- Ruth Adams and the World's Most Dangerous Polka Band
Ruth Adams and the World's Most Dangerous Polka Band are a
senior citizen polka duet who use a rotation of four different drummers. Adams founded the group in 1974, with Joe Hayden joining in 1996. They received national attention when they appeared on the short-livedComedy Central series "Let's Bowl ". [cite news | last =Acosta| first =Belinda| title =TV Eye| work =Austin Chronicle | date =2002-03-29 | url =http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/column?oid=oid%3A85431| accessdate =2008-01-17 ]The group consists of Adams on accordion, accompanied by Hayden on trumpet and lead vocals, with the rotation of drummers using a simple
snare drum andhigh-hat percussion setup. Al Ophus was the full-time percussionist until his death in 2003 at the age of 88. [cite news | last =Zavoral| first =Nolan| title =Al Ophus, 88, dies; he was longtime drummer at Nye's (Obituary)| work =Minneapolis Star-Tribune | date =2003-04-07 | format =reprint| url =http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-99769566.html| accessdate =2008-01-17 ] His drums are now on display at theMinnesota Historical Society . [cite web| title =News| work =World's Most Dangerous Polka Band | date =2003-08-12 | url =http://www.wmdpb.com/news.htm| accessdate =2008-01-17]According to the band's website, they play "a mix of
Polkas , Waltz's [sic] , Foxtrots [sic] , Country, Latin, and a littleDixieland ." During their "Let's Bowl" appearances, Adams and company played suggestive polka tunes like "She Smoked My Cigar" and "I Told Her No".They got their start, [cite web| last =Jones| first =Chris| title =The Best Bar in America| work =Esquire| date =
2006-10-01 | url =http://www.esquire.com/features/esquire-100/ESQ1006BESTBARS_147?src=syn&mag=esq&dom=msn&con=art&link=rel| accessdate =2008-01-17] and still play every Friday and Saturday, at Nye's Polonaise (better known as Nye's Polka Lounge) in northeastMinneapolis . [cite web| last =Esswein| first =Patricia Mertz| title =#2 Minneapolis-St. Paul| work =Kiplinger Letter| year =2006| month =June| url =http://www.kiplinger.com/features/archives/2006/05/minneapolis.html | accessdate =2008-01-17]References
External links
* [http://www.wmdpb.com The World's Most Dangerous Polka Band Official site]
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* [http://www.dangerouspolkafilms.com/trailer.html "The World's Most Dangerous Polka Band" trailer]
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