The year of bad accordions
From Rome to Barcelona and many places in between, this has been the year of bad accordions and worse accordion players. The typical scenario: it's a balmy evening in Italy or Spain and one is dining al fresco. The company is good, the food is fine and so is the wine. And then along comes the accordion player. Regardless of the city or country or culture he will strike up "O Sole Mio" or something from the late-era Sinatra songbook. Smilingly, he drives the melody up and down the pavement until, his duty done, it is time to collect. And then he's off to the next eatery, which might be just a table away. "I Did It My Way" pours out on the night air.
Remarkably, all the accordions used for this racket seem to originate from the same (Chinese?) factory. They are somewhat distressed, yellowed with artificial age to give them an air of authenticity, and the players give the impression of coming from lands that may soon be members of the European Union. Whether this will encourage them to extend their repertoires remains to be seen.
But it's not all grim on the accordion front because "El Pequeno Gigante", the great Joel Guzman, is at hand. Check this improv out.
