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Selinger’s Music in listowel Rocks

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Through good old Face Book I ran into an old guitar playing buddy of mine who now runs a music store called Selinger’s Music in Listowel (pronounced Lis-Twoll) Ontario. I’ve never been there before but if my buddy Al is the same kind of stand up guy he was when we were kidz then his store must truly rock.

Looking at a few pic’s from Selinger’s Music site, I spy some nice vintage axes hanging around the shop. He has a nice collection of Taylor acoustic guitars in all sizes. He also looks like he has a decent selection of amps and pedals as well. And speaking of pedals, the other part of the store he has that I like is his tech department that is dedicated to rebuilding vintage guitar pedals. It’s nice to see all those old school pedal(s) are there, still alive and kicking around!

If you check out this link you’ll see a picture of a very old pedal called the Silencer by Electro Harmonix that they are working on. I use to own one when I first started playing electric guitar and it brought back some painful memories. For the life of me I can’t remember what this pedal sounded like but I thought it looked real cool.

There’s an area in Selinger’s that highlights their drum section, which appears to be quite big. I’m not a drummer but what they had I was impressed with.

Last but not least you have to see this sign they have offering lessons to anyone purchasing any instrument, best ad I’ve seen in years.

Keep on Jammin’ Selinger Music in Listowel!





Will Oshawa Rock and Roll all Nite or Not? City not listed on Kiss Tour

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Kiss is NOT coming to Oshawa?

The contest, called Demand Kiss, that the band KISS held over the summer was to see how many Kiss fans in any city would vote to have them play there on their latest tour. Oshawa, On. was the winning Canadian city with 14,569 votes.

What is the real reason why the band took the city off it’s official tour dates?

“I’m devastated,” Oshawa Councilor Robert Lutczyk said. “Gene told us personally that KISS would be in Oshawa. He said the top three in the contest are guaranteed a show.”

The band’s publicist, Erik Stein, did say that the band had something special in store for the city. What that is, was not disclosed. I’m not sure if Gene and the boys are just trying to create a buzz for the event or what, but it certainly has a lot a people pissed off.

The Sun, CBC and The Star gave this story tons of attention. They’re certainly getting a lot of publicity out of this.

I, for one, hope that this special event will blow everyone away because the town of Oshawa seems to be in desperate need of some good news! Even the United Church of Canada is behind the show! Odd but interesting! So let’s keep our fingers cross for all those Kiss Army fans in the city!

Keep on Jammin’

Who says Polka bands don’t rock

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The Schmenge Brothers were a world class polka band played by John Candy and Eugene Levy on the popular Canadian comedy TV show SCTV.

They were the leaders of the polka band The Happy Wanderers. The characters were a polka band twosome, that made you laugh and cry at all their crazy on stage antics and the over the top songs that they performed for us weekly. I can still see our old rabbit eared, black and white television set that I watched them on in my mind.

John Candy played the polka clarinetist Yosh Schmenge, while Eugene Levy was the zany accordion player Stan Schmenge. They were also so very gracious to the little people behind the scenes. This was always the case when they never forgot to say thanks to Mrs Vilve Yachke for the cabbage rolls and coffee. They were so mainstream that Yosh even made it to Sesame Street!

This band first appeared in the May 21, 1982. It was a show within a show. The band played this easy listening style of music, like Lawrence Welk, only thing missing was the bubble machine! At one time they were into even venturing into the New Wave genre… honestly.

The guys were from this mythical country called Leutonia, complete with very thick European accents. They even did a album. On this facetious 2 set disk, they play songs like “Dance, Old Man Dance”, “Just a Schmenge Waltz”, “There’s Rhythm In My Lederhosen”, “Mama Cook Me Cabbage Rolls”, “The Wanderer’s Polka”. A must for any Schmenge collection!

The Schmenge Brothers were a class act. Their act was based upon Czechoslavian-born Edmonton-based polka cable show host Gaby Haas, really! They were both in Edmonton on night and were watching TV and they came across this show. They thought that it would be a neat idea to do a parody of it, but forgot about it when they returned back to Toronto. It took them a couple of years to get back to the idea and when they did it, it was a hit to say the least.

The Schmenge Brothers popularity resulted in the HBO special The Last Polka (a parody of Martin Scorsese’s The Last Waltz). I’ve never seen it, but the reviews are great! Now I’ve to keep my eye out for that one.

When I was growing up watching SCTV, my favorite characters were the Schmenge Brothers, hands down. Both characters combined reminded me of a old friends father. The thing is, he really was the embodiment of both actors together! When I saw him, I saw them on the show. If you ever met him you know exactly what I mean.

Anyways, these guys were pure fun to watch on TV. The way they talked, the way the roamed around on their show and on how they made the Polka band just rocked! Sometimes the band portrayed the real essence of how a polka band would be on stage. Other times … not so much.

I do not have any of their shows on DVD, but when ever I am searching through my PVR(TVO) guide looking for a show and I see SCTV on it, I feel the urge to tape it and go back to those crazy TV viewing days as a kid.

So has anyone ever heard of the The Happy Wanderers, led by the Schmenge Brothers? If you haven’t then what do you think about them now?

Keep on Polka-in’

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