Goodbye 2021

As we finally wind down another year, I'm afraid I don't have a New Year's post for you. You'll have to make do with this oddity of a soundtrack. I couldn't find any hint of a Christmas special called Miss Santa's Hollywood Snowflake, or even a person named T.C. Stubblefield, yet here we have a record by that person that claims to be the soundtrack to said film. There's even a movie poster for it in my LP! (I included a rough photo of it in the download, it's too big to scan properly.) Some internet sleuthing tells me that the T.C. part of T.C. Stubblefield most likely stands for Troy Cory (Stubblefield is his given last name, I think), and from there some things fall into place. Troy was an international entertainer who never seems to have broken through to the USA, and his exploits elsewhere aren't too well documented. This music appears to have been released under his stage name elsewhere with no mention of a film, so I'm wondering if perhaps the movie never got made. But then the poster and album cover both claim to be a still from the movie. And what a horrible still it is. They couldn't come up with a better photo out of the entire movie? I guess not. The picture is actually printed sideways on the LP jacket so that it wraps around the sleeve from front to back. I've rotated it for you above so that it at least appears like he's not laying sideways. I tell you, this is a weird package all around. I'm not sure how I feel about the music. It's not horrible, but it's not good. It's just sort of there. Maybe you know more about this record or this guy or this movie, or even what year this was released. If you do, please, please, please fill us in! This is T.C. Stubblefield (AKA Troy Cory)-Snowflake's First Christmas (VRA Radioplay Music VRA-00025, Stereo). Like several other shares this season, this record turned up in a Central Florida record store last month during a visit that almost didn't happen. It just goes to show that you never know what you might find, or when or where you're going to find it!

1. An Ol' Christmas Card
2. Christmas Around The World
3. Jingle Bells
4. Silver Bells
5. White Christmas
6. I'll Have A Blue Christmas
7. Motion Picture Soundtracks From "Miss Santa's Hollywood Snowflake" (credited to Troy, his daughter Priscilla, and someone named Manuella)
8. C-H-R-I-S-T-M-A-S
9. Ol' Little Town Of Bethlehem
10. Silent Night

MEGA

Spurred On

I don't think I shared enough Christmas stories with you this year. It's hard to find good spoken word stuff sometimes, and I didn't hunt down very much this year. But I do have this one single that features a story on one side with a related song on the other side. It's the story of Silver Spurs, the unlikely name of a very special elf who can help Santa in ways that others can't.  The Christmas canon is full of characters no one has ever heard of, and this is yet another addition to that group.  Hopefully you'll remember Silver Spur next year when the season rolls around. This is Dr. Dwayne Jorgenson-Narrator, Bill Barber, Jr.-Piano/Celeste & Keith Lester-Vocalist, Steve Barnett-Conductor-Silver Spurs; A Christmas Story b/w Silver Spurs; A Christmas Song (Knollwood 7" 33 RPM 26937, Stereo, 1975). I'm of the opinion that there is a book of some sort associated with this record, but I have no evidence of that. Perhaps one of you little elves can dig that up for me. Thanks!

MEGA

Quito Revisited

Next up in my short stack of remasters is this record full of singing missionaries in Ecuador. I found a new copy of the record this year, but I've been sharing this with you for a long time now. I stumbled across that new copy about three months ago, and they actually had two copies in the little thrift store for some reason. Well, they had two sleeves, but only one record. I probably should have grabbed the other sleeve since this one has the address label on it, but I thought maybe that added some character, especially since the address is in Bolivia. Of minor interest to collectors, this is a reissue of the original record I shared with you before. That version was on Singspiration, and this one is on Singcord, which I believe is another subsidiary of Zondervan. So that tells me that the record was popular enough to warrant a reissue at some point. And I, too, am reissuing it to you tonight. This is Christmas At Quito (Zondervan/Singcord ZLP-546, Mono, 1960). That date of 1960 comes from the RCA pressing info off the old copy. Not sure of the date for this reissue, but 1960 is close enough for our purposes. Enjoy!

1. HCJB Radio Staff Choral Ensemble-Fanfare
2. Vern Van Hovel And Joe Springer-Come To Bethlehem (Adorad Al Nino)
3. Gene Jordan-O Come, All Ye Faithful
4. HCJB Radio Staff Men's Chorus-Come, O Ye Shepherds (Venid Pastores)
5. Dolores Van Der Puy-Come To His Manger Bed
6. Jeanne Odell-Silent Night
7. HCJB Radio Staff Ensemble-Glorious Is Thy Name
8. Joe Springer-Christmas Candle
9. Dixie Dean-Joy To The World
10. Ruth Jordan-Though Christ A Thousand Times
11. Jack And Ruth Shalanko-Unto Us
12. Vern Van Hovel-Mary's Boy Child

MEGA

Downhill

I have a soft spot for songs about skiing. I don't know why, but in my head they get lumped together with the records about Winter, and those records get lumped in with Christmas. You probably don't share this strange association, so I decided to wait until after Christmas to share out this skiing record from the great Vaughn Monroe. Monroe recorded a few Christmas singles in his career, and had a hit with Let It Snow, but he never made a whole Christmas album, and there aren't quite enough of those singles to make one. But if you throw in these ski songs, you can get a whole lot closer. I don't know the impetus behind this record, but I wonder if it might have been a favor by Monroe for Charles Grean, the conductor of both sides and writer of one side. Monroe cut a few novelties in his career, and this is certainly in that category. It's interesting stuff though. Download and give a listen to Vaughn Monroe-Orchestra Conducted By Charles Grean-The Song Of The Skier (In This White World) b/w Learn To Ski By Mail (In Ten Easy Lessons) (MGM 7" 45 RPM K12968, Mono, 1960).

MEGA

Back To The Barbershop

I had a few records that were remasters this year that I didn't get to through the season, so I figure there's no better time to share one of those with you than right now. For those who don't know, I sometimes find a new copy of a record I shared long ago, or maybe I just decide to record the old record again because I think I can do better. Sometimes I just forget that I'd already done some record, so it happens by accident that I redo something, but that's certainly the exception rather than the rule. In this case it's a barbershop chorus record, one of only a few barbershop Christmas records I'm familiar with. (I did see a new one that I don't have shared out over at Lee's place this year, go check it out!) Sharp eyed readers will notice that the label scan this time around is different than the old copy. But otherwise, it's the same music, same cover, same everything. I think I even scanned my original cover because the new one had writing on it and a Christmas card taped to the front. But it's the same otherwise. Anyhow, if you wanna give it a listen, here is Yuletide Favorites-Barbershop Style (Official SPEBSQSA Recording, No Number, Stereo). I suspect this pressing is a little newer than the old one based on the label being printed in fewer colors. The longer a record is in print, the cheaper they try to make the costs.

1. Southern Gateway Chorus-While By My Sheep
2. Southern Gateway Chorus-Lo, How A Rose E'er Blooming
3. Roaring 20's-Angels, From The Realms Of Glory
4. Southern Gateway Chorus-O Come, All Ye Faithful
5. Southern Gateway Chorus-O Holy Night
6. Roaring 20's-It's Beginning To Look Like Christmas
7. Roaring 20's-Let's Have An Old Fashioned Christmas
8. Southern Gateway Chorus-O Christmas Tree
9. Roaring 20's-Children's Medley
10. Southern Gateway Chorus-We Wish You A Merry Christmas
11. Roaring 20's-Silver Bells
12. Southern Gateway Chorus-Jingle Bells
13. Arlingtones-I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day
14. Arlingtones-Away In A Manger
15. Soundtracks-God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
16. Arlingtones-Coventry Carol
17. Soundtracks-Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
18. Arlingtones-As With Gladness Men Of Old
19. Arlingtones-O Little Town Of Bethlehem
20. Soundtracks-It Came Upon The Midnight Clear
21. Arlingtones-Angels We Have Heard On High
22. Arlingtones-Silent Night
23. Soundtracks-Winter Wonderland
24. Soundtracks-I'll Be Home For Christmas

MEGA

Another From The Hawaiian Village

From the same people that brought you this old Alfred Apaka Christmas 45, this single is about 2/3 Christmas, and 100% interesting. Hawaiian Christmas is an interesting mix of old world reverence and island charm. These stories may not be music, but the vernacular makes them have a bit of a sing-song quality that I really enjoy. I think you'll enjoy them, too, even if you have to hold onto them until next season. This is Kent Bowman-Pidgin English Stories. (Hawaiian Village 7" 45 RPM HV-EP-3, Mono).

1. Kalikimaka Mele (Christmas Carol)
2. Kanaka Christmas
3. Little Lei Puahi & The Wild Puaa (Red Riding Hood)

MEGA 

December 25th Past

Merry Christmas to you! Even though it's the biggest holiday on most people's calendars, I still frequently share music on Christmas Day. So let's head on into the archives and see what sorts of things I save for the big day itself.

2016

Huh, I must have taken Christmas Day off this year. I guess I wasn't as industrious as I thought. Here's a link to an old reshare from about that time that never got any comments...

2017

White Christmas, with synths.

2018

Christmas from Austria.

2019

Christmas from West Point.

2020

Merry Christmas at 78 RPM.

Christmas Day

Finally, Christmas Day is here! What a season it's been! Hopefully you have spent the day with friends and family, opening presents and eating too much food, now it's time to relax and download a little more Christmas music. I've got a very special share for you tonight, something I don't think you've ever seen or heard before, I know I certainly hadn't. This is a record given to employees of RCA's Electron Tube Division, the people that manufactured radio & TV tubes, for the 1959 Christmas season. It's a custom recorded program of Christmas carols presented as a sort of radio program complete with narration. Both sides feature the same program, one side in mono, the other side in stereo. When you give it a listen, you'll see that it's not very conducive to being cut into tracks, so I present it to you just as I recorded it, two complete programs, one in mono and one in stereo. They aren't exactly the same length, but I think that's just a mastering issue. As near as I can tell, they are the same recording, just processed differently. It's a great little show, and it's unreleased music from the best record company in the world in one of their best years ever. It's not unheard Elvis or anything, but for Christmas music fans of this period, it's pretty impressive stuff. So make your Christmas last just a little bit longer and download Radio Corporation Of America-Here We Come A-Wassailing (Radio Corporation Of America Electron Tube Division K08P-2866/K08Y-2867 Not For Sale Or Broadcast, Stereo/Mono, 1959). Anyone who recognizes the announcer, or the singing group, or even the recording itself per chance, please let me know something more about this recording! Oh, this was a gatefold sleeve with a pocket on one side for an insert and there was nothing printed inside, so I didn't scan it. The insert featured artwork and lyrics for all the songs. I scanned the front and back but didn't do all the pages. Sorry...

1. Here We Come A-Wassailing: Greensleeves; Gloucestershire Wassail; Green Grow'th The Holly; Boar's Head; Wither's Rocking Hymn; Bell Carol; Wassail Song; Deck The Halls-Monophonic

2. Here We Come A-Wassailing: Greensleeves; Gloucestershire Wassail; Green Grow'th The Holly; Boar's Head; Wither's Rocking Hymn; Bell Carol; Wassail Song; Deck The Halls-Stereophonic

MEGA

Merry Christmas!

Just sneaking in here real quick before the Christmas morning fun begins to wish you all a very Merry Christmas! Thank you for spending parts of the season here with me! I hope this music brings you great joy, both now and every season!

December 24th Past

Here it is Christmas Eve, and I need to do some shopping. So I'll just leave you some links to old shares on this day in history real quick. Go enjoy time with your family, the links will still be here next week.

2016

One of the best Christmas records you haven't heard, if you like the soundtracks to animated specials.

2017

Christmas Seals, but not Christmas.

2018

Christmas in St. Louis (the other one).

2019

Christmas by Doggett.

2020

The night before Christmas.

More Warner More Bros

Christmas Eve already! Where has the time gone? Seems like only yesterday I was trying to find records to share, and now I'm trying to find Christmas presents to buy. My time might be running out for that though. Thankfully, the pile of records isn't running out, and I've got another good one for you here now. I was surprised when I saw what looked like a local chorus record on a major label and it turned out to be even better than that. It was a corporate chorus, and it was a Canadian release! Sometimes I feel like these records find me. Dofasco turns out to be short for Dominion Foundries & Steel, Limited, and this is the second record they released. Looks like they also featured in a Christmas special a couple years in a row, perhaps that's why they were popular enough to get this record released on a major label. I've never heard of these guys, their music or their TV specials, but perhaps it's a Canadian thing. I'm still excited to share another great record with you this season, so this is The Dofasco Male Chorus-A Festival Of Christmas Carols (Warner Bros. (Canada) WSC 9010, Stereo, 1971).

1. The Shepherds Story
2. Sanctus
3. Merry Christmas
4. White Christmas
5. Come Ye Lofty
6. O Tannenbaum
7. Deck The Hall
8. Adeste Fidelis
9. See Amid The Winter Snow
10. O Holy Night
11. The Sleigh
12. Carol Of The Star
13. Pat-A-Pan
14. Winterwonderland
15. Wassail Song
16. Rise Up Shepherd And Follow

MEGA

December 23rd Past

Tick tock, tick tock. Time's a-wastin', hope you're ready for the big day already. If not, well, you might consider giving the gift of Christmas music, because I've got plenty of that for you in the archives, and there's no trip to the mall involved. I gave someone a gift of Christmas music once, and it didn't go over well. At least they could use the memory stick for something else... Anyhow, here's a few links to this day in the past five years of music shares. Enjoy!

2016

Blue (Grass) Christmas.

2017

A winter choo-choo ride. Certainly something different.

2018

Kids at Christmastime.

2019

Local Christmas.

2020

Classic Christmas songs from 78s via The Internet Archive.

Obligatory Organ Post

It's Christmas Eve Eve, and I don't think I've posted my quota of organ records for the season. Probably too late to get many more in, but I've got one here that's short and sweet, but with a twist. Several of these tracks feature a nice bit of piano that I quite liked, and I hope you will too. But the big twist is track two, a personal message from Howard Holderness, President of Jefferson Standard Life Insurance Company! I guess this was a giveaway from the company for Christmas one year, so he stuck his voice on these with a nice little Christmas message. I love these company things! Another odd twist here is the use of the entire B-side on another similar record for a different company. You can find it here on Discogs. (Speaking of Discogs, I think this Ted Smith is known more commonly as Tedd Smith, though he's not listed that way on Discogs. I need to fix that. In the spoken word part here, he's mentioned as being associated with Billy Graham, and Tedd Smith show up on plenty of Billy Graham-related records. But that's minutia you probably don't care about...). If you're still with me after all that, please be my guest and download Ted Smith-An Old Fashioned Christmas (Jefferson Standard Life Insurance Company 6-7055A/6-6954B, Mono).

1. I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day
2. Howard Holderness-Season's Greetings
3. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
4. Joy To The World
5. O Little Town Of Bethlehem
6. Hark, The Herald Angels Sing
7. Away In A Manger
8. While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks
9. It Came Upon The Midnight Clear
10. Deck The Halls With Boughs Of Holly
11. The First Noel
12. O, Come All Ye Faithful
13. Silent Night

MEGA

December 22nd Past

What day is this, I'm not even sure. Oh, Wednesday. The Wednesday before Christmas. Is that a holiday in some countries? I doubt it. Obviously I'm delirious. Before I lose it completely, here are links to some shares from the past five years of Ernie (Not Bert) that should still be available to download and listen to. Hope there's something in there you enjoy!

2016

The lost Luboff.

2017

Christmas with you.

2018

Christmas with some bloke name of Fenwick, care of Motorola.

2019

Christmas with Rex Humbard, part of a short series of Christmas records from TV preachers I did that year. There are more of them if you hunt around a bit. It didn't seem to be too popular of a series.

2020

Rhythm & blues from Christmas 78s. Well, approximately.

Who's Dennis James?

Time for another quick visit back to 1955 when the world was new, or at least it must have seemed that way. WW2 was becoming a distant memory, the US economy was booming and life was good. It was also a great year for Christmas music. Here's a little-known record from that year and the new Kapp label, a record that I was not familiar with prior to finding a copy this summer. (Of course I later discovered a second copy already in the collection that I don't remember buying. That happens a lot...) Dennis James appears to be a TV host, credited with hosting the first TV game show in 1946. I suppose they'd existed on radio before that, but TV was the thing that's stuck to today. He doesn't sing on this record, he just tells stories and narrates in rhyme. It's quite cute, I think you'll like it. There's also a chorus that does much of the heavy lifting, apparently assembled just for this recording. A banjo group called The Happy Harts shows up a few times, organist John Gart handles the orchestra, and the chorus is directed by Hal Kanner, who I'm not at all familiar with. It's a good listen, and deserves to be a little more well-known. This is Dennis James With The James Boys And Girls With The Happy Harts-Orchestra Directed By John Gart-Chorus Directed By Hal Kanner-Let's All Sing A Song For Christmas (Kapp KL-1009, Mono, 1955). I'm not going to list out all 34 tracks here, I'm much too lazy for that. Just download and listen, OK?

MEGA

December 21st Past

Getting really close to the big day now. Should I get a Christmas tree? I bet they're cheaper now than they were back before Thanksgiving. But the cat will just destroy it, so I better not. How about some links to Christmas shares from year's past? At least the cat can't destroy that!

2016

 A million medleys for Christmas.

2017

Huh, I guess I missed this day back in 2017. Contrary to popular belief, I do have to sleep once in a while, and I guess this was my day. Here's a link to a 45 I shared out a couple days earlier that I haven't mentioned here in this series of posts.

2018

Christmas at the barber shop. I still need a stereo copy of this one, so if you have a copy you'd like to send me, drop me a line. :)

2019

Christmas from New Jersey.

2020

Winter songs from crusty old 78s.

Another Ellsasser

I love when I can add something to an artist's discography that I've covered before. In this case, it's a whole new album for a guy that has already seen a couple different albums shared out here at the blog. Previously, we've seen a Christmas album from Richard Ellsasser, as well as a winter-themed album. That Christmas album was even issued under an entirely new cover and almost got posted as something new before I realized it was just a reissue on a subsidiary label of the original. (There are also a few tracks from Chirstmas in July past as well, if you dig hard enough.) But this one is truly brand new to us and is sure to be a great addition to the year. This is Richard Ellsasser-Joy To The World (MGM E3271, The Organ Of The John Hays Hammond, Jr. Museum Gloucester, Massachusetts With The Deagan Celesta-Chime, Mono, 1955). In the interest of correctness, I should say that I'm not sure this 12" LP was issued in 1955. There was a 10" version in 1955, and I couldn't confirm the 12" came out the same year. But close enough for this blog.

1. Joy To The World
2. Silent Night
3. Away In A Manger (Luther's Cradle Hymn)
4. We Three Kings Of Orient Are
5. Carol Of The Bells
6. O, Come All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles)
7. What Child Is This? (Greensleeves)
8. The Holly And The Ivy
9. Three Old English Carols
10. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
11. The First Noel
12. Good King Wenceslas
13. Veni, Emmanuel
14. Bring A Torch, Jeanette, Isabelle
15. O Little Town Of Bethlehem

MEGA

December 20th Past

Should I start my Christmas shopping today? Nah, I think I get Christmas Eve off of work, so there'll be plenty of time then. In the meantime, here's more links to past shares you might have missed.

2016

Singers in stereo! For Christmas!

2017

Stereo motion! For Christmas!

2018

Christmas with Leroy. This record was harder to find than it should have been.

2019

Christmas in DC.

2020

A fine collection of Christmas comedy, all from 78s at the Internet Archive.

Gone Fishin'

One of my favorite types of Christmas record to find is the corporate Christmas collections. Not so much in this day and age, but back in the day, groups of company employees would get together to sing, either informally or occasionally as a professional group that would stage shows or even small tours. And sometimes they would release records. Even more rarely, they'd put out a Christmas record. In the past I've brought you collections of Christmas songs from groups representing Snap On, Anheuser-Busch, Nationwide, and others that I can't think of at the moment. Today I've got a small record that features songs contributed by the worldwide divisions of the Garcia Corporation, the fine folks who make fishing gear. You just never know what sort of company is going to put together and press these Christmas collections. I think you'll dig it. This is Merry Christmas (Garcia 7" 33 RPM GRC 7701, Mono). The audio editing is a bit rough on this one, and it's like that in the grooves. I think the splices were done in a hurry or by someone with out a lot of experience back when this was put together, but that's part of the charm on these sorts of releases.

1. Garcia Glee Club-Silent Night
2. French Mitchell Chorus-Noel
3. Tony Baly-Forever Christmas
4. Swedish Abu Chorus-The Star Over Eastern Land
5. Swedish Abu Chorus-Christmas Is Here Again
6. German By Plate Chorus-Silent Night

MEGA

 

December 19th Past

Are you keeping up? Let me know if you've had enough and I'll stop. In the meantime, here are links to five more old shares in the archives that should still be downloadable. Don't say I never give you anything.

2016

Christmas with Gomer.

2017

Christmas fun from a local TV station.

2018

Christmas from Franklin National Bank.

2019

Christmas in Italy. I went to Italy a couple years ago, but not at Christmas. I bet they really do things up for Christmas though, because it seemed like a very religious place. Churches everywhere, and little alcoves with a statue of the Virgin Mary on every other bend in the road.

2020

Country Christmas from 78.

Ireland! Again!

Been a while since the last installment of Christmas around the world, a series I did during the 2018 season. I think I already did a record from Ireland that year, but here's another one for your collection. Not sure if this one is better than the other one, but at least it's different. This is St. Catherine's Dominican Choir, Maureen Dillon-Conductor, Soloists: Bernadette Walshe And Eileen Egan-Christmas In Ireland (Avoca 33-AV-126 (Cabra, Dublin, Ireland), Mono).

1. Adeste Fideles
2. Hark, The Herald Angels Sing
3. Cry Out And Shout
4. The Holly And The Ivy
5. Ding Dong Merrily On High
6. The First Noel
7. Diadem
8. Christians Awake
9. Silent Night, Holy Night
10. Away In A Manger
11. The Seven Joys Of Mary
12. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
13. Once In David's City
14. O Little Town Of Bethlehem
15. On That Christmas Morn
16. Angels We Have Heard On High (Gloria In Excelsis Deo)

MEGA 

December 18th Past

One week warning!  Not long now, hope you're almost ready. Not me, though. I always wait until the last minute, then give crappy gifts. Oh, well. Hopefully this trip down memory lane is a good enough gift for you because that's all you're getting.

2016

Christmas moods at the organ. Bonus points for a great cover.

2017

Christmas at the organ, because you don't have enough.

2018

Christmas on (or by) the Rhodes.

2019

A lost Christmas record with some big names attached.

2020

Christmas songs by the ladies.

Carmel Redux

Here's another little record I got in a big lot from eBay this year. It's a remake of a song that Carmel Quinn had recorded much earlier in her career. That earlier record was on a major label, but this one is on a tiny outlet as is often the case with older artists. As they quit bringing in the sales they used too, they get dropped by the majors then picked up by a more sympathetic outfit who is willing to support such an artist. The song she remakes here is The Story Of The Magi (you can find a download of that earlier version in my giant 78 dump here). She has a new duet partner here, but it's still a very similar arrangement. The flip side is a new recitation, but I'm sure you'll enjoy it. This is Carmel Quinn, Arranged & Conducted By Ted Auletta-The Story Of The Magi (with Sean Fuller) b/w One Solitary Life (GP Records 7" 45 RPM GP-554, Stereo). Note that this A-side is written by the famous team of Felice & Bodleaux Bryant!

MEGA

December 17th Past

How many days is it until Christmas? Eight? I think I need to start doing some shopping. Nah, there's still time. Here are some links to Christmas shares from the last five years, in case you missed something.

2016

A Christmas 10" record that I bought in Dallas the day after the 50th anniversary of the JFK assassination. Weird, I know, but that's how these things go.

2017

A semi-Christmas record.

2018

A green EP from some naval aviation cadets.

2019

Some Christmas stories for you.

2020

Christmas dances from 78s.

More Baptists

I shared a record earlier this season with you from the Radio And Television Commission Of The Southern Baptist Convention, that one a little spoken word recording for playing as PSA's. This time it's actual music that you might enjoy more for repeated listening. It's also on green vinyl, so it's pretty to look at as it spins on the turntable. If you had enough of these, you could decorate your tree with them! But be careful, cats can be hard on Christmas ornaments. (We have lost every single glass ornament on the tree this year thanks to Lance, yet last year he left it alone. Go figure...) Anyhow, this is The Baptist Hour Choir-Director: R. Paul Green-Carols Of Christmas (Radio And Television Commission Of The Southern Baptist Convention, No Number, Green Vinyl, Mono). Oh, the flip side is a long story featuring Margaret Summers narrating, but there are also some carols interspersed.

1. We Three Kings
2. Hark, The Herald Angels Sing
3. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
4. Angels We Have Heard On High
5. O Come All Ye Faithful
6. God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen
7. O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
8. There's A Song In The Air (Unlisted, but it's there...)
9. Christmas Day--A Choral Fantasy On Old Carols
10. The First Christmas

MEGA

A Week And A Day

I just wanted to hop in here for a second while you're busy downloading and find out who's stopping by. I'd appreciate it if you could leave a comment with your name and where you're from, and if you feel like it, tell me what your favorite share has been so far. I'm not anywhere near done with the Christmas music yet, though I think I can see the end from here. I love that you've all made my little blog a piece of your annual holiday tradition, and I hope you'll keep coming back for as long as I can do this. I put out this same request for a roll-call a couple years back and got something like 79 comments, so that's the number to beat. I'm not sure if I have 79 unique visitors, but some of those comments were me responding to others. (I can't seem to find that old post to link to at the moment...) Anyhow, thanks again for stopping by, and I hope you and yours have a great Christmas!!

December 16th Past

It's all downhill from here, Christmas will be here before you know it. Hope this music from the past is making your holiday something special.

2016

A Greek Christmas

2017

Looks like there was no share from this day in 2017, since I went to see the latest Star Wars movie. Here's a link to something earlier in the month just for the sake of giving you a little something-something.

2018

An Army Christmas record, just to give you a break from all those Air Force records.

2019

A Christmas journey...

2020

Quite the characters.

More Christmas With Leroy

If you dig into the catalog of many older artists, you'll find plenty of things you didn't know existed. In the old days, you had to have a shelf full of books from Billboard by Joel Whitburn or Tim Neely or other such authors (and I still have shelves full of such books, though it's rare I consult them anymore). But these days you have the power of the internet and websites like Discogs or 45Cat. With such sites, you can find an artist you're curious about and scan through large chunks of their discography, searching for keywords like Christmas or Santa. Sometimes something interesting pops up that you didn't know existed. This is just such a record from Leroy Holmes. I spent a few years trying to find his winter-themed album, but I was finally able to share it with you a few years back. But neither of the tracks from this 7" record feature on that album, so it's like having bonus tracks! I think you'll really enjoy these additions to his back catalog of Christmas music. This is Leroy Holmes And His Orchestra And Chorus-The Little Bell (That Just Went Ding) b/w Song Of December (MGM 7" 45 RPM K12128, Mono, 1955).

MEGA

December 15th Past

Halfway through the month, and thus halfway through our blast from the past. Yes, I started a little before December, but I'm likely to end a little after December as well, so it works out. Are you enjoying the trip down memory lane as much as I am?

2016

Christmas polkas.

2017

Christmas talk.

2018

Christmas at the Holiday Inn.

2019

Perhaps the greatest Christmas LP cover of all time.

2020

A completely random selection of Christmas songs from 78s.

Christmas With The Gipper

Not too long ago, I came across this LP in a record store halfway across the state. It was still sealed, and I knew I had to grab it. I'd never seen a copy before, but I knew of the LP from a post many years ago over at the blog of my friend CaptOT. You may have downloaded it way back then as I did, or you may have missed it. I was doubly excited to find that this was a stereo copy, and his old share was mono. I hope you'll agree with me that this share was worth the wait. Just in case you don't recognize the name, Pat O'Brien was a well known actor of the 30's, 40's and even the 50's. (Don't confuse him with the modern sportscaster, it's not the same guy.) The record itself is full of warbled carols, Christmas stories and poems with perhaps only a tenuous connection to Christmas. But it's the sort of record I enjoy, and I hope you will, too. This is Pat O'Brien-A Quiet Christmas (Well, Reasonably Quiet, Anyway) With Pat O'Brien (RIC ST 1009, Stereo, 1964).

1. Jingle Bells
2. Christmas Is For Children (Intro)
3. What Is A Boy?
4. What Is A Girl?
5. Silent Night, Holy Night
6. Four Nick Kenny Poems: Spring Prayer; The Extra Prayer; The Christmas Stable; Christmas
7. Adeste Fidelis (Come All Ye Faithful)
8. Three Edgar Guest Poems: The Christmas Gift For Mother; Christmas Day; A Christmas Bit
9. The Lord's Prayer
10. The Little Drummer Boy
11. The House With Nobody In It
12. Little Town Of Bethlehem
13. The Gift Of The Magi

MEGA

December 14th Past

Sometimes December seems like it's way too long, but then again, it seems like it's too short. I suppose it depends on your point of view, just like everything else in life. To me, it seems like a little bit of both, so on average, it's just right. Anyhow, here're some more links to this day in blog history with lots of good Christmas music to download.

2016

Christmas in an experience.

2017

Spurrlow, and more Spurrlow.

2018

The final piece in my personal Air Force Christmas quest.

2019

Christmas in N'Awlins.

2020

Christmas trees.

Goodbye Elvis

For your consideration, an autographed copy of a single from Jim Matthews, MD, The Singing Surgeon. And if that's not enough to pull you in, it's a tribute to the recently deceased Elvis! I've got a small collection of Elvis tribute Christmas songs, and I don't think I'd ever come across this one before I spotted it on Discogs. You can't really go wrong here, can you? This is Jim Matthews, MD, The Singing Surgeon-We'll Have A Blue Christmas, Elvis b/w Please Come Home For Christmas (Studio In The City/The Music Emporium M.E. 13, Stereo, 1977 or '78).

MEGA

December 13th Past

More old shares from this day in history. Well, not history in general, but the history of Ernie (Not Bert). Hard to believe sometimes how long I've been doing this now. The history goes back ten more years past the shares I'm highlighting, but many of those things aren't available to download anymore.

2016

Chimes, chimes, chimes.

2017

Christmas in Montana.

2018

Christmas in Pittsburgh.

2019

Christmas in Pittsburgh, again.

2020

Fun with Frank Luther.

The Magic Of Disco

There's nothing more exciting to me than finding a Christmas record I haven't seen before. Though much of the time, as soon as you spot it, you have some idea of what it may be. Maybe it's a recording from a high school choir, or a compilation from a grocery store of the same old carols from RCA. But sometimes it turns out to be something different from what you expect, and this is a good example of that. The cover appears to be a still from some sort of Christmas movie, and indeed the fine print on the back tells us that this is the soundtrack to a TV special that I've never seen or heard of. None of the names in the credits generate much in the way of hits on the internet, and I wasn't able to get any results based on the name of the alleged TV special. It's a bit of a generic name, so there may yet be some info out there. Maybe it was a special that never got made? There aren't even individual performer credits for the songs, so the names I put in the tags are my best guesses based on what they sound like. That's except for the tracks credited to Susan Barnes. I was able to find a mention of a single she put out featuring two of the songs here, and it's clearly her voice on others, so I'm fairly comfortable with those attributions. And guess what? Some of her songs are disco! Give it a listen and I think you'll enjoy it! This record turned up at a record store in Orlando just a month or so ago, and it appears to be a Florida production, though the label is from Louisiana.  Sometimes you just get lucky! This is The Magic Of Christmas (Penniwall Records No Number, Stereo, 1979).

1. Christmas Song
2. Up On The House Top
3. Hee Hee Hee Ho Ho Ho
4. Be Glad That You Are Little
5. Christmas Christmas
6. O Little Town Of Bethlehem
7. White Christmas
8. The Magic Of Christmas
9. Christmas Morning
10. Elfie
11. Christmas Time Of Year
12. Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer

MEGA

December 12th Past

Thanks for putting up with me and these self-indulgent history posts. I wish I had time to reshare and bring attention to every single thing in the archive, but there's just not enough time in the day. At least this way, those of you who are new to the blog can get a small sense of the treasures in the archives. I hope you don't feel it's a waste of your time. Here's more wastes of time...

2016

Christmas with the stars!

2017

Christmas with the King!

2018

More Air Force Christmas.

2019

Birthday of a King!

2020

Songs about Santa.

The Baptists Are Back

I should have shared this one out back at the beginning of the month since it's spoken word stuff, and I like to get it out while you can get it into your Christmas mixes. But if it's too late for this year, there's always next year. You might remember the Radio-TV Commission Of The Southern Baptist Convention from a series of stories about well-known Christmas carols. This is similar designed to drop into your radio show for a little bit of added Christmas kick. I don't think there's anything here that will knock your socks off, but it's some nice little bits to drop in a sacred mix somewhere. Feel free to download and enjoy Southern Baptist Convention-Living Words For Christmas (Radio-TV Commission Of The Southern Baptist Convention 7" 33 RPM 11183, Stereo).

1. The Baby
2. The Manger
3. The Shepherds
4. The Prophecy
5. The Census
6. The Wise Men
7. Bethlehem
8. The Christmas Story

MEGA

December 11th Past

Another day, another dip. That's right, it's time for some more highlight links into the most recent five years of blog history. Hope you're enjoying these little trips down memory lane!

2016

Christmas with Ford.

2017

 A Christmas secret.

2018

San Francisco & Christmas.

2019

St. Louis & Christmas.

2020

More instrumental Christmas songs from 78s at The Internet Archive. Another huge favorite in a season filled with favorites.

Save Those Seeds

Under the heading of "It was a different time", here is a Christmas record from the science oriented folks at Monsanto. These days, the company is best known for developing superior strains of food crops that increased yield, yet could not reproduce from it's own seeds. They also made it illegal to try and grow their strains from seeds. There's also the whole issue of Round-Up, but I don't know the whole story, and I'm too tired to look it up tonight, but let's just say that their reputation has suffered since this record came out extolling their world-wide production facilities. It's truly a relic of a period when science could cure all our ills. It's also very short, so if you don't like it, just rest assured it will be over quickly. This is Monsanto-We Wish You A Merry Christmas (Canticle Production For Monsanto S-78701/78702 "Made of Monsanto Opalon Vinyl", Mono).

1. We Wish You A Merry Christmas
2. Carol Of The Bagpipers
3. The Holly And The Ivy
4. Patapan
5. What Child Is This
6. The Pinata
7. Now It Is Christmastime
8. Kazoe Uta
9. Three Kings
10. Villancico
11. Fum, Fum, Fum
12. Shine, Shine Over All The World

MEGA

December 10th Past

Hello! And welcome to the December 10th edition of "This Day In Blog History"! What's in the past on this day? Check it out...

2016

More Christmas from Phoenix.

2017

Nice cover, I'll just leave it at that.

2018

Mennonites sing.

2019

Christmas in 1985.

2020

A patriotic Christmas from 78s.

Singles From Warners

If you've hung around the blog at Christmas time lo these many years, you'll remember that one of my early obsessions was the Christmas music from the Warner Bros. label in their early years. Begun in 1958, they jumped right in the deep end of the pool with some great Christmas music from the likes of Billy May, Jimmy Joyce, Ira Ironstrings, Wally Stott and other, lesser names like George Greeley, Gene Lowell, The Guitars Inc, The Children's Choir Of All Nations and even a generic music box & chimes LP. Oh, and how could I forget, the infamous Warner Bros. Stars album! So much great music, and all from LP. What I was ignorant about was their output on singles, the small records that spin faster. I stumbled across the record I'm sharing here on Discogs some time ago, and managed to track down a copy not long after. It collects up a double handful of those singles into LP format and was sent to radio stations in 1960. You get both sides of some records, but only one side of others, so if you like what you hear, track down the original singles and get the rest of this great music. There are a lot of things here that I've never heard before (along with a couple of ringers), it was a real eye opener to those early days at Warner. To the best of my knowledge, this was issued without a specific sleeve, my copy came in a plain green cardboard sleeve, the type commonly used for library records. I hope you enjoy this collection as much as I did!  This is Christmas Hits From Warner Bros. (Warner Bros. 8467/8468, Mono, 1960). Oh, there's a similar record from a year earlier I'd love to have, but it seems to go for crazy money. Not sure why since all the tracks are from LPs that aren't too hard to find.

1. Edd Byrnes-Lonely Christmas
2. The Lollipops-Mister Santa
3. Efrem Zimbalist, Jr.-Adeste Fidelis
4. Mel Blanc-I Keep Hearing Those Bells
5. Warren Barker-Midnight In Bethlehem
6. Graham Donald-And It Ain't Paid For Yet
7. Ira Ironstrings-Christmas Is For The Birds
8. Warren Smith-Dear Santa
9. Edd "Kookie" Byrnes-Yulesville
10. The Marquees-Christmas In The Congo
11. Cathy, Jeanette And Jolene-Jingle Bones
12. Red Coffee-Ducky Christmas
13. The Lollipops-Little Donkey

MEGA

December 9th Past

Welcome to our little stroll through the past five years' worth of Christmas posts at Ernie (Not Bert). We're at a unique point in history where you can still download a lot of the old shares from these years' past, so I'm trying to point out some of the highlights from ye olden days. In addition to the things I'm linking to, there are lots and lots of old posts still active, so feel free to poke around, you might be surprised by what you find. But here are some links to get you started.

2016

Phoenix sings.

2017

The Gift Of The Magi.

2018

Christmas in Sacramento with bonus Chanukah content!

2019

Whispering organ sounds for your Christmas enjoyment.

2020

Christmas songs from 78's in languages other than English. Interesting collection.

Whales? Really?

You've heard chipmunks singing Christmas songs. You've heard dogs singing Jingle Bells. You've seen entire albums featuring dogs, cats or cows. You've heard reindeer sing. Even snowmen. But I'm guessing you've never heard whales! Whales with tubas no less! If this doesn't take the cake, I don't know what will. This is The Whales Featuring Rathbone And His Tuba-The Chipmunk Song b/w If It Doesn't Snow On Christmas (Cenpro 7" 45 RPM 45001, Stereo, 1975). If this isn't the strangest animal you've ever heard sing Christmas carols, you'd better leave me a comment and prove it!

Thinking about it, when did those recording of whale songs become popular? I remember getting a National Geographic when I was a wee tyke, and there was a flexidisc in there with whale songs on it. Later on there were whole records devoted to such recordings, I wonder if this was part of that whole fad? Looks like this record preceded the National Geographic one. So much for my theory...

MEGA

December 8th Past

As we get further into this month, I see where I posted stuff in the past that I don't even remember. I guess I have periods where I'm just on autopilot, posting what I can as fast as I can in hopes that something will stick. Perhaps I should seek therapy. In the meantime, here's a list of some stuff that was shared on this day at the blog over the past five years.

2016

Christmas in Hawaii, or at least half of it.

2017

Ronald McDonald on 45 for Christmas.

2018

More Air Force Christmas. I shared a lot of that in 2018.

2019

Carillon Christmas.

2020

Some Jingle Bells at 78 RPM.

Kinda Like Glee

This 10" record is a nice set of carols, many of which aren't that well known, being sung by a college choir from somewhere in the Midwest. I don't think there's anything here that will jump out at you, but it's well done and worth a listen. Sorry if I'm not selling it well, but it's been a rough day and I'm struggling to get some stuff up for you. It does have a great cover though, don't you think?  This is The Concordia Choir-Paul J. Christiansen, Director-Around The Christmas Tree (Allied 10" 33 RPM ARS-LP 2004 Concordia College, Moorhead, Minn., Mono). No idea about the date for this one, hard to tell. I just noticed the copy up on Discogs has a single color cover, while mine has two. Maybe mine is an earlier pressing, I don't know.

1. Silent Night
2. How Far Is It To Bethlehem
3. The Three Kings
4. Jesus Was Born On This Day
5. Away In A Manger
6. A Flemish Carol
7. Thy Little Ones Dear Lord Are We
8. The Cradle
9. Jeg Er Saa Glad
10. Be Not Afraid

MEGA 

December 7th Past

A day that will live in infamy. And also a day that I shared some pretty sweet Christmas music in the past five years, but then I think all my shares are sweet. Or bad. One or the other. Sometimes both...

2016

Christmas with six white boomers.

2017

An unknown Christmas album from Miami.

2018

Christmas music from the USAF!

2019

 A yellow Christmas?

2020

Polka music for Christmas! Nice!