This world will miss Joe. He was unlike anyone—an authentic, truly unique human being.
Peaceful travels wherever you go, Joe.

What a kind, gentle, funny, unique and beautiful soul, Joe Silver. What a gift to the world he was. He must be needed somewhere else now.

I met Joe, as a drummer on the Crown Princess while he was the bass player. Such an effortless sense of time, and harmony, and pocket. He made me sound better than I was. Fantastic musician. Could read anything places in front of him. 
We were also roommates. Very good times. Such a great example of empathy manifest in a person. Fare thee well Joe. This world is better for us having known you.

I met Joe over 30 years ago when I hired him at Citibank. The process was so long and bureaucratic I almost lost him before I could actually get him hired. In his interview he'd mentioned that he was a musician but I didn't follow it up because I hardly expected him to share my eccentric jazz fusion tastes.
At the end of his first day of work, as I said goodbye, I mentioned I was going to the Village (Greenwich) to see friends of mine play. Joe wanted to know who and I assured him he'd never heard of my friends but it turned out that he had and he was a big fan. That changed our relationship immediately. After a couple years I moved on to another position, abandoning Joe to an unsympathetic new boss and we eventually lost touch. I left the bank, he left the bank.
Some years later (late 90s) I was working for a small consulting firm out of the Boston area (still living in NYC) and we needed to hire more consultants. I started writing emails to all the Joe Silvers I could find online and Joe responded. He was looking for a GOOD (Get Out of Debt) job, he said and we brought him on as a consultant. In that time, Joe turned me on to Youssou N'Dour, TribalTech and David Roche. While he was on a long term assignment for us in Toronto I got to see him play bass in a band he was sitting in with over by the University and began to appreciate more fully his musicianship.
Again, Joe left the firm, eventually I left and we drifted apart, occasionally getting together to hear music.
Over the years we went to quite a few concerts together starting with Mike Stern, Allan Holdsworth, Larry Coryell. We're both avid photographers and we compared equipment and took close up shots of the bands in small, dark venues. I also got to see him and Suzie playing their ukes at the Parkside Lounge a few years ago.
Then, last Winter we had tickets to see Tal Wilkenfeld at the Mercury Lounge and Joe canceled uncharacteristically at the last minute. I was emailing with him trying to make best use of the ticket when he admitted his just-discovered illness to me. He was in the hospital. Fortunately, he soldiered on and just in the last year I had the pleasure of going to several concerts with Joe: Pat Martino, Wayne Krantz and Oz Noy and finishing up with King Crimson a few weeks before his marvelous birthday party. As a non-musician friend from work I was tremendously honored that we were invited to join all his dear old and close friends and it was so good to see Joe playing with both his "serious" musician friends and his uke friends. I have posted 1 of the pictures I took that evening on the picture page.
Joe - we miss you. I can't quite wrap my head around the cognitive dissonance of feeling your presence and knowing you're gone. But yesterday evening's ceremony proves you'll not soon be forgotten. Thank you Suzie and Belinda for putting that together. Shantih, shantih, shantih

I feel very fortunate that I had met him through playing the ukulele. His playing and creation of Ukes on The Hill were a lot of fun to participate in. He was a humble soul and we all benefited from his spirit greatly. The energy he put into our shared universes will last.

I met Joe through the NRBQ list serve, for fans of the band, that would post emails to the group, and that's when I first started to enjoy interacting with him on the internet. It was through that he initiated the collaborative Fabulous Moonpies that put together the Christmas Wish recording project, and the Q-tenanny sing along/play along event for the second NRBQ reunion. It was Joe's idea, and he took on the laborious task of putting a song book together for everybody ! It turned out to be a joyous event and a memory that everybody will treasure. At the second one that we did, keyboardist Terry Adams walked in and played a song with us, and Joe and the rest of us were thrilled to bits !
  Through that NRBQ group, some of us started listening to Belinda's radio show Bubbles in the Think Tank ( wmfo.org every Saturday night at 11 p.m. ET ), and again Joe put his efforts and enthusiasm towards that show, and started playing with us in our little chat group on Facebook, and eventually came out to the Boston area to guest host the show, as Belinda decided that she would like to have the staff members each guest host a show.
  Yes, Bubbles in the Think Tank has a staff. I am the Titular Head of Research BTW.... we are a silly bunch, for as Belinda has decreed, the show is about Love and Silliness. When Belinda was going to add Joe to the staff, she asked me what staff position he should be given, and I came up with the title "Churlman of the Board"
( NYC Office ). In the NRBQ group, Joe, being a perfectionist (being Joe ) would often make little factual corrections and preface them by saying, " I hope this isn't churlish of me to point out, but..." ,and I had started to kid him about it on the Bubbles page. Churly Joe... He could really hurl the churl.... He embraced the moniker and was inspired to put together the delightful " I enjoy being a Churl" with Suzy.
    But this so-called churlishness was really just perfectionism, and when Joe was putting together his staff show, he put together the extraordinary radio jingle that you heard in the memorial, after carefully researching radio jingles, and also practiced doing the show and recorded himself and listened to it, before he came out for the show. And the show was fantastic, Joe came out and the
"Ever-embiggening Staff" ( as Belinda likes to call it ) all went out to eat and hung around in the studio with him during the show, and it was just a wonderful night, and now a memory we will always cherish.
  I've really missed interacting with him in the chat group during the show every Saturday night. So clever, so knowledgeable and such a great sense of humor...I enjoyed bantering and being silly with him so much. We have our little
in-jokes and our bad puns there      
 and our running gags , one that Joe started was the "Big Mic" picture, where he started posting pictures of the artists being played posing with a large vintage microphone, i.e. those old Shures. Someone posts a Big Mic pic at least once every show now.
 And I will miss Joe and his regular posts on social media, his compassion, his outrage at injustice and cruelty, his intellect, and his eloquence . His outrage was genuine,and he was determined to never be complacent.
  On a personal note, I will miss his generous enthusiasm for my own musical and artistic projects. That meant a lot to me, because his opinion meant a lot to me.
  Now I have to go through this lengthy tome and check my punctuation, grammar and spelling, in case he's watching.
 I'd like to end this now by wishing Joe's friends, relatives, and musical collaborators some good old-fashioned Bubbles in the Think Tank
LOVE and SILLINESS ❤️
Also, please do not use adjectives where adverbs are required.
  

Like Lenny Mansell, I too met Joe aboard the Crown Princess in 1995, on a summer contract sailing through Alaska. It was perhaps the most memorable contract I ever did, in part because of Joe. We hit it off right away, and I appreciated his strange but delightful sense of humor, charming humanity, and excellent musicianship. He was always so generous with his time, and a hangster to the end. He never compromised his beliefs but was also tolerant of others. I am glad to have known him. He will live on in the fondness of my memories. Farewell my friend. Hope to reconnect on the other side! God speed & a hui hou.

It was so nice to meet everyone last night and see what wonderful group of people Joe chose to be friends with.

joe silver was truly one of a kind,,, to me it seemed as if out of the hundreds of ordinary components put into each human,, somebody took out one ordinary ones and inserted an extraordinary one,,, and upon meeting joe and experiencing his being,, anyone with any sense at all would know that joe was nice,, and kind,, and thoughtful,, smart,, talented,, very pure of heart,, and you would want to be friends with him,,, and make him laugh,, and laugh with him,, and i am glad and happy to have known him,, the great joe silver!

I first met Joe in 1974 when were both in 10th grade and his band was playing at some event, which led to the MASSIVE crush I had on him (and his BIG hair) that lasted through high school. I never had the nerve to say one word to him and if I had, I doubt he would have answered because he was as shy as I was. Fast forward to 20 years later, and somehow we reconnected in the San Francisco Bay Area, where we both were living -- and he's been a treasured friend ever since. Joe was so much FUN - my husband and kids loved him - and I adored his wicked wit. (I'm remembering one of his FB videos giving a cancer update, which he ended with, "One more thing - I'm not wearing pants!") I remember reading something called "The Test of Inexhaustible Beauty" about how we often only realize how wonderful someone was when they die. But honestly, that wasn't the case with Joe -- you knew how special and compassionate and kind he was whenever you were with him.

Uncle Joe, you were such a gentle, kind, loving soul. When was a kid, I loved when you would come by for dinner or holidays- I remember that you would always take time to play with me- kick a ball, play a board game (you were so good at Trivial Pursuit!) and share a smile/laugh- it meant a lot. You will be missed! The memorial last night was so beautiful. It felt so good to see all of the people who were touched by joe.

Will miss Joe and sad we wont get to tour NY Jazz clubs together as we planned.

Sometimes you meet a friend on your travels and it clicks and you know you are on the same wave length and will always be friends.

A soul brother that wont be forgotten.

the memorial for joe today was so beautiful - so touching. i knew joe was an amazing ukulele player but i did not know his violin prodigy background.

i only met joe three years ago at the make music new york 2017 event up on the hill in central park. i feel very lucky to have known him, and suzy... and that we got to jam together a few times, play at the ukes on the hill gigs... so much FUN JOY LOVE... thank you JOE for all of that.

here's a short clip i found by chance on youtube (posted by makalina - thank you) of joe playing a solo at the friday evening meetups - this one was in aug 2017. i am not sure if we were all playing the backing track to joe's solo... it is beautiful...

i happened to be sitting next to him, on his left, in this clip. joe was always very sweet and friendly to me... and generous with his music knowledge. he once helped me out with a hindi song i was trying to play. he worked on the chords for me. they were not easy for me to play but i really appreciated that he took the time to help me out. even tho i knew him so briefly, he will not be forgotten. i will miss you JOE.

enjoy the sweet notes here... joe was a pro. a very sweet pro.

https://youtu.be/S6f81Fi2snk

Joe was one of my best friends, a brother.
I have many great memories of times together with Joe over the decades I knew him.
Joe was an amazingly talented person but I most admired the way he lived his life with honesty, integrity and an unwavering commitment to helping make the world a better place.
He was a great and caring friend.
When my brother was killed in a car accident, Joe made the trip to come play with me at his funeral - that’s the kind of person Joe was.
I am lucky to have known Joe for more than half of life - I love him and will miss him always.

Dear Joe,
  You have always been such an important part of our lives here in the Edwards/Glass family. To be able to spend Thanksgiving weekend with you every year has been incredible! And when I was at my lowest, it was your words that resonated in my head and helped get me through. Your intelligence, kindness, humility and talent are some of the things I loved most about you. I was so glad you knew that, but boy do I miss you! I love you Joe!

Uncle Joe, I still have the little pink ukulele you gifted me when I was a teenager. Growing up, it brought me so much joy, and it even inspired some of my friends to buy their own ukes and take it up as a hobby. I wish I had moved to NYC sooner so that I could have gone to some of your jam sessions. It was so neat to hear your friends tell stories about you tonight. The resounding vote is that you were not only incredibly talented, but also humble, patient, kind, and many other great things. Although our encounters were few, I feel very lucky to have known you. The amount of joy you felt just by sharing your passion for music with others is truly inspiring. Bye bye, love ❤️

https://youtu.be/pSd2CNehbd0

Hey Joe we spoke about you tonight. It was filled with love. So many people remembering you for your talent and the person you were. I loved seeing your smile when I performed with you and Suzy. You could make Row row row your boat sound like a jazz masterpiece. You were fun and vibrant in life. You seemed to accept the knowledge of your death with such grace. You taught me how to be a better musician, and how to stand up for the right causes  You are truly loved for your presence, your peace, and your joy. I will never forget you. I love you Joe Silver.

Joe I hope you are pleasantly surprised with the afterlife! You were loved and appreciated by many and most everyone who met you, including myself! RIP Joe❤️

Beautiful summer nights at Madison Square Park, scrambling for spare tuner batteries backstage at Waikiki Wally’s, singing at Uke Fest, uke rehearsals in almost-not-quite cages at the Theater for the New City, uke meetups in dive restaurants and - hello - an actual NYC mansion, or - surprise! - jumping up at my birthday party... no matter where my memories take place, I will always have a smile when I think of Joe. His soft voice, great laugh, questions that had no answers (or millions for one question), and passion for... everything and anything. He’ll be missed. Damn.

I feel honored to catch a glimpse of this special man, Joe Silver through the tributes and songs of his memorial celebration. Joe lived fully following his path, shining his light and bringing joy to the many people he touched throughout his lifetime. xo

I have thought about Joe frequently through the years--even after I stopped heading out to play my uke and found a little jam band of friends. I still have a powerpoint slide he handed out at a workshop on 1-3-5. It sits with my ukes and when I'm working on a song, I often glance at it and the notes from the questions I asked him to sort myself out. I always imagined I'd see him again to let him know. There's a bit from him in everything I write. He will be missed. May his memory be a blessing to all of you, and me. <3

Joe you are going to missed by so many.

Chase W. Ewing, Dallas

On behalf of Brooklyn Ukes, I want to say how much we will miss Joe. He was a beautiful soul, one of a kind, a humble and gracious and funny and loving person. He always had a kind word to say and was incredibly open and helpful to everyone in the uke community. I loved his politics, veganism, atheism and general demeanor. He was a joy to be around and to play with...a consummate musician and lovely human. Thank you for your presence on earth Joe. Now go play your music in the spheres and let your love shine.

Always enjoyed playing with Joe . I remember the Jim Davis quartet. Our trio with Frank Nostro and the many times he jammed with Little Wilson. A great musician and friend he will be missed but always remembered.

Miss you Joe- you're the best man.

Over the years at Ukulele events, Joe became a great inspiration to me in his rare combination of high caliber musicianship and genuine enthusiasm for making music-making accessible to all. And his terrific sense of fun! The world has lost a great human but his legacy lingers on in our melodies. 

Joe you were a picture of dignity, humility and grace. You will always be loved. Good night, sweet prince.

Joe was such a good and kind person. He was a a true friend to my sister Suzy, which is how we were introduced. The more time spent with Joe, the more endearing he was to me. He is greatly missed and it means a great deal to me to have had the opportunity to get to know Joe.