A Mad, Mad World

Last night’s Wild Women of the Accordion/ Accordion Babes Pin-Up Calendar Release party at Cafe du Nord was super fun and a resounding success. Several accordion goddesses helped out at the merch table selling all the calendars we had and autographing many for enthralled accordion babe fans. Kugelplex, Big Lou’s Polka Casserole and Renée de la Prade and friends dished up oh so danceable tunes. Rhian, the Mad Maggies’ whistle goddess worked the swag table with her vivacious charm. We made new friends. The moon was full. The air was warm.

Calendars are available for $20. They include a compilation CD with a song from each of the “babes”. The Mad Maggies all new online store will be ready in just a few days but meanwhile email me if you’d like one. And of course, I will be selling them at our upcoming shows.

Ms. June (Isabel), Ms. July (Joan), Ms. December (Amber Lee) & Ms. February (Mad Mags)

(l-r) Ms. August (Luz), calendar designer Tim Gennert, Ms. December (Amber Lee), Ms. February (Mad Mags), Ms. September (Diana), Ms. October (Big Lou), Ms. November (Skylar Fell

(click on photos to see them larger)

Meet many of the talented beauties of the Bay Area Accordion Babes Pin-Up Calendar!

Thursday November 13 8pm
Café Du Nord
2170 Market St
San Francisco CA 94114
415-861-5016
www.cafedunord.com

Big Lou’s Polka Casserole
Kugelplex w/ Isabel Douglass
Renee de la Prade and Friends

Tickets $12.00

Calendars will be on sale. Perfect holiday gift!

Aye, my hearts, today is Talk Like a Pirate Day (Thanks to Miguel for reminding us.)

And seeings as our upcoming CD has to do with piratical riff-raff and adventures on the high seas, I enthusiastically encourage you to delve into you inner buccaneer.

There is not one way to sound like a pirate. Those who plied the waves came from all over — Ireland, Scotland, Scandinavia, continental Europe, colonial America, Africa, the Carribean, the Crimea, the Far East. The sounds of the language on board were much more diverse than “Aaargh, mateys”!

What we think of as pirate talk today is based largely on one particular actor’s interpretation of Long John Silver. (”Treasure Island” by Robert Louis Stevenson.) That be Robert Newton, a native of Dorset, England who became famous in the 50s for his work as Long John Silver for Walt Disney films and later in a TV series.

Newton was familair with the accent of nearby Bristol from whence the character Long John Silver hailed and he used that accent to infuse his characterization of the one-legged, story-telling, salty dog.

Enjoy a clip of Robert Newton’s now classic portrayal.

more about pirate language
a tribute to Robert Newton

Call me sentimental. The year I started to play the accordion was the same year the Cotati Accordion Festival began. That would be 1991. That same year GDub and I fell in love. 17 years later I’m still squeezin’, GDub and I are still squeezin’ and the Cotati Accordion Fest is still rockin’.

Sat August 23 and Sun August 24
Downtown Cotati all day gates open 9:30

I’ll be participating in another multimedia extravaganza on August 23 and 24 at 1512 62nd Street in Emmeryville, featuring text, film, theremin and of course tuba. It’s 7:00 Saturday and 3 pm Sunday. It’s a benefit for the La Casaita Preschool, so the admission is a rather steep $35 for the premiere and $20 for the matinee, but would hope anyone reading this knows the magic words, “Hey, I’m with the band!”  

Sad news that Ronnie Drew of the legendary Irish group The Dubliners passed today. RIP Ronnie.

As promised, you will see a couple small versions of me as a pin up for the Accordion Babes Calendar project but first here’s the pitch.

The Accordion Babes calendar will include 12 full-color pin-up photos of women and their accordions; previews of some of the content are available here. Not all of these are final photos, but they start to give you an idea.

A compilation CD of the calendar artists will be attached to the inside back cover of the calendar.

Participation can happen in two ways: presales and sponsorships. For shops and accordion clubs who would like to order advance copies at a wholesale rate, we are selling copies of the calendar at $10 per unit; the list price of the calendar will be $20. (There is a 6 calendar minimum for presale orders.) For businesses who are interested in having ad-space on the calendar, there is a pricing scale for sponsorships.

Please pass on this info to any potential sponsors you can think of.
For more info and inquiries: accordionpinupcalendar@gmail.com

These will make wonderful gifts.

And now for the teasers. They are tiny because they are, well, teasers

I’m hoping you’ll buy the calendar to see all the accordion goddesses at full size.

As part of the Cotati Accordion Festival’s grass roots promotional push, I participated in the Cotati Kid’s Parade today (7/12/08) with festival organizer Scott Goree and his daughters, Renee and Rachel. The theme was the above mentioned Magical Kingdom hence that lovely millinery fantasy I am wearing.

Perfect weather again, Rachel played her vintage “Nobel” 120 bass accordion, Rachel tossed candies to the kids and I played “Street Dog” many times. It’s a song I know the late Jim Boggio liked.

And I had a chance to say hello to Lynn Woolsey.

All in a days work as a Squeezin’ Diva

Vive l’accordéon!

Big fun. Perfect sunny Sunday. Main Street was lined with folks.

Three accordions! — Amber Lee, Renee de La Prade & Mad Mags

Squeezin’ Trio

Horses and Riders decked out in holiday colors

A masterpiece by Dana and Craig Black of
Custom Balloon Creations, Cotati Ca

This Sunday, July 6th 11 AM, yours madly, Mad Mags aka Squeezin’ Diva (Mad Maggies) will be joining Renee de la Prade, Squeezebox Goddess (Culann’s Hounds) and Amber Lee Baker, Accordionista (the Anomalies) to represent the Cotati Accordion Festival in the Penngrove 4th of July parade. 

We will be playing and waving to the crowd from the back seat of CAF organizer Scott Goree’s convertible. 

The parade is an annual event organized by the Rancho-Adobe Fireman’s Station.

Viva l’accordion!