April 2010 Archives
Polka Padre – Polka Padre Hits
Nothing says Catholicism in northern Minnesota quite like a good polka mass. If you’re wondering why, drive through one of the many mining towns that dot the Iron Range. The first thing you’ll notice is the sheer number of bars in each town. My guess is that the only way they could get these motley hoards to church was by promising some good old fashioned party music. And let’s face it, if you’re going to party on the Range, there better be a damn good polka band.
Ten years ago , I couldn’t see myself getting into polka music. But sadly, now that I’ve hit middle age, I actually enjoy it. The Padre and his group play some pretty tight polka and I was tapping my toes as I surfed for some info on the Reverend Kapoun. That’s when my stomach turned. So ya know all that stuff about Catholic priests molesting children? Yep, that’s right, the Polka Padre turned out to be “The Polka Playing Pedophile Padre”.
Normally I like to attempt some humor with my posts. Today it just doesn’t seem appropriate. Here’s a link to an article about the Reverend getting a $1.1 million lawsuit overturned. His lawyers even had enough class to send a bill for their legal fees to the victim. Polka Padre Ruling
And if you’d like to see the full history of allegations against Reverend Kapoun, check this out. Reverend Kapoun Allegations
I debated whether or not to even post this record but in the end, I figured it would provide an opportunity to let people know the truth. My own personal opinion of the Padre isn’t too high but I won’t start throwing around slanderous terms. Feel free to form your own opinions.
Sure I’m familiar with biblical passages such as Matthew 7:1 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged” but I’m pretty sure that it doesn’t apply to pedophiles. So today…….I’m casting the first stone (it’s another biblical reference, sheesh….do I have to explain everything to you people??)
Tracks:
Side One
- 01_01 – It’s Polka Time
- 01_02 – Moonbeams Clear
- 01_03 – Who’d You Like to Love Ya
- 01_04 – Susie Polka
- 01_05 – Oriole Waltz
- 01_06 – Hard to Get
Side Two
Last of the Ninth….Twins Pennant Drive in ’65
This is a huge day for baseball in Minnesota. Today marks the official opening of Target Field, the Minnesota Twins new home. The Twins play two exhibition games against the St. Louis Cardinals before the regular season starts on Monday. To celebrate the return of outdoor baseball to Minnesota, I thought I’d post this album of highlights from the Twins 1965 World Series appearance. The Twins eventually lost to the Dodgers in 7 games but since I was only two years old at the time, the loss didn’t leave the same emotional scars as the the Vikings countless failures.
For me, the best part about listening to this record was being able to listen to professional announcers. Halsey Hall, Ray Scott and Herb Carneal are all legends in Minnesota broadcasting. I’ve ranted before about the lack of professionalism that ex-jocks bring to the booth, but for some reason, the powers that be seem to feel that they add some extra dimension to the game. They don’t. Ninety-nine percent of all ex-jocks are just plain painful to listen to.
Herb Carneal was my favorite baseball announcer. He became the Twins lead announcer in 1967 and remained so until 2002 when he scaled back his workload. Herb continued his role part-time through the 2006 season and passed away on April 1st, 2007. His replacements, John Gordon and Dan Gladden, are so bad that I refuse to even listen to them.
I’ve been a big baseball fan all of my life. When I was a kid, my dad and Uncle took me to quite a few Twins games at the old Met Stadium. When the Twins moved indoors in 1982, most of us who grew up with outdoor baseball were horrified. If you’ve never been to the Metrodome, the first thing that you notice is that most of the seats point to the outfield. You actually have to keep your head turned to watch the game. After nine innings, you can barely turn your head. The stadium was actually designed for football. Baseball was an afterthought. All of which makes today one of the greatest days in my life. In case my wife is reading this, I’ll say that the days we met and got married were better. Although she’ll probably know that I’m lying.
No talk about the Twins would be complete without a clip of game 163. I’ve heard a lot of people call this one of the greatest games ever played, myself included. But my pal Bob-O from Recordo Obscura had a great point. It was a pretty sloppy game where both teams threw away chances to win. And he’s right (something I usually won’t say about a Tiger’s fan). This wasn’t an exhibition of great baseball. What made the game so great is that even though both teams threw away chances, they both left everything on the field. So even though it wasn’t great baseball, I still think it was a great game.
Thanks to the fine people at YouTube for sucking the life out of the internet by removing any video that might be even remotely interesting. You’ll have to imagine a clip of game 163 here.
Tracks:
Side One
Side Two
Continue reading Last of the Ninth….Twins Pennant Drive in ’65
