Let It Snow!, Part 2

Here's some background on the next three tracks from my latest holiday mix:

Track 6
You're a Mean One, Mr. Trump, College Humor Website (2015)

What can I say about this one? It was a whole lot funnier when it first came out, because, well, nobody thought he had a ghost of a chance to be elected President then, right?



Want More Like This? Watch "How the Trump Stole Christmas"

Track 5
Holiday Greetings from Ricardo Montalbán (1971)

Montalbán (R) with his Fantasy 

Island costar Hervé Villechaize

Ricardo Montalbán (1920-2009) was a Mexican-born actor who enjoyed considerable success in the movies and on television beginning in the early 1940s and continuing until shortly before his death. One of the few Mexican-American actors to work pretty much continuously through the 1940s and '50s, Montalbán is perhaps best known for his starring role as Mr. Roarke in the ABC television series Fantasy Island. I like these short holiday messages from various celebrities as they usually make for successful segues from one song to another and break things up pretty well. I especially like the greetings from the one-hit wonder sorts of public figures, mostly for the irony. Unfortunately, my supply is dwindling down to a precious few.

I like this clip because Montalbán goes out of the way emphasize his Mexican heritage and ends his holiday message by asking us all to "get well soon." While Montalbán has been dead for seven years and couldn't have imagined the results of this year's election, I'd like to think he's hoping our country recovers quickly and completely from our recent episode of collective mental illness.




Track 4
'Twas the Night Before Christmas, Art Carney (1954)

This is a track I've meant to include on one of my holiday mixes for several of the past dozen years or so and yet never quite did. I'm not sure why I haven't found a spot for it before now, because it's a great version of a beloved classic by an actor I've long enjoyed — Art Carney. This song was actually released as the "B" side of a holiday 45 RPM single titled "Santa and the Doodle-Li-Boop," which was released on the Columbia label in 1954. I've always thought of Carney as an actor, based on his work in The Honeymooners, his Academy Award-winning performance in Harry and Tonto (1974), and his many other roles on television and in the movies. But he also enjoyed considerable success as a recording artist, particularly during the 1950s, when released many albums and singles geared toward younger listeners.

This particular song, "'Twas the Night Before Christmas," is based on the classic poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas," which was first published anonymously in 1823 and later attributed to Clement C. Moore. It's not only a holiday classic, but it's largely responsible for the general acceptance of Santa Claus as one of the key characters in the holiday pantheon. The poem has been recorded by hundreds of different artists over the years in a variety of styles, but Carney's version is particularly memorable. A number of critics have lately described it as the "first rap" record, as it was delivered in syncopation and accompanied by only a single jazz drummer. 

Carney was previously featured in this blog for his role as the department store Santa in "Night of the Meek," a classic holiday episode from the original "Twilight Zone" television series that first aired in 1960. 

Listen to John Cleese's Version of "'Twas the Night Before Christmas"

Hear Michelle Obama read "'Twas the Night Before Christmas"

Hear President and Mrs. George W. Bush Read "'Twas the Night Before Christmas"

Watch Art Carney in the Honeymooners episode "'Twas the Night Before Christmas"


Introduction to Track 4
'Twas the Night Before Christmas, Tammy Grimes (1985)

For the past five years, I've included a number of tracks at the end of each new holiday mix in honor of certain talented entertainers who died during the preceding 12 months. We seem to have lost too many great entertainers this year, including several I was unable to honor for want of a suitable audio clip to include.

One change I have made this year is to place the various memorial clips throughout the mix rather than bunching them together at the end.

Actress Tammy Grimes died on October 30 at the age of 82. She was well-known in our household as she attended the girls' summer camp my godmother and grandmother ran in New Hampshire when she was a teenager. I knew her best for her role as the successor host to E.G. Marshall on the CBS Radio Mystery Theater, which I listened to as a child and have enjoyed ever since. Grimes enjoyed great success on the stage and in the movies, and I wanted to at least note her passing here.

Listen to Tammy Grimes' reading of "'Twas the Night Before Christmas"

Here Comes Santa Claus, Part 11

Some thoughts on Tracks 29-31 of my latest holiday mix, Here Comes Santa Claus:

Track 31

WOR Children’s Christmas Fund Promo Spot, by E.G. Marshall (c. 1975)

E.G. Marshall

This track consists of a fundraising appeal for the WOR Children’s Christmas Fund, recorded by the late E.G. Marshall, who hosted the popular CBS Radio Mystery Theater from 1974-82. For more than 40 years, the WOR Children’s Christmas Fund purchased and distributed thousands of holiday presents to children in New York area hospitals and institutions. It was started in 1948 by Edythe Meserand, one of the first women to hold significant positions of authority in this country’s broadcasting industry. It seems she was working late one night with a colleague when the pair decided to get something from their favorite restaurant. Although the kitchen was closed, the chef agreed to cook them dinner if they’d drive him to Bellevue Hospital afterward so he could drop off some candy for the patients in the abused children’s ward. Meserand accompanied the chef inside, and she was so moved by what she saw that she persuaded WOR’s management to raise money on the air and provide gifts to the children in such institutions. She remained the driving force behind the project from its inception until shortly before her death in 1997, attracting talent like E.G. Marshall to assist with fundraising, as here. I wrote about Marshall’s work on the CBS Radio Mystery Theater last year, at which time I provided links to two entertaining Christmas-themed versions of his show. Here they are again:

Press HERE to listen to the CBSRMT version of A Christmas Carol, starring E.G. Marshall in his only appearance on the program that extended beyond his typical role as host.

Press HERE for a second Christmas-themed CBSRMT episode, A Holiday Visit, starring Lloyd Battista and Diana Kirkwood. Don't miss the frigid weather forecast that opens the broadcast, which was recorded on December 25, 1980.
(NOTE: Depending on your browser, these tracks may take up to 20-30 seconds to load. Bah! Humbug!)

Track 30

My Favourite Time of Year, by The Florin Street Band (2010)

Leigh Haggerwood

This is probably my favorite song on this year’s CD, which is just the sort of reaction London-based composer Leigh Haggerwood had in mind when he first started work on this ambitious recording project. Haggerwood loves Christmas songs, and he had become increasingly concerned about the lack of quality holiday music being produced in the English-speaking world. He’s far from alone in that opinion, of course, but Haggerwood took things to the next level by resolving to create a heart-warming new song that would capture the old-fashioned spirit of Christmas. He took his idea – and eventually this song – to the major British record labels, but none of them was interested in supporting the project, so he put things together on his own. He gathered together all of his many musical friends and called the resulting group The Florin Street Band, and by November of 2010, they not only had a fine-sounding record but a beautiful video, too:

 

For the full story, be sure to check out the group’s terrific website, where you’ll find some real old-fashioned Christmas magic.

Track 29

The First Noel, by Johnny “Bowtie” Barstow (2004)

When I hear ‘Over The Rainbow,’ I think of Judy Garland. When I hear ‘Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend,’ I think of Marilyn Monroe. And in the future, when I hear ‘The First Noel,’ I shall think of Bowtie. He has made it his own – and that goes for anything he sings.”

Sir Richard Rodney Bennett

Every now and then an artist emerges whose vision is so unique that it creates an entirely new musical paradigm. Stretching the realm of technique by introducing harmonic or rhythmic contexts far removed from the norm, they’re often unappreciated in their time, but the passage of years can ultimately bring recognition for their genius. Ornette Coleman was one such artist. Now we have singer Johnny "Bowtie" Barstow.

John Kelman, allaboutjazz.com

When keyboardist Larry Goldings discovered Johnny “Bowtie” Barstow performing at an open mic night in a New York City bar in the early 1990s, he knew he’d found something special. Over the course of the next two years, Goldings recorded Bowtie’s treatment of a variety of holiday songs and other standards in his home studio. The result was a 24-song album titled A Bowtie Christmas and More. I’ve featured Bowtie on nearly all of my holiday CDs – in fact, no other artist has appeared more frequently in my mixes. Fortunately, there are still a couple of holiday numbers of his that I haven't used yet, so we’ve all got something to look forward to. What is it that makes Bowtie’s style so memorable? Jazz journalist John Kelman explains the secret as follows:

Some musicians spend years on technique, working hard to hone accepted skills like pitch and time. Barstow dispenses with such limitations. His interpretive sense is so unorthodox that once you hear his renditions of classic Christmas tunes including "Joy to the World," "The First Noel," and the tongue-in-cheek "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer," you’ll never see them the same way again.

Here’s a promotional piece for Bowtie’s only album to date. Let’s hope we see another before too long.

 

 

 

 

Christmas on the CBS Radio Mystery Theater

As previously noted, I loved listening to the radio when I was growing up, and one of my favorite programs was the CBS Radio Mystery Theater (CBSRMT), created by the legendary producer Himan Brown. The series consisted of some 1400 original radio plays and ran nightly from 1974 through 1982. Each episode was allotted a full hour of airtime, which, after subtracting news and commercials, amounted to approximately 46 minutes of dramatic content each night. Despite its title, the program's scope extended beyond the mystery genre to include historical drama, horror,science fiction and even comedy, on occasion. During its first eight seasons, CBSRMT was hosted by E.G. Marshall. Each episode opened with the sound of a creaking door followed by an ominous-sounding musical prologue and Marshall's trademark greeting.  In Boston, the series was carried by CBS affiliate WEEI-AM, and each nightly episode began immediately after the 11:00 news at around 11:07 pm. Due to the late hour, I was only permitted to listen on weekends, and during school vacation -- even then, I rarely managed to stay awake though all three acts of the broadcast. But it was fun to try, and I loved listening to each story unfold in the darkness as my imagination created the accompanying visuals.  What does any of this have to do with Christmas? Well, each year on Christmas Eve, CBSRMT broadcast an original adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol, starring Marshall himself as Ebenezer Scrooge. It was several years before I managed to stay awake through the end of the broadcast, but I still think back fondly on it as one of the memorable holiday traditions of my youth. I haven't heard this version of A Christmas Carol in more than 30 years, but I'll be driving alone for a few hours tonight and I've got an .mp3 version of the broadcast loaded up and ready to play as I leave Los Angeles. I can't wait! And for the benefit of those who haven't heard it before, I've posted a link to my copy of the show, below. If I'd been smart, I would have posted this earlier, but better late than never, I suppose. Pleasant travels to all, and a very Merry Christmas!

Press HERE to listen to the CBSRMT version of A Christmas Carol, starring E.G. Marshall in his only appearance on the program that extended beyond his typical role as host.

Press HERE for a second Christmas-themed CBSRMT episode, A Holiday Visit (1980), starring Lloyd Battista and Diana Kirkwood. Don't miss the frigid weather forecast that opens the broadcast, which was recorded on December 25, 1980.

(NOTE: Depending on your browser, these tracks may take up to 20-30 seconds to load. Bah! Humbug!)