David Barnert Posted July 4, 2004 Share Posted July 4, 2004 Over on the Morris Dance Discussion List (MDDL), there has been discussion in the last few days of some 1975 photographs of Keith Moon (of The Who) playing a concertina for some dancers wearing, um..., interesting kit. They can be viewed at Text removed by management - see post below. It appears (from what can be seen of a banner in one of them) that it is part of a promotional event for The Who's song, "Squeeze Box," although the lyrics of that song suggest it is about an accordion or melodeon rather than a concertina: "Mama's got a squeeze box she wears on her chest..." Some questions that have arisen on the MDDL are: Is the first picture a representation of a Morris Jig? Are Mr. Moon's eyes fixed intently on the concertina in both pictures (despite the distractions) or is he appropriately watching the dancer's feet in the first? Is he really playing, and if so, what are the circumstances of his having learned to play? For Morris? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Timson Posted July 4, 2004 Share Posted July 4, 2004 Hmmm. Well, I studied these images very closely, by way of research of course, until my eyesight started to fade. The connection you seek may be via Keith Moon's bosom (as it were) buddy Viv Stanshall, front man of the Bonzo Dog Band. Said band were purveyors of musical mayhem on a wide variety of instruments. Unless memory totally fails me the one time I saw the Bonzos live (in 1972, with Moony depping on drums) a concertina did feature in one number, albeit briefly. I think it might have been The Intro And The Outro, but I could be wrong on that Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RustyBits Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 Very interesting kit those dancers have. Sadly my Morris side wouldn't look quite so. . .so. . . "sharp" in that sort of kit. Gravity has definitely taken it's toll on Highland Mary Morris. It doesn't look like Mr. Moon is actually playing, and it's kind of a crappy looking box. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuart estell Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 ...the one time I saw the Bonzos live (in 1972, with Moony depping on drums)... I didn't know there was any connection, I can only dream about what a Moon-powered Bonzos must have sounded like. It was only recently that I found out that Keith Moon had played with Screaming Lord Sutch and the Savages, which didn't really surprise me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Animaterra Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 Lisa, my team, too! I do know of a New England team that shall remain nameless that did greet the rising sun one summer solstice in similar kit- only it's a men's team (no, not local to me). I regret that I wasn't there to witness it. And I agree that Mr. Moon's box didn't impress me, either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Stephenson Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 Dont think the song has much to do with musical instruments. The Who Squeeze Box lyrics Mama's got a squeeze box She wears on her chest And when Daddy comes home He never gets no rest 'Cause she's playing all night And the music's all right Mama's got a squeeze box Daddy never sleeps at night Well the kids don't eat And the dog can't sleep There's no escape from the music In the whole damn street 'Cause she's playing all night And the music's all right Mama's got a squeeze box Daddy never sleeps at night She goes in and out and in and out and in and out and in and out She's playing all night And the music's all tight Mama's got a squeeze box Daddy never sleeps at night She goes, squeeze me, come on and squeeze me Come on and tease me like you do I'm so in love with you Mama's got a squeeze box Daddy never sleeps at night She goes in and out and in and out and in and out and in and out 'Cause she's playing all night And the music's all right Mama's got a squeeze box Daddy never sleeps at night ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Timson Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 OK, anybody on the forum got a concertina called "Mama" ? Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Coles Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 In case any one should need reminding, understand that it is not appropriate to put a link here to pictures or other material that some folks will undoubtedly find offensive - or be disciplined for accessing through an employer's computer - especially without warning that this is what is involved. Please exchange information like this outside of Concertina.net, if you find it necessary to exchange it at all. The Management Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daglenn Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 Could someone email the aforementioned 'explicit' link directly to me as I would like to see the pics myself... ~dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Barnert Posted July 5, 2004 Author Share Posted July 5, 2004 I feel I need to comment here, although I'm a bit conflicted as to just what I should say. This is a forum about concertinas and I am not writing about concertinas, but an unusual situation has arisen (above) and it needs to be commented upon. First of all, I apologize to anybody who felt uncomfortable looking at the pictures or whose employment I jeopardized by not including a warning that the links led to images that might run afoul of company policies. I apologize to the management for putting Ken in the position of having to do something about it and to the concertina.net community at large for having to watch this process unfold. But these were by no stretch of the imagination "dirty pictures." There is nothing prurient about them. I, myself, found them objectionable because they depict women in a demeaning context. But that is hardly a reason to keep them hidden. They are an important historical document of particular interest to concertina players. That's why I brought the subject up. Indeed, the web page that I linked to is a respected repository of historical photographs and includes no warning of objectionable content. Any serious researcher who found their way to the site (whether at work or wherever) and searched on "Keith Moon" and "Concertina" would have found the photos and been in the same dilemma as those who followed my links. Nobody (from this forum or elsewhere) could have seen the photos without first clicking on a thumbnail preview with only enough detail as to suggest what was in the picture without endangering anybody's employment status. We're all adults here. We see more objectionable images every day on television advertising soft drinks than anything in these pictures. I have always felt that there was an important difference between apologizing and being sorry, and this is a perfect example. My apology was sincere. I am not the least bit sorry I did it. If anybody who missed the pictures wants to know what the fuss was all about, e-mail me privately and I'll send the link (I've already had three requests). Now, back to concertinas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henk van Aalten Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 In case any one should need reminding, understand that it is not appropriate to put a link here to pictures or other material that some folks will undoubtedly find offensive - or be disciplined for accessing through an employer's computer - especially without warning that this is what is involved. Please exchange information like this outside of Concertina.net, if you find it necessary to exchange it at all. The Management Ken When I saw this, I honestly thought that this was a joke , but looking at the original message of David I saw it was not joke at all Under these strict conditions I wonder how long Alan's embarassing moment will survive. B.T.W. I know a few people that find pictures of a concertina offending Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Coles Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 Please understand that it was necessary (IMO) to address some objections we received without taking a long time to carefully compose and/or wordsmith the notice I posted. I guess I would restate it another way: the only real issue here is that when you put up a link like this, _Please_ make it clear where it is heading, so that those persons who want to or need to avoid it can easily do so. I guess that means you can go ahead and post such links here and/or discuss these topics. Maybe a better response from me would have been to privately write the poster of the link and asking for an edit of the post (I am not comfortable rewriting posts or even doing what I did here) to satisfy this need. Sorry for any confusion or misunderstanding, but believe me, you hear many different, and irreconcilable, views and opinions when you sit in this chair. I sure ain't as wise as King Solomon, either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Mills Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 We're all adults here. I don't really wish to enter into this debate, but I would like to point out that there is at least one young lady currently 12 years old who is registered and sometimes participates. I won't attempt to speak for her, of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimLucas Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 We're all adults here. I was going to say, "I hope not!" Then Stephen beat me to it with an example, but since I had multiple meanings in mind, I'm posting this, anyway. .. I hope there are young C.net members, as well as young concertina players. .. I hope we all have the freedom for a little childishness (though not churlishness) now and again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy Winters Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 I hope Victorian attitudes aren't a requirement for playing a Victorian instrument??? David, I love the photos, thanks. Ken's second approach to this issue seems reasonable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Barnert Posted July 6, 2004 Author Share Posted July 6, 2004 Given the above, and since I continue to get requests for the link to the photos, I will re-post it here. Be warned: By following this link you will view thumbnail-sized versions of black-&-white pictures of topless women. The detail is insufficient to discern that they aren't wearing sweaters until you click on the thumbnails to expand them (and then only barely so). http://pro.corbis.com Image numbers PN008495 & PN008496 (paste each, in turn, into the search window). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Day Posted July 6, 2004 Share Posted July 6, 2004 (edited) Henk,come on now I did have my beads on !! Al Ps There were also no thumb nail photos taken. Edited July 6, 2004 by Alan Day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcaplan Posted July 6, 2004 Share Posted July 6, 2004 Spotted this amongst the other Corbis concertina photos: U1079445 (Rights Managed) Burl Ives with Accordion Original caption: During one of his trips to Italy, Burl Ives was approached by a Navy officer to give a performance for the men aboard his ship. Ives went along and sang for hours for the seaman who cheered loudly after each song. As a token of their appreciation, the sailors gave Burl this rare ivory encrusted 17th Century Concertina. Previously the men had received it as an expression of gratitude form an Italian community. Date Photographed: March 4, 1955 A 17th Century concertina! "Rare" indeed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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