Dave Rowe, owner of O'Brien's Music Store poses with an ugly stick: a traditional Newfoundland and Labrador percussion musical instrument, outside his shop on Water Street, St. John's, on Dec. 4.

A few musical instruments that have every right to be on the list, but did not make it due to their names not being that weird, are the Chapman stick, a guitar like instrument that is used to play ...

This year, Dave Rowe, owner of a decades-old music store in St. John's, N.L., found himself in a peculiar yet pressing situation: he was out of ugly sticks, and the man who made them was retiring.

The ugly stick is a Newfoundland percussion instrument, often made of a mop handle stuck in a rubber boot and festooned with rows of bottle caps punctured by protruding nails. They are particularly ...

A beautiful racket: In Newfoundland, the ugly stick is an instrument in high demand By: Sarah Smellie, The Canadian Press Posted: 6:00 AM CST Sunday, Dec. 24, 2023 Last Modified: 11:31 AM CST ...