Bruno Randles and 1950s New Ulm Polka Days footage.
Plus a flurry of interviews and shoutouts.
If you’re looking for good Wisconsin polka, you'll want to check out Jon Dietz and the Twin Lakes Trio. Jon’s band follows a legacy that stretches back to 1949.
Before the Twin Lakes Trio, there were the Jolly Brewers. Regular listeners to Polka Time with DJ Shotski will recognize songs from Minnesotan Ernie Coopman and the Jolly Brewers. Before Ernie Coopman, the band was led by Bruno Randles.
I don’t know much about Bruno Randles. His obituary mentions that he played with the Six Fat Dutchmen. He was a painter and he loved riding horses. Someday I’ll dig deeper to learn more about him.
But stop everything and watch this archival footage Chris Pikal posted to his YouTube channel from New Ulm Polka Days in the early 1950s. The music is one of two songs I’ll play on Sunday’s Polka Time live episode. The footage is a delightful, archival peek at the band playing on a flat-bed truck during New Ulm’s Polka Days circa 1953 or 1954.
The festival happened in July and you get the feeling that the musicians were still having fun playing in the hot sun, whether they had on red alpine hats or stayed cool in white t-shirts. Get me a time machine so I can go there right now.
I play the “When I Sleep” polka a lot because I love this tune so much. But the Bruno Randles version is especially peppy. I’ll do a twin spin with this song and the Chicago Concertina Club Polka. Both records were in the box of donated 45s from Nate Gibson, and I’ll dedicate the whole show to the goodies he shared with us.
Hear these 45s LIVE on 98.7 FM WVMO on Sunday, April 7. Tune in on your terrestrial dial in Monona or on Madison’s east side, or stream it online. The show will rebroadcast on participating stations the following weekend.
Polka Time: Where and when to listen
LIVE
Sunday, 7 p.m. - WVMO-FM 98.7 Monona
Streaming
Coming on April 13! Saturday, 3 p.m. - WRJQ Goodtime Radio - support WRJQ
Saturday, 6 p.m. - WPCA-FM 93.1 Amery - support WPCA
Saturday, 7 p.m. - WVMO-FM 98.7 Monona - support WVMO
Sunday, 7 a.m. - WOJB-FM 88.9 Hayward - support WOJB
Sunday, 8 a.m. - WILW-FM 96.3 Waupaca
Sunday, 9 a.m. - WOCT-FM 101.9 Oshkosh
Sunday, 4 p.m. - WLSP-FM 103.5 Sun Prairie - support SPMC
Thanks to these community-powered stations for keeping vintage polka on the air waves.
More interviews and shoutouts
I talked to Keith from Abandoned Albums about why I got into being a polka DJ and we tried to unpack all the different styles of polka music that are out there.
Robin Cangie’s first Creative Dialogues blog as a Q&A with me about how being a polka DJ has opened up a whole new path to living a creative life.
City Cast Madison podcast included the Polka Party I’m throwing with the Wisconsin Historical Society and DB Polka Express on April 18 as one of the things to do in Madison in April.
And special thanks to Shotski Lodge member Greg from New Glarus who talked to Charlie and Myles on the Bellied Up podcast about why polka is so important to Wisconsin culture. Did he inspire the hosts to dance? Watch it on YouTube to find out.