Duet croons the standards

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By MICAH MERTES / Lincoln Journal Star

The sounds coming from Iron Horse Park on this rather chilly Farmer’s Market morning are rooted in the past.

“Wheeeeen you wish upoooon a staarrr ... ”softly croons crooner Johnny Hesse, 59, as a handful of people buying pastries and jewelry stop by to listen. Hesse’s wife of 26 years, Peggy Hauschild, 56, sings alongside him. Swaying, swooning.

Johnny and Peggy are the Retromantics, a duet who perform nothing but the  standards of the ’20s, ’30s, ’40s and ’50s. From Cole Porter ditties to Disney anthems to Elvis Presley swagger, the Retromantics have got it covered.

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John Hesse, 59, sings a Cole Porter song to recorded music at the first day of the farmer's market. (Gwyneth Roberts)

John Hesse, 59, sings a Cole Porter song to recorded music at the first day of the farmer's market. (Gwyneth Roberts)

Both are lifelong singers and musicians. The duo started performing these songs 15 years ago.

Hesse was a classic rocker at the time, performing in a couple of local bands. But even then, he didn’t perform anything new, nothing written after 1971.

Around that year, he said, disco came along and, well, the world just became a darker place for a musician.

 In the early ’90s, Hauschild inherited a treasure trove of old sheet music. Hesse gave it a gander and fell in love with the “poetic lyrics and beautiful melodies” of yesteryear’s pop music. Ever since then, the classics have been the Retromantics’ niche.

“And what we found was there isn’t much of a market for that niche,” Hesse said.

Hauschild: “Well, where can we play this stuff, we asked ourselves. Well, obviously, it was the retirement centers.”

They now perform about 50 shows a year at retirement centers in the area. The gigs by no means pay the bills. The gigs barely pay for the gigs.

The Retromantics work full-time jobs to make a living. Hesse drives a delivery truck for Del Gould Meats. Hauschild works  at University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

They croon and swoon in their off hours. They croon and swoon for John and Peg.

“You’re not going to make money as a musician in Lincoln,” Hauschild said. “I mean, come on, wake up.”

Reach Micah Mertes at 473-7395 or mmertes@journalstar.com.