Chanukah In September-Day 1

Hello, and welcome to Chanukah in September, an occasional coda to my Christmas in July celebration!  Unfortunately, Chanukah songs are much harder to find, so it's not going to be a two month celebration, I can't even muster ten songs a day.  But I've got a few songs in the pile, so we're gonna try.

1. Chanukah: Sheleg Al Ha'aretz; With Our Candles In Hand; I Have A Little Dreydl; S'vivon by Gladys Gewirtz & Eve Lippman from Mother Goose Songs For Jewish Children/Holiday Playsongs (Menorah MEN-211, Mono).  I found a copy of this one in a thrift store in Maryland a couple years ago, only to find I already had a copy in the pile.  I shared out one of those copies last year, and this is the other one.  There are so few Chanukah songs, I was happy to have it.

2. Eight Nights Of Hanukah by an unknown artist from Now And Long Ago-Silver Burdett Songs From Music For Living-Album 09 (Columbia 10" 78 RPM Microgroove JS-329, Mono, 1956).  How long have I been sharing out songs from these 10" records?  That's how long I've been holding onto this track.

3. Sholom Chavarim by The Weavers from The Weavers At Carnegie Hall (Vanguard VRS 9010 (Metropolitan Music Library VG 9010), Mono, 1959).  Been holding onto this one for more than a month, too.

4. Chanukah (a) Mo'oz Tzur (b) Mi Y'malel (c) S'vivon Sov Sov Sov by Herb Strauss from Songs And Stories Of The Jewish Holidays-Sung And Told By Herb Strauss (Vocalion (Decca) VL73891, Stereo, 1970).  I was surprised when I found a 1970 date for this LP.  It looks much older, but that could just be because it was released on a budget arm of Decca, and not the main label.

5. Mi Yimallel by The Heritage Orchestra And Chorus from The Jewish Holiday Album (Epic BN 26172, Stereo, 1965). I always get excited when I see an album talking about the Jewish holidays, because that means I'm going to find another Chanukah track!

And that's it, a scant five tracks for you today.  But five is more than none, right?  Stay tuned tomorrow.

Zippyshare

Christmas In July 2018-Day 57

The end of another month, and thus I've got some end-of-year songs for you.  I couldn't come up with quite enough songs to fit the theme (since I did a full ten for you at the end of last month), there's also a little bit of filler in there.

1. Auld Lang Syne by the great Jo Stafford-Accompaniment By Paul Weston from Jo Stafford Sings Songs Of Scotland With Words By Robert Burns (Columbia CL 1043 "Demonstration, Not For Sale", Mono, 1957).  You can't go wrong when you have some Jo Stafford in the pile.

2. Ave Maria by Mantovani And His Orchestra from the LP Mantovani Plays The Immortal Classics (Decca (UK) LK 4072, Mono, 1956).  Mantovani put out some good music when he was at his peak.  His Christmas music is still a thing of beauty, 70 years later.

3. Bounce Of The Sugar Plum Fairy by John Kirby And His Orchestra from the album John Kirby (Columbia 4x10" 78 RPM C-45, Mono, 1941).  A rare share from shellac, though nothing rare about a track from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite.

4. The New Year: Look Ahead, a reprise of something I shared a month ago by Arthur Godfrey With Orchestra And Chorus Under The Direction Of Archie Bleyer from Arthur Godfrey's TV Calendar Show (Columbia CL 521, Mono, 1953).  You may have heard some bad stories about Arthur Godfrey, but he still put out some good music in his time.

5. Auld Lang Syne by John Keating And The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra from A Musical Tour Around The World...And Beyond (London Phase 4 2xLP SQBE-94251 "A Club Exclusive Deluxe Two-Record Album", Stereo).  The "...And Beyond" part of this title turned out to be an interesting track that supposedly explored the galaxy.  I need to go back and rip that when I have time.

6. In Dulci Jubilo by Robert Elmore from Bach On The Biggest (Mercury Living Presence SR90127, Stereo, 1958).  Always room for more organ around these parts.

7. Auld Lang Syne by Massed Children's Voices From Westminster Abbey And St. Paul's With The Longines Symphonette from Sweet Voices Of Inspiration (Longines Symphonette LWS 173, Stereo, 1966).  At least there are voices on this track, the last song I shared with you from this album was strictly instrumental.

8. Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring/Jesus, Lover Of My Soul by Paul Mickelson from Paul Mickelson Plays The Allen 3-Manual Computer Theater Organ (Supreme Productions/Singcord/Zondervan SLP-505, Stereo, 1977).  More organ!

9. Auld Lang Syne by Naval Academy Drum And Bugle Corps from Set Sail (Richardson Records 2xLP RRS-7/8, Stereo, 1978).  This was a surprise find just the other day.  I didn't think I'd find anything to share on a record filled with sea shanties, but there it was.

10. Odun De! Odun De! (Happy New Year) by Olatunji! from Drums Of Passion (Columbia CS 8210, Stereo, 1959).  If you aren't familiar with this track (I've shared it before), it may be the most out-there track you've heard all season.

And that's it.  Not just for today, but for Christmas in July.  There will probably be a Chanukah in September, but I think I'm done with the Christmas for now.  Looking forward to a day or two away from this computer!

Zippyshare

(Catsup!)

Christmas In July 2018-Day 56

56 days, but the end of the month is growing near.  Just keep in mind, all good things must come an end, though slowly.

1. To A Snowflake written by Francis Thompson and performed by E.E. Cummings, Narrator: Richard Wilbur from Many Voices-4A And 4B For Adventures In Appreciation (Harcourt, Brace And Co. 2xLP XTV 26319/20/36/37, Mono, 1958).  That's right, more poetry, and read by the somewhat well-known e.e. cummings.  His name was properly capitalized and punctuated on the LP, and I think I read once that he only did the all lower case thing for a small period in his life, but it's stuck with me all these years.

2. And Everyday Was Christmas by The San Sebastian Strings-Vocal By Rod McKeun And Anita Kerr from The Seasons-Spring (Warner Bros 4xLP 4 WS 2754, Stereo, 1973).  This was a box with all four records in it, and there were lots of possible items on the Winter LP, but I figured that was a little outside the theme for Christmas In July.

3. Ave Maria! O Maiden, O Mother by The Lennon Sisters from Lawrence Welk Presents The Lennon Sisters Singing The Best-Loved Catholic Hymns (Dot DLP 25250, Stereo, 1960).  That Larry Welk had to have his name on everything.

4. Bethlehem-Geberen by Richard Webb, Bass & Salvatore Mancuso, Organist, from I Love To Tell The Story (Central Woodward Woman's Fellowship VC 3330, Stereo).  Last one from this one.  I know you wanted more, but that's all there is.

5. Children Go Where I Send You by Sleepless Nites from the local LP Best Of The Fest-The John's Pass Music Festival (Mariner Records NR16050, Stereo, 1985).  John's Pass is an inlet less than an hour north of here with a huge marina that's been turned into a sort of tourist trap.  Not sure if they still do this music festival.

6. Christmas Song by Symphony In Blue, one last selection from Serenade In Blue-Series Eleven (Programs 131-143) (United States Air Force 7xLP Suggested Air Date: October-December 1969, Stereo, 1969).  Still my favorite find of the season!

7. I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm by The Johnny Howard Orchestra And Singers from Irving Berlin's Hit Parade With The Johnny Howard Orchestra And Singers (Dansan (UK) DS 010, Stereo, 1980).  Compare this stylistically to the many earlier versions I've shared out this month.  I think I prefer the earlier interpretations.

8. Let There Be Peace On Earth, one last selection on the bells by The Ringing Bells-Rachael Kuivinen, Director, from Christmas Music/Bicentennial And Old Favorites (United Methodist Church Of Chagrin Falls, Ohio 6093N9, Stereo, 1976).  Such good stuff, glad I found this one.

9. Song Of The Bells, more bells, this time by Frederick Fennell Conducting The Eastman-Rochester "Pops" Orchestra from Music Of Leroy Anderson, Vol. 2 (Mercury Living Presence SR90043, Stereo, 1959).  Not strictly Christmas, but too good to leave on the cutting room floor.

10. Toyland by The Longines Symphonette from Sweet Voices Of Inspiration (Longines Symphonette LWS 173, Stereo, 1966).  You put the word 'Voices' right there in the title, then you throw in an instrumental?  Hmmm...

That's it, another good night.  See you tomorrow!

Zippyshare

Christmas In July 2018-Day 55

Getting close to the end here.  You can't see it, but I can.  Not ripping much new music at this point, just trying to dole out what I've got in the pile without duplicating anything.  Stay tuned.

1. Holiday For Strings by Morton Gould And His Orchestra from String Time (Columbia Masterworks 4x10" 78 RPM M-663, Mono, 1947). Another rare entry pulled from shellac.  Found a couple of these the other day and had to squeeze them in.

2. Old Christmas Morning, written  by Roy Helton, read by Nancy Wickwire And Grace Chapman, Narrator: Richard Wilbur, from the LP Many Voices-4A And 4B For Adventures In Appreciation (Harcourt, Brace And Co. 2xLP XTV 26319/20/36/37, Mono, 1958).  This is a short spoken word bit from the LP I mentioned the other day that was covered in mold.  The vinyl is here in the computer room, but all the sleeve material is still down in the garage.  Not sure how to continue with it, thinking of sealing the whole thing in plastic and tucking it into the archives.  Seems to be a fairly rare item, and I hate to throw it out.

3. Ev'rybody's Good For Christmas by Steve Clayton & Gail Contini from Holidays To Sing About (UltraSound ULT 3420, Stereo, 1979).  One of those educational albums that seemed to be so common back in the day.  Can't imagine they still play stuff like that in school, even if it's presented on MP3 or on YouTube.

4. Go Tell It On The Mountain by Thurlow Spurr And The Spurrlows from The Spurrlows Now (Word WST-8445-LP, Stereo, 1969).  Great little mix of Now Sound and religious fervor.

5. In Bethlehem (Narrative), more spoken word, this time by Johnny Cash from the LP The Holy Land (Columbia KCS 9726, Stereo, 1969).  You know, the one with the lenticular cover!

6. Joy To The World by Richard Webb, Bass & Salvatore Mancuso, Organist, from I Love To Tell The Story (Central Woodward Woman's Fellowship VC 3330, Stereo).  Not the Three Dog Night song.

7. Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow by Vaughn Monroe And His Orchestra from There I Sing/Swing It Again (RCA Victor LSP-1799, Stereo, 1958).  The first album in which Monroe goes back and records his hits in new sound.  Not the last such album though.

8. Mr. Cool by Bill Justis from Bill Justis Plays Hot Hits Of Our Time (Mercury Wing SRW 16378 (Reissue of 1963 LP), Stereo, 1968).  Just a fun little instrumental, nothing outstanding.

9. Patapan by The Ringing Bells-Rachael Kuivinen, Director, from Christmas Music/Bicentennial And Old Favorites (United Methodist Church Of Chagrin Falls, Ohio 6093N9, Stereo, 1976).  Nope, still not done with this one.

10. Satin Doll by Lenny Dee At The Organ With Instrumental Accompaniment from Something Special (MCA MCA-221, Reissue of Decca DL74498, Stereo, 1964).  Wish Mr. Dee had left us more than just the one Christmas album.

That's all folks!

Zippyshare

Christmas In July 2018-Day 54

Welcome to Studio 54! No, wait, day 54.  Something else entirely.  OK, it was the only joke I could come up with, it's been a long season...

1. Blest Christmas Morn by Larry Groce-Special Arrangements And Musical Direction By Rick Powell from The Glad Sound-Songs About Christ Jesus From The Christian Science Hymnal (The Christian Science Publishing Society DRP 7340, Stereo, 1973).  The first of two songs tonight from the Christian Scientists.  Not sure who they are, but they like to sing Christmas songs, same as everyone else.

2. China Doll by Frederick Fennell Conducting The Eastman-Rochester "Pops" Orchestra from the LP Music Of Leroy Anderson, Vol. 2 (Mercury Living Presence SR90043, Stereo, 1959).  More Leroy Anderson goodness by Mercury's go-to conductor.

3. Christmas Morn by Eleanor Steber With Edwin McDonell At The Mother Church Organ from Hymns By Mary Baker Eddy (ST/And Company L80P 4483/4, Stereo). And this is the second album from those Christian Scientists.  At least I assume Church of Christ Scientist is the same as Christian Science.  I'm sure if it's not, someone will correct me.  I had two copies of this LP for some reason.  That's the chance you take when you don't keep a good inventory of what you have and don't have.

4. Elves (From "12 Pieces," Op.7) by Carlo Curley from The Incredible Carlo Curley Plays Virtuoso French Organ Music At The Royal Albert Hall (RCA Red Seal ARL1-3556, Stereo, 1979).  I grabbed this for the elf connection, obviously.  Unfortunately, the recording level on the original LP was so low it was difficult to get a rip that lifted the music up out of the surface noise.  You'll see what I mean when you give it a listen.  I tried a couple of time, but results were the same.  Odd for a late recording from a major label.

5. I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing by University Of Tennessee Marching Band-W.J. Julian, Director, from Pride Of The Southland (Davis Sound 42592 , Stereo).  You may think this is another off-center pressing, but it's not.  It's just badly warped and that's what's causing the coming-and-going sound effect 33.333333333333333333 times per minute. I have an idea in my head for a little ring I could put around warped records to hold them flat but I haven't done anything to actually fabricate such a thing yet.  Someday...

6. Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring-Chorale From Cantata 147 by Anatole Kitain, Pianist, from The Siena Pianoforte: Bach (Counterpoint/Esoteric (Everest) 53001, Stereo, 1956).  Yes, it's that old Siena Pianoforte again.  Not sure what the deal is with this thing.  I read the liner notes but have a hard time swallowing the story. Look it up.

7. Silent Night by The Ringing Bells-Rachael Kuivinen, Director, tonight's selection from Christmas Music/Bicentennial And Old Favorites (United Methodist Church Of Chagrin Falls, Ohio 6093N9, Stereo, 1976). I like that they keep these selections short enough that the tunes don't get repetitive.  In, Out, Done.

8. Skaters Waltz by The Kingsway Strings from Symphony On Ice-Music For Skaters-Waltzes Recorded For Ice Or Rink (Somerset SF-28200, Stereo).  I shared a tune from the other side of this LP earlier in the season and it was off-center.  This tune sounds OK to me, and I don't remember the tonearm swaying back and forth as I recorded it.

9. Sweet Little Jesus Boy by Richard Webb, Bass & Salvatore Mancuso, Organist, from the album I Love To Tell The Story (Central Woodward Woman's Fellowship VC 3330, Stereo). I love finding Christmas tunes in unexpected places, and this LP was certainly unexpected.  Pretty plain front cover, nothing on the back cover, but three Christmas tunes on the vinyl.

10. Toys by Vikki Carr-Arranged & Conducted By Marty Paich from Intimate Excitement (Liberty LST-7506, Stereo, 1967).  Not necessarily about the kind of toys you get for Christmas.

I keep forgetting to tell you about how I lost ten tracks earlier in the season.  Around about day 50 I noticed that there were less than 500 MP3s in the Christmas In July folder. After some thinking, I realized that I must not have added the MP3s back into the folder after converting the original wave files.  So I had to go back through all my old shares and find a day where the files weren't in the folder.  I think it was day 24 when I finally found tracks that hadn't been added.  So I didn't really lose anything, I just didn't have it in the right place.  Doesn't matter to you, I guess.

Zippyshare

Christmas In July 2018-Day 53

We're in uncharted territory here folks, we've never gone 53 days in July before.  I hope it's smooth sailing from here to the end.

1. Winter by an unknown artist from Now And Long Ago-Silver Burdett Songs From Music For Living-Album 09 (Columbia 10" 78 RPM Microgroove JS-329, Mono, 1956).  I think this is the last of the tracks I have from these educational records.  Hope you enjoyed them.

2. Cold Wind by Bonnie Guitar-Arranged And Conducted By Cliff Parman from Two Worlds (Dot DLP 25696, Stereo, 1966).  It took me forever to find a copy of Bonnie Guitar's Christmas record, and when I finally got my paws on it, I wasn't all that impressed by it.  Not sure what I was expecting.  It all sounds a lot like this track.

3. I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm by Skitch Henderson, His Piano And Orchestra from the reissue LP Skitch Henderson, His Piano And Orchestra Play Irving Berlin (Harmony Headliner Series (Columbia) KH 31957, Stereo, 1968).  This is a budget reissue of the original LP, with only 10 tracks.  The date of 1968 is when the original came out, no idea when this budget version appeared.

4. My Favorite Things by Percy Faith And His Orchestra from The Sound Of Music (Columbia CS 8215, Stereo, 1959).  Lots of Christmas tracks by Percy out there, some of them harder to find than others.

5. Panis Angelicus (O Lord Most Holy), the last track from Jim Nabors-Arranged & Conducted By Sid Feller and the reissued two-fer LP The Lord's Prayer/How Great Thou Art (Columbia 2xLP CG 33618, Stereo, 1970).  His voice takes a little getting used to, but it's not bad.

6. Silver Bells by The Ringing Bells-Rachael Kuivinen, Director, from Christmas Music/Bicentennial And Old Favorites (United Methodist Church Of Chagrin Falls, Ohio 6093N9, Stereo, 1976).  Getting close to the end of this one, but we're not quite there yet.

7. The Toy Trumpet by Al Hirt And The Boston Pops Orchestra With Arthur Fiedler from "Pops" Goes The Trumpet (Holiday For Brass) (RCA Victor Red Seal LSC-2729, Stereo, 1964).  He's really showing off here.

8. The Virgin's Slumber Song (In German) by Maureen Forrester, Alto-John Newmark, Piano, from A Charm Of Lullabies (Westminster Gold WGS-8124, Stereo, 1970).  I don't speak German, but the synopsis of the track from the back of the LP insisted it was about Christmas.

9. Waltz Of The Flowers by David Rose And His Orchestra-Tenor Sax Solo By Bob Cooper from Concert With A Beat! (MGM SE3852, Stereo, 1960).  Is this the only Nutcracker track of the day?

10. Winter Wonderland by Eddie Layton With Rhythm Section from Better Layton Than Ever (Mercury SR 60031, Stereo, 1960).  I've shared this one with you many times in the pass, but I just can't seem to pass it up whenever I see a copy.

And that's that, ten more tracks.  Any favorites in there?  Plenty of good selections, I think.

Zippyshare

Christmas In July 2018-Day 52

Time for a little 52 card pickup!  Are you ready?

1. Parade Of The Charioteers by Band Of The Grenadier Guards from The Kingsize Sound Of Hi-Fi (Decca (UK) LK 4795, Mono, 1966).  I don't know if it's Christmas, but it's very grand!

2. The Skater's Waltz by Continental Orchestra from Waltz Time (RCA Camden CAL-149, Mono).  Not sure when this came out, but it appears to have been mastered from a pretty lo-fi source.  Maybe a reissue of an old 78.  I didn't do enough research, sorry.

3. Theme Music From "The Snows Of Kilimanjaro" (From The 20th Century-Fox Film "The Snows Of Kilimanjaro"), the very last track I recorded before stopping to post today, this is by Al Goodman And His Orchestra from the LP Music From Hollywood-Themes From Great Motion Pictures (RCA Victor LPM-1007, Mono, 1954).  One of the very earliest 12" long-play albums on RCA.

4. Ave Maria by Ferrante And Teicher from Ferrante And Teicher Play Light Classics (ABC-Paramount ABCS-313, Stereo, 1959).  Very early stereo for these guys.

5. The Bells Of St. Mary's by Mabel Sansing Sharp from Memories (Dove Records DR3182 (Recorded at Georgia's Stone Mountain), Stereo).  I've actually been to this pipe organ.  I didn't think it was all that impressive, but it wasn't playing at the time.

6. Bugler's Holiday by Al Hirt And The Boston Pops Orchestra With Arthur Fiedler from their album "Pops" Goes The Trumpet (Holiday For Brass) (RCA Victor Red Seal LSC-2729, Stereo, 1964).  At least Al doesn't sing on this one.

7. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen by Richard Webb, Bass & Salvatore Mancuso, Organist, from I Love To Tell The Story (Central Woodward Woman's Fellowship VC 3330, Stereo).  This is an odd on.  I almost didn't pay it any attention, but then I picked it up and there was nothing on the back cover.  So I took it out of the sleeve and found four Christmas tunes tucked away in the tracklist.  Makes me wonder how many things I'm missing some days because I'm not picking up every single record.

8. Joy To The World by The Ringing Bells-Rachael Kuivinen, Director, from Christmas Music/Bicentennial And Old Favorites (United Methodist Church Of Chagrin Falls, Ohio 6093N9, Stereo, 1976).  Today's obligatory track from this great LP.

9. Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel by John Fahey from Guitar Vol. 4-The Great San Bernadino Birthday Party And Other Excursions (Takoma C 1008, Stereo, 1966).  Was really surprised to find this one, as John Fahey has so many Christmas albums already.  I guess he just really likes it, so he threw it into a regular album.

10. Sleigh Ride by Frederick Fennell Conducting The Eastman-Rochester "Pops" Orchestra from Music Of Leroy Anderson, Vol. 1 (Mercury Living Presence SR90009, Stereo, 1958).  I think it was just last year I was lamenting the fact that I didn't have all three volumes of this series in stereo, or at the same time.  This year I have two of the three in stereo, but no sign of the third one.  So it goes...

And that's it.  Some good stuff, some filler, but another day done.

Zippyshare