Asia Minor
“Asia Minor” is a 1961 instrumental recording by Jimmy Wisner (operating under the name Kokomo so as to not alienate his jazz fans).[2] It is a rock and roll adaptation of Edvard Grieg‘s “Piano Concerto in A Minor“, using shellac on the hammers of a cheap piano so as to induce a honky-tonk sound.[3] He was turned down by 10 labels and had to release the track on his own label Future Records.[1] The song became a hit, reaching No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100[4] and No. 35 on the UK Singles Chart,[5] despite having been banned by the BBC,[1] which at the time refused airplay for music found to violate various standards, including pieces deemed to “[distort] melody, harmony and rhythm”.[6]
