Track Listing

1. Getting Ready
2. Theme Song: Opening
3. Canzon Per Sonar a Sei - Count Them - Sei
4. Pledge Plea
5. Four Folk Song Upsettings: Little Bunny Hop Hop Hop/Oft of an E'en Ere
6. Station Id
7. Classical Kwickie-Kwiz
8. Sam and Janet
9. Weather Report
10. Hound Dog
11. Flip Side Intro
12. Love Me
13. Station Id
14. Cadenza
15. Safe Sextet
16. Oo-La-La Intro
17. Oo-La-La: Cookin' French Like the French Cook French
18. Station Id
19. Canzonetta Intro
20. Canzonetta "La Hooplina"
21. Wrap-Up
22. Theme Song (Pachelbel Canon)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #159417 in Music
• Brand: Bach
• Released on: 1991-09-13
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Amazon.com
As we've come to expect from Peter Schickele (aka P.D.Q Bach), this is a comedy CD based thoroughly and utterly in classical music in-jokes, puns, references, mis-hearings, etc. Here, we're in the world of a casual, presumably classical music radio show ("all Pachelbel, all the time"), with a host and two sidekicks, all of whom can't resist "witty" chitchat. There are spoofs of fundraising (they hope for $100.00 by the end of the show), a song called "Sam and Janet," which actually turns into a polyphonic version of "Some enchanted evening" (get it? Sam and Janet = Some enchanted), a set of four folk songs accompanied by "devious instruments," one of which is a cardboard tube, which is to "played" by hitting it against someone's head. And one of the rules of the station is that all music must be in a major key until after 11 PM. Fans of Schickele who truly love his sophisticated spoofs of classical music will find fewer of them here than usual, oddly enough, but the CD is fun. And a highlight is a non-classical number or two (snuck in by the co-hosts, Jocko and Blondie) sung by Elvis's brother "Enos," who liked his name until they started calling his brother "Elvis the Pelvis." Delightful, if this is what you're looking for. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews

blistering parody
Let me say at the outset that this is not my favorite PDQ Bach album. I agree with other reviewers that the PDQ Bach works themselves are somewhat less inspiring that on other albums. But there is one aspect of this album that needs to be pointed out: it is an absolutely devestating parody of what has become of classical music radio stations. More and more I find (and apparently Schickele also finds) that classical stations have become watered-down affairs, bland, inoffensive-- "relaxing" they call it. Music for people who basically don't like music very much. You know, background music that you don't have to pay much attention to or think about too much. Basically, high class muzak. This album takes that whole thing on in spades. In fact, in some sense it's really too true to be funny. I swear, the classical station in Boston must really have a "no minor keys until after 11pm" rule, and if they're not quite "all Pachelbel all the time!", they certainly play at least 33% obscure baroque works, while playing maybe 2% romantic and *zero* percent 20th century. So while the comedy on this album may not be the very best, the parody is absolutely spot-on. For that, I say "Kudos!!"

Better than Citizen Kane
Ok, it's not better than Citizen Kane. It's just that I played "Jocko" on this CD and had a great time doing it. I'm glad so many people reviewed and liked the recording.

Elliott Forrest

Priceless PDQ!
Not only is the music typical of the great JS Bach's forgotten son, but the script that Prof. Peter Schickele writes for this unorthodox classical radio station is absolutely priceless. It is a wonderful, but tasteful, parody of a classical radio station in North Dakota with a listenership of approximately two! The three deejays (the professor, Jocko, and Blondie) play off each other incredibly.

A volume worth having.