Following on from Zina's thread, does any other session have a few silly fun tunes in their repertoire?
I mentioned the Bluebell Polka just there, but I freely admit we might just as well launch into Daisy (A Bicycle Made for Two - or whatever it's called) or even Elvis Presley's Wooden Heart, which sounds quite nice on the box! (I bet it's some old German folk tune anyway!) I've also heard The Benny Hill theme tune - Kane says that's actually in O' Neill's - can anyone confirm or even better, provide it's real name?
We don't pull them out very often, but there's the theme song to Gilligan's Island and a tune from Zorba the Greek, and an old Italian popular piece I've forgotten the name of but that everyone instantly recognizes. And of course, when someone whines too much about anything, they get O Solo Mio on a fiddle or two, dripping with vibrato and pathos....
Don't forget the theme from Leave It To Beaver, and our last Flanagan's session/performance included a requested rendition of On Top of Spaghetti which went over very well.
Leave it to Beaver is a good jig, so're the theme from the Alfred Hitchcock show and the theme from Mr. Ed. They're fun to make a set of now and then. I also like the theme from the Andy Griffith Show, which is a pretty good hornpipe. Everybody recognizes them, at least here in the US; the Mecca of trashy TV and gimmicky jingles.
I play High Noon, from the Gary Cooper movie now and then, with the theme from Hang 'em High and the theme from the Magnificent Seven (not the same as the tune by that name.)
Theme from the "James Bond" films, which I lead off on fiddle, and play all parts. Week by week more instruments are getting it!
Also, "Staccato Waltz" by Sandor Lakatos - beautiful wee tune.
Sometimes throw in the "Loony Tunes" thing and "Ben Hur" if we're in a silly enough mood!
Ha-ha! I love it, lads and lasses! I suppose when you get to the stage of being able to muck around like this, you must know what you're doing.
Mr. Ed - I can just about remember that one.
Similar is The A-dams Fam-il-ie! Doong doong. Never did it in public, only behind closed doors, but followed by Johnston's Hornpipe it sounds fun -- silly tune followed by launch into proper serious traditional tune.
I'd say about now is the cue for the Aussie shift...
Attention all Aussie Bajo players!
Da dang, da dang, da di di di di da dang, etc., Skipee, Skipee, Skippy the Bush Kengarew-ew....
I occasionally start off with a set of Kerry Polkas. On the third time through of the 2nd I change to 'Wooden Heart' (yes it was orginally a folk tune)and then into a medley of 50's hits such as "It doesn't matter any more","Nickelodeon" etc. It's great to watch people's faces as they realise they know the tunes from somewhere else.
Round about Christmas we often include some popular carols.
The English session in Southwark used include a 60's medley of songs such as 'Wheels', 'Lemon Tree' and 'The Isle of Capri'.
I quite like it when some irratating mobile phone starts off with some naff ring tone and everyone picks up on the tune and plays along with it. I've done this a couple of times to the embarrasment of the phone holder and general amusement of the audience.
Oh dear. This is ringing so many bells it's embarrassing.
I've never done these at sessions, but I hope you'll forgive me recounting the stories anyway.
My covers band used to do a version of Three Little Drummers/ Gilligan's Island/Tenpenny Bit that, oddly enough, the punters *always* went beserk over.
Then came the night we did a Friday the 13th gig... we were a seven-piece and everyone just fell beautifully into the Addams family and being long/dark-haired guess who got Morticia (hence my screen name here 8>) and so I have actually played the Addams Family theme in public. Complete with silly sound effects. One of our group built everything that was required onto a a single piece of equipment that became known as The Pyngphony.
Just to maintain a healthy sense of balance, we also used to play the theme from the Munsters, which makes a beaut little twist number!
(Isn't the BBC world service theme Liliburlero from Playford's Dancing Master?)
bb may correct me if I got this wrong but I think I heard just a faint whiff of Skippy at a local session a few weeks ago!!!!
Okay, I forgot to mention my all time favorite: "If I Only Had a Brain" from the Wizard of Oz. This one is also useful if you're tying to make a subtle statement about someone at the session, e.g. one of the speed demons that were discussed in a previous thread.
Sometimes if's too subtle to have the desired effect, but usually scores snickers from regulars who know what's being impuned.
Our group used to accompany our singer on Carrickfergus, and we would then launch into a reggae version - or at least a highly syncopated swingy version - of the tune.
All strictly tongue-in-cheek and, the truth be told, we enjoyed showing how versatile we were. But it was interesting to watch the reactions of the rest of the punters who hadn
Pop Goes the Weasel regularly gets played at feisianna for the single jig comps, at least where Tony Nother is playing. I once took first dancing to it, as a matter of fact. ;)
At the recent Aly Bain/ Phil Cunningham gig I attended at Hammersmith, Phil gave an account of how they were up to do some music for a film and when they got there they were told that they were expected to do something Cajun...(some misunderstanding over the words accordion and cajun apparently) ...not wanting to lose the gig they disappeared to the loo and came back twenty minutes later with a Cajun version of "How much is that doggy in the window"? with Phil singing the words backwards to make it sound French!
To prove it they then did this on stage at Hammersmith...collapse of audience (and Phil)...."easiest
A friend of mine was once singing in a French Canadian church one Sunday. For some reason, in the middle of the intro, he not only completely forgot the song, but how to speak English as well. He was reduced to crooning something along with the accompaniment, with a bunch of nonsense syllables. Afterwards, a nice lady came up and thanked him for learning a song in Quebecois for them.
My friend and I do a pretty rockin' version of "Dueling Banjos" on fiddle and accordion. "I Dream of Jeannie," "The Simpsons" and even various Metallica songs have not escaped local sessions either.
A few years ago I had really wanted to learn the Led Zeppelin song "Battle of Evermore" on the harp. But it was way to hard. So I settled on "Stairway to Heaven". There's always someone who jokingly yells for "Stairway" or "Freebird"; so I can now give them a short-cut version of "Stairway". The beginning with the single line guitar melody part is almost all you really need to get people laughing.
Led Zeppelin on the harp? I say. Well I never. Whatever will they think of next? Please don't let your wife or your servants hear that, ehh? Harrumphh. My daughter recently puchased one of those, ahem, "Mobile Telephones", what? Quite extraordinary devices. And ever so tunefull, don't you agree?
OK. Back among the normals. I've also heard the Mexican Hat Dance done at a session..and joined in...which I followed, on the box, with the Humours of Ennistymon (by way of pretending to return to *serious* music...that may be the received wisdom, but I find the MHD a testing little ditty in it's own right!?!)
Then there's the Star Spangled Banner, which here in UK can be played irreverently, without sounding too Yankophile (whereas I guess in the States, if played in a session it might be deemed way too gung-ho). Going the other way, at the recent anti-war demos I played on an old OssiDeutch D/G box such tunes as The Red Flag, The Internationale, Le Marseillaise, Deutchland Uber Alles, and the old Soviet national anthem. Only a handful of people knew what on earth I was on about. Which, I suppose, should be interpreted as a good thing as it means a wider, and probably younger, spectrum of people were marching, not just the stereotypical old peacenik. And god, were we not right? look at the mess of Iraq now.
And if anyone objects to you playing Deutschland Uber Alles, all you need to do is to put on an expression of wide-eyed innocence and say you're playing an arrangement of the slow movement of one of Haydn's string quartets - it's known as "The Emperor". Very kultural.
Trevor
My local session sometimes launchs into the Theme song for Star wars in jig time - it always gets a laugh When I was in Ireland alot of people would ask me to start of an aussie tune (just so we are clear - there are no aussie tunes - unless you count ACDC stuff - which I dont) so I would start playing skippy, most people in ireland grew up watching skippy so they found it quite amusing. I also am one of those embarressing people who used to have a tune program into my mobile and it went off in a session and Willie Clancy last year and my friends started laughing an playing it (luckily its a gorgeous tune) but now we know it as 'bridie's mobile tune' cause none of us know the name! Its quite silly really because when I was standing in the supermarket in Eyre square it went off and someone behind me said 'nice tune' and I turned around and wouldnt you know there is (no names mentioned -to emabarressing) internationally renownd trad fiddle player giggling away to himself - I was mortified! now I just have a normal ring sound
I once heard Tony DeMarco slip "jingle bells" into a set of Kerry slides- It really brought the house down when folks recognized it, as it was snowing pretty hard outside at the time.
I also got to hear DeDannon do their "St. Jude's Hornpipe" (Hey Jude) some years ago- it was actually quite nice the way they worked it out.
My sidekick/ banjo/rythm player at our session like to play Malvina Reynold's "Little Boxes" as a mazurka.
Reggae, man! Adding a reggae beat is fun especially if you've got a bass. Works a treat with the Drunken Sailor or Eric Clapton's Wonderful Tonight. Dave Burland recorded a wonderful reggae-ish version of Da Doo Ron Ron, ever so relaxed. As usual.
Sometime, for fun I'd like to play at a session the theme tune from "The Archers" (for the benefit of non-UK/Irish,"an everyday story of country folk", one of the longest running radio soaps in the world). The tune is a cod English folk tune written specially for the series and is probably one of the most instantly recognisable tunes in the UK. As far as I know, it has never appeared in print or otherwise outside of the radio programme. The problem is, only part of it is played in the intro and closing credits, and I don't think I've ever heard it completely.
Trevor
My former group -- which at the time included a keyboardist -- started off a gig just before Halloween by playing the theme from "The Munsters" as a slow air. But hardly anyone in the audience got the joke until our keyboardist changed her settings to Cheesy-sounding Reed Organ and played the opening riff at regular tempo.
Some friends of mine and I were having wayyy too much fun at our session once, and began doing things like singing "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" over "The Calliope House."
And of course, if I hear anyone playing "Ashokan Farewell," I'm liable to start up either a David McCullough or Shelby Foote imitation: "While Lee advanced on Gettysburg, Meade shifted his forces to the east..."
I love "If I only had a brain"! But my favorite is the old theme song from the game show "Jeopardy". I find the opportunity to play it when folks are slow about picking a tune when it is their turn. It brings a smile to those in the audience!
I used to have a Garret Barry's jig in my cell phone, but now I have a new one that's REALLY loud (and on custom rings, the danged phone just doesn't want to get any quieter), and it was just too obnoxious! So now I have a regular ring, too.
We have fun inserting "College Hornpipe" as a jazz break into any tune at any point. Unfortunately, the fiddler reads me like a book, can predict it and we both fall about laughing.
When some clown demands "how about a song?", my favorite bit of fun is the theme from the now defunct "Sing something simple", guaranteed to get people singing and quickly change the subject.
William Tell overture is always a good one when the speed merchants start on the too-fast stuff.
Probably because I play big-box, I am always being asked to play tangos so usually turn the previous tune played into a tango - always good for a larf.
Since one of our number is a postal worker, who are on strike right now, 'The Red Flag' got an outing tonight. We also had a troupe of Irish dancers who had just won their age group at the European championships in Holland this weekend. No silly tunes for them, though.
Oh - Trevor - the Sunday omnibus edition of The Archers has a version played on the accordion, which seems to include most of the 2nd part.....
....Er, not that I ever follow it, you understand...apart from the soap about Jeffrey and his missus, I'm quite an avid fan of Radio 4.
In our session these are sometimes heard :
Jingle Bells in the middle of a Polka set, prefferably in early August.
Captain Pugwash
Muppets
The "session"-tune from "Snowhite and the seven dwarves".
The Sow digging for Praties
And the box-player will, if in the mood, launch into Tico-Tico every once in a while
If someone will play for us, El Grumpo and I will sometimes sing "The Stork has brought a son & daughter for Mr & Mrs Mickey Mouse" - (wasn't that the Bonzos). All regulars join in the falsetto line at the end.
Like so many of these silly moments, as mentioned above by various people, it is something of an inside joke, which causes regulars to laugh and cheer well beyond the value of the piece itself, and leaves visitors wondering what happened.
Just recently the theme from the Wombles occured spontaneously after some air that someone played.
The Yetties do a version of The Archers tune....in fact the Sunday omnibus version is theirs...not that I have any Yetties CDs!! Oh No!
...we did support them once at Salisbury Arts Centre though.
I'll shut up now
Desi Wilkinson has been known to sing "The Wild Colonial Boy" to the tune of "Ghost Riders In The Sky". And I remember hearing someone singing "Pinball Wizard" to the tune of "The Rounding Of The Horn/The Gallant Frigate Amphitrite".
Dave - Showaddy - Yeah, you're right about these silly episodes generating more humour than their actual value. Some kind of kinship bonding ritual in humour via the medium of music. But who cares - you gotta have a larf, incha?
>If someone will play for us, El Grumpo and I will >sometimes sing "The Stork has brought a son & >daughter for Mr & Mrs Mickey Mouse" - (wasn't that >the Bonzos). All regulars join in the falsetto line at >the end.
A Bonzo Doo-Dah Dog Band reference in an ITM discusson forum: my respect and admiration for this group continues to grow.
You realize it's only a quick slip down the slope from "Mickey's Son and Daughter" to "Jollity Farm," "Hunting Tigers Down in India," "My Pink Half of the Drain-Pipe," etc. And I guess if you had a large and instrumentally-diverse session, you could try an ITM version of "The Intro and Outro" -- "...and looking very relaxed, Adolf Hitler on vibes."
A note on "The Archers" theme tune - the trusty (??) Wikipedia tells me it was written by Yorkshire composer Arthur Wood in 1924, well before the series started. It's called "Barwick Green" and is part of a maypole dance in his suite "My Native Heath".
Fun Tunes
Fun Tunes
Following on from Zina's thread, does any other session have a few silly fun tunes in their repertoire?
I mentioned the Bluebell Polka just there, but I freely admit we might just as well launch into Daisy (A Bicycle Made for Two - or whatever it's called) or even Elvis Presley's Wooden Heart, which sounds quite nice on the box! (I bet it's some old German folk tune anyway!) I've also heard The Benny Hill theme tune - Kane says that's actually in O' Neill's - can anyone confirm or even better, provide it's real name?
Over to you folks...
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Rudall the time
Re: Fun Tunes
We don't pull them out very often, but there's the theme song to Gilligan's Island and a tune from Zorba the Greek, and an old Italian popular piece I've forgotten the name of but that everyone instantly recognizes. And of course, when someone whines too much about anything, they get O Solo Mio on a fiddle or two, dripping with vibrato and pathos....
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Will Harmon
Re: Fun Tunes
Don't forget the theme from Leave It To Beaver, and our last Flanagan's session/performance included a requested rendition of On Top of Spaghetti which went over very well.
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Zina Lee
Re: Fun Tunes
Oh and of couse the Popeye theme...
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Zina Lee
Re: Fun Tunes
Leave it to Beaver is a good jig, so're the theme from the Alfred Hitchcock show and the theme from Mr. Ed. They're fun to make a set of now and then. I also like the theme from the Andy Griffith Show, which is a pretty good hornpipe. Everybody recognizes them, at least here in the US; the Mecca of trashy TV and gimmicky jingles.
I play High Noon, from the Gary Cooper movie now and then, with the theme from Hang 'em High and the theme from the Magnificent Seven (not the same as the tune by that name.)
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by ScottC
Re: Fun Tunes
Theme from the "James Bond" films, which I lead off on fiddle, and play all parts. Week by week more instruments are getting it!
Also, "Staccato Waltz" by Sandor Lakatos - beautiful wee tune.
Sometimes throw in the "Loony Tunes" thing and "Ben Hur" if we're in a silly enough mood!
Jim
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Worldfiddler
Re: Fun Tunes
Ha-ha! I love it, lads and lasses! I suppose when you get to the stage of being able to muck around like this, you must know what you're doing.
Mr. Ed - I can just about remember that one.
Similar is The A-dams Fam-il-ie! Doong doong. Never did it in public, only behind closed doors, but followed by Johnston's Hornpipe it sounds fun -- silly tune followed by launch into proper serious traditional tune.
I'd say about now is the cue for the Aussie shift...
Attention all Aussie Bajo players!
Da dang, da dang, da di di di di da dang, etc., Skipee, Skipee, Skippy the Bush Kengarew-ew....
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Rudall the time
Or rather...
Aussie BANJO players!
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Rudall the time
Re: Fun Tunes
Do people play the theme/jingle from BBC world service in sessions? It is a kind-of jig..
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Eldarion
Re: Fun Tunes
I occasionally start off with a set of Kerry Polkas. On the third time through of the 2nd I change to 'Wooden Heart' (yes it was orginally a folk tune)and then into a medley of 50's hits such as "It doesn't matter any more","Nickelodeon" etc. It's great to watch people's faces as they realise they know the tunes from somewhere else.
Round about Christmas we often include some popular carols.
The English session in Southwark used include a 60's medley of songs such as 'Wheels', 'Lemon Tree' and 'The Isle of Capri'.
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Paul_draper
Re: Fun Tunes
I quite like it when some irratating mobile phone starts off with some naff ring tone and everyone picks up on the tune and plays along with it. I've done this a couple of times to the embarrasment of the phone holder and general amusement of the audience.
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by len
Re: Fun Tunes
Oh dear. This is ringing so many bells it's embarrassing.
I've never done these at sessions, but I hope you'll forgive me recounting the stories anyway.
My covers band used to do a version of Three Little Drummers/ Gilligan's Island/Tenpenny Bit that, oddly enough, the punters *always* went beserk over.
Then came the night we did a Friday the 13th gig... we were a seven-piece and everyone just fell beautifully into the Addams family and being long/dark-haired guess who got Morticia (hence my screen name here 8>) and so I have actually played the Addams Family theme in public. Complete with silly sound effects. One of our group built everything that was required onto a a single piece of equipment that became known as The Pyngphony.
Just to maintain a healthy sense of balance, we also used to play the theme from the Munsters, which makes a beaut little twist number!
(Isn't the BBC world service theme Liliburlero from Playford's Dancing Master?)
bb may correct me if I got this wrong but I think I heard just a faint whiff of Skippy at a local session a few weeks ago!!!!
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Tish
Re: Fun Tunes
Okay, I forgot to mention my all time favorite: "If I Only Had a Brain" from the Wizard of Oz. This one is also useful if you're tying to make a subtle statement about someone at the session, e.g. one of the speed demons that were discussed in a previous thread.
Sometimes if's too subtle to have the desired effect, but usually scores snickers from regulars who know what's being impuned.
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by ScottC
Re: Fun Tunes
Our group used to accompany our singer on Carrickfergus, and we would then launch into a reggae version - or at least a highly syncopated swingy version - of the tune.
All strictly tongue-in-cheek and, the truth be told, we enjoyed showing how versatile we were. But it was interesting to watch the reactions of the rest of the punters who hadn
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by murfbox
Re: Fun Tunes
Pop Goes the Weasel regularly gets played at feisianna for the single jig comps, at least where Tony Nother is playing. I once took first dancing to it, as a matter of fact. ;)
# Posted on October 31st 2003 by Zina Lee
Re: Fun Tunes
'How Much is that Doggie in the Window?' is lovely on mandolin.
TV theme tunes - especially sport programs (which I usually switch off after the theme tune ends) as they tend to be the cheesiest.
# Posted on November 1st 2003 by CreadurMawnOrganig
Re: Fun Tunes
At the recent Aly Bain/ Phil Cunningham gig I attended at Hammersmith, Phil gave an account of how they were up to do some music for a film and when they got there they were told that they were expected to do something Cajun...(some misunderstanding over the words accordion and cajun apparently) ...not wanting to lose the gig they disappeared to the loo and came back twenty minutes later with a Cajun version of "How much is that doggy in the window"? with Phil singing the words backwards to make it sound French!
To prove it they then did this on stage at Hammersmith...collapse of audience (and Phil)...."easiest
# Posted on November 1st 2003 by Geoff Pollitt
Re: Fun Tunes
LOL -- great story, Geoff...hehehe...
A friend of mine was once singing in a French Canadian church one Sunday. For some reason, in the middle of the intro, he not only completely forgot the song, but how to speak English as well. He was reduced to crooning something along with the accompaniment, with a bunch of nonsense syllables. Afterwards, a nice lady came up and thanked him for learning a song in Quebecois for them.
zls
# Posted on November 1st 2003 by Zina Lee
Re: Fun Tunes
My friend and I do a pretty rockin' version of "Dueling Banjos" on fiddle and accordion. "I Dream of Jeannie," "The Simpsons" and even various Metallica songs have not escaped local sessions either.
Cara
# Posted on November 1st 2003 by carafiddle
Re: Fun Tunes
A few years ago I had really wanted to learn the Led Zeppelin song "Battle of Evermore" on the harp. But it was way to hard. So I settled on "Stairway to Heaven". There's always someone who jokingly yells for "Stairway" or "Freebird"; so I can now give them a short-cut version of "Stairway". The beginning with the single line guitar melody part is almost all you really need to get people laughing.
# Posted on November 1st 2003 by Andee
Re: Fun Tunes
Led Zeppelin on the harp? I say. Well I never. Whatever will they think of next? Please don't let your wife or your servants hear that, ehh? Harrumphh. My daughter recently puchased one of those, ahem, "Mobile Telephones", what? Quite extraordinary devices. And ever so tunefull, don't you agree?
OK. Back among the normals. I've also heard the Mexican Hat Dance done at a session..and joined in...which I followed, on the box, with the Humours of Ennistymon (by way of pretending to return to *serious* music...that may be the received wisdom, but I find the MHD a testing little ditty in it's own right!?!)
Then there's the Star Spangled Banner, which here in UK can be played irreverently, without sounding too Yankophile (whereas I guess in the States, if played in a session it might be deemed way too gung-ho). Going the other way, at the recent anti-war demos I played on an old OssiDeutch D/G box such tunes as The Red Flag, The Internationale, Le Marseillaise, Deutchland Uber Alles, and the old Soviet national anthem. Only a handful of people knew what on earth I was on about. Which, I suppose, should be interpreted as a good thing as it means a wider, and probably younger, spectrum of people were marching, not just the stereotypical old peacenik. And god, were we not right? look at the mess of Iraq now.
# Posted on November 1st 2003 by Rudall the time
Re: Fun Tunes
And if anyone objects to you playing Deutschland Uber Alles, all you need to do is to put on an expression of wide-eyed innocence and say you're playing an arrangement of the slow movement of one of Haydn's string quartets - it's known as "The Emperor". Very kultural.
Trevor
# Posted on November 1st 2003 by Trevor Jennings
Re: Fun Tunes
My local session sometimes launchs into the Theme song for Star wars in jig time - it always gets a laugh
When I was in Ireland alot of people would ask me to start of an aussie tune (just so we are clear - there are no aussie tunes - unless you count ACDC stuff - which I dont) so I would start playing skippy, most people in ireland grew up watching skippy so they found it quite amusing. I also am one of those embarressing people who used to have a tune program into my mobile and it went off in a session and Willie Clancy last year and my friends started laughing an playing it (luckily its a gorgeous tune) but now we know it as 'bridie's mobile tune' cause none of us know the name! Its quite silly really because when I was standing in the supermarket in Eyre square it went off and someone behind me said 'nice tune' and I turned around and wouldnt you know there is (no names mentioned -to emabarressing) internationally renownd trad fiddle player giggling away to himself - I was mortified! now I just have a normal ring sound
# Posted on November 1st 2003 by bb
Re: Fun Tunes
I once heard Tony DeMarco slip "jingle bells" into a set of Kerry slides- It really brought the house down when folks recognized it, as it was snowing pretty hard outside at the time.
I also got to hear DeDannon do their "St. Jude's Hornpipe" (Hey Jude) some years ago- it was actually quite nice the way they worked it out.
My sidekick/ banjo/rythm player at our session like to play Malvina Reynold's "Little Boxes" as a mazurka.
# Posted on November 1st 2003 by Murph
Re: Fun Tunes
Reggae, man! Adding a reggae beat is fun especially if you've got a bass. Works a treat with the Drunken Sailor or Eric Clapton's Wonderful Tonight. Dave Burland recorded a wonderful reggae-ish version of Da Doo Ron Ron, ever so relaxed. As usual.
# Posted on November 1st 2003 by kuec
Re: Fun Tunes
Sometime, for fun I'd like to play at a session the theme tune from "The Archers" (for the benefit of non-UK/Irish,"an everyday story of country folk", one of the longest running radio soaps in the world). The tune is a cod English folk tune written specially for the series and is probably one of the most instantly recognisable tunes in the UK. As far as I know, it has never appeared in print or otherwise outside of the radio programme. The problem is, only part of it is played in the intro and closing credits, and I don't think I've ever heard it completely.
Trevor
# Posted on November 2nd 2003 by Trevor Jennings
Re: Fun Tunes
My former group -- which at the time included a keyboardist -- started off a gig just before Halloween by playing the theme from "The Munsters" as a slow air. But hardly anyone in the audience got the joke until our keyboardist changed her settings to Cheesy-sounding Reed Organ and played the opening riff at regular tempo.
Some friends of mine and I were having wayyy too much fun at our session once, and began doing things like singing "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" over "The Calliope House."
And of course, if I hear anyone playing "Ashokan Farewell," I'm liable to start up either a David McCullough or Shelby Foote imitation: "While Lee advanced on Gettysburg, Meade shifted his forces to the east..."
# Posted on November 2nd 2003 by sts
Re: Fun Tunes
I love "If I only had a brain"! But my favorite is the old theme song from the game show "Jeopardy". I find the opportunity to play it when folks are slow about picking a tune when it is their turn. It brings a smile to those in the audience!
# Posted on November 2nd 2003 by shar
Re: Fun Tunes
I used to have a Garret Barry's jig in my cell phone, but now I have a new one that's REALLY loud (and on custom rings, the danged phone just doesn't want to get any quieter), and it was just too obnoxious! So now I have a regular ring, too.
# Posted on November 2nd 2003 by Zina Lee
Re: Fun Tunes
We have fun inserting "College Hornpipe" as a jazz break into any tune at any point. Unfortunately, the fiddler reads me like a book, can predict it and we both fall about laughing.
When some clown demands "how about a song?", my favorite bit of fun is the theme from the now defunct "Sing something simple", guaranteed to get people singing and quickly change the subject.
William Tell overture is always a good one when the speed merchants start on the too-fast stuff.
Probably because I play big-box, I am always being asked to play tangos so usually turn the previous tune played into a tango - always good for a larf.
# Posted on November 2nd 2003 by geoffwright
Re: Fun Tunes
Since one of our number is a postal worker, who are on strike right now, 'The Red Flag' got an outing tonight. We also had a troupe of Irish dancers who had just won their age group at the European championships in Holland this weekend. No silly tunes for them, though.
Oh - Trevor - the Sunday omnibus edition of The Archers has a version played on the accordion, which seems to include most of the 2nd part.....
....Er, not that I ever follow it, you understand...apart from the soap about Jeffrey and his missus, I'm quite an avid fan of Radio 4.
Old? Getting there.
Boring? Shut yer hole.
# Posted on November 2nd 2003 by Rudall the time
Re: Fun Tunes
In our session these are sometimes heard :
Jingle Bells in the middle of a Polka set, prefferably in early August.
Captain Pugwash
Muppets
The "session"-tune from "Snowhite and the seven dwarves".
The Sow digging for Praties
And the box-player will, if in the mood, launch into Tico-Tico every once in a while
# Posted on November 2nd 2003 by snorre
Re: Fun Tunes
If someone will play for us, El Grumpo and I will sometimes sing "The Stork has brought a son & daughter for Mr & Mrs Mickey Mouse" - (wasn't that the Bonzos). All regulars join in the falsetto line at the end.
Like so many of these silly moments, as mentioned above by various people, it is something of an inside joke, which causes regulars to laugh and cheer well beyond the value of the piece itself, and leaves visitors wondering what happened.
Just recently the theme from the Wombles occured spontaneously after some air that someone played.
Dave
# Posted on November 2nd 2003 by showaddydadito
Re: Fun Tunes
Trevor!
The Yetties do a version of The Archers tune....in fact the Sunday omnibus version is theirs...not that I have any Yetties CDs!! Oh No!
...we did support them once at Salisbury Arts Centre though.
I'll shut up now
# Posted on November 2nd 2003 by Geoff Pollitt
Re: Fun Tunes
Desi Wilkinson has been known to sing "The Wild Colonial Boy" to the tune of "Ghost Riders In The Sky". And I remember hearing someone singing "Pinball Wizard" to the tune of "The Rounding Of The Horn/The Gallant Frigate Amphitrite".
# Posted on November 3rd 2003 by Kenny
Re: Fun Tunes
Dave - Showaddy - Yeah, you're right about these silly episodes generating more humour than their actual value. Some kind of kinship bonding ritual in humour via the medium of music. But who cares - you gotta have a larf, incha?
# Posted on November 3rd 2003 by Rudall the time
Re: Fun Tunes
Yellow Submarine; Sweet Rosie O'Grady; Nelly the Elephant
# Posted on November 3rd 2003 by Alancorsini
Re: Fun Tunes
>If someone will play for us, El Grumpo and I will >sometimes sing "The Stork has brought a son & >daughter for Mr & Mrs Mickey Mouse" - (wasn't that >the Bonzos). All regulars join in the falsetto line at >the end.
A Bonzo Doo-Dah Dog Band reference in an ITM discusson forum: my respect and admiration for this group continues to grow.
You realize it's only a quick slip down the slope from "Mickey's Son and Daughter" to "Jollity Farm," "Hunting Tigers Down in India," "My Pink Half of the Drain-Pipe," etc. And I guess if you had a large and instrumentally-diverse session, you could try an ITM version of "The Intro and Outro" -- "...and looking very relaxed, Adolf Hitler on vibes."
# Posted on November 4th 2003 by sts
Re: Fun Tunes
A note on "The Archers" theme tune - the trusty (??) Wikipedia tells me it was written by Yorkshire composer Arthur Wood in 1924, well before the series started. It's called "Barwick Green" and is part of a maypole dance in his suite "My Native Heath".
# Posted on October 7th 2006 by nicholas