Fenway Park’s organist shares all the song requests he played during the 2017 season
"Having the best job sometimes means having the weirdest job."
Now that Red Sox season has come to a close, Fenway Park will be a little quieter than usual in the coming months. Not only will the ballpark be taking a break from hearing fans belt “Sweet Caroline,” but it also will be without the many tunes from longtime organist Josh Kantor.
Kantor shared a list of all the Twitter song requests he played during Boston’s home games this past season. The most popular band was by far the Beatles, with 11 songs played. Six artists and groups —Bruce Springsteen, David Bowie, Green Day, Hall & Oates, The Mountain Goats, and Talking Heads — all had their tracks played four times.
The Allman Brothers, The Cure, Michael Jackson, Billy Joel, Elton John, The Killers, Van Morrison, Phish, and The Who are among those that each nabbed three renditions on the pipes.
Six television shows — Curb Your Enthusiasm, Game of Thrones, Gravity Falls, Mystery Science Theater 3000, The Office, and The Greatest American Hero — had their themes played, as did two movies — A League of Their Own and Pee-wee’s Big Adventure.
Other highlights include Rilo Kiley’s “A Better Son/Daughter,” which was played on Mother’s Day no less, Gene Kelly’s “Singin’ in the Rain,” and They Might Be Giants’ “Birdhouse in Your Soul.” Interesting enough, Kantor revealed on Twitter that he has not played “Sweet Caroline,” Park’s beloved eighth-inning ballad in over 12 years.
According to the organist, he plays an average of 25-30 songs per game, and roughly 5-10 of those are requests. Kantor also noted that half of the requested melodies are unfamiliar.
Here’s the full list of tunes:
https://twitter.com/jtkantor/status/917889511610339329
