Sunday, December 06, 2009

Three Sunsday, Part Two


Moving backwards in time four years, this is more from The Three Suns. This is also the most re-issued Three Suns record. I'm going to show you four different covers for the 12" LP and two different covers for two different 7" EPs that drew tracks from this album. This would also be the album from which the occasional CD track is drawn, though it's never been fully reissued in the CD age to my knowledge. Before I start to carry on and on about all these different covers, why don't you go ahead and download The Three Suns-The Sounds Of Christmas (RCA Victor LPM-1132, 1955, Mono). You'll be very happy that you did.

1. Adeste Fideles
2. The First Noel
3. Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer
4. Oh Holy Night
5. The Monastery Bells
6. Greensleeves
7. Winter Wonderland
8. Deck The Halls With Boughs Of Holly
9. White Christmas
10. Joy To The World
11. Jingle Bells
12. Oh Little Town Of Bethlehem
13. Carol Of The Birds
14. God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
15. Silent Night
16. Der Tannenbaum (Christmas Tree)
17. Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town
18. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
19. Carol Of The Bells
20. Hark The Herald Angels Sing

OK, now about these covers. The one you see above, the one that always reminds me of something Grandma Moses might have painted is the most common version, and I believe it's the original.

Next up was this cover showing Rockefeller Center during the holidays, always a popular area for album cover pictures.

This is the cover they switched to when the LP was reissued on the Camden budget subsidiary of RCA Victor. Note that they also changed the name slightly. It's now The Sound Of Christmas instead of The Sounds Of Christmas.

Sometime later on, RCA licensed the tracks to sub-budget label Pickwick and they released the LP again under the Sound title with yet another cover. This one is one that has been rumored a few times around here, but I'd never gotten one until this year, so this is the first time I have this cover to share with you. Nothing special, really. There's some text on this one that leads me to believe it may have been released in Canada, or maybe it was just labeled so it could be sold in both the US and Canada. I'm not sure...

Last but not least, we have these two great great EP covers. I hate to say it, but these may be may favorite versions of all. These both came out at the same time as the regular LP, but it was common for the EP versions of LPs to have different, or at least slightly different, covers.

If you aren't confused enough just yet, it turns out there's a third EP from this LP, and that one actually uses the artwork from the LP. I've never seen a copy myself, but you can check it out over at A Christmas Yuleblog.

3 comments:

  1. Thanks Ernie. The Sound(s) of Christmas with the Three Suns is among my very favorites as well. I grew up with the Stereo Electronically Reprocessed version myself which represents yet one more slightly different cover. I have gone deaf in one ear and am no longer good for mastering projects so the apperance of this one on full audio spectrum CD one day would be amazing.

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  2. What a joy to hear these marvelous sounds once again, thank you so much for all you do on this terrific blog!

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  3. I noticed that on the cover of Dinah Shore's You Meet The Nicest People EP, she is holding a copy of The Three Suns 45 The Sounds of Christmas. She sure has a stack of records there to play!

    ~Bob

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