Frankie Yankovic

Frankie Yankovic earned recognition as America’s undisputed Polka King by spreading polka music more widely than any other solo performer, and his career continues to function as the standard against which every subsequent polka artist is judged. He became the first polka musician to achieve a million-selling single with the 1948 release “Just Because,” the first to appear on television, and the first to receive a Grammy for Best Polka Album upon the category’s introduction in 1985. By performing the majority of his material in English, Yankovic updated the Central and Eastern European folk-dance tradition for listeners across the United States, extending its reach past the immigrant enclaves that had sustained it. His approach featured a livelier rhythm than the conventional brass-dominated “oom-pah” format, largely because he preferred streamlined instrumentation that regularly incorporated banjo, electric organ, and dual accordions. While most accordionists remained seated during performances owing to the instrument’s weight and bulk, the vigorous Yankovic stood throughout lengthy sets and moved in time with the music. His upbeat demeanor aligned perfectly with polka’s friendly, unpretentious energy, allowing audiences to identify with him immediately. The tunes most closely linked to Yankovic have become enduring standards within the style, and no other musician’s name remains as closely tied to the genre; he shared no family connection with Weird Al.

Born on July 28, 1915, in the modest logging community of Davis, WV, where numerous recent Slovenian immigrants resided, including his parents, Yankovic relocated suddenly with his family to Cleveland after local officials uncovered his father’s liquor bootlegging. There Mr. Yankovic took employment as a crane operator, later established a hardware store, and operated a boarding house for other Slovenians. One boarder, accordionist Max Zelodec, made a strong impression on the young Frankie. At nine years old Yankovic began lessons with Zelodec on the button accordion and advanced to the piano accordion at sixteen. He promptly assembled his own polka ensemble and, beginning in 1932, appeared regularly on a local Slovenian radio broadcast that expanded his regional visibility. After rejections from both Columbia and RCA in 1938, Yankovic issued a 78 rpm disc on his own Yankee label under the name Slovene Folk Orchestra to limit potential damage if the record failed. The release succeeded locally, leading to a second self-issued and self-distributed recording the following year.

Demand for Yankovic’s group remained strong throughout Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan at clubs, weddings, and additional gatherings. In 1941 he opened his own bar, enabling the band to perform closer to home and spend additional time with relatives while also providing a gathering place for local polka players. Yankovic enlisted in 1943 and recorded several sides during leave before shipping out to Europe. He participated in the Battle of the Bulge, where frostbite threatened his hands and feet with amputation; he overcame the ensuing gangrene, earned a Purple Heart, and returned to his bar and ensemble. Johnny Pecon joined as a key contributor, supplying vocal harmonies alongside Yankovic and playing second accordion.

Columbia reversed its prior decision and offered Yankovic a contract in 1946. The following year he received the title America’s Polka King at a Milwaukee competition. In 1948 he scored a substantial nationwide success with “Just Because,” a gold-certified version of a little-known country number the Shelton Brothers had cut in the mid-1930s. Its successor, “Blue Skirt Waltz,” also sold briskly in 1949 after Mitchell Parish supplied English lyrics to a traditional Bohemian melody. Early in the 1950s Yankovic brought the band to Hollywood, where they collaborated with Doris Day and filmed several short Universal features highlighting their live presentation. He remained with Columbia through the 1950s and into the late 1960s, committing to disc many of the style’s signature pieces, among them “Beer Barrel Polka,” “Who Stole the Keeshka?,” “Too Fat Polka,” “Hoop De Doo,” “Champagne Taste and a Beer Bankroll,” and “In Heaven There Is No Beer.” His ensemble, the Yanks, experienced constant personnel turnover because the demanding schedule—frequently entailing automobile travel to as many as 300 engagements annually—typically exhausted musicians within a few years and kept them separated from their families.

At the height of his popularity Yankovic prevailed in a Milwaukee battle of the bands against Duke Ellington and hosted polka variety programs broadcast in Cleveland, Chicago, and Buffalo during the early 1960s. In 1962 he engaged thirteen-year-old Chicago accordion prodigy Joey Miskulin, who rapidly became a central figure in the group, later contributing songwriting, arranging, and production while staying with Yankovic through the remainder of his career. After twenty years at Columbia, Yankovic transferred to RCA in 1968 and subsequently recorded for several independent labels. He issued his autobiography in 1977, and the 1985 album 70 Years of Hits captured the inaugural Grammy awarded in the polka category; he was likewise the first inductee into the Polka Music Hall of Fame.

Compelled by advancing age to perform seated, Yankovic declared his retirement in 1994 yet reconsidered and continued appearing for three additional years, including a tour alongside rising polka artist Walter Ostanek. He also kept recording for Cleveland International, which issued the widely noted Songs of the Polka King, Vol. 1 in 1996. The collection included guest appearances by Weird Al Yankovic, Cleveland comedian Drew Carey, country figures Chet Atkins, Cowboy Jack Clement, and Riders in the Sky, interpreting Yankovic classics. The 1997 sequel, Vol. 2, featured Clement, David Allan Coe, and Don Everly among others; both volumes earned Grammy nominations. Health issues intensified, however, and after a fall at his New Port Richey, FL, residence near Tampa in 1998, Yankovic died several days later on October 14.