songs: Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da, Lady Madonna, Hey Jude, Can't Buy Me Love, Let it Be, Yesterday
performer: White Day
White Day is a long-running group headed by accordionist Valery Semin. I can't find out much more than what's at their website, but these clips are simply amazing. I'm not sure what to call it - Cossack Swing? Certainly a blend of traditional Russian music (and instrumentation, with the balalaika and domra) and jazz, with maybe a bit of bluegrass in there as well.
Beyond the wonderful arrangements and musicianship, they are fun to watch; Semin is in a constant state of ecstasy while he plays, and shares loving expressions with his bandmates when they solo. The balalaika player always gets this "who me?" look on his face when Semin looks at him. The woman wearing her percussion is wild too. You almost don't notice the subdued bass player, except that he's apparently also a 4-star Brigadier Bellhop.
In this first clip (skip to 0:30 to avoid intro stuff), they do Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da, Lady Madonna, Hey Jude, and Can't Buy Me Love:
Next they do Let it Be and Yesterday:
And here's the first set again, in another live performance (with a different balalaika player); the baffled/delighted looks in the audience are priceless:
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