That said, I have no idea who that is.
He's like the Jimi Hendrix of conjunto. Check out the cool pic here.
Here's a good youtube clip, and there are plenty more there, most if not all posted by some dude named Slimcyder.
Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure I saw Jordan at the 1990 Tejano Conjunto Festival in San Antonio.
I also saw Boozoo Chavis there, and he should definitely be included in your playlist, if there's any justice at all in this crazy wicked world.
Then the SRV of conjunto is Flaco Jimenez.
12: You saying you don't like him, or just that you haven't yet acquired any of his music?
When evaluating Armsmasher's claim in 11 it should be borne in mind that he believes SRV to be superior to Hendrix.
I'm saying that he won't be part of the show.
It's well documented that Ben w-lfs-n hates Mexicans.
SRV was not superior to Hendrix. For one thing, SRV's irritating brother wouldn't be on the radar if not for SRV, so he's got a big strike against him there.
When evaluating Armsmasher's claim in 11 it should be borne in mind that he believes SRV to be superior to Hendrix.
Just as SRV and Hendrix fulfill different but equally important (or nearly so) guitar needs, so do Jiminez and Jordan fulfill different but equally important (or nearly so) accordian needs.
I'm saying that he won't be part of the show.
Good thing for you. Had you been dissing on Boozoo I was gonna have to smite you with a Czech bagpipe.
Here's another nice Boozoo clip.
You're welcome.
Wasn't ogged, or someone around here, asking if you can do this with YouTube? Evidently you can.
Hey M/M/: Some guys out of Tuscon you might like. Give a listen to "The Last Time".
We should do a conjunto show!
I had no idea the Parkour subculture listened to Zydeco. Nice musical taste, but those guys are nuts.
20: Yeah, I heard them on Fresh Air not too long ago. Some pretty interesting stuff.
calawannapodcast.
What's the most under-rated instrument played by squeezing?
Oh, I missed téo's comment. Still. The accordion is less underrated than the bagpipe?
British parkouristes, too. Which makes the combination with zydeco even wierder.
You guys know if you have Audio Hijack you can make your own podcasts of streaming audio, right?
You can even do it of w-lfs-n, if you really want to.
The accordion is less underrated than the bagpipe?
Yeah, totally. Both instruments are good, but everyone hates the bagpipe. I believe Komar and Melamid established that scientifically with their most/least popular song thing.
But pretty much everyone knows what Highland Pipes are, even if they hate them. Surely all the other types of bagpipes, that almost noone's ever heard or heard of, are more underrated?
Hmm. I don't share that impression, but I've been around bagpipers more often than the average person, I suspect.
For example, who even rates, much less underrates, the Estonian bagpipe?
30: Probably, but so what? Ben didn't specify Highland Pipes.
What's the most under-rated instrument played by squeezing?
Or the Zampogna of Italy?
I think your thesis is seriously flawed, w-lfs-n.
According to 'smasher's link, Komar and Melamid found that people disliked the accordion and bagpipe equally.
33: The most wanted paintings inevitably raise the question: what's up with Holland and Italy?
Probably, but so what? Ben didn't specify Highland Pipes.
But then it's as if he said "woodwinds are the most underrated instrument" or some other such nonsense.
I submit that the concertina is more underrated than the accordion.
I'm very very fond of the accordian; bagpipes, of every variety I've encountered, make me homicidal.
I submit that the concertina is more underrated than the accordion.
Since Ivor Cutler played the concertina, I refuse to believe it.
Jackmormon: I take it you'll be listening, then? It would mean ever so much to me—almost as much as it would if you listened as I did a show whose theme was taken from the title to this DVD.
Why do you think they're associated with the Scottish military?
"Underrated" doesn't mean "obscure," people.
43: Do we need to do some (dis)c(j)ock(ey)blocking?
I'm about to start singing "teo and w-lfs-n sitting in a tree . . ."
But they're only "obscure" if you're a purblind ethnocentric imperialist, teo.
And 35's defense is ignorant and wrong.
You only know about them because of your orientalist fascination with the East (of Europe), M/lls, so you're not one to throw stones, I think.
I'll listen if you promise to dance along.
It doesn't matter if they're obscure. I have yet to see you offer any credible evidence that bagpipes are not the most underrated instrument played by squeezing.
You know what's begging to be played on an accordion is the riff from "That's Right (You're Not From Texas)".
And 35's defense is ignorant and wrong.
Care to explain how?
When I was a kid in the fifties, our church—United Church of Canada, a denomination created in 1925 by union of Presbyterians, Methodists and Congregationalists— had a piper. I wish I could say I remembered so much as Amazing Grace from him, but I'm afraid all I can remember is endless repeats of Highland Laddie.
I'll listen if you promise to dance along.
Some of it is too slow-paced to really sustain dancing, I think, but you have my word that whenever the music affords the opportunity I will dance like I don't need the money.
Holy Christ:
However, although the Aramaic word sum·pon·yah´ (סומפניה), appearing in Daniel 3:5, 10, and 15, has been translated "dulcimer" (a stringed instrument) and "symphony", modern Bible translations generally render the expression as "bagpipe." Koehler and Baumgartner's Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti Libros gives the meaning "bagpipe" (Leiden 1958, p. 1103).From the Wikipedia entry "Bagpipes."
I can't tell you how appalled I am.
The University of Chicago Folk Festival, as well as the graduation and convocation ceremonies, all feature pipers (the graduation and convocation ceremonies also have drummers).
If they got some fifes up in there too, surely they'd rocket to the top of US News & World Report's rankings! Dear god how I wish the new president were considering fifing it up, instead of perfidiously selling out to the common application and increasing class sizes.
whenever the music affords the opportunity I will dance
Hm. A vow rather circumscribed.
Some of the world's least popular paintings look very much like Sean Scully's work. Italy's work looks a bit like George Condo, whose work I hated when I first saw it but of which I've grown very fond.
You listen to Akemi Naito's "Sanctuary" or Berio's accordion sequenza, JM, and tell me how danceable they are.
It doesn't matter if they're obscure. I have yet to see you offer any credible evidence that bagpipes are not the most underrated instrument played by squeezing.
Bagpipes are not an instrument. They are a class of instruments. When you said "#1 being the bagpipe?", it was as if you had asked"#1 being the stringed instrument?" or "#1 being the percussion instrument?".
However, ben replied in the affirmative. The only reasonable thing to infer from that exchange was that you were both conflating one type of bagpipe, the Highland pipes, with the entire class of bagpipes, of which there are many different traditional kinds, in both eastern and western europe and in the middle east (where they probably originated).
So while ben didn't specify Highland pipes, it was clear from context that that was what he was talking about. My contention is that while the Highland pipes are indeed underrated, there are other squeezed instruments that are even more underrated.
But M/lls, since no one even knows what they are, they aren't very much underrated at all.
Are you asserting that it's better to be underrated than to not be rated at all? I think Oscar Wilde would disagree.
My contention is that while the Highland pipes are indeed underrated, there are other squeezed instruments that are even more underrated.
Such as? Keep in mind that "underrated" means "better than its reputation holds." It cannot be felicitously applied to things that aren't well-known enough to have reputations.
(Ben beat me to this, but you still seem to be missing the point.)
65 obviously only exists to get the Wilde quip in, as it's plain that I am merely making the uncontroversial assertion that something not rated is not underrated.
Was there some decision reached on Unfogged to never comment on Modern Love again? Cause you people used to be all over that column and I don't see how you could refrain from commenting on the latest.
Yay, accordions. You could just make the programming easy and play this awesome anthology in its entirety.
You know what's worse than hearing bagpipes? Hearing bagpipes as you pass by a piper on a bicycle. The sudden flatness from the Doppler effect can, I believe, make you physically ill.
Uh, that is to say, if you, on a bicycle, pass by a piper. Pipers generally don't ride while playing.
Anon, I read that column but I didn't have much to say about it beyond what the dailykos person said. Pretty creepy, though.
It cannot be felicitously applied to things that aren't well-known enough to have reputations.
Well, the Estonian bagpipes, for example, are well-known in Estonia. Probably at least somewhat well-known in Latvia and Lithuania too. See 49.
69: I was once at a memorial service for a young co-worker who had been killed in an auto accident. A neighbor had brought along the deceased's dog. My supervisor had brought along her several months old baby. One of the other co-workers brought along his Highland pipes, and as soon as he launched into "Amazing Grace", the dog started howling and the baby started caterwauling, and all three kept right on going to the end of the song. It was awesome, despite the sadness of the occasion.
And how do Estonians feel about them?
Alright, the timer is set to record the show tomorrow. At least I think it is, I haven't tried this before. Will find out soon enough...
73: They hate them like the plague, of course.
Absolutely. I vote more plague for everyone.
Anon, I read that column but I didn't have much to say about it beyond what the dailykos person said. Pretty creepy, though.
Yep, creepy. But what did the dailykos person say? Where?
With my luck, the Feds'll open it and it'll never get here.
Not that that would be entirely bad.
They'd probably arrest me for bioterrorism, though. That sounds pretty bad.
I'll bet you could make a pretty good bagpipe out of a prarie dog.
You'd probably have to kill it first though.
43 -- I'm not understanding you. Ivor Cutler playing an instrument could certainly be consistent with the instrument's being underrated, since Cutler rawks. Well the causality in that sentence is confused; but the point stands.
I refuse to believe that Cutler might not be getting his due, is what I'm saying.
M/tch, it's kinda disturbing that you had both those links to hand.
He's been diggin' around in apo's backpocket, IYKWIM AITYD.
Daily Kos link. The NYT column skips some salient details.
Whoa, rad, I wrote the title. Bitchin.
This show is gonna be awesome, y'all.
Dude, you all need to quit hating on bagpipes. I fucking love bagpipes--no finer way to wake up than hearing a lone piper trill out "Scotland the Brave" on a foggy autumn morning.
I take that back. A blowjob is a finer way to wake up. But you get my drift.
A blowjob is a finer way to wake up
You mean "getting face-raped".
Dammit, you beat me to the "Dude, I hate waking up with a dick in my mouth" comment.
On the other hand, I got the hundredth comment.
Fucker would get bit off is what I'm saying.
I'll bet you could make a pretty good bagpipe out of a prarie dog.
Have to be a damned big prairie dog. I have seen and heard a set of pipes made from a goat's body which sounded very nice.
Ben, I would hope you are familiar with the uinque musical stylings of Brave Combo (http://www.brave.com/bo/).
I've heard the name before, but never the music.
Maybe you could get a bunch of prairie dogs and stitch them together.
I forgot Tin Hat Trio and Pauline Oliveros!
SORRY PAULINE
The Tin Hat Trio is also on the list of famous people I semi-know through my son.
So what's Carla Kihlstedt like?
I only know Mark Orton. They seem to be a very dispersed group which meets from time to time on whichever coast or continent needs them at the time. Mark just did the music for a movie whose name I forget about German immigrants to the US.
M/tch, it's kinda disturbing that you had both those links to hand.
No, I just stumbled upon them in my search for pictures of the lesser-known bagpipes. Check the timestamps.
Have to be a damned big prairie dog. I have seen and heard a set of pipes made from a goat's body which sounded very nice.
Some bagpipes have smaller bags. For example the Northumbrian Smallpipes. Might be able to make one of those out of a prarie dog. Maybe a child's-size one?
The goat body pipes are pretty cool. With the bigger ones, it often looks like the piper has just picked up a sheep and is molesting it in an attempt to make something resembling music.
Dude, you all need to quit hating on bagpipes. I fucking love bagpipes--no finer way to wake up than hearing a lone piper trill out "Scotland the Brave" on a foggy autumn morning.
When I lived in Edinburgh my window faced the Royal Mile (the main tourist street leading up to the castle, which I lived only about a block away from), and there was almost always a busker down below playing a bagpipe all the livelong day. Often I could hear two, one up the block a bit and one down the block a bit, wailing different songs from the set of about five or six that every busker knew and played in an endless loop, all the livelong day.
I got a little, shall we say, tired of the bagpipes during that year. There was one guy who would play the theme to "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly" who I had much respect for though.
And I guess it was better than all the drunken shouting going on all night long.
Still, I f*$kin' loved that city. And actually, when it comes to the Highland pipes, I like it when they get a great big bunch of them together along with many drummers and fifers and a guy with a twirly stick leading the way. That rocks.
Most of the other types of bagpipes I've heard are actually pretty easy on the ears. They usually only have one or two drones and they're not nearly so loud or honky. They sound more like a one-person ensemble of oboes than like the Highland pipes.
Fucker would get bit off is what I'm saying.
Yes, when an hole in musical space appears, the tinhat signal calls them and they fill it. Unfortunately they are not able to empty musical space infested with Swedish pop.
There's an Edinburgh in China, too?
The movie is apparently about a mixed marriage between a Norwegian immigrant and a German immigrant mail order bride. Talk about exotic.
The Chinese do have bagpipes. Also banjos and fiddles. I heard a Chinese banjo-fiddle duet once which sounded somewhat Irish.
There's an Edinburgh in China, too?
How would I know? Never been to China.
There's a band in PDX with an accordian but no bagpipe called Three Leg Torso. They can be great though they seem to have drifted into NPR mode.
I think he means they've become pabulum (in the bad sense).
Surprisingly yes! I was uncertain about the precise meaning so looked it up, and the first two, but especially the second, definitions are not at all what I expected.
I've heard the name before, but never the music.
Ben, Brave Combo is definitely worth checking out. They are without a doubt the world's best salsa/cha-cha/conjunto/meringue/polka party band. The "Jimmy Hendrix Polka" alone is worth the price of admission. And then there's the rock 'n' roll "Hokey Pokey" ("You put your tongue in/you take your tongue out . . .").
Oh, and as a side note, "In-a-Gadda-Da-Vida" can be sung to "Scotland the Brave." And "Take Me Out to the Ballgame."
124: baby food, no? 'pabulum' is one of those words I use but can't say.
Three Leg Torso is still fun in a live show; I think it's mostly their recorded stuff that's become NPRish.
Ben, you wouldn't have forgotten Pauline if you had that collection I mentioned. I still have to make a copy for Roamsedge (and I think I promised Jenny Conlee a copy when I was drunk), so it could be arranged, if you're interested.
Incidentally, I just got back from hearing the Takács Quartet, which I now believe is quite possibly the best string quartet currently playing.
I know, I was surprised to see her on it (and Guy Klucevsek, whom I didn't forget). I only have one Oliveros album, though, with Randy Raine-Reusch (wotta name!) and, in what is I suppose typical Oliveros fashion, everything on it is really long, which would crowd out lots of other stuff.
Attwenger, on the first disc, is also awesome.
And they've worked with now-local hero Fred Frith!
Oh man, Alpunk. Gotta get some.
However, Mr Poier has also branched out into a broader range of music including Pseudo-Frictionless Owl Rock.
C. K. Dexter Haven you have unexpected depth!
137 to 135.
136 reminds me of Alex Temple's description of Aksak Maboul's "Inoculating Rabies" as "angry bassoon punk" or something like that.
However many anti-austrian activists believe that this brand of Owl Rock encourages violence among young people.
Damn those anti-austrian activists!
Jesus hear my prayer: what did the Takács Quartet play?
Debussy, Mozart d minor, Brahms a minor. Not a stellar program, but an amazing performance. Tomorrow night is Bartók 6, Shostakovich 11 and Beethoven Op. 132. Holy cow.
137: Once upon a time, I was a college DJ too.
Ah, Jesus does live in Heaven. Tonight the gates opened and light came forth. Tomorrow is the first revelation. Late Bethoveen is great and 132 is fantastic. Heiliger Dankgesang
Ben, Brave Combo is definitely worth checking out. They are without a doubt the world's best salsa/cha-cha/conjunto/meringue/polka party band.
Brave Combo is definitely a bunch of talented musicians, and they can play all of those styles most competently, but to me they're kind of a jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none type outfit. They're fine to have playing at a party, and they have some clever novelty songs, but overall they don't move me much.
Anyone listening through these Internet tubes besides me?
Ben is in ur radio station, looking up ur IP addresses.
No, some guy just put up a script saying how many people are streaming what streams. It doesn't show IPs or anything.
This is what, alto sax, organ synth, drum machine, and accordian?
Sax, accordion, and live drums only, I think.
And oh my garsh, did you hear the transition from "Song for Ché" to "Istunpa Sankys Laitalla"?
Delighted to have you listening, btw, JM.
Well, I do like me some accordion music. I don't know any of the names of the songs, though.
Enunciate! (and sit up straight and eat your peas.)
So far, all of the music has been eminently danceable, w-lfs-n.
I would have liked to see you dancing to the Poing. Anyway, just wait a bit.
This track is also danceable. Christ, what isn't danceable? Where there's a will, young w-lfs-n, there's a way.
That goes for dancing more than victory in Iraq, btw.
When I contemplate the fact that this album was used, and in fact composed to be used, as music for a ballet, I know that I must ineluctably accept that anything is danceable, for a sufficiently broad understanding of dance. That, of course, I would never have denied.
To this song ("The Blob"), one must alternate doing the twist and the polka.
This is nowhere NEAR loud enough to drown out the yap-yap-yapping of the coworkers. Got any accordion speed metal?
Did somebody podcastifying Ben's show?
Speaking of music for ballet, Joby Talbot's album of orchestral arrangements of White Stripes tunes, Aluminiiium [sic] is really good.
The title track in particular, is great.
A snafu means I'll be here until noon, though I'm going to have to abandon the accordion theme after this Oliveros piece.
Got any accordion speed metal?
The Bad Livers used to say they got into bluegrass because speed metal wasn't fast enough for them. And they did do some awesome bluegrass versions of metal songs. And many of the arrangements did feature an accordian. But I doubt ben is cool enough to have any Bad Livers material (and they were much better live anyway).
The Bad Livers are now past tense? Bummer. I saw Mark Rubin's klezmer band (can't remember the name) a while back but never got around to seeing the Livers.
For a while I would go see them every Wednesday night (or Tuesday? some weeknight) at the Saxon Pub. But that was early to mid nineties. I think they've pretty much been defunct since at least 2000.
Are you in or near Austin, Magpie? I'm only asking in case you haven't seen the Texas Meet-Up plans and want to attend (see the post seven up from this one).
I lived in Austin for most of the '90s, and still come for visits from time to time, but I've since repatriated to the Bay Area.
Prior plans and absence of a dirt-cheap Southwest fare will prevent me from attending. Next time we're in town, though, I'll give y'all a heads-up.
Matt F! you said you were recording the show—did it work?
171: Did your show work? I guess. Qua college radio anyway.
No no, it was a fine show, young ben, I was just being snarky.
did it work?
It did! I'm listening to it right now, good stuff. I'm particularly liking this one track about 45 minutes in, shortly after the Gogol Bordello song. However, I couldn't tell where the track change was, so I'm not sure if it's Hamster Theatre or Kimmo Pohjonen & Eric Echampard. It's kind of frightening sounding, sort of Godspeed You! Black Emperor-esque with accordions. And now that it's over, I can tell that it's right before the one with all the staccato notes and what sounds like a cowbell.
Ah, you have just informed me that it was Uumen. Excellent.
Did you even listen, M/lls?
Of course not. I was just being nice.
Matt, might I ask you either to host or to email me the recording?
178: You don't need to beat around the bush, ben. Just ask the boy out. Sheesh.
Matt,
I was sorta wondering if maybe you might have some free timespace this weekendon your server…
Extra tricky, because the character named Ray looks like a raccoon. You bastard.
How are your whist skillz, ben?
I only know what is apparently a nonstandard, simplified variant of German whist, so probably not good.
And you call yourself a ladykiller!
Though you ran over a bit, and I only recorded an extra 2 minutes on each end, so the last song gets cut off a little early.
Yeah, I realized too late that that would happen. Good thing the next dj didn't show up.
Good god I can't stand the sound of my own voice.
Most everyone feels that way about recordings of their own voices. You sounded fine, don't worry.
Will this recording be posted for public consumption? I missed the show, what with the workplace saying "hey now" on the streaming media. Fucking workplace.
Fucking workplace.
So it's not all bad.
I'm in the process of uploading them to my stanford account.
195: Yeah, teo, you should apply. You'll be fucked, lickety-split.
Uploaded files. Apparently that accound has a quota juuuuust large enough for two hours' worth of 128-kbit encoded mp3. (Not that there appears to be a way of finding the quota other than exceeding it.)
Ditto. So glad I didn't have to remember my yousendit password.
Yeah, it's a technical UNIX term.
You can use bugmenot with yousendit, as I discovered myself not too long ago.
How long are you going to keep that file up, w-lfs-n?
Howsabouta week?
(And now, to bed.)
Maybe even exactly a week—if I either record next week's show or can prevail upon Matt to do so, that will probably replace it.
Thanks Matt and Ben. I'm listening now.
Krumhorns! Hooray!
My goodness, you sound almost exactly like the other person I know from UofC.
