HELP! Stan Wolowic & Polka Chips? It's research time...
icon...@btigate.com
all the info possible and thanks! I have some of his recordings, but I
was more info...THANKS!
icon...@btigate.com
Toby Hanson
>TV or not? Where did he perform? Capitol Records? Where was he from?
>all the info possible and thanks! I have some of his recordings, but I
>was more info...THANKS!
Here's what I know about Stan Wolowic-
He had a TV show in Chicago. I think he was from Chicago. I think his
theme song was "It's Polka Time." I believe he toured some.
--
-Toby Hanson
jtha...@aa.net.TREET
http://members.aa.net/~jthanson
"Subsidy is the death of art."
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J.Johnson
>TV or not? Where did he perform? Capitol Records? Where was he from?
>all the info possible and thanks! I have some of his recordings, but I
>was more info...THANKS!
>
The only album I have on them is called "It's Polka Time!" and it's on
ABC-Paramount. One of my favorites is called "The Dreamy Fish Waltz"....it's
kind of "cornball", but cute.
Jim Johnson
Carl Lucas
According to the liner notes on some of their record albums(authored by
Natt Hale), in March of 1956 the ABC network aired the nationally televised
program "It's Polka Time" out of Chicago with Stan Wolowic and The Polka
Chips and the program received an overwhelming response. (My wife tells me
it was a summer replacement show.) Wolowic was born and raised in Chicago
and began his professional career at the age of 11.
An important member of the band was banjoist Wally Moore born in Meigs,
Ohio. He wrote lyrics for most of the songs and was, until 1949, a member
of a country music group called "The Prairie Ramblers" which were featured
on WLS in Chicago.
Other band members were drummer Tommy Thomas from Braceville, Illinois;
clarinetist Jack Cordaro from Freeland, Pennsylvania (who started his
professional career playing drums for Bix Beiderbecke in St. Louis); second
banjoist Chick Hurt from Willow Shade, Kentucky and bassist Jack Taylor
from Summer Shade, Kentucky.
As far as I know the "Chips" recorded three albums on ABC-Paramount and two
on the Capitol label. The Capitol albums were combined and issued as a CD.
Hope this answers some of your questions.
Carl Lucas
sli...@spectra.net
wrote:
>> TV or not? Where did he perform? Capitol Records? Where was he from?
>
>According to the liner notes on some of their record albums(authored by
>Natt Hale), in March of 1956 the ABC network aired the nationally televised
>program "It's Polka Time" out of Chicago with Stan Wolowic and The Polka
>Chips and the program received an overwhelming response.
Carl, thanks for posting from the liner notes. (I should go down and
drag out my albums, but they are buried right now.)
I recall those Wolowic TV shows very well.
Several years ago, (more than several) I wrote an article on the
connection between polka and country music. Wolowic's band members
were mentioned in that piece.
Pee Wee King, country western musician/bandleader, started in a polka
band. It was common place back them for this type of situation.
As for Stan Wolowic, I still here his theme song in my memories.
Steve
Carl Lucas
1. Tommy Thomas, drummer, played with Bix Beiderbecke (not Jack Cordaro).
2. I looked in my collection and came across 4 ABC-Paramount recordings and
3 Capitol recordings.
--
Carl Lucas
Toby Hanson
>Pee Wee King, country western musician/bandleader, started in a polka
>band. It was common place back them for this type of situation.
I was researching the Tennessee Polka and I ran across some interesting
info on Pee Wee King.
He played accordion in a band called the Golden West Cowboys. He was
originally from Milwaukee and his father had a polka band. His real name
was Julian Francis Kuczynski but when he left for Nashville he anglicized
his name to make himself more marketable to the country music audiences.
Pee Wee King wrote the Tennessee Waltz, Slowpoke, and the Pocatello Polka,
among others. I was never able to confirm that he wrote the Tennessee
Polka.
Incidentally, I never found out what I needed to about the Tennessee
Polka. If anyone knows the lyrics for it, please let me know.
icon...@btigate.com
Toby Hanson
>didn't OSTANEK record the Tennessee Polka?
I don't know. If you (or anyone else) have any guesses as to what album
or what point in time I'd really appreciate knowing. I've been trying to
track down the Tennessee Polka for almost 8 months now.
Scott Reagan
Scott Reagan