Tuesday, October 21, 2008

The San Francisco Marching, Trotting and Walking Band: The Good Old Days

Well, let me tell you: this is by far and away the gayest marching music I've ever heard. Bells and xylophones and triangles, oh my! Where are the pounding drums and bracing brass arrived to announce impending doom? They even finish some of their songs off with that thing. You know, that thing that all jaunty songs end with and people rap on doors as a special knock (dun da na na na - dun dun)?: that thing. And then there are the song titles: Cowboys and Indians Medley? Gay Nineties Medley? Doo Wacka Doo? Grizzly Bear? Oh, how things have changed. Apparently the entire album is dedicated to some dude's dad who loved said good old days when every beer led to song and you could get all the roast beef and bratwurst you could eat for a quarter. Mmm, good. My favorite descriptive line is when they say: "There were some good tunes written after the Prohibition. He admitted that." Yeah, well why were they all about domestic animals, answer me that? This playlist is pretty familiar, even if the titles aren't. I heard a Union Maid song (gay), a Seeger Old Gray Mare diddy, and a bunch of other whistle-inducing tunes that are inexplicably floating around in my head from some sort of old-people diffusion. Also, there's no denying that the flaming red vinyl (totally gay) is not only fancy, but totally awesome. I only have a couple of colored medias (this is the only marching album...) lying around, but Johnny Mnemonic is certainly my favorite (how could it not be? Sorry marchers, trotters and walkers!). Extra color is always a nice touch (dude...I'm totally tripping...). You can pick up this Fantasy Records (ooh baby) pretty-piece online for anywhere between $5 and $50, or just stop by your grandpappy's (bio or fun-o) place and steal his copy. If you're feeling like you need to acquire a more rainbow friendly music collection, feel free to pick out a few fierce albums to play at home.

Final Judgment: "It's a gay ole time!"

1 comment:

Mack Allison, III said...

Amen to that! I grew up listening to their music! Loved it then, love it now, fifty years later.