AS/PMA Discography: Vandalia

Vandalia
Vandalia Records, Route 2, Box 32, (Quaker Street,) Vandalia MI 49095; (616) 476-2110

William Howard Arpaia understood song-poem music. Realizing that the song-poem companies he was hiring to record his songs weren't about to do a thing with them beyond the bare-bones stipulations spelled out in their contracts, Arpaia used these song factories to do what they were best at: cut inexpensive but presentable demos from the material he sent them. Being a do-it-yourself guy to begin with, he would take care of the rest on his own. Over a brief but brilliant flare of creativity in the late 1970s, he commissioned dozens of his own songs, sending his lyrics and music to a variety of different song-poem companies. He would then compile their finished master tapes, add photos and liner notes, and release the resulting records on his own Vandalia label.

The recordings Arpaia commissioned don't really qualify as true song-poems, in that he was submitting not just the lyrics but the music that would accompany them as well. This was a fairly common variation to the traditional song-poem M.O., as many of the companies' customers fancied themselves composers as well as lyricists, submitting finished songs either demo'ed on cassette or written out in some sort of musical notation. But Arpaia's submissions are still within the realm of our song-poem investigation, if only because the same musical assembly lines that were hammering out the true song-poems were rending their compressed magic upon his hybrids.

Like all great artists, William Arpaia had a clear and unique vision, and he was faithful to that vision throughout his music career. About half of his released songs are wordless polkas and marches, which display more vitality than variety. They are fun to listen to, but it is with his pop songs that his work stands out. Arpaia's lyrics are little explosions of malapropped imagination, with twists of phrase that are like no one else's.

Most of his five albums proudly trumpet Arpaia on the front cover as "Composer -- Lawyer -- Quipster," with an appropriate photo to illustrate each (a)vocation. Back covers would add more photos, focusing both on his quirkily-designed vegetable gardens and his years in the U.S. Navy during World War II. The liner notes cumulatively spell out his life story, which is a doozy. Suffice to say that William H. Arpaia endured more than enough trauma for one lifetime. Along with the liner notes came miscellaneous texts, such as the bromide-like "quips" of which he was so proud.

aside: Arpaia sent out legal-sized lists of some of these quips as part of his promotional materials. Ace field rep Michael Greenberg recently located a couple of these, "Quip Sheets" 12 and 13, which had been packaged with a comment card for DJs to fill out and return to him:
Quip Sheet 12 Quip Sheet 13 Comment Card

Vandalia also released a number of singles, mostly songs pulled from the albums. Arpaia's most important composition, however, does not appear on any LP. One of two recordings he sang himself, "Listen Mister Hat" is a charmingly cantankerous rap in which he enumerates the ills of the modern world. As protest, it is about as convincing as "The Beat Goes On," but its oblique wording and anachronistic sound make for a once-in-a-lifetime listening experience. "They Won't Go Away" (recorded in two different versions), "I'm A Catastrophe" and "Come To Jolly Jacks & Root-A-Toot" head the long list of other Arpaia favorites.

When you get to the liner notes, be aware that we've made every effort to match the spelling, punctuation, etc. to the way Arpaia had them originally on his albums. Exacting English was not his strong suit, but we sure wouldn't feel right correcting him. His ability to take the language and make it his own is a big part of what we love about the work of William H. Arpaia.

-- Singles --

100: The Melodists (vocal by Ella Mae Jones) -- Sunset On The Sea / The Melodists (vocal by Dick Lee) -- The Ting-A-Ling Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
101: The Fleur-De-Lis Five (vocal by Sonny Marcell) -- Annie, You Broke Me Up / The Melodists (vocal by Dick Lee) -- The Blue Bonnet Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
102: The Fleur-De-Lis Five (vocal by Sonny Marcell) -- Come To Jolly Jacks & Root-A-Toot / The Poachers -- The Pie In The Sky Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
103: The Melodists (vocal by Dick Lee) -- Open Up The Doorway / The Poachers -- The Michigan Lottery Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
104: The Babylonians (vocal by Sonny Marcell) -- Inch By Inch Your Days Will Climb / The Poachers (vocal by Rod Rivers) -- The Tattle-Tale Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
105: The Babylonians (vocal by Sonny Marcell) -- On That Hill / The Poachers (vocal by Rod Rivers) -- The Sousie-Lou Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
106: The Jerrymanders (vocal by Wm. H. Arpaia) -- Listen Mister Hat / The Jerrymanders (instrumental) -- The Grand Ball March (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
108: The Babylonians (vocal by Lance Hill) -- Jumbo / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Lady Bird Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
109: The Melodists -- Lovely ... Lovely ... You / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Wall Street Journal March (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
110: The Babylonians (vocal by Damita) -- You My Heart Invade / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Devil May Care March (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
111: The Babylonians (vocal by Damita) -- I Am Blue Over You / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Story Book Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
112: The Babylonians (vocal by Lance Hill) -- Me As Jack And You As Jill / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Milestone March (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
113: The Babylonians (vocal by Lance Hill) -- Watch Your Step Now ... You All / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Big John Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
114: The Melodists (vocal by Linda Hughes) -- They Won't Go Away / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Hillhouse High School March (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
115: The Babylonians (vocal by Lance Hill) -- Lizzie / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Cherry Pie Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
116: The Babylonians (vocal by Lance Hill) -- Yoolee O'Day / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Ferris Wheel Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
117: The Babylonians (vocal by Lance Hill) -- I'm A Catastrophe / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Christmas March (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia) (stamped: "Nov 24 1975")
118: The Babylonians (vocal by Sonny Marcell) -- And Of You Still I Dream / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Silver Bell March (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
119: The Babylonians (vocal by Damita) -- Under The Truant Moon / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Sky Blue Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
120: Babylonians (vocal by Lance Hill) -- Marriage / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Shoe String Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
121: The Babylonians (vocal by Ernie McLean) -- When You Came Back I Knew / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Schutzen Park March (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
122: The Babylonians (vocal by Damita) -- In My Salad Days / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Bear Hug Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
124: The Babylonians (vocal by Lance Hill) -- Heaven Was Where I Had Been / The Soothsayers (vocal by Wm. H. Arpaia) -- The Flying Flag Forever (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
125: The Babylonians (vocal by Lance Hill) -- Tilly / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Jelly Roll Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
126: The Buddymacks (Myrna Parker & Morris Stewart in chorus) -- Merrily ... Happily ... / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Wedding Bells Polka (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
127: The Buddymacks (vocal by Myrna Parker) -- I Am In Your Spell / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Dowagiac School Day March (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia)
129: The Babylonians (vocal by Ernie McLean) -- On Account Of You Because / The Red Snappers (instrumental) -- The Cassopolis Parade Day March (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia; © 1976)
130: The Legal Defense -- Ting-A-Ling / The Disco Stomp (both wr. Wm. Howard Arpaia) (1978; both are disco instrumentals)

Arpaia also had several singles on the Windy-City label.

-- Albums --

Vandalia 1001: The Arpaia Sound
Ella May Jones: Sunset On The Sea
Damita: Your Love's Clay
Lance Hill: Jumbo
Damita: You My Heart Invade
Damita: I Am Blue Over You
Lance Hill: Me As Jack, You As Jill
Lance Hill: Watch Your Step Now You ... You All
Frank Perry: Lovely ... Lovely You
The Jerrymanders: The Broom Hill Polka
The Jerrymanders: The Grand Ball March
The Red Snappers: The Cherry Pie Polka
The Red Snappers: The Milestone March
The Red Snappers: The Big John Polka
The Red Snappers: The Devil May Care March
The Red Snappers: The Story Book Polka
The Red Snappers: The Town & Country March
The Red Snappers: The Lady Bird Polka
(all wr. Wm. H. Arpaia)
©1976

Liner notes to The Arpaia Sound (including the story of his survival of the wreck of the U.S.A.T. Dorchester, torpedoed near Greenland in 1943)

Vandalia 1002: The Arpaia Sound II
Myrna Parker: When You Told Me No No
Sonny Marcell: Annie, You Broke Me Up
Ernie McLean: When You Came Back I Knew
Morris Stewart: Open Up The Doorway
Lance Hill: Marriage
Sonny Marcell: Come To Jolly Jacks & Root-A-Toot
Lance Hill: Yoolee O'Day
Frank Perry: You Hang Around Just With Me
The Red Snappers: The Ferris Wheel Polka
The Red Snappers: The Schutzen Park March
The Red Snappers: The Sky Blue Polka
The Red Snappers: The Wall Street Journal March
Rod Rivers: The Susie-Lou Polka
The Red Snappers: The Cassopolis Parade Day March
The Poachers: The Michigan Lottery Polka
The Red Snappers: The Dowagiac School Day March
(all wr. Wm. H. Arpaia)
©1977

Liner notes to The Arpaia Sound II (including quips)

Vandalia 1003: The Arpaia Sound III
Myrna Parker & Morris Stewart: Merrily ... Happily
Sonny Marcell: On That Hill
Damila (sic): Under The Truant Moon
Lance Hill: Lizzie
Linda Hughes: They Won't Go Away
Lance Hill: Here On This Life's Lonely Road
Myrna Parker: I Am In Your Spell
The Bandoleers: The Tiger King March
The Red Snappers: The Bear Hug Polka
The Red Snappers: The Hillhouse High School March
The Red Snappers: The Shoe String Polka
The Red Snappers: The Silver Bell March
The Red Snappers: The Charlie Horse Polka
The Red Snappers: The Bakers Dozen March
(all wr. Wm. H. Arpaia)
©1977

Liner notes to The Arpaia Sound III (including quips)

Vandalia 1004: The Arpaia Sound IV
Randall Reed: We Want Strains With Some Reserve
Randall Reed: Here Alone And Just With Me
Randall Reed: Wishing We Could Fly
Morris Stewart: Cinderella
Randall Reed: Marriage ... It Makes You A Man
Ernie McLean: On Account Of You Because
The Forerunners ... Randall Reed: The Peppermint Stick Man
The Forerunners: The Christmas Morning Waltz
The Red Snappers: The Lotus Tree Polka
The Red Snappers: The Cass County March
The Forerunners ... Randall Reed: The Blue Bonnet Polka
The Red Snappers: The Christmas March
The Forerunners ... Randall Reed: The Ting-A-Ling Polka
The Forerunners ... Randall Reed: The Flying Flag Forever
(all wr. Wm. H. Arpaia)
©1977

Liner notes to The Arpaia Sound IV (including quips, DJ responses, and a story of a deprived childhood Christmas)

Liner notes to The Arpaia Sound V (including "observational scrapes")

Affiliated labels:
Film City || Globe || Windy-City || Wolf-Tex

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