The 'Cordeen and Me: Coming to Terms With Myron Floren

[JerryPH]

Anyway, we American piano accordionists wound up with Lady of Spain. Well, that and Beer Barrel Polka. And Chicken Dance.

I dont generally mind the cliché and Beer Barrel Polka and Chicken Dance are at least fun for me to play because I can really fool around with the people on the dance floor. Without warning I may go from polka to waltz to ploka with Beer Barrel Polka and start normally, slow it way down and speed it up to the point just short of giving the dancers a coronary with Chicken Ddance.

I clench all up just thinking about playing LofS. This is obviously just me, because its not a bad song, it just brings all kinds of negaive connoations for me.

 

[JeffJetton]

I really enjoyed the performances by Myron that I saw. He looks like hes having a ball, and thats infectious. Bearing in mind that Ive not been over-exposed to either accordion or MF or the Lawrence Welk show... I thought it was very entertaining. Theres nothing wrong with a show that knew its audience and provided what they wanted.

Yup.

And another thing about the show is that, as corny as it usually was, no one can deny the talent of the musicians involved. Welk always got top-notch players into every spot on the bandstand.

It may be cheese, but it was extremely well-made cheese.

 

[losthobos]

Klasse Kaas.....
Dutch .... Translates as classy cheese

 

[AccordionUprising]

Especially as Ive been researching my accordion history book Ive had the odd experience of gaining more and more exposure to pop-culture, but all reaching backwards further and further in time. Its hard to pass hard judgements on modern trends when I keep reading the same critiques and panics repeated generation after generation back into music history. Nowadays when I hear a kids these days! or a not like it use to be I perk up to a modern example of an old pattern. When I dont like my kids music I feel like Im fulfilling my role as a parent. Then I go off with my 1930s cowboy accordions (which I kindly dont make them listen to).

The most surprising thing about Welk and Floren was how much I enjoyed researching their stories. They were very honest about trying to serve their audience. Not my style, but they were good at it.

Also, Welk opened a diner that sold Squeezeburgers!
http://dinerhunter.com/2012/04/15/the-lawrence-welk-diner-mason-city-iowa/[/url]
https://accordionuprising.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/lawrencewelkdinerhunter-cropped.jpg>

 

[JeffJetton]

Nowadays when I hear a kids these days! or a not like it use to be I perk up to a modern example of an old pattern. When I dont like my kids music I feel like Im fulfilling my role as a parent.

Someone long ago posited this rule-of-thumb to me:

When youre 16, you can be reasonably expected to have heard of every single song on the Top-40 charts. Every year after that, it drops by one.

I just now checked and only recognized three songs, giving me a Billboard age of 53--a few years older than I actually am, but still not too bad for a rule-of-thumb.

 

[SteveH]

Thanks, everyone, for these terrific posts. I have no doubt at all that Floren was a fine gentleman. And he was certainly a brilliant accordionist. Tastes change, of course, and every generation thinks the music of the previous one was square. All I need to do to prove that is listen to my own reactions to rap...my sons are in their 30s, and They have no patience with the pop music coming out now. And so it goes.