Want a glimpse into the creative process of Those Darn Accordions? TDA tunesmith Paul Rogers is posting demos of songs he’s written for TDA‘s next album and inviting fans to chime in with their thoughts. First up is a catchy little number called “Mr. Saggy Butt” (inspired by a trip to the mall). Unfortunately, Paul creates his demos with a synthesizer and drum machine — not accordion — so you’ll just have to imagine how the accordion parts might eventually sound. Keep checking in over the next month or so as Paul posts more new songs.

Forget watching football and falling asleep on the couch; I’d rather spend my turkey day at Tony Petkovsek’s Thanksgiving Polka Party.

A lifelong promoter of Cleveland-Slovenian music, Tony Petkovsek and his Thanksgiving weekend polka events have been drawing thousands to Cleveland for over 40 years. Tony also hosts the longest running daily polka radio show in America (45 years!), currently heard on WELW-1330AM in Cleveland and online at 247PolkaHeaven.com.

This year’s Thanksgiving Polka Party runs Thursday through Saturday and features a cornucopia of Cleveland-style polka bands, including the Joey Tomsick Orchestra, the Mike Schneider Band, the Eddie Rodick Orchestra, and many more. Accordion legends Walter Ostanek and Joey Miskulin will also make appearances. The weekend is capped off by the 19th Annual Cleveland-Style Polka Hall of Fame Awards Ceremony.

How to Play Rock ‘N’ Roll Accordion
uploaded by Jan TonnesenHere’s a blast from the past: this 1967 Palmer-Hughes accordion instruction book promises “all you need to know to play Rock ‘n’ Roll solos or play with a Rock ‘n’ Roll combo!” And if you put on 3-D glasses, you’ll discover the guy on the cover is actually playing “Paint It Black” backwards! Groovy!

Interestingly, this isn’t the only rock accordion lesson book out there. Palmer-Hughes has another book called Easy Rock ‘n’ Roll that appears to have first been published in the early 1960s. And with imaginative song titles like “Red Hot Rock”, “Soda Pop Rock”, “Juke Box Rock”, and “Injun Rock” (really!), it’s hard to see why more kids weren’t ditching their guitars for accordions. Shocking, really.

Still, I’m guessing Those Darn Accordions didn’t learn from either of these books…

A Hawk and a Hacksaw
uploaded by OtterFreakThe Wordless Music Series is devoted to the idea that the “worlds of classical and contemporary instrumental music… share more in common than conventional thinking might suggest.” Each concert brings rock and classical musicans together in an intimate setting in hopes of introducing fans of each to music they might not otherwise discover.

Last week’s concert in New York City included New Mexico duo A Hawk and a Hacksaw, which features violinist Heather Trost and multi-instrumentalist Jeremy Barnes on accordion and percussion (often simultaneously). Leaning heavily on accordion, violin, and brass, their music definitely has a Balkan/klezmer feel, but never really sounds traditional. They remind me a little of DeVotchKa, but more intimate-sounding and less dramatic.

A Hawk and a Hacksaw released their third album, The Way the Wind Blows, just last month. Check out the first track, “Song for Joseph”:

A Hawk and a Hacksaw: Song for Joseph (MP3 download)

Remember our post about last week’s attempt to set the Guinness World Record for fastest accordion player? Thanks to the Irish Post we’ve discovered that the accordionist was Irish button box virtuoso Liam O’Connor. Liam rose to fame as a featured musician with Michael Flatley’s Lord of the Dance, and has also recorded three albums with vocalist Lisa Aherne.

According to his site, Liam set the record for “Fastest Fingers in the World” by playing an amazing 11.64 notes per second under the watchful eyes of Guinness judges. The record-breaking tune was the venerable classic, “Tico Tico”.

Unfortunately, Liam’s site doesn’t have any sound clips, so we can only wonder what his fast fingers sound like. Leave a comment if you know where we can find clips of Liam’s music online.

Few musicians, polka or otherwise, can match the success that Jimmy Sturr has enjoyed over the course of his career. He has recorded over 100 albums, plays over 150 dates a year, and — to the consternation of some in the polka community — has dominated the polka category at the Grammy Awards, winning 15 times in 20 years.

We had a chance to talk with Jimmy in San Francisco last month before he headed to Polkapalooza Reno.

How did you first get into polka music? What drew you in?

Well, I’ve lived in a little town all my life called Florida, New York, and we probably grow at least 30% of the nation’s onions — we’re the Onion Capital of the World. A lot of people from Europe, especially Polish people, came over to work on what we call the “black dirt”, and brought their traditions with them — one of which was their music. The high school dances and weddings all had polka bands, the radio stations played polkas everyday… that’s how I grew up and fell in love with the music.

When did you start your first band?

I started out at 11 years old and had a five piece band. My very first job was playing for the PTA and the only reason I got to play was because my mother was the president! (laughs) There were a couple of other polka bands in the area and, if they were booked, people would come to us — only because we were the only ones left. Eventually, we moved up that ladder.

What bands inspired you when you were first starting out?

There were bands on the East Coast — guys you’ve never heard of, most of whom are passed away now. You know, everyone’s heard of Frankie Yankovic, but I don’t really play that style. Whereas that Cleveland style really featured the accordion, the East Coast bands featured trumpets and saxophones more (of course, everyone still had an accordion). And those are the bands I grew up on; bands like Frank Wojnarowski, Ray Henry, Gene Wisniewski, the Harmony Bells Orchestra, and the Connecticut Twins Orchestra.

Continue reading ‘Interview with Jimmy Sturr’ »

I don’t normally condone gangs — though I do enjoy the choreography of the Sharks and Jets — but I’ve finally found a gang I can fully support: the Alaska Button Box Gang.

Based in Anchorage, this dedicated group of button box enthusiasts performs regularly for non-profits and schools, as well as at the Anchorage Saturday Market, the library and other organizations and occasions. The gang has recorded three albums and their repertoire includes traditional Slovenian, German and Polish accordion music as well as songs written by members of the group. They also have occasional rumbles with a rival piano accordion gang from Juneau.

Fellow Alaskans should check the gang’s website for upcoming performances, while those of us in the lower 48 can look forward to their appearance at next summer’s SNPJ Slovenefest in Enon Valley, PA.

Not everyone is lucky enough to live somewhere where polka bands play live every weekend. So for those of us outside of the Midwest/East Coast “polka belt”, sites like Polka Videos are a fantastic way to see what we’re missing. Set up by Michelle Genrich, president of the Polka America Corporation, Polka Videos includes high-quality footage of bands like the Polka Family Band, Stas Golonka and his Chicago Masters, The Music Connection, and others.

Meanwhile, over on YouTube, Thad Seaver has been posting an impressive collection of polka videos himself. Featured bands include Lenny Gomulka and Chicago Push, Dynabrass, Brave Combo, and more. Of course, these videos are no substitute for going out and supporting your local polka bands, but they sure help pass the time between shows!

From this morning’s paper: a character in Ballard Street decides to take up the accordion. (Thanks, David.)