Usually, the accordion takes about as much heat as a Christmas fruitcake … and, as a jazz instrument, may be reminiscent of the first guy who looked at a lobster and thought, “Food!” But Art Van Damme changed all that. He dared go where no man had gone before, and became known as “the hippest cat ever to swing an accordion.” Evidence his treatment of Durham and Battle’s Topsy, with his quintet in 2004 during the annual TIM Festival. With Art playing accordion, Steve Homan on guitar, Jon Ericksen on vibes, Rich DeLabio playing drums, and John Witalla on bass, they dazzled the Brazilian audience with their gentle, yet swinging sound.