Topsham musician Ronald Cloutier plays his accordion three days a week in front of Brackett’s Market in Bath. Paul Bagnall / The Times Record

Some days, walking up to Brackett’s Market IGA in downtown Bath, the dulcet tones of old but often familiar songs hit your ear.

Ronald E. Cloutier, 89, has been playing accordion in front of the downtown market three days a week for the past eight or nine years.

The lifelong Topsham resident takes tips in a battered accordion case.

“Nowadays, you don’t hear much of the old songs anymore,” Cloutier said. “I like the old songs, and people come by, and they seem to like the old songs, so if I don’t play them, they won’t hear them.”

He thinks no one writes beautiful songs after the turn of the century. Cloutier plays songs to brighten people’s days as they navigate a crazy world, as he puts it. He also plays requests, about half a dozen per day.

Some of his most requested songs are The Beatles “Hey Jude,” Simon and Garfunkel’s “Sound of Silence” and Frédéric Chopin’s “No Other Love” (Etude in E). Cloutier also covers songs from the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s.

Cloutier believes towns have personalities, and Bath’s character has a pleasant outlook on life and has been present since the 1940s. He remembers his mother, Dorothy Cloutier, used to come to Bath to shop at Renys in the 1940s.

“That’s the way people are down here, just like that, they are friendly and want to talk,” Cloutier said. “This town is unlike any other town I have seen in my life.”

Cloutier got interested in the accordion when his neighbor across the street came over to play for him and his siblings. Between 1953 and 1954, Cloutier was introduced to a friend of his neighbors who lived in Brunswick who would let Cloutier rent his “little red accordion” for $5 per month, which he could not play anymore because he had arthritis. However, he still showed Cloutier the different notes and how to make music.

Cloutier said the accordion is almost like a mini orchestra, with the buttons serving as the base notes and the keyboard acting as a piano.

“There will be different cords and rhythm, and before you know it, you play beautiful songs that sound pretty good,” Cloutier said.

Cloutier also plays religious hymns, such as “What a Friend We Have in Jesus,” “Amazing Grace” and “Onward, Christian Soldiers.” He said the hymns from the 1900s never change, and he believes they will never grow old.

When Cloutier married Marsha in 1960, the song “Ave Maria” was played at his wedding. It is one of Cloutier’s favorite songs. He was married to her for 30 years until she passed away from complications with cancer. Cloutier remembers Marsha liked to hear him play “Finlandia (This is my song).”

Ronald Cloutier (right) plays songs on his accordion as customers enter and exit from Brackett’s Market in Bath Friday, Aug. 16. Paul Bagnall / The Times Record

Sometimes, Cloutier brings some of his painting prints of scenic seashores like Bailey Island to sell. Each print is on photo paper.

“Ron has been a fixture here for many, many years,” said Kimberly Brackett, co-owner of Brackett’s Market since 1996. “Being an accordion player is very unusual, and people seem to love him.”

Brackett’s family has Italian heritage, and she said she hadn’t heard an accordion since childhood. With his playing and singing, Cloutier brought a portion of her childhood back. Another musician at Brackett’s Market is Freddy Morse, who plays guitar in front of Brackett’s Market on certain days.

“Because people have seen Ron and Fred here, I think it gives people that feeling of coming home,” Brackett said.