Allan Gardiner’s Accordion Band, Let’s Have a Party (EMI, year unknown)
These
days, so much of our music is gloomy and depressing. Hip-hop artists rap about
tough life on the streets and ‘capping’ each other for ‘bling’, while rock
singers all moan about the price of fame and being misunderstood by the world.
People seem to have forgotten that music is supposed to make us happy, to bring that little bit of
sunshine into our otherwise miserable lives.
One
person who truly appreciated the joyous power of music was Allan Gardiner, a
true-blue Southlander who wouldn’t have a bar of all the moaning and whining
that goes on these days. Let’s Have a
Party was Gardiner’s third recording with his eponymous accordion band, and
the cover alone promises endless good times: we see not one, but four accordion players, all in a state
of accordion-induced ecstasy. Balloons adorn the ceiling; the piano player is
even holding a balloon! Could this be
the happiest record ever?
Gardiner
was clearly trying to compete with the earlier accordion classic, Accordion Party: 50 Golden Greats, which
featured seven accordionists on the cover and proclaimed itself “the happiest
record ever.” So, does Gardiner’s Kiwi take on the accordion-party genre stack
up? Well, despite the fact that it contains three fewer accordion players and
ten fewer golden greats, I’m pleased to say that Let’s Have a Party beats
the competition in all other aspects. Every note on the record explodes with
pure joy, as Gardiner and his band of happy accordionists play through old
favourites like She’ll Be Coming ’Round
the Mountain, Camptown Races and I’ve
Got a Lovely Bunch of Cocoanuts [sic] with such ebullience that you almost
forget about all the horrific things going on in the world today. Almost.
True
to the liner notes, the album showcases “Mr. Gardiner’s love of old tunes
and steady rhythm which makes an irresistable [sic] combination.” But it does
more than that: it takes you back to a simpler, happier time, when musicians
weren’t so preoccupied with the negative side of life. Sadly, such music is
hard to come by these days. I was lucky enough that one Barry Begley of Outram
decided to sell his (personally-stamped) copy of Let’s Have a Party so that others could share in the joy of
non-stop accordion medleys; I can only hope that Barry Begley, or someone like
him, can bring joy into your life too.
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