More Stories of the Norwegian Army

I will admit that the Norwegian Army Band - North (to distinguish it from the four other Norwegian Army Bands) was a lot of fun. They are very good, even in a ship rocking so hard that our beers were sliding off the tables. How they could read music and blow into their instruments and not…well, you know, I’m just amazed. They did several concerts over two days. By far the best was the one of Herb Albert tunes. Oh, yes. I have a fondness for Herb Albert because it was the one guy that my parents loved to play records of that I remember from my youngest childhood. There is also a good name associative memory about his Tijuana Brass Band and my college escapades across the border. In a close second were the four percussionists who did a mini concert. They started with what was obviously a Grateful Dead/Hart/Kruetzmann inspired bit of Drumz. Obviously. And I’m sure that I was the only one who got it. Then a stupendous marimba piece that surpassed any expectations of what the marimba could sound like. I was in awe of this marimba playing. Finally the best piece: the four men sat down at a table with a fork and knife in their hands and proceeded with a very humorous piece called “Meatloaf” where they rhythmically demanded their plate of meatloaf through stomping and playing the forks and knives like Artis plays his spoons. In fact, considering they were lacking any spoons, I just thought this would have been the perfect place for Artis to appear and complete the scene. These guys would have brought a smile to his face.

Their final late night concert was a lot of Gershwin and Nat King Cole and Norwegian composers I, of course, never heard of. Flowers, cheers, stomping of feet and a rousing encore in a room much too small for the heavy drums and loud brass. And, damn, if they aren’t the best looking brass and woodwind band I’ve ever seen. Norwegians aren’t exactly the most congenial folks I’ve met in my travels around the world, but they are among the best looking.