Earlier this year, I found this album in an antique store in the antique town of Pierceton, Indiana. At first glance, I nearly passed over it because of its non-Christmas title. However, the songs were and I added this to my pile of albums that I was preparing for the upcoming holiday season.
Then in July, our friend Bongolong at Bongolong Land offered this album as part of his "Christmas In July" celebration.
Earlier this month, Bongolong decided to create a new Christmas ONLY blog entitled Bongobells and is currently offering this album to download.
In his first three weeks, Bongo has offered 31 different albums with such diverse titles as:
"Ren & Stimpy's Crock O'Christmas" "Mae West - Wild Christmas" "Christmas In The Stars: The Star Wars Christmas Album" "Guitars Inc. - Guitars At Christmas" "Jackie Gleason - Merry Christmas"
This music box album is one of the TWELVE albums I've downloaded from his site (each one of these albums will be reviewed, I promise!).
Now...
Err...
How does one review music boxes? Do I compare alloys from the machine and the discs? Are music boxes made in Switzerland better than the ones you can get at the San Francisco Music Box Co.?
Music boxes and Christmas have long been a tradition thanks in large part to Rita Ford. Ms. Ford's passion for collecting, restoring, and repairing music boxes led her to open her famous store in New York City back in 1947.
In 1961, a clever guy from Columbia Records approached Ford and asked about recording several music boxes for Christmas. A Music Box Christmas was a HUGE smash (you've heard at least one track off this album in your lifetime) and it was followed up in 1962 with "Music Box Wonderland Christmas with Rita Ford's Music Boxes".
Suddenly, the imitation music box LPs began popping up all over the budget labels. One album in particular released by Pickwick Records (the very same label that released the album before you) even claimed the music boxes were from Rita Ford! She quickly disavowed any connection with that album and has done many other times since.
As for this album, it was released by Pickwick in 1980...
And it's chock full of music boxes playing Christmas tunes.
(nervous grin)
That's about it. Bongo, thanks for beating me to the punch with this one!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Earlier this year, I found this album in an antique store in the antique town of Pierceton, Indiana. At first glance, I nearly passed over it because of its non-Christmas title. However, the songs were and I added this to my pile of albums that I was preparing for the upcoming holiday season.
Then in July, our friend Bongolong at Bongolong Land offered this album as part of his "Christmas In July" celebration.
Earlier this month, Bongolong decided to create a new Christmas ONLY blog entitled Bongobells and is currently offering this album to download.
In his first three weeks, Bongo has offered 31 different albums with such diverse titles as:
"Ren & Stimpy's Crock O'Christmas" "Mae West - Wild Christmas" "Christmas In The Stars: The Star Wars Christmas Album" "Guitars Inc. - Guitars At Christmas" "Jackie Gleason - Merry Christmas"
This music box album is one of the TWELVE albums I've downloaded from his site (each one of these albums will be reviewed, I promise!).
Now...
Err...
How does one review music boxes? Do I compare alloys from the machine and the discs? Are music boxes made in Switzerland better than the ones you can get at the San Francisco Music Box Co.?
Music boxes and Christmas have long been a tradition thanks in large part to Rita Ford. Ms. Ford's passion for collecting, restoring, and repairing music boxes led her to open her famous store in New York City back in 1947.
In 1961, a clever guy from Columbia Records approached Ford and asked about recording several music boxes for Christmas. A Music Box Christmas was a HUGE smash (you've heard at least one track off this album in your lifetime) and it was followed up in 1962 with "Music Box Wonderland Christmas with Rita Ford's Music Boxes".
Suddenly, the imitation music box LPs began popping up all over the budget labels. One album in particular released by Pickwick Records (the very same label that released the album before you) even claimed the music boxes were from Rita Ford! She quickly disavowed any connection with that album and has done many other times since.
As for this album, it was released by Pickwick in 1980...
And it's chock full of music boxes playing Christmas tunes.
(nervous grin)
That's about it. Bongo, thanks for beating me to the punch with this one!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Jeff who? No, that's Jeffco! If you click on this link to a previous yuleblog entry, you can read the fascinating but true story of how I met Jeff Fox, my very good friend from Nepean, Ottawa and the recepient of ALL my Christmas music in the case of my untimely death.
Is that why Jeff sent those snakes on a plane? Curious.
Last week, I received an e-mail from Jeff shortly after I posted my last review of Ernie (not Bert)'s stack of CDs. The e-mail simply read:
"I hear you're done reviewing your Ernie CDs. Download at will."
One click of the mouse led me to a new page on Jeff's amazing, ever changing web site. There I discovered NINE digitalized Christmas albums available to download! Another new stack? WOW! This album you see before you is one of the seven albums I didn't already own (the others will be reviewed here, I promise!).
History lesson: The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) has been in existence since 1936 on the radio. Later in 1952, they moved over into television, giving us "Hockey Night In Canada" and "The Red Green Show" (we won't hold you responsible Jeff for the latter). If you want to read more about CBC, Wikipedia's entry covers just about everything!
Lately, the CBC hasn't performed too well thanks to private TV companies and cable & satellite companies slicing up the viewership pie. Another reason floated around is their focus on Canadian content. When "Hiking In The Manitoba Woods" is up against "Baywatch", guess which show is going to win?
Throughout the 1960s, the CBC carried a show called "Jubilee", a variety show starring Don Messer - the Canadian Lawrence Welk and produced by a talented musician & producer named Bill Langstroth. The focus was strictly music and was wildly popular across Canada.
Starting in 1962, Langstroth gave Messer the summer off and "Singalong Jubilee" was its replacement show. Similar to Mitch Miller's "Sing-Along" show, Langstroth brought together dozens of talented singers and showcased their talents in folk, country, spiritual, and pop music.
Two singers in particular soared to greater heights: the lovely Catherine McKinnon became a household name across Canada with her "voice of an angel". The other singer appeared on "Singalong Jubilee" from 1966 to 1970, introduced many of her songs on the program, went on to marry Bill Langstroth and enjoy a remarkable career: the one and only Anne Murray!
This album is quite the hootnanny! From the first notes that Bill Langstroth plucks out on his trademark banjo (Anne Murray married a banjo player?), you'll know that is album will be definitely different.
It gives the folk treatment to several tracks (the title track "It's Christmas Day" and "The Holy Baby (Children Go Where I Send Thee)" in fine Canadian fashion. Langstroth's version of "Go Tell It On The Mountain" sounds eerily like Burl Ives! Other tracks are given a standard choral treatment ("Good King Wenceslas" and "The Huron Carol").
When this album was recorded (year unknown), Catherine McKinnon was still the house singer of note and she's featured on several tracks. Does she have a "voice of an angel"? Pretty close. Her solo of "The Cherry Tree Carol" is haunting, but I preferred her other song - "Virgin Mary Had One Son" with Michael Stansbury .
If there's one standout track, it has to be by Jim Bennet, the other co-host of the show. His version of "O Tannenbaum" is quite remarkable because Bennet's voice is deep, scary, and unforgettable.
Quite a fun album! Very folky and Christmasy. Definitely Canadian! Thanks Jeff for offering this album!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Jeff who? No, that's Jeffco! If you click on this link to a previous yuleblog entry, you can read the fascinating but true story of how I met Jeff Fox, my very good friend from Nepean, Ottawa and the recepient of ALL my Christmas music in the case of my untimely death.
Is that why Jeff sent those snakes on a plane? Curious.
Last week, I received an e-mail from Jeff shortly after I posted my last review of Ernie (not Bert)'s stack of CDs. The e-mail simply read:
"I hear you're done reviewing your Ernie CDs. Download at will."
One click of the mouse led me to a new page on Jeff's amazing, ever changing web site. There I discovered NINE digitalized Christmas albums available to download! Another new stack? WOW! This album you see before you is one of the seven albums I didn't already own (the others will be reviewed here, I promise!).
History lesson: The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) has been in existence since 1936 on the radio. Later in 1952, they moved over into television, giving us "Hockey Night In Canada" and "The Red Green Show" (we won't hold you responsible Jeff for the latter). If you want to read more about CBC, Wikipedia's entry covers just about everything!
Lately, the CBC hasn't performed too well thanks to private TV companies and cable & satellite companies slicing up the viewership pie. Another reason floated around is their focus on Canadian content. When "Hiking In The Manitoba Woods" is up against "Baywatch", guess which show is going to win?
Throughout the 1960s, the CBC carried a show called "Jubilee", a variety show starring Don Messer - the Canadian Lawrence Welk and produced by a talented musician & producer named Bill Langstroth. The focus was strictly music and was wildly popular across Canada.
Starting in 1962, Langstroth gave Messer the summer off and "Singalong Jubilee" was its replacement show. Similar to Mitch Miller's "Sing-Along" show, Langstroth brought together dozens of talented singers and showcased their talents in folk, country, spiritual, and pop music.
Two singers in particular soared to greater heights: the lovely Catherine McKinnon became a household name across Canada with her "voice of an angel". The other singer appeared on "Singalong Jubilee" from 1966 to 1970, introduced many of her songs on the program, went on to marry Bill Langstroth and enjoy a remarkable career: the one and only Anne Murray!
This album is quite the hootnanny! From the first notes that Bill Langstroth plucks out on his trademark banjo (Anne Murray married a banjo player?), you'll know that is album will be definitely different.
It gives the folk treatment to several tracks (the title track "It's Christmas Day" and "The Holy Baby (Children Go Where I Send Thee)" in fine Canadian fashion. Langstroth's version of "Go Tell It On The Mountain" sounds eerily like Burl Ives! Other tracks are given a standard choral treatment ("Good King Wenceslas" and "The Huron Carol").
When this album was recorded (year unknown), Catherine McKinnon was still the house singer of note and she's featured on several tracks. Does she have a "voice of an angel"? Pretty close. Her solo of "The Cherry Tree Carol" is haunting, but I preferred her other song - "Virgin Mary Had One Son" with Michael Stansbury .
If there's one standout track, it has to be by Jim Bennet, the other co-host of the show. His version of "O Tannenbaum" is quite remarkable because Bennet's voice is deep, scary, and unforgettable.
Quite a fun album! Very folky and Christmasy. Definitely Canadian! Thanks Jeff for offering this album!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Here's a Christmas compilation that I found while on a quick blog tour I took at the end of July!
I has just enough time at the computer to putz around but not enough time to sit and do a full album review. So I let the mouse do the clicking and I came across several sharity blogs that yielded good fruit.
I found the complete "Dirty Harry" movie soundtrack and an obscure 1960s comedy takeoff on the Kennedy "First Family" comedy albums. "At Home With That Other Family" is set in Russia and we meet up with the Khruschchev's!
This tour led me to Martin Klasch's blog. A mix of music, videos, artwork, and photos with a distinct European flavor. I was hooked. I began to deep search the blog when I came across this entry.
Culled from different sources such as Red Ryder BB Gun, Planet Xtabay (now Xtabay's World), Jul Igen, FaLaLaLaLa.com, and Ernie (not Bert) (who's he?), Klasch offered this CD during Christmas 2005 and I was kicking myself for not finding it until July, 2006! I left a link request in his blog entry comments section and he promptly left a link for me in a comments section of one of my entries!
The link in question is still active so why not download it yourself?
TRACK REVIEWS:
1.) The Soulful Strings - Sleigh Ride One of the most "soulful" sleigh rides you'll ever take! A great way to start the album!
2.) Carla Thomas - Gee Whiz, It's Christmas A nice follow-up to the Soulful Strings... been a while since I've heard this one!
3.) Dick Shawn - Snow Miser "The Year Without A Santa Claus" is a bit of a bore. When this song comes on, it comes to life!
4.) Senor Tonto - Hooray For Santy Claus Shades of Petty Booka! This is one of the oddest covers of this song ever!
5.) Sy Mann - Tijuana Christmas Taken from the classic "Switched On Santa" LP. (Click on the link to get the album! Thanks Jeff!)
6.) Herman Apple - J'ai Vu Maman Embrasser Le Pere Noël (I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa) A jaw-dropping, fantastic tune! I wonder where he found this one?
7.) The Three Suns - Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer Anything from the Three Suns is damn okay in my book! Great stuff!
8.) Yngve Stoor - Sjömansjul på Hawaii A HAWAIIAN CHRISTMAS TUNE SUNG IN SWEDISH??? GREAT JUMPIN ICEBERGS! What a track!
9.) Marvin Gaye - Purple Snowflakes WOW! A rare track finally found! The Motown sound, Marvin's melodious voice, this one's a winner!
10.) Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - Christmas Time Motown and Christmas went well together and this song is a prime example. Another one I haven't heard in some time!
11.) The O'Jays - Christmas Ain't Christmas Without The One You Love This song should be played more often at Christmas. A great triple play of soul!
12.) Margret Jonsson - Snögubben Froste (Frosty The Snowman) When this song is sung in Swedish, it takes on even more charm and warmth. Very lovely!
13.) Ramsey Lewis - Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas Smoooooooooth! Ramsey only recorded a handful of Christmas tunes and this is his very best!
14.) Walter Brennan - A Good Year For Santa Claus I never really listened to the music behind Walter's ramblin' before. I have to relisten to the album again!
15.) Glen Campbell - Little Toy Trains Could this song have been the basis for "The Polar Express"? Listen to it closely...
16.) Burt Bacharach - The Bell That Couldn't Jingle The timeless sound of Bacharach takes this otherwise dull song and brings it to life!
17.) The Hollyridge Strings - Santa's Got A Brand New Bag Not exactly James Brown but it doesn't get much lush than this, folks!
18.) The San Sebastian Strings - Everyday Was Christmas EXCELLENT TUNE! The great Anita Kerr and Rod McKuen sing a great vocal over some lush strings! What album did this one come from?
19.) Julie London - I'd Like You For Christmas I just melted... Julie London has that effect on me and this one is haunting!
20.) The Hal Bradley Orchestra (with Patty Marie Jay)- Space Age Santa Claus This is the epitome of space age Christmas! Check out the great 45 cover sleeve! Looks like Martin on his cover!
21.) Peggy King - I'm Gonna Put Some Glue On The Christmas Tree Have you ever heard such a sadistic tune sung so sweetly? Krazy Glue is not to be trifled with!
22.) Claudine Longet - I Don't Intend To Spend Christmas Without You Breathy, funky, and swinging! This is a tune definitely ahead of its time! Shooting incident notwithstanding, whatever happened to Claudine?
23.) Jimmy Smith - White Christmas OUTSTANDING! I reviewed this album earlier this year and it's a classic!
24.) James Brown - Santa Claus, Go Straight To The Ghetto Not his best Christmas tune... But Soul Brother #1's weakest work is better than half of the artists on the charts today!
25.) Dinah Washington - Make Me A Present Of You GREAT JUMPING ICEBERGS! Another Dinah gem! This is too much! This may get some consideration for my own Christmas comp this year!
26.) Brian Wilson - What I Really Want For Christmas This song was just too depressing for me... Like watching an older Muhammad Ali trying to box past his prime.
27.) James Last - Christmas Medley An excellent medley of Christmas tunes... For more James Last, check out this blog!
28.) The Partridge Family - Winter Wonderland Believe it or not, it fits right in with this mix! Shirley Jones and David Cassidy swing!
29.) Gunnar Svensson & Arne Domnerus - Karl-Bertil Jonssons Julafton A smooth jazz tune that ends this incredible mix of Christmas tunes... Lovely!
It's an awesome Christmas CD. I hope this review has done it justice. Thank you Martin for sharing the CD with me (and all of us) yet again! It makes me look forward to this year's Christmas compilation from you even more.
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Here's a Christmas compilation that I found while on a quick blog tour I took at the end of July!
I has just enough time at the computer to putz around but not enough time to sit and do a full album review. So I let the mouse do the clicking and I came across several sharity blogs that yielded good fruit.
I found the complete "Dirty Harry" movie soundtrack and an obscure 1960s comedy takeoff on the Kennedy "First Family" comedy albums. "At Home With That Other Family" is set in Russia and we meet up with the Khruschchev's!
This tour led me to Martin Klasch's blog. A mix of music, videos, artwork, and photos with a distinct European flavor. I was hooked. I began to deep search the blog when I came across this entry.
Culled from different sources such as Red Ryder BB Gun, Planet Xtabay (now Xtabay's World), Jul Igen, FaLaLaLaLa.com, and Ernie (not Bert) (who's he?), Klasch offered this CD during Christmas 2005 and I was kicking myself for not finding it until July, 2006! I left a link request in his blog entry comments section and he promptly left a link for me in a comments section of one of my entries!
The link in question is still active so why not download it yourself?
TRACK REVIEWS:
1.) The Soulful Strings - Sleigh Ride One of the most "soulful" sleigh rides you'll ever take! A great way to start the album!
2.) Carla Thomas - Gee Whiz, It's Christmas A nice follow-up to the Soulful Strings... been a while since I've heard this one!
3.) Dick Shawn - Snow Miser "The Year Without A Santa Claus" is a bit of a bore. When this song comes on, it comes to life!
4.) Senor Tonto - Hooray For Santy Claus Shades of Petty Booka! This is one of the oddest covers of this song ever!
5.) Sy Mann - Tijuana Christmas Taken from the classic "Switched On Santa" LP. (Click on the link to get the album! Thanks Jeff!)
6.) Herman Apple - J'ai Vu Maman Embrasser Le Pere Noël (I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa) A jaw-dropping, fantastic tune! I wonder where he found this one?
7.) The Three Suns - Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer Anything from the Three Suns is damn okay in my book! Great stuff!
8.) Yngve Stoor - Sjömansjul på Hawaii A HAWAIIAN CHRISTMAS TUNE SUNG IN SWEDISH??? GREAT JUMPIN ICEBERGS! What a track!
9.) Marvin Gaye - Purple Snowflakes WOW! A rare track finally found! The Motown sound, Marvin's melodious voice, this one's a winner!
10.) Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - Christmas Time Motown and Christmas went well together and this song is a prime example. Another one I haven't heard in some time!
11.) The O'Jays - Christmas Ain't Christmas Without The One You Love This song should be played more often at Christmas. A great triple play of soul!
12.) Margret Jonsson - Snögubben Froste (Frosty The Snowman) When this song is sung in Swedish, it takes on even more charm and warmth. Very lovely!
13.) Ramsey Lewis - Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas Smoooooooooth! Ramsey only recorded a handful of Christmas tunes and this is his very best!
14.) Walter Brennan - A Good Year For Santa Claus I never really listened to the music behind Walter's ramblin' before. I have to relisten to the album again!
15.) Glen Campbell - Little Toy Trains Could this song have been the basis for "The Polar Express"? Listen to it closely...
16.) Burt Bacharach - The Bell That Couldn't Jingle The timeless sound of Bacharach takes this otherwise dull song and brings it to life!
17.) The Hollyridge Strings - Santa's Got A Brand New Bag Not exactly James Brown but it doesn't get much lush than this, folks!
18.) The San Sebastian Strings - Everyday Was Christmas EXCELLENT TUNE! The great Anita Kerr and Rod McKuen sing a great vocal over some lush strings! What album did this one come from?
19.) Julie London - I'd Like You For Christmas I just melted... Julie London has that effect on me and this one is haunting!
20.) The Hal Bradley Orchestra (with Patty Marie Jay)- Space Age Santa Claus This is the epitome of space age Christmas! Check out the great 45 cover sleeve! Looks like Martin on his cover!
21.) Peggy King - I'm Gonna Put Some Glue On The Christmas Tree Have you ever heard such a sadistic tune sung so sweetly? Krazy Glue is not to be trifled with!
22.) Claudine Longet - I Don't Intend To Spend Christmas Without You Breathy, funky, and swinging! This is a tune definitely ahead of its time! Shooting incident notwithstanding, whatever happened to Claudine?
23.) Jimmy Smith - White Christmas OUTSTANDING! I reviewed this album earlier this year and it's a classic!
24.) James Brown - Santa Claus, Go Straight To The Ghetto Not his best Christmas tune... But Soul Brother #1's weakest work is better than half of the artists on the charts today!
25.) Dinah Washington - Make Me A Present Of You GREAT JUMPING ICEBERGS! Another Dinah gem! This is too much! This may get some consideration for my own Christmas comp this year!
26.) Brian Wilson - What I Really Want For Christmas This song was just too depressing for me... Like watching an older Muhammad Ali trying to box past his prime.
27.) James Last - Christmas Medley An excellent medley of Christmas tunes... For more James Last, check out this blog!
28.) The Partridge Family - Winter Wonderland Believe it or not, it fits right in with this mix! Shirley Jones and David Cassidy swing!
29.) Gunnar Svensson & Arne Domnerus - Karl-Bertil Jonssons Julafton A smooth jazz tune that ends this incredible mix of Christmas tunes... Lovely!
It's an awesome Christmas CD. I hope this review has done it justice. Thank you Martin for sharing the CD with me (and all of us) yet again! It makes me look forward to this year's Christmas compilation from you even more.
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Back in June, our good friend The King Of Jingaling offered this album as part of his "Christmas And A Half" celebration (and is still available to download over at FLLLL).
Not much background is available about Gunter Kallmann online. According to SpaceAgePop.com, Kapp Records was looking for a Horst Jankowski sound-alike and searched for a German choral/instrumental group that didn't have a distribution deal in America.
Enter Kallmann. His group didn't enjoy the international success of Jankowski but they did release nine albums between 1965 and 1970 (almost two a year!).
The release date of this album has been guesstimated around 1971 and it definitely has a 70s feel. Each one of the twelve tracks on the album is a medley, fusing two or three songs into one.
This album, in a nutshell, is an experience!
The chorus sings their heart out, complete with German accents and tones. In the middle of one medley, the chorus sings the soft, reverent tones of "Silent Night", then burst into "Ding Dong Merrily On High" with all the force of an oompah band!
The orchestra swings, one moment lush and full of strings, then getting down and funky with the bassline coming across loud and clear. Throughout most of the album, the arrangements tend to favor the orchestra member on glockenspiel, chimes, or bells. It's cute at times, annoying most of the time. By the end of the album, you want to shove those bells down someone throat.
The standout track is song number one - "We Wish You A Merry Christmas / Jingle Bells / Where Did My Snowman Go?". "We Wish You" begins in a rather Teutonic way, then switches into smooth 70s mode. It then switches into a bells blazin' version of "Jingle" only to be followed by a funky cover of "Where Did My Snowman". It's a mini opera and sets the tone for the rest of the album handsomely.
Other favorite tracks on this album include "Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer / Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas", "Once In Royal David's City / The Holly And The Ivy" is an epic, "Happy Holiday / I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus", and "Mistletoe And Holly / Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow".
This type of album is the type that I strive to find while searching the vinyl bins of Fort Wayne, Indiana. Most of the time, I fall real short. It's a testament to the King Of Jingaling who keeps coming up with these amazing albums. Thanks for sharing this one!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Back in June, our good friend The King Of Jingaling offered this album as part of his "Christmas And A Half" celebration (and is still available to download over at FLLLL).
Not much background is available about Gunter Kallmann online. According to SpaceAgePop.com, Kapp Records was looking for a Horst Jankowski sound-alike and searched for a German choral/instrumental group that didn't have a distribution deal in America.
Enter Kallmann. His group didn't enjoy the international success of Jankowski but they did release nine albums between 1965 and 1970 (almost two a year!).
The release date of this album has been guesstimated around 1971 and it definitely has a 70s feel. Each one of the twelve tracks on the album is a medley, fusing two or three songs into one.
This album, in a nutshell, is an experience!
The chorus sings their heart out, complete with German accents and tones. In the middle of one medley, the chorus sings the soft, reverent tones of "Silent Night", then burst into "Ding Dong Merrily On High" with all the force of an oompah band!
The orchestra swings, one moment lush and full of strings, then getting down and funky with the bassline coming across loud and clear. Throughout most of the album, the arrangements tend to favor the orchestra member on glockenspiel, chimes, or bells. It's cute at times, annoying most of the time. By the end of the album, you want to shove those bells down someone throat.
The standout track is song number one - "We Wish You A Merry Christmas / Jingle Bells / Where Did My Snowman Go?". "We Wish You" begins in a rather Teutonic way, then switches into smooth 70s mode. It then switches into a bells blazin' version of "Jingle" only to be followed by a funky cover of "Where Did My Snowman". It's a mini opera and sets the tone for the rest of the album handsomely.
Other favorite tracks on this album include "Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer / Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas", "Once In Royal David's City / The Holly And The Ivy" is an epic, "Happy Holiday / I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus", and "Mistletoe And Holly / Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow".
This type of album is the type that I strive to find while searching the vinyl bins of Fort Wayne, Indiana. Most of the time, I fall real short. It's a testament to the King Of Jingaling who keeps coming up with these amazing albums. Thanks for sharing this one!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Last month, Ernie had a "Christmas In July" to remember. For one month at his astounding blog, he had daily downloads of winter or Christmas related songs. 31 days, 112 songs. He was averaging 3.6 songs for each day of the month.
I promised I would create a two or three CD set of all the MP3s he offered and review them here. However, Ernie beat me to the punch by offering a "Best Of" compilation disc at his blog on August 4th. It's still available to download so do yourself a favor: if you haven't downloaded it yet, download it here, and continue reading.
I felt so compelled to do something fantastic other than a ringing review. So I broke out the ArcSoft PhotoStudio and did some custom artwork which you may download to use for this CD.
And in case you're wondering, that IS our man Ernie on skis - earlier this year, he tried his hand on the slopes which cushioned his falls very handily (forgive the pun). When I put together the artwork, I figured the picture looked close enough for a "Christmas In July" celebration.
The music on this CD is superb, much like the entire month at his blog. Every track is a gem, unearthed and refined by Ernie's turntable, polished and presented the way a fine jeweler shows a potential bride to be her wedding ring. I suspect many of these fine songs will find their way onto countless Christmas compilations across the country later this year.
Here is a track by track review:
1.) Clebanoff & His Orchestra - Bobsled Did I put in an Ultra-Lounge "Christmas Cocktails" CD? This one is a ride! Hence the name, right?
2.) Ted Heath & His Music / Edmundo Ros & His Orchestra - Baby It's Cold Outside It might be cold outside but the cha-cha rhythms on this swinger will warm anyone up!
3.) Lionel Hampton - Gin For Christmas I love anything by Hamp... doesn't have a Christmasy feel, but it's a definite toe-tapper. Great riffs abound!
4.) Marty Gold & His Orchestra - High On A Windy Hill The wind sound f/x through much of this song takes away from the lush strings and arrangements.
5.) Eastman-Rochester Pops, Frederick Fennell Conducting - Brazilian Sleigh Bells Another version of this song I own (Harry James & His Orchestra) lasts about 1:00... This one is UNBELIEVABLE!
6.) Dinah Washington - I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm The big, brassy voice of Dinah makes this version of this song my favorite of all time. Smooth!
7.) Henry Mancini - Latin Snowfall Smooth to follow smooth... dim the lights, sit on the ottoman, and watch gravity pull the snowflakes down!
8.) Yuji Takizawa & His Blue Bones Orchestra - White X-mas A very Guy Lombardo sound alike orchestra from Japan... What a present! Sweet sounds!
9.) Will Glahé & His Orchestra - The Skater's Waltz I've never heard an oompah band perform this waltz before... oddly enough, it works!
10.) Esquivel & His Orchestra - Sun Valley Ski Run An Esquivel recording is like a great painting by Picasso - you'll always hear (or see) something new! One of his best.
11.) Billy Vaughn & His Orchestra - The Chipmunk Song WOW! Sounds like Mitch Miller, Ray Conniff, and JoAnn Castle all wrapped into one. Can we ditch the original for this version?
12.) Percy Faith & His Orchestra - Little Bells And Big Bells (Glocke Und Glockchen) Not a Christmas song and not very bellsy... Was hoping for more from Mr. "Theme From A Summer Place"...
13.) Lawrence Welk & His Champagne Music - The Merry Christmas Polka This song took me back to my grandmother's apartment on the north side of Chicago at Christmas... Thanks Ern!
14.) Jerry Murad's Electronic Harmonicats - March Of The Toys What starts as a parade ends as a great jam of harmonica that demands repeat hearings.
15.) Richard Hayman & His Harmonica Orchestra - Parade Of The Wooden Soldiers Harmonica follows harmonica... This is a proud parade throughout and loads of fun... Great tune!
16.) Ian Fraser & His Orchestra - Sleigh Ride For those of you who prefer slow sleigh rides, this one's for you! A very nice change of pace for this tune!
17.) Eddie Layton - Winter Wonderland A wonderful mix of organ and xylophone that bring new life to an old favorite! Sweet stuff!
18.) The Smothers Brothers - Swiss Christmas Beautifully set up by straight brother Dick and brought home in Tommy fashion by Tommy.
19.) David Rose - Christmas Tree This tree must be located by Santa's workshop because that's how it sounds like... A cool tune!
20.) Eydie Gormé - Winter Night What a voice! This is a fantastic song that WASN'T included on Steve & Eydie's Christmas album... shocking, no?
21.) Bernie Green With The Stereo Mad-Men - The Skater And His Dog This is definitely not a Christmas song but I'm glad it's hear... the spirit of Spike Jones lives on!
22.) Enoch Light & The Brass Menagerie - My Favorite Things You mean this ISN'T Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass? That's what Enoch went for and nailed perfectly! F-U-N!
23.) The Four Freshmen - Santa Claus Is Flat Gonna Come To Town I always thought the Freshmen were too cheeky... and this song proves it! Send these guys to detention.
24.) David Carroll & His Orchestra - The Ski Song (Slalom) I tried to like this one... but it's just too far busy, even for a skiing song.
25.) The Monterey Brass With Vocals By Mary Louise & The Michaels Brothers - We Need A Little Christmas More like "We Need A Little LESS Christmas"...
26.) The Three Suns - Busy Holiday Simple, bouncy, snappy. The Three Suns can do no wrong in my book. Hotcha!
27.) Six Fat Dutchmen - Sleigh Bell It's fun to start but then all sounds the same... unfortunate because this could have gone somewhere!
28.) Billy May - Snowfall Cha-Cha Wait... this one is ON a "Christmas Cocktails" CD... Do I have the right CD in?
29.) Dick Schory's New Percussion Ensemble - Holiday In A Hurry I really liked, nay LOVED this song! Doesn't that mad rush at Christmas time sound like this? Anyone?
30.) Armengol & His Orchestra - Ave Maria When I arrive at the Pearly Gates, can I request this song? It's just perfect!
31.) The Crew-Cuts - Auld Lang Syne About as clean as they come... This is a perfect way to end the CD!
Somewhere in all my entries here, I commented that I had enough CDs to review "right through the summer". Most of those reviews were about albums from Ernie (who else?) and I've had fun relistening to some, listening for the first time on others, and shaking my head at more than a few.
For all the hard work transferring the albums, for offering them at your blog, and for all the work you're going to do this year, thank you Ernie. I'm very honored to have you as a friend.
Next week, a short stack of Christmas CDs that did NOT come from Ernie... but downloaded elsewhere and even a few actual purchases! Haven't done that in a while!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Last month, Ernie had a "Christmas In July" to remember. For one month at his astounding blog, he had daily downloads of winter or Christmas related songs. 31 days, 112 songs. He was averaging 3.6 songs for each day of the month.
I promised I would create a two or three CD set of all the MP3s he offered and review them here. However, Ernie beat me to the punch by offering a "Best Of" compilation disc at his blog on August 4th. It's still available to download so do yourself a favor: if you haven't downloaded it yet, download it here, and continue reading.
I felt so compelled to do something fantastic other than a ringing review. So I broke out the ArcSoft PhotoStudio and did some custom artwork which you may download to use for this CD.
And in case you're wondering, that IS our man Ernie on skis - earlier this year, he tried his hand on the slopes which cushioned his falls very handily (forgive the pun). When I put together the artwork, I figured the picture looked close enough for a "Christmas In July" celebration.
The music on this CD is superb, much like the entire month at his blog. Every track is a gem, unearthed and refined by Ernie's turntable, polished and presented the way a fine jeweler shows a potential bride to be her wedding ring. I suspect many of these fine songs will find their way onto countless Christmas compilations across the country later this year.
Here is a track by track review:
1.) Clebanoff & His Orchestra - Bobsled Did I put in an Ultra-Lounge "Christmas Cocktails" CD? This one is a ride! Hence the name, right?
2.) Ted Heath & His Music / Edmundo Ros & His Orchestra - Baby It's Cold Outside It might be cold outside but the cha-cha rhythms on this swinger will warm anyone up!
3.) Lionel Hampton - Gin For Christmas I love anything by Hamp... doesn't have a Christmasy feel, but it's a definite toe-tapper. Great riffs abound!
4.) Marty Gold & His Orchestra - High On A Windy Hill The wind sound f/x through much of this song takes away from the lush strings and arrangements.
5.) Eastman-Rochester Pops, Frederick Fennell Conducting - Brazilian Sleigh Bells Another version of this song I own (Harry James & His Orchestra) lasts about 1:00... This one is UNBELIEVABLE!
6.) Dinah Washington - I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm The big, brassy voice of Dinah makes this version of this song my favorite of all time. Smooth!
7.) Henry Mancini - Latin Snowfall Smooth to follow smooth... dim the lights, sit on the ottoman, and watch gravity pull the snowflakes down!
8.) Yuji Takizawa & His Blue Bones Orchestra - White X-mas A very Guy Lombardo sound alike orchestra from Japan... What a present! Sweet sounds!
9.) Will Glahé & His Orchestra - The Skater's Waltz I've never heard an oompah band perform this waltz before... oddly enough, it works!
10.) Esquivel & His Orchestra - Sun Valley Ski Run An Esquivel recording is like a great painting by Picasso - you'll always hear (or see) something new! One of his best.
11.) Billy Vaughn & His Orchestra - The Chipmunk Song WOW! Sounds like Mitch Miller, Ray Conniff, and JoAnn Castle all wrapped into one. Can we ditch the original for this version?
12.) Percy Faith & His Orchestra - Little Bells And Big Bells (Glocke Und Glockchen) Not a Christmas song and not very bellsy... Was hoping for more from Mr. "Theme From A Summer Place"...
13.) Lawrence Welk & His Champagne Music - The Merry Christmas Polka This song took me back to my grandmother's apartment on the north side of Chicago at Christmas... Thanks Ern!
14.) Jerry Murad's Electronic Harmonicats - March Of The Toys What starts as a parade ends as a great jam of harmonica that demands repeat hearings.
15.) Richard Hayman & His Harmonica Orchestra - Parade Of The Wooden Soldiers Harmonica follows harmonica... This is a proud parade throughout and loads of fun... Great tune!
16.) Ian Fraser & His Orchestra - Sleigh Ride For those of you who prefer slow sleigh rides, this one's for you! A very nice change of pace for this tune!
17.) Eddie Layton - Winter Wonderland A wonderful mix of organ and xylophone that bring new life to an old favorite! Sweet stuff!
18.) The Smothers Brothers - Swiss Christmas Beautifully set up by straight brother Dick and brought home in Tommy fashion by Tommy.
19.) David Rose - Christmas Tree This tree must be located by Santa's workshop because that's how it sounds like... A cool tune!
20.) Eydie Gormé - Winter Night What a voice! This is a fantastic song that WASN'T included on Steve & Eydie's Christmas album... shocking, no?
21.) Bernie Green With The Stereo Mad-Men - The Skater And His Dog This is definitely not a Christmas song but I'm glad it's hear... the spirit of Spike Jones lives on!
22.) Enoch Light & The Brass Menagerie - My Favorite Things You mean this ISN'T Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass? That's what Enoch went for and nailed perfectly! F-U-N!
23.) The Four Freshmen - Santa Claus Is Flat Gonna Come To Town I always thought the Freshmen were too cheeky... and this song proves it! Send these guys to detention.
24.) David Carroll & His Orchestra - The Ski Song (Slalom) I tried to like this one... but it's just too far busy, even for a skiing song.
25.) The Monterey Brass With Vocals By Mary Louise & The Michaels Brothers - We Need A Little Christmas More like "We Need A Little LESS Christmas"...
26.) The Three Suns - Busy Holiday Simple, bouncy, snappy. The Three Suns can do no wrong in my book. Hotcha!
27.) Six Fat Dutchmen - Sleigh Bell It's fun to start but then all sounds the same... unfortunate because this could have gone somewhere!
28.) Billy May - Snowfall Cha-Cha Wait... this one is ON a "Christmas Cocktails" CD... Do I have the right CD in?
29.) Dick Schory's New Percussion Ensemble - Holiday In A Hurry I really liked, nay LOVED this song! Doesn't that mad rush at Christmas time sound like this? Anyone?
30.) Armengol & His Orchestra - Ave Maria When I arrive at the Pearly Gates, can I request this song? It's just perfect!
31.) The Crew-Cuts - Auld Lang Syne About as clean as they come... This is a perfect way to end the CD!
Somewhere in all my entries here, I commented that I had enough CDs to review "right through the summer". Most of those reviews were about albums from Ernie (who else?) and I've had fun relistening to some, listening for the first time on others, and shaking my head at more than a few.
For all the hard work transferring the albums, for offering them at your blog, and for all the work you're going to do this year, thank you Ernie. I'm very honored to have you as a friend.
Next week, a short stack of Christmas CDs that did NOT come from Ernie... but downloaded elsewhere and even a few actual purchases! Haven't done that in a while!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Here it is... the FINAL album review from ALL the albums that I downloaded last year from Ernie (not Bert)'s blog!
This one comes to us from the good folks at your local Mobil gas station. It's hard to believe now but there was a time when gas station attendants is crisp clean uniforms would pump your gas, clean your windshields, and check your oil and fluids under the hood.
Then came the premiums. You could have gotten S&H green stamps, free road maps, cute plush mascot toys for the kiddies (the Exxon tiger was a fave), even cutlery and glassware as a premium when you filled up your tank (for around $10) back in the late 1960s or 1970s.
For those of you ages 20 or under, hard to believe, eh?
Again I googled Robert Way and the title of this album and got Ernie's blog and little else. So once again, I've posted the back cover so you can read for yourself about who Robert Way is:
It only looks deadly dull but this album is a breath of fresh air! Way is a one man band: he arranged and conducted both the orchestra and chorus in addition to composing six original Christmas songs on this album!
From beginning to end, this album has everything working in harmony - from old favorites like "We Three Kings" to new songs like "Everything Says Christmas Is Here"! It's not just great Christmas music, it's great music, period.
I have searched Google for "Robert Way", "New England Sleigh Ride", "Fleetwood Recording", even the cover artist Janet Tyrell... beyond the posts to Ernie's blog, there is no record of this record anywhere. I might just dash off an e-mail to the Mobil Oil Company to see if they can shed some light on this (not holding my breath).
If anyone has any information on Mr. Way or when this album was released or if there were additional albums released by Mobil, please let us know.
Wow...
I'm looking next to my computer monitor where the stack of Ernie's CDs once stood. It's been quite a summer reviewing them all. However there is ONE more album from Ernie's blog that I will review tomorrow...
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Here it is... the FINAL album review from ALL the albums that I downloaded last year from Ernie (not Bert)'s blog!
This one comes to us from the good folks at your local Mobil gas station. It's hard to believe now but there was a time when gas station attendants is crisp clean uniforms would pump your gas, clean your windshields, and check your oil and fluids under the hood.
Then came the premiums. You could have gotten S&H green stamps, free road maps, cute plush mascot toys for the kiddies (the Exxon tiger was a fave), even cutlery and glassware as a premium when you filled up your tank (for around $10) back in the late 1960s or 1970s.
For those of you ages 20 or under, hard to believe, eh?
Again I googled Robert Way and the title of this album and got Ernie's blog and little else. So once again, I've posted the back cover so you can read for yourself about who Robert Way is:
It only looks deadly dull but this album is a breath of fresh air! Way is a one man band: he arranged and conducted both the orchestra and chorus in addition to composing six original Christmas songs on this album!
From beginning to end, this album has everything working in harmony - from old favorites like "We Three Kings" to new songs like "Everything Says Christmas Is Here"! It's not just great Christmas music, it's great music, period.
I have searched Google for "Robert Way", "New England Sleigh Ride", "Fleetwood Recording", even the cover artist Janet Tyrell... beyond the posts to Ernie's blog, there is no record of this record anywhere. I might just dash off an e-mail to the Mobil Oil Company to see if they can shed some light on this (not holding my breath).
If anyone has any information on Mr. Way or when this album was released or if there were additional albums released by Mobil, please let us know.
Wow...
I'm looking next to my computer monitor where the stack of Ernie's CDs once stood. It's been quite a summer reviewing them all. However there is ONE more album from Ernie's blog that I will review tomorrow...
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
This album wins the trophy for "Most Ambiguously Named Artist Of Any Album Downloaded At Ernie (not Bert)'s Blog in 2005" and gives us an idea of what company bands were like.
The concept of the company band was to bring together employees together to foster a spirit of brotherhood and harmony through music. This same spirit would be passed to other co-workers proud of their own company band.
Many Fortune 500 companies used to have their own company bands or choruses back in the day. AT&T, General Motors, the United States Postal Service, Prudential Life, etc., etc.. When Snap-On Tools was formed back in 1920, they too latched onto the concept.
I've posted the back cover of this album partially because you can read about some of the history of this chorus and partially because you're not going to read about it anywhere else.
As for the music, it's quite good! There are some nice vocals and arrangements on this singing album of mechanics!
The first four tracks are done acappella and just when you fear it's all going to be without actual music, track five comes along.
A Christmas medley that begins with a tinny piano that conjures up images of 30 odd choral members in a union hall with recording equipment strewn everywhere. This medley runs for almost 11 minutes and contains various Christmas carols such as "Hark The Herald Angels Sing", "Joy To The World", "Angels We Have Heard On High", "O Come All Ye Faithful", parts of Handel's "Halleujah" chorus, you name it!
This leads us to the standout track on the album - "Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring". What can I say? I'm a Johann Sebastian Bach fan! It's not often you hear the vocals of this heavenly piece done. If the mechanics on this album work as well as they sing, then I want these guys to rebuild my transmission on the minivan!
The next five songs are all acapella and done beautifully, especially "Carol Of The Drum aka Little Drummer Boy" and "Silent Night". It all concludes with a fun version of "Jingle Bells" where the tinny piano comes to life and the guys in the chorus sing their hearts out because the beer keg next to the recording engineer is getting warm.
I really Enjoyed this album with a capital E!
I'd keep an eye on Ernie's blog this upcoming Christmas. He just may repost this album for your listening pleasure!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
This album wins the trophy for "Most Ambiguously Named Artist Of Any Album Downloaded At Ernie (not Bert)'s Blog in 2005" and gives us an idea of what company bands were like.
The concept of the company band was to bring together employees together to foster a spirit of brotherhood and harmony through music. This same spirit would be passed to other co-workers proud of their own company band.
Many Fortune 500 companies used to have their own company bands or choruses back in the day. AT&T, General Motors, the United States Postal Service, Prudential Life, etc., etc.. When Snap-On Tools was formed back in 1920, they too latched onto the concept.
I've posted the back cover of this album partially because you can read about some of the history of this chorus and partially because you're not going to read about it anywhere else.
As for the music, it's quite good! There are some nice vocals and arrangements on this singing album of mechanics!
The first four tracks are done acappella and just when you fear it's all going to be without actual music, track five comes along.
A Christmas medley that begins with a tinny piano that conjures up images of 30 odd choral members in a union hall with recording equipment strewn everywhere. This medley runs for almost 11 minutes and contains various Christmas carols such as "Hark The Herald Angels Sing", "Joy To The World", "Angels We Have Heard On High", "O Come All Ye Faithful", parts of Handel's "Halleujah" chorus, you name it!
This leads us to the standout track on the album - "Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring". What can I say? I'm a Johann Sebastian Bach fan! It's not often you hear the vocals of this heavenly piece done. If the mechanics on this album work as well as they sing, then I want these guys to rebuild my transmission on the minivan!
The next five songs are all acapella and done beautifully, especially "Carol Of The Drum aka Little Drummer Boy" and "Silent Night". It all concludes with a fun version of "Jingle Bells" where the tinny piano comes to life and the guys in the chorus sing their hearts out because the beer keg next to the recording engineer is getting warm.
I really Enjoyed this album with a capital E!
I'd keep an eye on Ernie's blog this upcoming Christmas. He just may repost this album for your listening pleasure!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Our last yuleblog entry brought to you The Pied Pipers. This entry brings to you The Town Pipers!
And like the Pied Pipers, I found this album at a blog that's rather obscure and I probably have never mentioned it before until now... a blog by the name of Ernie (not Bert)... curious.
What's more curious is that hardly anything (outside of references to Ernie's blog) is of note when "The Town Pipers" are googled.
On the back cover of this album is written the following:
Christmas greetings to all of you from the Town Pipers! This personable new group from Scranton, PA have a new, exciting sound which comes over with much impact and enthusiasm on this, their first recording.
Apparently their last recording as well... I have found no records other than this one by the Pipers anywhere (GEMM, Musicstack, eBay, Craig Moerer Records By Mail).
As for a new exciting sound that comes over with much impact and enthusiasm, it's there... in very limited quantity. You can feel the roughness of a first recording come across on this album. Their voices (sometimes good, sometimes bad, sometimes missing are occasionally outmatched by the orchestra.
Their vocal arrangements on several songs leave you shaking your head, notably "The Christmas Song", "Jingle Bells", and "Winter Wonderland". I'm not sure if they were going for a jazz feel or they were going off-key to achieve an effect but if you screw up a version of "Jingle Bells", you're asking for trouble.
However, when they sing a song straight, it sounds blended and in harmony - what a concept! "Joy To The World" is quite good, a nice job on "It Came Upon A Midnight Clear", and "Santa's On His Way" is probably the best track on the album.
It would have been interesting to see what the Pipers would have done if they stuck together. If they went on the road to polish up their harmonies, gain some experience, and worked with a better producer or orchestra... or for that matter, a bigger record label. How would have this record sounded after they had two or three albums under their belt?
I'm pretty sure this sold thousands of copies in Scranton, PA at Christmas, 1959 when it was released. Outside of Pennsylvania, it went quickly to the bargain bin and then the vinyl bins at Goodwill and the Salvation Army.
I will pull this one out occasionally at Christmas, play it, and toast the unfulfilled talent and legacy of The Town Pipers. About two minutes later, I'll pull it out of my boombox, place it back on my rack, and not touch it for a long time.
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Our last yuleblog entry brought to you The Pied Pipers. This entry brings to you The Town Pipers!
And like the Pied Pipers, I found this album at a blog that's rather obscure and I probably have never mentioned it before until now... a blog by the name of Ernie (not Bert)... curious.
What's more curious is that hardly anything (outside of references to Ernie's blog) is of note when "The Town Pipers" are googled.
On the back cover of this album is written the following:
Christmas greetings to all of you from the Town Pipers! This personable new group from Scranton, PA have a new, exciting sound which comes over with much impact and enthusiasm on this, their first recording.
Apparently their last recording as well... I have found no records other than this one by the Pipers anywhere (GEMM, Musicstack, eBay, Craig Moerer Records By Mail).
As for a new exciting sound that comes over with much impact and enthusiasm, it's there... in very limited quantity. You can feel the roughness of a first recording come across on this album. Their voices (sometimes good, sometimes bad, sometimes missing are occasionally outmatched by the orchestra.
Their vocal arrangements on several songs leave you shaking your head, notably "The Christmas Song", "Jingle Bells", and "Winter Wonderland". I'm not sure if they were going for a jazz feel or they were going off-key to achieve an effect but if you screw up a version of "Jingle Bells", you're asking for trouble.
However, when they sing a song straight, it sounds blended and in harmony - what a concept! "Joy To The World" is quite good, a nice job on "It Came Upon A Midnight Clear", and "Santa's On His Way" is probably the best track on the album.
It would have been interesting to see what the Pipers would have done if they stuck together. If they went on the road to polish up their harmonies, gain some experience, and worked with a better producer or orchestra... or for that matter, a bigger record label. How would have this record sounded after they had two or three albums under their belt?
I'm pretty sure this sold thousands of copies in Scranton, PA at Christmas, 1959 when it was released. Outside of Pennsylvania, it went quickly to the bargain bin and then the vinyl bins at Goodwill and the Salvation Army.
I will pull this one out occasionally at Christmas, play it, and toast the unfulfilled talent and legacy of The Town Pipers. About two minutes later, I'll pull it out of my boombox, place it back on my rack, and not touch it for a long time.
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Wow... it seems I pushed the CDs that contain long, LONG titles from the titles I downloaded at Ernie (not Bert)'s blog last December deep down the stack!
Looking at the average titles remaining in my stack of CDs from Ernie's blog, this very well could be the LONGEST title not only from Ernie but the longest in general for this very blog!
I googled "The Les Djinns Singers" and the first reference that came up was this one. Well done, Ernie! The second link or links were to an ABC-Paramount discography and shows that the Les Djinns Singers released several albums on that label between 1960-1964.
The remainder of the links were for various albums for sale, Musicstack, eBay, and WFMU's artist list.
I googled "Paul Bonneau", the arranger and director of this album and a number of web sites appeared, most in French. Bonneau was a composer and conductor of orchestras for many years with the French goverment radio station Radiodiffusion Française (RDF). This led to a posting with their television station, Radiodiffusion Télévision Française (RTF).
Back in 1959, the Malpasset Dam in France broke, killing 500 people. A group of 15 female choral singers from RTF were invited to an official reception for the families of victims to sing. Under the directorship of Bonneau (and subsequently the French government), this group of singers were rechristened "The Djinns" and began a quick recording career. They were expanded to "60 French Girls", were immensely popular throughout France, Belgium, and Canada, and ABC-Paramount began releasing their albums in the US.
This album was released at Christmas, 1961 and features the "60 French Girls" singing standard Christmas songs entirely in French. Also featured are the Christmas Bell Ringers on several of the tracks clanging out standard Christmas songs on bells, chimes, etc.
Overall, this is a pretty standard album. A few tracks catch your attention: "Noël Trois Anges Son Venus Ce Noir (Christmas, Three Angels We've Seen This Night)", and "Noël Blanc (White Christmas)" to name but two.
The standout track is "Pour Noël (For Christmas)". The song begins with a soft string arrangement, the melody is quite catchy and hooks you by mid-song. Suddenly, the track changes gears and we hear a driving piano and drum beat (think of the piano/drums from Dean Martin's "Everybody Loves Somebody") and it carries you home! WOW! This one just might make it onto my Christmas comp this year!
By the end of 1963, the Les Djinns Singers were at the height of their popularity and fame. Only one thing stood in their way: the French Government. In 1964, RDF and RTF were consolidated into one office - Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française (ORTF) and the cost cutting began.
The Djinns were considered "too expensive" to manage and by July 1964, the once popular group was officially disbanded. Paul Bonneau continued his career with the ORTF for many more years, composing hundreds of hours of music.
A Christmas album released by the French government, sort to speak. Who would have thunk it?
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Wow... it seems I pushed the CDs that contain long, LONG titles from the titles I downloaded at Ernie (not Bert)'s blog last December deep down the stack!
Looking at the average titles remaining in my stack of CDs from Ernie's blog, this very well could be the LONGEST title not only from Ernie but the longest in general for this very blog!
I googled "The Les Djinns Singers" and the first reference that came up was this one. Well done, Ernie! The second link or links were to an ABC-Paramount discography and shows that the Les Djinns Singers released several albums on that label between 1960-1964.
The remainder of the links were for various albums for sale, Musicstack, eBay, and WFMU's artist list.
I googled "Paul Bonneau", the arranger and director of this album and a number of web sites appeared, most in French. Bonneau was a composer and conductor of orchestras for many years with the French goverment radio station Radiodiffusion Française (RDF). This led to a posting with their television station, Radiodiffusion Télévision Française (RTF).
Back in 1959, the Malpasset Dam in France broke, killing 500 people. A group of 15 female choral singers from RTF were invited to an official reception for the families of victims to sing. Under the directorship of Bonneau (and subsequently the French government), this group of singers were rechristened "The Djinns" and began a quick recording career. They were expanded to "60 French Girls", were immensely popular throughout France, Belgium, and Canada, and ABC-Paramount began releasing their albums in the US.
This album was released at Christmas, 1961 and features the "60 French Girls" singing standard Christmas songs entirely in French. Also featured are the Christmas Bell Ringers on several of the tracks clanging out standard Christmas songs on bells, chimes, etc.
Overall, this is a pretty standard album. A few tracks catch your attention: "Noël Trois Anges Son Venus Ce Noir (Christmas, Three Angels We've Seen This Night)", and "Noël Blanc (White Christmas)" to name but two.
The standout track is "Pour Noël (For Christmas)". The song begins with a soft string arrangement, the melody is quite catchy and hooks you by mid-song. Suddenly, the track changes gears and we hear a driving piano and drum beat (think of the piano/drums from Dean Martin's "Everybody Loves Somebody") and it carries you home! WOW! This one just might make it onto my Christmas comp this year!
By the end of 1963, the Les Djinns Singers were at the height of their popularity and fame. Only one thing stood in their way: the French Government. In 1964, RDF and RTF were consolidated into one office - Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française (ORTF) and the cost cutting began.
The Djinns were considered "too expensive" to manage and by July 1964, the once popular group was officially disbanded. Paul Bonneau continued his career with the ORTF for many more years, composing hundreds of hours of music.
A Christmas album released by the French government, sort to speak. Who would have thunk it?
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Here's yet another entry into the "Christmas with small woodland creatures and/or insects that have sped up voices" category.
Back in June, I reviewed one of these entries, offered a STEREO version of the same album in July, and this hopefully will be the last entry for quite some time.
This one came from Ernie (not Bert)'s blog late last year and he stated at the time:
"I have this terrible fear that you folks are going to download whatever I throw up here. So here is a test. Do not download this album! It is bad! The arrangements are terrible.
"The singing is monotone clap-trap, and it's often pitched so high that dogs run howlng from the room! If you thought the Chipmunks were bad, these crickets make the Chipmunks look like Elvis being backed by the Beatles. But I'm afraid there is no stopping you."
Well, I downloaded it. It even came with a different cover in a different color, style, and design. Twelve songs in total. How bad can it be?
Bad.
REALLY bad.
So bad in fact that I'm just trying to type just enough words in this paragraph so that it reaches below the cover scan next to this column because it would look more aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
Should have I downloaded this album? No. Did I? Yes. Will I use this album to clear out a room in under two minutes? You bet your life I will!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Here's yet another entry into the "Christmas with small woodland creatures and/or insects that have sped up voices" category.
Back in June, I reviewed one of these entries, offered a STEREO version of the same album in July, and this hopefully will be the last entry for quite some time.
This one came from Ernie (not Bert)'s blog late last year and he stated at the time:
"I have this terrible fear that you folks are going to download whatever I throw up here. So here is a test. Do not download this album! It is bad! The arrangements are terrible.
"The singing is monotone clap-trap, and it's often pitched so high that dogs run howlng from the room! If you thought the Chipmunks were bad, these crickets make the Chipmunks look like Elvis being backed by the Beatles. But I'm afraid there is no stopping you."
Well, I downloaded it. It even came with a different cover in a different color, style, and design. Twelve songs in total. How bad can it be?
Bad.
REALLY bad.
So bad in fact that I'm just trying to type just enough words in this paragraph so that it reaches below the cover scan next to this column because it would look more aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
Should have I downloaded this album? No. Did I? Yes. Will I use this album to clear out a room in under two minutes? You bet your life I will!
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
In yesterday's yuleblog entry, we had a rather long album title I downloaded from Ernie (not Bert's) blog as a headline. Today, we have another album from Ernie (not Bert's) blog and another long album title as a headline!
Some of you might be asking "Who is Walter Schumann and why did he have so many voices?" Here's just the facts:
Schumann was born in New York, New York on October 8, 1913. In the early 1930s, he was attending the law school of USC when he abruptly quit to play in a college dance band.
Eventually, the band went its separate ways and Schumann continued on into the music business, working with Eddie Cantor on his radio show, and recording with Andre Kostelanetz.
World War II started, Walter enlisted, and became the musical director of the Armed Forces Radio Service. He worked with most of the major acts of the war on all the radio shows AFRS produced during this time. After the war, he returned to Los Angeles and worked in the movie and television industry as a composer and arranger, mostly for several Abbott & Costello films.
In 1949, Schumann was asked to compose a new theme for a police detective show about to make its debut on the NBC Radio network. He began his theme with a four note motif - quite possibly the second most famous four note motif after Beethoven's Fifth Symphony: "Dumm-da-dumm-dummmmm".
"Dragnet" was a HUGE smash and Schumann's theme quickly became instantly recognizable. Ray Anthony quickly recorded a cover of the theme and it went gold. In a classic episode of "The Honeymooners", Ralph Kramden and Ed Norton realize the money they found on a bus is counterfeit and the real owners would come calling. A knock at the door. Ralph and Ed freeze. Ralph's eyes bulge in fear. Ed Norton hums the "Dragnet" theme. Huge laughs!
MAD Magazine parodied "Dragnet" twice in their early days (issues number three and eleven, respectively), both times savagely using Schumann's blaring theme to blow them off the comic frame.
Stan Freberg wanted to parody "Dragnet" as well and asked Jack Webb for his blessing. Webb gave the okay and even suggested that Stan use Walter Schumann and his Orchestra for the parodies.
The only problem was while they recorded "St. George And The Dragonet", Schumann and company kept breaking out into laughter, ruining take after take. Two other parodies were recorded: "Little Blue Riding Hood" used Schumann's theme both as a doorbell and doorknock, and the immortal Christmas classic:
Inbetween all of this, Schumann banded together 20 talented vocalists and The Voices Of Walter Schumann were born. They recorded several easy listening albums a la Jackie Gleason for both Capitol and RCA.
Schumann was busy in 1955. He composed & conducted the score to the classic Robert Mitchum film "The Night Of The Hunter", he won an Emmy for his "Dragnet" theme, recorded an amazing space age spoken word album entitled "Exploring the Unknown", and the Voices recorded 19 tracks for this Christmas album.
Most of the album is pretty much straightforward, simple and elegant. Several standout tracks include a fun version of "Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer" (was that Thurl Ravenscroft as Santa?), "Fum Fum Fum" is an amazing track, "Christmas Gift" is a rollickin' good time thanks to Jester Hairston, and "Christmas Chopsticks" perfectly ends the album.
Overall, not the first album I'd grab from the shelf but I'm glad its there!
Walter Schumann continued on recording with the Voices and appearing on the first season of "The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show". Poor health led him to travel to the Mayo Clinic in the summer of 1958 where he underwent one of the first open heart surgeries in the United States.
Complications quickly arose and Schumann died on August 21, 1958 - weeks before the second season of "Tennessee Ernie" began. The Voices were stunned but pressed on. They were renamed "The Top Twenty" and carried on with Ford for another five years.
I bet every time a Tums commercial comes on the air, Walter spins in his grave.
On to the next new Christmas CD in my collection...
Earlier this year, I found this album in an antique store in the antique town of Pierceton, Indiana. At first glance, I nearly passed over it because of its non-Christmas title. However, the songs were and I added this to my pile of albums that I was preparing for the upcoming holiday season.
