Wow! I'm back! And goddamn, does it feel good! I hope you're all doing well, and I hope that this blog can bring you as much solace as it has brought me in the past, present, and future!
Today I'm bringing you a record that I've been holding on to for quite a long time. Nine years ago, when I initially had created this blog (and had higher hopes for it), my friend Ed from Sluggisha Records sent me a giant care package of polka albums. As I'm sure you've come to realize, I didn't really keep up with this during its first go around, and my dreams of returning to it eventually were always put off due to certain life circumstances. I'm a much different person than I was nearly a decade ago, but in the same breath, returning to this project has made me realize that maybe I'm not as different as a think. I essentially took a detour on the path to finding myself , and it ended up being a not-so-short-cut. Although I didn't loop back to the space where I initially started, I found old, discarded traits and pleasures along the way that I realized I actually wanted to keep.
Whoa shit, sorry. Went off on a therapeutic tangent there. Anyways, over the past decade, I've had to get rid of a large chunk of the records Ed sent me. It's unfortunate, but when you find yourself moving nearly every year, some of the first things to discard to lessen your load are records you don't find yourself ever listening to. And since I assumed I'd never actually start this back up again, I had no reason to keep them.
However, the one I always held on to was Beer Garden Musik by Will Glahe and his Orchestra. I knew that if I decided to ever start working on the Polka Hole again, this would be the first record I'd upload. First off, how could I ever get rid of an album with such a fantastic cover photo? Whenever the fear of aging creeps into my brain, I remember this album cover and think "But in old age I can become this!" Secondly, there's no way I'd ever be able to come to terms with getting rid of an entire album dedicate to drinking beer with your friends. In fact, I would like to quote a little excerpt listed on the back of the record:
A warm, summer night and the air heavy with the scent off the lime trees, a seat at your favorite table, your favorite pipe in one hand, and a foaming stein in the other. What more could you want to make you happy? Some of your old buddies 'round you and some music? Well, here come a bunch of your pals - make room for them - as the orchestra strikes up, appropriately enough, with a well-loved son of your youth, "Good Friends, Good Company", with the rousing toast, "Here's to those we miss!"
Dave Anians once told me that, if one thing could be said about me, it's that I truly enjoy the simple things in life. So when a record label describes a new entry into their catalog as the soundtrack to a night out with your friends, you better believe I'm buying into what they're selling.
Beer Garden Musik begins with a banger in "Good Friends" and closes the night off with the somber, yet serene, "Auf Wiederseh'n, Sweetheart." Driven by a very prominent accordion, this record is continuously peppered with a subtle xylophone, and a very classic organ sound (reminiscent of the angelic tones of bowling alleys past). A heavy brass and woodwind section keep a steady melody, and the chugging bass lays low in the background.
Summer is almost here. Let's continue to stay safe, (WEAR YOUR MASKS IN PUBLIC) but let's also not forget about those simple pleasures in life.
DOWNLOAD THE ALBUM BELOW:
http://www.mediafire.com/file/eqq4jplx28h8csf/Beer_Garden_Musik_MP3s.zip/file
