NRBQ

NRBQ is an American rock band founded in 1966. It is known for its live performances, containing a high degree of spontaneity and levity, and blending rock, pop, jazz, blues and Tin Pan Alley styles. Its members are the quartet of pianist Terry Adams, bassist Casey McDonough, guitarist Scott Ligon and drummer John Perrin. Some of the most notable members in the band's long history are bassist Joey Spampinato, guitarists Steve Ferguson and Al Anderson, and drummer Tom Ardolino.

The abbreviation "NRBQ" stands for New Rhythm and Blues Quartet (originally Quintet).

Style and influence

The band's music is a blend of styles from rockabilly to Beatles-influenced pop to Thelonious Monk-inspired jazz. They have attracted fans as diverse as Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, Elvis Costello, Keith Richards and Penn and Teller. NRBQ songs have been performed by Bonnie Raitt, Los Lobos, and Dave Edmunds, among many others. In addition, the group served as the unofficial "house band" for The Simpsons for the season 10-12 period in which NRBQ fan Mike Scully was head writer and executive producer. NRBQ allowed several of their songs to be used on The Simpsons, including "Mayonnaise and Marmalade", written specifically for the show. The band also appeared in animated form as well as on camera during the end credits to perform the show's theme song during the episode "Take My Wife, Sleaze" as well as Edmunds' cover of "Me & The Boys". The band also recorded a song entitled "Birdman" for an episode of Space Ghost Coast to Coast entitled "Pilot". The group appeared in feature films, including Day of the Dead, Shakes the Clown, and 28 Days. Their song "Down in My Heart" was featured in the series finale of Wilfred.

Couesnophone

The couesnophone, also known as the goofus or queenophone, is a free-reed musical instrument resembling a saxophone. Its reeds vibrate when the desired keys are activated and the player blows through a tube. French manufacturer Couesnon was awarded the patent no. 569294 in 1924 for an instrument that was described as a saxophone jouet (fr. "toy saxophone"). However, the couesnophone is a polyphonic instrument, while the saxophone is monophonic.

Playing the couesnophone

The couesnophone may be held like a saxophone or like a melodica (horizontally), given that the mouthpiece consists of a rubber tube that allows both positions. The keys are set in a layout similar to that of the Hohner early (proper – see ) melodicas, i.e. in two parallel rows: one corresponds to the white keys of a piano keyboard, while the other comprises the black keys.

Performers

The couesnophone was introduced in jazz music by bass saxophonist and vibraphonist Adrian Rollini. The term "goofus" might have been coined by jazz musicians.

Goofus (song)

"Goofus" is a 1930 popular song with music written by Wayne King and William Harold and lyrics by Gus Kahn.

Popular cover versions

Les Paul recorded the song in 1950 and his version was released by Capitol Records as catalog number 1192. The record first reached the Billboard charts on September 29, 1950, peaking at number 21.

Phil Harris released his version on October 13, 1950. It was released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20-3968. The other side of the release, The Thing. became the hit but the matrix number of Harris' single shows Goofus as the A-side. Chet Atkins recorded "Goofus" in 1960 for the studio album Chet Atkins' Workshop, RCA Victor catalog LSP-2232.

The Carpenters version

The Carpenters attempted to repopularize the song in 1976, when it was released as a single from their album A Kind of Hush. However, as a sign of the duo's declining popularity at the time, it was the first Carpenters A-side single since "Ticket to Ride" in 1970 to fail to make the top 40 portion of the Billboard Hot 100, or to reach either #1 or #2 on the Easy Listening chart.