One of the nicest things benefits about having a Christmas music blog is the mail I receive from artists around the world sharing some of their latest holiday-themed creations. I recently had an email from Ivor Game, a singer/songwriter from Middlesex, England, who performs his music across London, the UK, Ireland and beyond. Ivor's just released a beautiful snow-themed winter single called "Footprints," which appears below:
"Footprints" is scheduled to be played at The London New Year's Day Parade
from Westminster to Piccadilly in a few weeks. It's a wonderful tune that evokes the feeling of a cold and snowy day, and while we don't get many of those in Los Angeles, I'd say it's equally apt for a winter walk on the beach.
You can hear another holiday song of Ivor's called "Christmas Morning" as a YouTube Short HERE.
If you've followed my mixes, website or blog over the past 20 years, you probably know that I've featured a bunch of material from the 2004 album Hung for the Holidays, by former American Idol contestant William Hung. Hung was a young civil engineering student at U.C. Berkeley when he skyrocketed to fame following his unsuccessful audition for the hit Fox show performing the Ricky Martin number "She Bangs." His spirited performance was brutally panned by the judges, especially Simon Cowell, who called it "grotesque," adding, "You can't dance, you can't sing, so what do you want me to say?" Cowell wasn't necessarily wrong, but Hung's response touched a nerve with many viewers: "Um, I already gave my best," he said, "and I have no regrets at all."
During the next several years, Hung enjoyed considerable publicity and a fair degree of commercial success. He released three different records, the first of which, Inspiration, sold over 200,000 copies and reached #32 on Billboard's Hot 200 Albums Chart. His career as a recording artist fizzled out within a couple of years and Hung was forced to deal with a variety of challenges in the years that followed, but he maintained a positive outlook and persevered. In addition to taking jobs as a math teacher, professional gambler and analyst for the L.A. Sheriff's Department, Hung has also worked as a motivational speaker.
To mark the 20th anniversary of Hung's American Idol appearance (can it really have been that long ago?) Jamie Loftus' "Sixteenth Minute of Fame" podcast recently featured a two-part retrospective of his life and career. It's a fascinating look at an especially interesting character in our popular history and it's told with understanding, kindness and respect:
I confess I originally included Hung's holiday tunes on my mixes for comic relief. He's not a talented singer and his material is good for a cheap laugh. But there's a far more important message I now see in his performances. He enjoys singing and is courageous and smart enough to take chances in life and do what makes him happy. I admire William for that, and hearing his spirited rendition of some holiday classics gives me some real joy as well.
Today is December 2, and with this posting I will have covered more than a quarter of the 41 tracks on my latest holiday mix, "I Wish It Was Christmas Today." I'd say that's pretty good. Unless I grow lazy or distracted (and I wouldn't necessarily bet against those possibilities) there's a decent chance we'll finish the job by Christmas Day. Here are some thoughts about the next two tracks on this year's mix:
Track 10 Will "Ho, Ho, Ho" for Food, Johnny Carson from The Tonight Show (1990)
I've never watched much late night television, but I'm fascinated by the ups and downs of the various late night network shows. I was once involved with a wonderful person who worked for The Tonight Show when Jay Leno was host and I had a good opportunity to learn a lot about the incredible team of people it took to put that show together and the complex array of moving parts and pieces involved. When NBC decided to replace Jay with Conan O'Brien and then bring Jay back a short time later I followed reports of the network's bungling with great interest. I loved David Letterman's shows on NBC and CBS. I liked and admired Craig Ferguson a lot. My first reaction to Jimmy Kimmel was not positive, but I've come to like him a lot more in recent years. I don't much care for Jimmy Fallon. But none of these folks can hold a candle to the guy who ruled late night television for 30 years as host of NBC's Tonight Show — Johnny Carson.
Born in Iowa, Carson was raised in Nebraska where he developed an interest in performing magic tricks for family and friends. After a stint in the U.S. Navy where he performed magic tricks for Navy Secretary James Forrestal, Carson earned a B.A. in radio and speech from the University of Nebraska and was hired by an Omaha television station to host a morning show. In 1951 he was hired by a Los Angeles station to host a low-budget late night comedy show that became known as "Carson's Cellar," which caught the attention of comedian Red Skelton, who hired Johnny to write for him. Carson hosted a number of other shows through the 1950s where he honed his live interviewing skills and in 1962 he was hired by NBC to succeed Jack Paar as host of The Tonight Show.
When Carson took over Tonight, it was based in New York and ran for 90 minutes, five nights each week. None of the other networks had competing late night shows at the time, which allowed Carson to create a unique format that ultimately became the standard template for such broadcasts. He started each show to the sounds of the Tonight Show Orchestra playing "Johnny's Theme," written by Paul Anka. His announcer, Ed McMahon, would then intone his famous introduction: "Heeeere's Johnny," followed by a Carson monologue. Following a commercial break, Carson would be back, often in costume with one or more other performer's, for a short comedy sketch. Carson relied on a number of regular characters for these sketches including Carnac the Magnificent; Art Fern, host of the Tea Time Movie show; and Aunt Blabby, a cantankerous older woman. Following the sketch, Carson would welcome a series of guests for interviews, conversation and, often, performances.
I'd say there were several reasons why Carson became the king of late night TV. For one thing, he was able to establish himself without any competition. For most of his run, the other networks ran old movies and other canned programs after the 11:00 local news, which allowed Carson. Second, he studiously remained above the fray — avoiding politics and controversy and capitalizing on his friendly midwestern outlook. He was also blessed with a quick wit and a gift for conversation. Although introverted off camera, he was a wonderful interviewer and he consistently made his guests look interesting and enjoyable. Finally, he was modest and self-effacing, which endeared him to most of his viewers. If one of his jokes fell short, he had a bunch of different ways to soften the blow, as he demonstrated in the first of the two Carson clips I included in this year's mix. The video below has been teed up to begin with the clip I used, though you can dial the cursor to the left to see a longer excerpt from Carson's monologue that aired on December 14, 1990:
I don't know that I ever watched The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson live when Carson hosted the show, but I've watched hundreds of clips on YouTube and elsewhere in the years after he retired and he was an incredibly gifted performer. He also helped launch the careers of a great many comedy stars, including Robin Williams, Freddy Prinze, Jay Leno, Rodney Dangerfield, Steven Wright, Joan Rivers and Jerry Seinfeld.
For three decades, Carson helped millions of Americans end their day and take stock of our affairs. In these days of streaming video and endless programming choices, it's likely we'll never see another host with the broad national audience Carson commanded. It's fortunate that he handled his responsibility so well.
Here are some highlights of his work on The Tonight Show:
Track 11 O Little Town of Bethlehem, The Joy Strings (1966)
This is the third version of this song that I've featured on my mixes. The first was by the late Sally Kellerman on my 2005 mix, "Don't Wake the Kids!" The second was done by Bob Rivers in the style of Eric Burden of The Animals singing "The House of the Rising Sun" from the extra mix I put together in 2007, called "Hooray for Santa Claus!" This one is a straight ahead soft rock version by The Joy Strings, a British Christian group led by Joy Webb, a classically trained musician who was also an officer in The Salvation Army. This version, too, incorporates elements from "The House of the Rising Sun":
The Joy Strings were formed in 1964 with the idea of bringing a more contemporary sound to the music of The Salvation Army. Founded in London in 1865 by Methodist Reform minister William Booth, The Salvation Army seeks to meet the physical and spiritual needs of the hungry, homeless and destitute. The Army currently maintains a variety of projects and programs worldwide including disaster relief, drug rehabilitation, summer camps for underprivileged children. I served on the board of advisors for The Salvation Army's operation in Boston's South End, which was primarily concerned with assisting neighborhood youth.
From its early days, the Army has relied on music to attract attention to its work and distract unruly crowds. By the 1960s, however, there were concerns that the drum and bugle corps the Army relied on were no longer reaching the country's youth. Army officer Joy Webb decided to attract younger members by playing music that was popular among youth in venues they attended, like coffee houses. She started The Joy Strings for that purpose and the band's music had the desired effect. After appearing on a popular British TV program, the band was signed by EMI and they soon recorded several songs that made the British record charts.
The following clip offers a good introduction to the group:
I've never been on Facebook and I've stopped using X, the social media site that used to be known as Twitter but has turned into a cesspool of nazism and racist hate under the ownership of Elon Musk. But I do enjoy TikTok, whose algorithms provide me with interesting video clips that closely match my interests. TikTok recently introduced me to a fellow named Roy Casagranda, a professor of government at Austin Community College in Texas. Casagranda delivers regular public lectures on a host of historical and political topics, and while he has a tendency to overly simplify complex issues, he's a fascinating speaker who holds my interest and makes me think.
When I looked at TikTok this morning I discovered a video from Dr. Casagranda about the origins of Santa Claus and the role of the Coca Cola Company in shaping America's celebration of Christmas. I don't know that this is the full story, but it sure has a ring of truth about it, and I think it's probably worth a listen:
We've been looking at the tracks on my latest holiday mix, "I Wish It Was Christmas Today," and today I have a little background on the next three selections.
Track 7 Silent Night, He-5 (1969)
Quick: What's the most widely recorded Christmas song of all time?
Off the top of my head I probably would have guessed "Jingle Bells," but that's wrong. It's "Silent Night," which I understand has been recorded more than 130,000 times since it was first written in 1818.
I've featured seven different versions of the song myself on my previous holiday mixes. And of the seven, this version by the Korean psychedelic rock band He-5 may just be my new favorite.
I don't suppose many people know this right off, but psychedelic rock was all the rage in South Korea in the late '60s and early '70s, and the band He-5 was in the forefront of the craze. Led by rock guitarist Kim Hong Tak, He-5 enjoyed an impressive run and was best known for their energetic live performances. Sadly, this energy was missing from many of the band's studio records as their record company insisted they tone things down on their formal releases. The one exception was probably their 1969 album "Merry Christmas," which you can listen to below. "Silent Night" is the first track on the record.
Track 8 Christmas in Haight Ashbury, Dave Madden from Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In (1968)
Few television programs captured the freewheeling spirit of the late 1960s quite as well as Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In, a lively and irreverent sketch comedy show that aired on NBC for six seasons beginning in January 1968. Hosted by Dan Rowan and Dick Martin, the show starred such comedy stars as Lily Tomlin, Goldie Hawn, Ruth Buzzi, Arte Johnson and JoAnn Worley. During its first several seasons, Laugh-In was one of the most popular shows on TV.
This short clip features Dave Madden, best known for portraying band manager Reuben Kincaid on the ABC series "The Partridge Family," offering a quip about San Francisco's Haight Asbury neighborhood.
The clip is teed up to start with Madden's joke, but it's part of a longer Laugh-In holiday retrospective called Past Christmas Present that NBC aired in 1993. You can watch the entire show by moving the video cursor all the way to the left (naturally). Enjoy!
Track 9 Sleigh Full of Toys, The '60s Invasion (2015)
