• When did accordions become “uncool” in the U.S.A.? They were once quite popular. They were used in mainstream pop music, and in country and western music. Accordions, whether chromatic or diatonic, are well established in folk musics the world over. They provide more musical possibilities than most acoustic instruments… a truly portable organ (backaches duly noted). Yet, at some point, the accordion acquired a stigma in the U.S.A. Accordion references in popular entertainments are as sure to draw a chuckle as a Dan Quayle reference (a great American, as Republicans go). You could point out Steve Urkel, but the accordion had already acquired the stigma by the time he came along. I think the accordion got typecast in a form of polka music popular among northern midwesterners. Maybe it was this association with guys in short overalls and funny hats at cheese and sausage festivals that tarnished the accordion’s image. A bit like what Deliverance did to the banjo. I’m not sure though… alpenhorns are still considered “cool.”
• If Tarzan was reared by apes, who taught him to yodel? Is yodeling common in Africa?
• When, do you reckon, will Clarke introduce their low whistles? Norman and Copeland have been teasing us about it for years.
• There’s a horrible soap opera called “Passions.” I’ve not watched it, but I’ve heard the theme music on several occasions. What is the soprano instrument in that theme song?
Okay (with regard to question before last), they haven’t so much teased as given vague answers when I raised the question.
I’ve always liked the accordion, and I respect the degree of dedication required to become accomplished on this instrument which is definitely not for wimps.
I think accordions started their descent into uncool aometime around the mid-fifties. When I was little (under ten) a lot of kids still took accordion, more or less willingly, Within ten years it was the ultimate nerd instrument and has remained the butt of jokes to this day -
Excerpt from a commercial for, I think, Boston Market frozen dinners:
Scene: Workaholic father gets to know his family over BM food.
FATHER: “And after dinner, we’ll all get together and I’ll play Feelings on the accordion.”
FAMILY:
FATHER: “Or maybe I won’t”
If I were to guess, I’d say it was rock music and the guitar which did the squeezebox in in the US. All the kids suddenly wanted to play only guitar or drums.
I don’t see Tarzan emitting a yodel, so much as an ululating howl, which I suppose he could have learned from listening to wolves - which also don’t exist in the African forext, but hey, one paradox at a time.
Don’t matter 'bout them Clarkes, I don’t like them anyway.
Walden, I did a little poking around the internet regarding the Passions theme. One site said it was played by “wind instruments” (which really tells a lot) but another said it was a panpipe, whatever that is.
I’d have to agree with Chuck that Tarzan is not a true yodeler, but rather his yelling is based on animal sounds. Tarzan was raised mainly by the apes but the other animals chipped in (it takes a village to raise an ape-man you know) so I think his yell is an amalgam of animal cries.
I’ve been poking around on the accordion for a couple of years - now you’re telling me it’s not cool?
The button key Accordian has always been a major weapon in the ITM armoury,though anybody bringing a Piano Accordian to a session is letting themselves in for serious grief.
Phil Cunningham,the Scottish musician,has done some lovely work on the Piano accordian but he is an exception to the rule.
For me it has always been the sound of the bass on piano accordians that puts me off.It always seems to be very oomph pa,if you know what i mean.
As regards Tarzan,well I will have to think on that for a while
Pan Pipes are what the Peruvian guys play and can be heard to great effect on Paul Simons “EL Condor Pasa” and another of his songs called “Duncan”( at least i think thats what it is called)
Lawrence Welke did in the accordian, unless you’re
Cajun and play zydyco.
Tarzan wasn’t raised by apes; he was raised by
aristocratic brits, his real name is Lord someoneorother.
It is a well kept secret that aristocratic Brits
issue elulating howls when the tea is too sweet,
or whatever and only the servants are about.
The Code of Silence has begun
to crumble, however.
I know the accordion became unpopular before The Far side. I remember the calssic cartoon that had two escalators. The angel welcoming the person on the up escalator said, “Welcome to Heaven, here is your harp,” while the devil “welcoming” the person on the down escalator said, “Welcome to Hell, here is your accordion.”
The real question about Tarzan is, who or what taught him to say “Oongawa,” and why does it convey so many different things to so many different animals depending on context. (There was also a Far Side cartoon that had Tarzan writing in his diary. Every day he wrot Oongawa.)
That’s a button accordion, though–which is what I mostly see on TV. Lots of pictures under the Flaco and Friends link. There was a show a while back–probably on PBS–that discussed the development of the particular style of accordion used in Tejano music, but I don’t really remember the details.
The music discussed on this page is a big part of what I grew up with. I recall seeing Jivin’ Gene, whose photo appears at the top of the page, with his band, the Jokers, at a roadhouse in the Galveston area back in the summer of 1959. Interestingly, the audience was mostly adults in Western boots and hats.
Tejano music seems to have maintained a larger audience than the Cajun/Creole stuff did, which may be why I can turn on the TV any night and find accordion players on at least one of the Spanish-language channels here.
• If Tarzan was reared by apes, who taught him to yodel? Is yodeling common in Africa?
The same people who taught him English?
• When, do you reckon, will Clarke introduce their low whistles? Norman and Copeland have been teasing us about it for years.
2005?
• There’s a horrible soap opera called “Passions.” I’ve not watched it, but I’ve heard the theme music on several occasions. What is the soprano instrument in that theme song?
Oh, good, you gave me an excuse to go through my extensive collection of Farside boks (4 galleries and 12 others). I shall see if I can hunt up any more accordian or Tarzan comics.
Oh, well, just another example of my swimming against the current. I love accordion music. I’m starting to be able to tell who’s playing based on the style.
Here are some of my favorites:
David DiGuiseppe (http://www.daviddg.com/) of contra dance fame has a CD called “Welcome to Heaven” as a direct result of too many people giving him a copy of that Far Side cartoon. I first heard David at a contra dance at Glen Echo outside of CD–it was just him and a piano player, Pete Campbell. I thought at first it was going to be a very weird dance, but they really rocked the joint.
Sharon Shannon–don’t be put off by the strange titles she gives her sets. Many of them are trad tune medleys but you don’t know that until you get into the liner notes or after you’ve listened a little bit.
Phil Cunningham–I always liked him better than his late and dearly missed brother Johnny. I’m just not into Scottish fiddle.
Bob McQuillen & Laurie Andres have a contra dance CD “Hand it Down” that’s sitting in my car player right now.
That’s Laurie with the “stomach Steinway”:
Jackie Daley of Patrick Street, Joe Derrane, the list goes on. I don’t listen to nearly as many flute players. Just strange, I guess.
You might also want to check out Maria Kalaniemi. I never liked the accordion till I heard her. She’s from Finland, classically educated, and does some incredibly hot folk music and music that she wrote (as well as some classical, which I haven’t heard). She plays mostly free bass 5-row.
Not an exception at all! The piano accordion is very popular in Scottish music, which of course is different from ITM. In fact, in music for Scottish country dancing, it’s the predominant instrument, more common in most places than the fiddle, and many bands even have TWO accordion players! In fact, Jimmy Shand, who was one of the most popular players, now has a statue in his home town (I forget exactly where).
I think the reason piano accordion is used more than button accordion in Scottish music is that the music comes in all different keys, as opposed to ITM, which mostly stays in a couple of keys. You really need to be fully chromatic to play for Scottish…
