Play that same song.

November 30, 2011 8:26 AM

For a band that doesn't exist, Figrin D'an and the Modal Nodes's song "Mad About Me" -- more widely known as "Cantina Band" or "Mos Eisley Cantina Theme" -- has received a fair share of interesting covers. Like a ragtime piano duet. Or on harp. Or the Chapman Stick. (The what?)
posted by griphus (26 comments total)

The ragtime duet is filthy cool.
posted by jquinby at 8:36 AM on November 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

or on a Moog synth!
posted by BishopFistwick at 8:42 AM on November 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

The ragtime duet is very good, but it's kind of cheating to have two people playing it.
posted by koeselitz at 8:43 AM on November 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

And the kid on harp... Geekdom will survive!
posted by IAmBroom at 8:45 AM on November 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

koeselitz, does "duet" mean something different in ragtime than in other musical styles?
posted by IAmBroom at 8:46 AM on November 30, 2011

Well, 'ragtime' means playing two rhythms across each other. It's a lot easier when there are two people to play the different rhythms. And it looks like neither of them are using more than one hand most of the time, or shouldn't be anyway.

I think I'm mostly challenging myself; this is the kind of thing I'd like to be able to play on my own. Either way, it is awesome, and thanks for the post full of great music. It's a lot of fun. I'd like to know a bit about the actual musicians who first composed / played this piece, in fact.
posted by koeselitz at 9:01 AM on November 30, 2011

It just couldn't remain "the cantina band song" could it?
posted by Legomancer at 9:07 AM on November 30, 2011

Sigh. Figrin D'an and his group were only passable, even before everybody jumped on the Tatooine Hipster bandwagon and the scene went sideways.

For my credits, early Max Rebo Band tracks (despite their eventual fame) make the biths look like a load of bantha pudu.
posted by Celsius1414 at 9:08 AM on November 30, 2011 [7 favorites]

Sigh. Figrin D'an and his group were only passable, even before everybody jumped on the Tatooine Hipster bandwagon and the scene went sideways.

I first read about them in Moisture Vaporator.
posted by Faint of Butt at 9:18 AM on November 30, 2011 [7 favorites]

I really feel like this needs to be played in the style of Chico Marx. Of course, Harpo could probably have managed a pretty decent version himself.
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 9:22 AM on November 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

And the kid on harp... Geekdom will survive!

Although it may not breed.
posted by howfar at 9:31 AM on November 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

The ragtime link led me to this, which is extraordinary.
posted by saladin at 9:37 AM on November 30, 2011 [4 favorites]

That piece was in a book of popular music adapted for clarinet that I had when I was in middle school. It sounded pretty good, and I always thought it was a cool inclusion.
posted by dlugoczaj at 9:40 AM on November 30, 2011

Wait! They called the genre 'jizz' music? As in 'there was hot jizz in the air the first time Luke met Han and Chewie'?

Ah well. Let them call it jizz.
posted by howfar at 9:48 AM on November 30, 2011 [3 favorites]

It's worth mentioning that Lucas termed this genre of music 'jizz'.
posted by codacorolla at 9:49 AM on November 30, 2011

Worth mentioning twice, even!
posted by codacorolla at 9:51 AM on November 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

The Return of the Jedi novelization introduced the term "jizz-wailer" to describe a musician...

wat
posted by jquinby at 9:53 AM on November 30, 2011

However, it's more likely that Hasbro did not want the term, synonymous with semen, on a toy package.

oh no not again
posted by griphus at 9:54 AM on November 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

OMG that harp rendition. All that chromatic work is crazy hard on a pedal harp, ah tell you whut. Finger snaps and golf claps for that kid.

glissando!
posted by LMGM at 10:01 AM on November 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

After looking around on Youtube a bit, I can say that as far as piano versions of this song go, this is really how it's done.
posted by koeselitz at 10:21 AM on November 30, 2011 [4 favorites]

I get really excited at this kind of talent. I would make an awesome groupie if I weren't an old boring married lady.
posted by theredpen at 10:31 AM on November 30, 2011

Bea Arthur version.
posted by JHarris at 10:34 AM on November 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

Although the exact etymology is disputed, the word "jazz" might, in fact, stem from "jism". So maybe Lucas wanted to reference the term's spunky historical roots.
posted by mr.ersatz at 10:37 AM on November 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

I don't think it was specifically Lucas that introduced that term though. Other authors wrote all the short stories for Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina and another guy wrote the novelization of Return of the Jedi
posted by Deflagro at 11:54 AM on November 30, 2011

I've been fond of the way Ash covers this song for quite a while.
posted by hippybear at 4:04 PM on November 30, 2011

That Ash version is pretty good, and would be even better live now they're back to a four-piece (although who knows how long for). Needs a fuller sound for maximum fun (and Charlotte Hatherley's always been a better guitarist than Tim Wheeler anyway, no disrespect).
posted by howfar at 7:24 PM on November 30, 2011