Hungry Five

[tbn.al]

I played an Oomh Pah gig last night and was exposed to the Hungry Five book for the first time. I don't know how I've missed it until now, but I have. Has anyone actually stopped to do the wisecracks in a performance where they are meant to be inserted? We didn't, no mics, but I read them to myself. Those have to be the worst jokes in the history of mankind. They are so bad that they are almost funny. Good friends, good bier, good times!

[bill]

I was born in 1940, my father was born in 1904 and my grandfather was born in 1865. None of these jokes in those books was new when any of us was born. They are also "German" dialect jokes, something not at all Politically Correct, nowadays nor, even in their day, was the humor anything more than the funny speech used to deliver them. I have always wondered why, if we can eliminate smallpox, we can't eliminate these joke. But, the music is fun and there was a series of these books, sorted by country. The jokes were left out in subsequent books.

[eupher61]

IMO, the jokes should be banished, and the arrangements just behind them.

[Dan Schultz]

The 'Hungry Five in Germany' set is still available from Hanson House in Miami. All others are out of print. The jokes are equally as bad in all of them. I have the following sets:

Hungry Five in Germany
Hungry five in Spain
Hungry Five in Ireland
Hungry Five in Italy
Hungry Five Rides Again
Hungry Five on Broadway
Hungry Five Does Ragtime

[Jack Denniston]

When I was in high school (Newton, IA class of '67) it was traditional for 5 of the seniors in the band to offer our services around town, playing for community events, for free or for food, out of the Hungry 5 book. We didn't usually tell the jokes, but we enjoyed playing the tunes and the audience always seemed to have a good time.

[windshieldbug]

5 Neat Guys - Late 50's/early 60's Pat Boone, goody-two-shoes vocal group all in pastel sweaters in a couple of commercials on the sketch comedy show SCTV. Lined up, their sweater letters spelled 5-N-E-A-T. They didn't have names, but 5 was John Candy; N, Joe Flaherty; E, Eugene Levy; A, Dave Thomas; and T, Rick Moranis. In the May 22, 1981 episode, their Neatest Hits album featured: "Who Made the Egg Salad Sandwiches," "Let's Have a Party in My Rec Room," "Patsy Has the Largest Breasts in Town," and "Don't Step on my Clip on Tie." The Nov. 6, 1981 episode retreads the concept with their 5 Neat Guys Gold album: "Mom Pressed the Crease in my Chinos," "Should we Double Date with Stan and Wendy," "Pimples and Pockmarks," and "I Got a Hickey."

[Chuck Jackson]

If you have *ever* played a polka gig and haven't seen this, you haven't ever truly laughed.

Holy ****, Joe, that is a great movie. A total take off on "The Last Waltz" by The Band. The greatest scene is where the tuba player is taking that God-awful solo and someone in the audience shouts, ala Jazz Club, "Yeah man". Totally surreal.

Chuck"Cabbage Rolls and Coffee, Um Um Good"Jackson

[Rick Denney]

If you have *ever* played a polka gig and haven't seen this, you haven't ever truly laughed.

The Shmenges were a skit on Second City Television, as I recall, about the same time that Weird All Yankovic was polka-izing a range of pop tunes.

Personally, I think doing this is offensive, and I would NEVER take part in such a travesty.

Rick "who was assigned to the final high D in the TubaMeisters hit, Innagaddadapolka" Denney