Dressing up the beer barrel – music and style

 

[beer barrel*]

Clothes make the man, the woman and apparently the song. It is truly amazing how a change of style creates a completely new vibe in a known tune, no matter how plain it is. As I enjoy listening to music (and strongly regret my lack of discipline in actually making it), I was flowing through YouTube  when I saw the Chico Marx version of the Beer Barrel Polka. This rediscovery led me to listen to several other versions, almost identical in melody but so different in style and feel.

The basic version available is that of Frank Yankovich. He plays, well, a polka. I suppose for Polka enthusiasts it represents the peak of polka-ness.  A few pints of beer might also increase appreciation. Alas, the number of such fans today is rather small, with most people under the age of 70 finding this “quaint”, if not absurd. For a standard standard, listen to this.

If you add some fancy finger work and jewelry, not to mention a musician with an imposing presence, this song takes on a completely different feel, sort of a poor-man’s Rachmaninoff concerto. It is a pleasure to watch the entertaining Liberace, one of the ultimate showmen, play this song and turn it into an almost elegant melody appreciable by the widest audience, probably mainly because of the pianist, not the song, but who cares. Enjoy:

However, there should be moderation in everything. I find bringing in a full orchestra in fancy dress a bit too rich for this plebian song but that is a matter of taste. This is what you get after André Rieu get his hands on this. You can judge for yourself:

Taking this song back to the people but adding an amazing trio, I enjoy the Andrew Sisters’ version as they have a Midas touch even with the plainest of songs. It does not really feel like the original but still is a pleasure in itself. Listen and appreciate the singers (even they are before your time):

I end the polka run with my favorite, the version that started by beer bar-hopping musical trip. Chico Marx brings out the fun and joy that this song elicited when it came out and makes it sound as relevant today as it was over 100 years ago. I just smile and laugh as he plays not only because of his hands and face but also the music is simply happy, even without being drunk.  Am I being nostalgic?

After listening to all these polkas, I feel a bit of an audio hangover. Still, the comparison brought out the human factor in the impact of a song. True, without an appropriate melody, no song can succeed. However, each performer can take it to a different place. The trappings do make the song. 

* Picture captions help the blind fully access the Internet.

Picture credit: Image by <a href="https://pixabay.com/users/mih83-464187/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=4238715">M. H.</a> from <a href="https://pixabay.com/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=4238715">Pixabay</a>

Hazards of the trades

Too much knowledge can spoil the fun. Specifically, when a person has deep knowledge of a specific process or art, it becomes difficult to consider the element in its simplicity, as most people do. Instead, the connoisseur analyzes it, often to death.

One area you can see this is language. Most people are interested in the point of communication, not its form. By contrast, writers of all types are often more interested in the form and quite critical of it. For example, writers tend to judge text as much by how good it is written as what it is trying to day. Likewise, translators, including my wife and me, immediately notice over-literal translation and source text interference, especially in menus and signs. Musicians may not even notice the total sounds due to their focus on individual performances, good and bad.  Choreographers sometimes tear down complicated dances into their component parts, negating the effects of synergy. So, language experts insist on proper language, occasionally forgetting the ultimate purpose of communication.

In a world filled with visual information, certain experts immediately focus on a specific aspect. Barbers (or hair designers, as applicable) probably focus on the cut of the hair, with a bit of a critical note I imagine. In the same way, optometrists catch the form of the frame of the glasses, generally ignored by most people unless it is violently inappropriate. Since my wife is a knitter, I see how fast she checks out any knitted object and checks if it is machine or handmade, with a comment on the skill level if the latter. Potters do not see plates as objects on which you put food but instead as works of art, or lack thereof. Like flies and light, certain professionals are immediately attracted by certain visual clues.

This attention often enters the realm of judgment. After years of assessing damage, insurance assessors probably cannot pass a dented car without doing a calculation in their head of the cost to repair it. On my favorite cooking show, Les Carnets de Julie, I watched a baguette judge name the 16 tests, no less, of a proper French bread, of which only the last was taste. For this person, a baguette is not a loaf of bread by any other name. I pity dog breeders, who find it difficult to say “what a cute dog” without trying to figure out the breed(s) of the dog and how well it would do in a show.

There are many advantages of being an expert. However, sometimes, it would be nice to enjoy the world at its face value, without adding complexity or judgment. Unfortunately, once gained, knowledge is hard to lose. As Milton might say, it is paradise lost.