Chico had more talent in that that one finger of his than I have in my whole body. What an enjoyment to watch him play, and what he could do to that piano. Amazing.
Watching Chico and Harpo play their instruments, I can't help noticing how their characters transform. When I watch Chico here, he has the look of a very playful child who also happens to be a virtuoso pianist. And when I watch Harpo's harp scenes, it amazes me that his face takes on a look of very strict seriousness that's the opposite of his normal mugging.
Harpo had this to say about the Harpo who appears on screen: "When he's chasing a girl across the screen it's him. When he sits down to play the harp, it's me. Whenever I touched the strings of the harp, I stopped being an actor."
@@ClaudiusPunchinello that's such a beautiful quote. I have a Mario Lanza Christmas album and on one of the songs, I believe it was Guardian Angels, it says under the personnel, Harpo Marx on harp.
Ma rv el es, lov agen i gen mere Vhu haven i his fingers vith mi so i cut take them frem når jeg vil så jeg igen kan høre dem på ny igennem jeg falder i staver hvær gang de i tv å bare se igen og kan ikke lade fingreneź tak familie.
Harpo Marx playing the harp is like floating on a cloud of music. Entertainers like these will always live.... no matter how long ago they died. Genuine talent with some very serious study behind it will always be recognized and appreciated by those of us who admire and encourage not just quantity, but most definitely..quality.
the Marx brothers were the most talented and gifted comedians and entertainers of all time. no one can never replicate these geniuses in a thousand life time...ever.
Danny Reyna You are SO right. Neverteless, look out for an argentinian group called Les Luthiers, here in RU-vid. They are close. Watch "Rapsodhy in Balls" .
Anyone who plays piano or keyboard for a lifetime will be completely blown away by this gentleman’s technical ability, artistry, creativity and humor. Virtuoso and genius with a knack for serious entertainment. Oh and awesome too.
The Marx Brothers, not only the greatest team of comedic geniuses of all time, but Harpo was a great harp player...and Chico, words can't describe his piano playing. Just listen and enjoy GENIUS !!!
All 5 Marx brothers were brought up to play the piano (from when their parents first arrived in ”the land of opportunity”) and Zeppo & Chico turned out the best players👍🏻These guys are the real heart of comedy....I’ve watched those so-called ”Comedians” on TV for the last 30 years and I’ve yet to see even ONE who’s a small percentage as funny as these guys😳I pray that the Marx Brothers films are preserved forever👍🏻😊👍🏻👍🏻
@@jackstanley7901 hey now, that's not true. My parents Introduced me to the Marx brothers as a kid. It's still a near unattainable standard I hold all artists to haha. I'm 28. I also listen to soul, R&B, blues, folk, rock, psychedelic, hip hop, trap, cloud. Its just easy to get lost with all the modern techniques of making sound. Generational gaps can be easily misinterpreted.
There were The Little Rascals, Laurel and Hardy, The Three Stooges, Abbott and Costello, Gleason and Carney.... all freakin great! And then there were The Marx Brothers.... in a class of their own ❤
I remember showing a young piano-playing pal from college the piano sequence from "Go West." He had never seen the Marx Brothers before, and I just wanted to get his take on the technique since I have absolutely no idea how to play piano and wanted his viewpoint. I do not exaggerate when I say his jaw hit the floor. He told me it was the best thing he'd ever seen, especially with the apple trick. I guess that confirmed it! 🤣💖
When Roscoe Arbuckle's films were being destroyed in spite, Buster Keaton saved and hid some of them for us. They were found in the wall of his Hollywood home during a renovation . And true enough, it won't be heaven....... without these guys.
The man was an absolute genius when it came to the piano he had impeccable timing and was a grandiose of the instrument.. he would be in the top five ever
Think it was in the book, "Why A Duck?," that Chico said he practiced the piano by soaking his hands in bowl of warm water! That's all, no keyboard practice, just a warm-up session I guess you could say.
I'm a street musician, with the increase of ignorance and arrogance, I found myself using comedy a lot more. Viewing Chico, and Victor Borge is motivating.
I know that he is not alive anymore I am also a pure master of piano There is this song called triple baka Baka means stupid it's in Japanese and yes there is a piano version of triple baka
Brilliant musician. AND hilarious. Interesting how the people standing by the keyboard - usually gorgeous women or kids - are so fixated on his hands as they do their magic. Wish I'd been there.
His famous pistol-shot technique! He learned piano from a man who only mastered one hand and taught that hand to Chico who was left to teach Arthur (Harpo) that one hand! Harpo knew two songs "Love me an the World Is Mine and Waltz Me Around Again Willie“ so he got jobs, age 12, playing piano in saloons, where they kicked him out as soon as they realized he only had two songs! But he was a genius who attracted many harpists who he hoped would teach him better technique, but they just watched him in awe and left!
Always looked forward to seeing a film starring the Marx Bros.For me they were the funniest movies of them all back in the 1940s.Chico was an exceptional pianiist & these movie clips are a delight to.listen to.
That's what Trip Tucker-Chief Engineer of "Enterprise" should have had on movie night! Even a Vulcan like T'Pol could have appreciated his fine playing and Phlox would've loved it.
Keith Moon said that Chico was his inspiration and that he wanted to be as entertaining on drums as Chico was on piano. When you watch these performances, it makes total sense.
truly amazing talent......the essence of piano.......its not all about pomp and fourths and fifths its about communication......and captivation.........he succeeds admirably......
The way they were able to maintain a comedic theatrical presence while belting out these intricate tunes is just mind blowing. Chico was like the Eddie Van Halen of the Marx Bros.
Love the Marx Brothers...as a kid in the 50s and 60s, Groucho was unbelievable, but my favorite part was always Harpo playing his harp. It was other-worldly. My dad, who played piano, told me that Chico didn't practice/rehearse. He just soaked his hands in warm water for 20 minutes....
Whenever the Marx Bros. play music they have smiles on their faces. Just like me when I listen to music - always w/ a smile. Love the fact that they also have the most beautiful women for audiences, but also loved playing for kids. I always envied people capable of playing keyboard, as it has confounded me and all of my thumbs.
Never noticed this before - it looks like every piece he plays is either in C major or A minor (white keys with the occasional accidental or ornament). Makes sense if it was true he was self-taught. Thanks for uploading - would love to see a similar compilation of all Harpo's harp playing!
Genius doesn't even begin to describe the Marx brothers. Liberace, eat your heart out, if you were still alive. No fancy costumes, no glitz, no glamour, just enormous talent. The first movie I ever recall seeing was a Marx brothers movie. I'm so proud of that.
His daughter Maxine was my friend and commercial acting coach for many years in NYC...played the piano ( basically just touched the keys) that was in his Hollywood home forty years...then, in Maxine's apartment on the upper west side in Manhattan for many years....to her memory and her incredibly talented father and uncles...thanks again Maxine....love, Keith
I saw his daughter in a documentary many years ago. She said of her father's charm something like "if he wanted you to love him, you loved him". You can see that in these clips.
According to Chico's daughter, he was a very loving dad and a fun-loving, carefree, easygoing kind of guy who always smiled and laughed and friendly with everyone.
@susantuttle1160 he might have had problems with gambling, but in documentaries about Marx brothers, gambling looks like the way to make important connections and meet influential people. So gambling was something common among artistic people.
Marx Brothers were true artists, not only comedians, cause they came from years and years of Vaudeville. Groucho tells in his biography how was hard to travel across America in the 10's and the 20's. From the smallest audience in lost towns, facing the early failure; to the great success of the show "i'll say she is" that brought them to Broadway. So they were ready for Hollywood where their fame become wordwide.
And have you noticed how the word "entertainer" seems to no longer exist and it's even dieing a slow death on Broadway. Eventually it'll be a forgetting word and the word "entertaining" is hardly used. The words that took over these words are "performer" & "performing" cause nowadays the stuff out there is nothing but grade A crap.
@@opertinicy you're really missing it here. The only one you've mentioned that's an "entertainer" is Mel Brooks. The rest are still nothing more than just performers. Mel Brooks came from an era where you had to be funny, you had to be able to dance & sing, and had to be able to act. Mel Brooks did all of that plus he wrote and produced and directed. When he wrote he wrote for the movie's storyline but he also contributed with some of the songs for the movie. The worst one out of all of these is Justin Timberlake. Sure he wrote songs but if I remember right he "Co" - created, not one song he wrote was entirely him and him only. The other three have full credit as being the ones that were the only writer.
What a great compilation of some of the most enjoyable piano playing (a portion of) the world has ever seen. Cheers to the Marx Brothers for all the entertainment and laughs and their iconic breaking of many of the rules. Peace.
I would say Chico sure had his own way of playing that nobody ever to this day could copy! A pure piano GENIUS and he did it with EASE! I am blown away!
Harpo(in his bio Harpo Speaks) said Chico hated having to practice and would have preferred to be playing pinochle and gambling. Also his piano teacher didn't really know much about playing with the left hand so Chico ended up being a virtuoso with his right hand. Their early struggles are fascinating to read about.
He was not self taught. His mother wanted the boys in show biz and they could only afford lessons for Chico, being the oldest and the favourite. Chico was supposed to then teach Harpo what he learned but never did. The teacher was cheap and only knew how to play effectively with one hand so my explain Chico's odd style. Anyway, Chico HATED the lessons but mad use of them becoming a travelling musician while his brothers had theor own separate act. When their bookings accidently coincided, Chico crashed his brothers act and they decided to team up.
They really did come up in dreadful poverty; Minnie Marx was constantly on the hustle, she found Leonard (Chico) a piano teacher who was strong on the one hand (I forget which) but Chico learned one hand, Minnie had him teach Harpo who became a one-handed piano like Chico! Harpo had serious musical gifts and could play anything he got his hands one! It was said while the brothers were on the road raising hell, Minnie got a telegram from Chico and Groucho saying "Ahdie (Arthur/Harpo) wants a harp" and that is the version I hold to! Harpo fascinated legions of Harp players,
This is an excellent compilation, and it really is good quality! Thanks so much for this and for your respectful admiration of one of the world's best comedy trios. Cheers!
As a retired concert pianist I think its a shame they gave him such a crapy piano for someone of his ability,especially the first scene. Wonderful to watch him though.
I remember watching Marx Brothers movies as a kid. Happy happy happy. Then when my daughter was 5, showing them to her, at home. Watching her, she was in heaven....how could life be so gratifying and fun and funny and cool...
Chico was amazing! He always seems overshadowed by Harpo and Groucho, because they had such strong comedic personalities, but truly, what a talent he had! His piano playing is great, both as music as well as comedy. A wonderful artist.
His daughter said that when she was a kid, her mother (Chico's first wife) waited for him to come home from work, and when she heard his footsteps, her heart was racing. How passionate her mother's love for her dad.
Julie Nguyen:I wonder how Harpo & Peter Tork would have got on playing together.Peter learned to play after the hell episode of the show.He played about a dozen instruments inc keyboard.Wouldve been interesting to say the least.And with Chico of course.Brilliant musicians.