Songs for the Christmas Season 26

Kenny Burrell is one of my favorite all-time guitarists and it's hard to just pick one of his Christmas recordings. The tune that first introduced me to him was "My Favorite Things" from 1966 and there was no looking back afterwards.






Next is a groovy, R&B number by Jimmy Jones and His Valiants called "Christmas is a Drag (Without You). This is a definitely a forgotten holiday favorite.

Songs for the Christmas Season 25

A couple of less-familiar holiday songs today. First up is Chris de Burgh's "A Spaceman Came Travelling" which tells the story of the Christ child. Great song from 1975!





Next is one by Edd "Kookie" Byrnes from 1959. Very cool sounding and jazzy, like something you might hear during a film noir flick or perhaps some Peter Gunn. It's basically the tale of "Twas the Night Before Christmas" told in a very 'hip' style.

Songs for the Christmas Season 20

Once again we will check out some jazz Christmas tunes for this post. First up is "Deck the Halls" by Teo Macero & His Orchestra. I always thought this song was by Herbie Hancock but you learn something new everyday.






And next is "Little Drummer Boy" by Duke Pearson from 1969. This is a great version!

Songs for the Christmas Season 19

Today I'm featuring some newer and perhaps lesser known songs for the season. First is a comtemporary folk song by Maria Dunn called, "God Bless Us Everyone." It's a moving song and the lyrics merit close attention.





Next is a jazzy, tongue-in-cheek song by Michael Franks titled, "I Bought You a Plastic Star (For Your Aluminum Tree)."
Note: this is the best version I could find online. Unfortunately it doesn't sound all that great and is rather loud.

Songs for the Christmas Season 18

Two today by two unrelated women of the surname Lee. First up is Peggy Lee with her rendition of "Happy Holiday" from 1965. It's a groovy, jazzy number.





That one will be followed by Brenda Lee with her rendition of "Winter Wonderland" from 1964.

Songs for the Christmas Season 16

A couple of instrumental holiday songs today. First up is a very smooth, jazz version of "Silver Bells" by Kevin Eubanks on acoustic guitar.






And next is another jazz artist, the Ramsey Lewis Trio, with I believe an original composition called "Christmas Blues."

Songs for the Christmas Season 8

As you know I'm not a huge fan of more recent recorded Christmas music due to much of it seeming to be nothing more than the fulfillment of contractual obligations, which in turn leads to very uninspired-sounding music. But every once in a while pops up a few interesting new songs or new covers. For example, today we have a version of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" by Mary J. Blige. I love the jazzy feel of this song and the super fast walking bass lines.






Next up is "Frosty the Snowman" as done by Michael Buble. Again, this one has a very jazzy/big band feel and that walking bass line is just non-stop!

Songs for the Christmas Season 3

Here are a couple of songs that are not exactly about Christmas but they are about the winter season. First up is what I consider to be the penultimate version of that seasonal favorite, "Baby, It's Cold Outside." I usually prefer older versions the grand majority of the time but a very few rare times does a newer recording become my favorite. This one is by Barry Manilow with K.T. Oslin.






Next is an instrumental version of a song which captures the peaceful, gentleness of falling snowflakes. I have never heard another song which so appropriately conveys the mood felt or what falling snowflakes might actually sound like if they weren't so silent! This is called "Snowfall" and it's performed by The Gordon Langford Quartet.

Songs for the Christmas Season 2

How about a couple of jazz Christmas tunes today?  First up is my favorite jazz guitarist Kenny Burrell doing "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" from his 1966 album. Gosh, 1966 was such a great year for music and this entire album does not disappoint.






Next up we have the Vince Guaraldi Trio with the original song, "Christmastime is Here" from the 1965 Charlie Brown Christmas special. Just three instruments yet this song is filled to the brim with good sound. More to come from the VGT!

Music for the Thanksgiving Season 3

First up today we have Brenda Lee thanking someone for breaking her heart, sarcastically of course.





Next we have Vince Guaraldi's contribution to the tiny world of actual Thanksgiving Day music. This is his "Thanksgiving Theme" from The Charlie Brown Thanksgiving cartoon.

Some of My All-Time Favorite Christmas Albums

It's officially Christmastime and I'm going to list a few of my all-time favourite Christmas albums. Now mind you, I'm not one of these collectors of obscure holiday music nor do I have an extensive collection of Christmas albums. I have plenty of mp3's of shows I have recorded over the years on radio stations and special podcasts that people have put together. But I really don't spend time shopping around for them, especially since the best stuff is from the 50s, 60s and 70s and nothing made recently or nowadays will ever compare.

So here is a short list of some of my favourites and ones definitely worth checking out if you're not familiar with them. In no particular order:

The Anita Kerr Sings - Spend this Holiday with Me (1969)

This is a wonderful album. The music arrangements are very typical (and great) late 60's/early 70's sounding for pop music of the time. Sounds very much like The Free Design from the music to the vocals. I caught two songs off the radio many years ago from this album--the title track and Jingle Bell Rock--and was never able to find out who the artist was until a few years ago when I ordered a copy of this album on cd from Brazil! Anyway, this is a 5 star album and it stays on my iPod all year round.

Glen Campbell - That Christmas Feeling (1968)

Another hard-to-find album. And another I keep on my iPod all year long. This one is very mellow and some may even consider it a bit too melancholy for the festive season. But I love it cause Glen sounds so good on it and the arrangements are top-notch. His rendition of Roger Miller's "Old Toy Trains" is my favorite and I've never heard a better version yet. Other standout tracks include "Little Altar Boy," "Christmas is for Children" and "It Must Be Getting Close to Christmas."

The Partridge Family - A Partridge Family Christmas Card (1971)

If you like the sound of the Partridge Family--aka L.A. studio musicians known as 'The Wrecking Crew'--then you'll love this album. Ok, we all know the Partridge Family was not a real band. They were just actors with a storyline based upon a real band known as The Cowsills. But 'Keith Partridge' and 'Shirley Partridge' really did sing and they contributed their vocals to this album. The rest of the fictional family did not contribute at all to the music and albums. That being said this is a great early 70's pop/soft rock offering featuring the West Coast sound. Most of the numbers here are upbeat and you can't go wrong with any that Keith sings on.

                        

Elvis Presley - Elvis' Christmas Album (1957)

This is not only one of my favourite Christmas albums of all time, but it's one of my favourite albums period. This was the first time Christmas music met rock & roll. Oh sure, Elvis kept the traditional songs modest and low-key but he totally rocked out on the contemporary ones. The arrangements here are very simple and basic. Nothing more than piano, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, drums, double bass, organ and background vocals. Just like his non-Christmas music of the same era. Standout tracks include all of them, but in particular 'Santa Bring My Baby Back to Me,' 'Santa Claus is Back in Town' and 'I'll Be Home for Christmas.' This album happens to be the best selling Christmas album of all time and for good reason.

                         

Vince Guaraldi Trio - A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)

This is a jazz album that has transcended its exclusive genre to become a pop smash. The music is wonderful. Simple arrangements. Playful melodies. Tunes that stay in your head. Mostly instrumental but a few with children's choirs. Probably the most memorable and recognizable tune, 'Linus & Lucy,' has become a Christmas staple even though the song itself has little or nothing to do with the holiday, other than having been featured in the animated classic. Other than 'Linus & Lucy,' my faves on this excellent album include both versions of 'Christmastime is Here,' 'Skating' and Christmas is Coming.'

                            

Kenny Burrell - Have Yourself a Soulful Little Christmas (1966)

Another jazz Christmas offering. This one definitely not as well-known as the Vince Guaraldi one but equally essential. Burrell is a master guitarist and surely my favourite player of the genre. The arrangements here include piano, bass, drums, horns and strings. He mainly plays his hollowbody electric but there are a few songs where he plays a nylon string acoustic. This album is timeless and his playing is effortless and spellbinding. It is bebop jazz at its finest during a wondrous era of recorded sound. The most remarkable tracks include 'My Favorite Things,' 'Little Drummer Boy,' 'God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen' and 'Children Go Where I Send Thee.' Gotta love that 60's album cover, too.

So there are 6 of my favourite Christmas albums of all time. I don't want to make this post super-long and it's getting late so I may do a part-two at a later time.