a session, say:

“To help everyone hear and learn, we use rest position whenever someone is speaking. When I raise my hand, please mute your strings and look up. You’ll have time to check chords before each song, and we’ll always start together on the count-in.”

The goal is not silence for its own sake. It is to create a group in which instructions are brief, rehearsals move smoothly, and everyone gets more time to make music together.

 

Here’s a list of etiquette expectations from ukulele group members to make the group learning more effective and fruitful for everyone. 

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