Christmas In July-The Seventh Day

Bit of a quicky here tonight, if ten tracks can be considered a quicky.  All ten of these tracks come from the same 10" LP entitled The Story Of The Music Box (Book Records 10" Collector's Series #1011, Mono, 1952).  Oh, the LP comes in the back of a thin, spiral bound book that tells all about the music box.  Neat little package.  The sound is a little rough, too, but there's some nice Christmas carols on here, if music boxes are your thing.  We hear from a few different types of 19th century music boxes here, including the Household Regina, the American Olympia, the Concert Regina and the Console Regina.  Interesting names, those.  The carols in question are Silent Night, O Sanctissima, Song Of The Virgin Mary, Ave Maria-Gounod, Hark The Herald Angels, First Noel, Skaters' Waltz, Adeste Fideles and two version of Jingle Bells.  You'll either like this one or you won't, so if it sounds like your kind of thing, please be my guest.  Here's the download link.  See you back here tomorrow!  Oh, and if you like the idea of a 10" record, head on over to my buddy Buster's place, a little blog called Big 10-Inch Record.  He specializes in them.

Christmas In July-The Sixth Day

Day six already?  This month is flying by.  Another hodge-podge of stuff for you tonight.  Let's begin with the first of three tracks from old pal Hal Mooney And His Orchestra.  Couple years ago I brought you some really great stuff from another of his Mercury LPs, and this year I found another one.  Woodwinds And Percussion (Mercury PPS 6013, Stereo, 1961) is the name of it, and tonight's track from it is Baby, It's Cold Outside.  I think you'll dig this almost as much as the ones from 2008.  Next up is something else from The Bellwethers who you first heard back on the third day of my Christmas bonanza.  This is also from their LP The Bells Of Crystal Cathedral (The I.T. Verdin Company/UA Recording UAS-989-9297, Stereo).  This time it's Good King Wenceslas.  Third on the list today is Ice And Snow by The Swiss Band Organ from the LP Folk Songs Of The Alps (Tradition (Everest) TR 2081, Stereo, 1968).  You heard another track from this LP back on the third also, but by a different group.  Fourth up is a medley of tracks from Greenwillow, the Frank Loesser musical that includes the track Greenwillow Christmas.  I first heard this song in a version by The Browns featuring Jim Ed Brown, and I've always liked it.  I'm sure you'll like this version as performed by Arthur Fiedler And The Boston Pops Orchestra.  This is from their LP Music Of Frank Loesser (RCA Victor LSC-2486, Stereo, 1961).  Last up is our first second version of Snowfall for the year, in a short (and narrated!) version by The Steel Pier Big Band, Directed by Frankie Lester.  This is from the LP The World Famous Steel Pier Big Band (Steel Pier Records SP-1, Stereo, 1973).  This appears to have been released just a couple of years before the Steel Pier in Atlantic City went under for what many believed was the last time.  But it's evidently recently seen a rebirth and is now a tourist trap once again.  Good to know that there's something to do in Atlantic City besides gamble.  That concludes tonight's list.  I hope there's something in there that interests you.  If not, try back tomorrow and I'll hopefully find something that's more to your liking.  Here's the download link, have a good one!

Christmas In July-The Fifth Day

Good day to all!  It's rained here all day long and quite frankly, I'm getting tired of it.  I live in Florida, not some country where they have monsoon season.  But that's neither here nor there, you came 'round for some Christmas music, and I've got some dilly pickles for you tonight.  I don't even know where to start.  How about with a record that I just bought a couple of hours ago, and which is rapidly becoming my favorite find of the season?  It's The Jackie Davis Trio performing The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You) from the LP Organistics (Kapp KL-1030, Mono, 1956).  I don't know why I like it so much, but it's got that swingin' organ sound that would explode less than ten years later.  I think you'll enjoy it.  Track two is a bit of a shocker.  How about Frank Sinatra conducting an orchestra performing a 'tone poem' called White, The Young At Heart?  This is from the instrumental LP Frank Sinatra Conducts Tone Poems Of Color (Capitol W375, Mono, 1956).  Something about the sleigh bells in this one makes it sound all Christmassy to me, and I hope you think so as well.  Up next is another organ track that swings quite a bit less than that leadoff track, it's Ray Colignon performing The Skaters (which you may recognize as The Skater's Waltz) from Skating Waltzes-Ray Colignon At The Hammond Organ (Harmony/Columbia HL 7275, Mono, 1960).  It's certainly not the worst version that I've ever shared...  Fourth is That Man Over There from Meredith Wilson's adaptation of Miracle On 34th Street called Here's Love, performed here by Edmundo Ros And His Orchestra from New Sounds Of Broadway (London PS 352, Stereo, 1964).  Anything Christmas related from Mr. Ros is more than welcome here at the blog.  Lastly I've got the first of several tracks from Hugo Winterhalter and his album A Season For My Beloved (ABC-Paramount ABCS-447, Stereo, 1963).  I had no idea this even existed last year, then I found a mono copy.  Some months later I found a second mono copy.  And just last month in Ohio I stumbled across a stereo copy, and that's what you're getting tonight.  As you might have guessed from the title, there are a number of seasonal tracks on this one, and the first one I'm sharing with you in the Claude Thornhill classic Snowfall.  Mr. Winterhalter has been a favorite around the blog.  I've shared his only full-length Christmas release with you before, as well as a single or two and a random track.  All good stuff!  I think that's it for the night.  I'm sure you'll agree that it's a pretty good selection of stuff today, I hope you enjoy it.  Here's the download link, and I'll see you all after work tomorrow.

Happy 4th!

Here are a few shots of the fireworks last night down on Bradenton Beach. I think I was quite lucky to get these shots, because about ten minutes after the show ended, the clouds let go and I got drenched. So that's why you aren't getting any fireworks pictures from tonight. Sorry.

Christmas In July-The Fourth Day

Happy July the 4th to everyone out there in blog land!  I went out last night to try and shoot some fireworks, and I got drenched.  So I'm not even gonna try tonight, I'm gonna sit right here by the computer and share some tunes.  Actually, I'm going to go ahead and share some tunes now, get it out of the way, then I'm probably going to watch some TV.  Tonight you get a side-long version of The Nutcracker Suite from Stanley Black and The London Festival Orchestra.  I ripped this from side 1 of Tchaikovsky-Nutcrackers Suite OP.71/Serenade For Strings In C Major, OP. 48 (Phase 4 SPC 21022, Stereo, 1968).  It's a pretty good version, running a little over 20 minutes.  I didn't want to leave you with just the one version though, so I found an LP copy of the Fred Waring And The Pennsylvanians version, which I'd previously shared out from a scratchy old 45 here.  The LP is called A Very Special Hour With Fred Waring And The Pennsylvanians (MCS Special Markets 2xLP DXS-511, Simulated Stereo).  Maybe you'll like this rip more than the other one, maybe you won't.  Oh, this LP was marked as being available only at Fred Waring concerts, if you're curious.  So that's it, two versions of The Nutcracker Suite, one fairly straight, one a bit twisted.  Interesting way to celebrate the 234th anniversary of the independence of my nation, but such is my way.  Here's the download link, have a great holiday.  We'll see you back here tomorrow.

Note To Self

Do not start installing that fancy programmable thermostat you bought at Lowe's today after midnight.  You'll forget to turn off the main power when you disconnect the old thermostat, short out the blue wire, and you'll fiddle with the new one (which won't work) until two in the morning as your condo gets steadily hotter.  Then when you give up and put the old one back in, it won't work either.  You'll have to tear apart the air handler after moving a five foot high stack of records.  Inside there you'll find what appears to be a car fuse that looks blown.  Your car doesn't use those types of fuses, but it uses something close, and it has some spares, but not in the right amperage, but close.  Plugging in the incorrect type of the wrong size fuse seems to work, thank goodness, because it's late, and you'll want to go to sleep, but only with cold air blowing on you.  Oh, and the air handler can be working just fine, but it won't blow cool air if you don't put the front cover back on it.  Confound it, I still have to install the new thermostat...

Christmas In July-The Third Day

Gotta get tonight's shares up pretty quick here.  The skies have cleared and I think we might actually get to see some fireworks tonight.  I missed them last night due to the poor weather, and it's predicted to rain again tomorrow.  Tonight may be my only chance to get some pictures.  So let's see what's in the share tonight.  We begin with organist Al Bollington performing Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy from Presenting Al Bollington At The Conn Organ (Decca DL 4223, Mono, 1962).  From there we move to another old classic chestnut, Parade Of The Wooden Soldiers by Irving Fields And His Trio.  This one comes from Irving Fields Favorites (King 703, Mono, 1961).  Next up is The Swiss Bell Ringers doing a song called Carol Of The Bells, but which doesn't sound anything like Carol Of The Bells.  Odd.  I grabbed this one from Folk Songs Of The Alps (Tradition (Everest) TR 2081, Stereo, 1968).  You'll hear a couple more tracks from this one later on, but by a different artist.  Fourth up is a bit of a ringer.  It's Teresa Brewer doing Jingle Bell Rock from The Best Of Teresa Brewer On Coral Records (Coral 2xLP CXB 7, Mono, 1965).  I say it's a ringer because I'm pretty sure they pulled this from Teresa's Christmas LP, which, unfortunately, I don't own.  Lastly tonight, I give you Ding, Dong Merrily On High by The Bellwethers from The Bells Of Crystal Cathedral (The I.T. Verdin Company/UA Recording UAS-989-9297, Stereo).  This little gem appears to be a compilation of tracks from various handbell and carillon recordings all linked to Robert Schuller and his Crystal Cathedral.  I.T. Verdin is a manufacturer of handbells, and this seems to have involved them in some capacity.  But you don't care about all that, you just want some Christmas music in July.  Here's the download link, if I can get Rapidshare to co-operate.  I've uploaded this thing twice and it's still not showing it.  I'll try it again here in a sec.  See you tomorrow!

Christmas In July-The Second Day

Day two, and I've got a special little local treat for you.  One day last year I drove over to the East coast of Florida to see a shuttle launch.  Unfortunately, the launch got scrubbed, but I decided to hang out and hit some thrift stores on the space coast.  That's when I turned up this record, Voices Of Space By The Kennedy Space Center Chorus, Directed By Arthur C. Benington (Century Records 32909, Stereo).  There's mention in the liner notes of the groups formation in 1966, but no mention is made of the moon landing, so I'm pegging this somewhere between '67 and '69.  Track one, side one is a long medley narrated by Bill Larson, and it begins with a clip from Gemini 6 astronaut Walter Shirra.  I've cut it into eight individual tracks, but it's one long track on the record.  I think you'll really enjoy this one.  There's one song in the medley that isn't really Christmas, No Man Is An Island, but that's made up for by a good track that I'd never heard before, We Can't Go Wrong.  The label and sleeve are both devoid of further info on that song, so I'm a little clueless about it.  Give it a listen, maybe you can tell me more about it.  Here's the download link, have a ball.  See you tomorrow!

Christmas In July-The First Day

Yes, I know.  I've been neglecting the blog lately.  I just haven't been in the mood.  I don't know why, it just hasn't been something I felt like messing with.  But suddenly, here it is July, and I've got a tradition to uphold.  For the past three years, I've shared out Christmas music during the month of July.  Not just any Christmas music, but songs that have a holiday bent from albums that don't have anything to do with the holidays.  It's an odd hobby, but it keeps me off the streets.  I don't know that I've got enough music or drive to last me the whole month, but I'm going to give it a go.  I came home from work tonight and ripped five songs for you, and I think I had about ten that I ripped sometime right after Christmas that I'll eventually get to.  That means it's not going to be too many each day.  I'm starting out today with the five I just recorded, and we'll go from there.  So, let's see what's in Santa's bag tonight.  I'm starting off with Julius La Rosa singing one of the hit songs from the Broadway musical Mame, which I'm sure you've already guessed is We Need A Little Christmas.  I grabbed this from his LP You're Gonna Hear From Me (MGM E-4398, Mono, 1966).  From there we move to the great (and long-time blog favorite) Paul Mauriat doing the old Harry Simeone rip-off The Little Drummer Boy.  No idea why this didn't show up on his Christmas record(s), I recorded it off of Listen Too! The Fabulous Paul Mauriat Orchestra (Philips PHS 600-197, Stereo, 1965). Next up is Warren Covington And His Orchestra telling us that Baby It's Cold Outside from his LP Dancing Trombones (Decca DL 74352, Stereo, 1963).  Fourthly we have The Hollywood Bowl Symphony Orchestra Conducted By Alfred Newman performing Parade Of The Wooden Soldiers from Marche! (Capitol SP8479, Stereo, 1959).  Lastly, and probably leastly, we have the old chestnut Greensleeves (which has the same tune as What Child Is This) by Jo Basile, His Accordion And Orchestra from the record Around The World With Jo Basile, His Accordion And Orchestra (Audio Fidelity AFSD 6153, Stereo, 1966).  And that's it for the first night.  Nice eclectic mix there.  And here's the download link.  Have at it!  Merry Christmas in July to all of you!