He began writing his own tunes based on the style, which he referred to as "faux Parisian elevator music". Dan had been introduced to "Musette" or "Valse Swing", the Parisian sidewalk cafe accordion sound, while teaching at a music camp in northern California in the 1980s. It all started with a tune composed in 1992 by the band's accordionist Dan "Daddy Squeeze" Newton. It's certainly been an interesting journey for Dan Newton's Cafe Accordion Orchestra, (CAO) a band whose repertoire cannot be described neatly with one word like "Blues" or "Swing". One might wonder how a group of musicians in Minnesota end up forming a band that plays French Musette, Gypsy Jazz, Tin Pan Alley, Latin music and cinematic themes. They have appeared in New York at the Lincoln Center's Midsummer Night Swing series, the International Akkordeon Festival in Vienna, Austria, the Minnesota State Fair, as well as festivals, theaters and dance halls across the United States. CAO has been delighting audiences and dancers alike since 1995. Their high level of musicianship and passion for performance makes them an entertaining concert act as well as a great dance band.ĬAO is led by DAN NEWTON on accordion and vocals, with ERIC MOHRING on mandolin, violin and vocals, BRIAN BARNES on guitar and vocals, ERIK LILLESTOL on bass and vocals and JOE STEINGER on percussion. They inject their music with good humor and expressive abandon. The group complements the musettes with swing, ballads, tangos, cha chas, rumbas, and cumbias to create a wonderfully varied show. The heart of the CAO repertoire is the romantic, gypsy-influenced valse-musette.
Utube french cafe music full#
The album might be a little thin for those who are already devotees of the café atmosphere, but it makes for a fine introduction.Dan Newton's Café Accordion Orchestra (CAO) performs an eclectic mix full of French flare, Latin heat and Bohemian attitude. There are certainly some omissions to be had here ( Edith Piaf being perhaps the most notable), but on the whole Putumayo did a fine job in compiling the major styles and figures of the field. It's all implied, but rarely given explicitly, and the music echoes this concept. Vocals are expressive, but not so much that they scream emotion. It's this careful line that the music walks throughout the album. It forces the listener to tap their feet, but not quite hard enough to force any dancing. The album on the whole has a careful little bounce to it that's inherent in much of French contemporary music. Some of the more contemporary innovators on the market also appear here in force, from the jazzy Paris Combo, to the kicked-up string jazz of Sansévérino, to the smoother, half-dance music of Enzo Enzo. Some of the classic performers from the Parisian scene are presented here, from the old Georges Brassens recordings, to a sultry little number from Brigitte Bardot, to the chanson innovator Serge Gainsbourg. Putumayo's first geographically based CD after their tenth anniversary celebrations, French Café covers the narrow concept of café music in an admirable manner, including a number of styles that have made their way through the Parisian café systems and/or are inspired by the work of previous artists among the café elite.