Christmas In July 2020-24
Friday! Friday, Friday, Friday, Friday! Friday Friday. Friday. Friday, Friday, Friday.
1. Cantique by Pinellas Park Senior High Chorus-William Renfroe, Director from Choral Sounds 1977-1979 Volume 1 (Suncoast Recording Service KM 3668, Stereo, 1979). This is as good a place to start as any.
2. Hodie Christus Natus Est by Wagner College Choir-Dr. Sigvart J. Steen, Conductor from Wagner College Choir (Recorded Publications Company Z-33971/33972 (Staten Island, New York), Mono). The trouble with these homemade jobs is that they're hard to date. Some of them tell you the date right in the title, but many of them don't. It would take a lot of research in just the right newspapers to put a date to these things.
3. Procession by The Texas Boys Choir-George Bragg, Conductor-Sydney Laudenslager, Harp from Britten: A Ceremony Of Carols-Gregg Smith: Bible Songs For Young Voices (Vox Turnabout TV-S 34544, Stereo, 1973). Finally, a professional job.
4. Go Tell It On The Mountain by The World Action Singers Of Oral Roberts University-Joyce Lampkin, Soloist-Arranged And Conducted By Ralph Carmichael from Oral Roberts Presents (Light LS-5520-LP, Stereo, 1970). Music from one of the old-school TV preachers.
5. Carol Medley by The Women's Ensemble Of Bethany Lutheran Church, Melodie Bollman-Director, Eleanor Peura-Accompanist from The Ensemble Sings (Century Advent Recording LRS-RT-6062 (Astabula, Ohio), Stereo). Not sure who Carol is, but this is her medley.
6. Toyland by Al Goodman And His Orchestra from Relax With Victor Herbert (RCA Victor LPM 1023, Mono, 1954). A track from one of the very first 12" LPs released on RCA Victor (they started with LPM 1001).
7. Six Feet Of Snow by Little Feat from Down On The Farm (Warner Bros HS 3345, Stereo, 1979). In case you needed a little more classic rock after yesterday.
8. Moonlight In Vermont by Robert Maxwell, His Harp And Orchestra, Voice Of Lois Winter from Let's Get Away From It All (Decca (MCA) DL 74723, Stereo, 1966). If there's not enough Christmas content in this song for you, at least the vocalist is named Winter...
9. A Babe Is Born by South Denver High School Choir-Richard B. Eichenberger, Director from The South High School A Cappella Choir 1954-1955 (Colorado Recording Company LP-4 Transparent Red Vinyl, Mono, 1955). Some Christmas from the Mile High City.
10. The Winter Of My Discontent by Anthony Newley Accompanied By Ray Ellis And His Orchestra from In My Solitude (RCA Victor LSP-2925, Stereo, 1964). Did Ray Ellis ever release any real Christmas music? I need to look him up.
11. Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer by an unknown artist from Warner Bros. Finest For Concert Band (Jenson Publications JP-3900, Stereo, 1983). The first demo track of the night.
12. Let There Be Peace On Earth, Conducted By Jay Dawson, from Arrangers Publishing Company-Marching Band (Arrangers Publishing Company 2xLP APC 107, Stereo, 1991). And the second one, even though this one has an actual artist.
13. Today Is Born A Child On Earth by Lutheran High School West Concert Choir from 25th Anniversary Of Cleveland Lutheran High Schools - Commemorative Album 1948-1973 (United Sound Recorders USR 5036, Stereo, 1973). Back to Ohio, as usual.
14. December-Christmas by Yevgeny Svetlanov Conducting The U.S.S.R. Symphony Orchestra from Tchaikovsky-The Seasons (Columbia Masterworks/Melodiya 2xLP MG 35184, Stereo, 1978). Keep in mind how the world was arranged when this LP came out. Russian artists didn't appear on American labels, it just wasn't done. This was only a couple of years before Reagan came along and heated up the Cold War, but it was still a war at the time, and Russia was the enemy.
15. Silver Bells by The Murk Family With Accompanist Betty Bowman from Holiday Musicale (Sacred Knof Recordings SKR-LP-1170, Mono). Good track from the Murks.
And that's it. In case you've forgotten already, it's Friday!
I think Carol Medley was Bill Medley's sister.
ReplyDeleteRay Ellis conducted some of Barbra Streisand's Christmas LP, and probably other items. I don't recall a Christmas LP under his own name, but you're the expert.
Some Russian artists did appear on US labels from time to time, as I recall. Emil Gilels and Mstislav Rostropovich with the Cleveland Orchestra, and Leonid Kogan with the Boston Symphony, for example. I am sure there are others. Orchestras, on the other hand, generally recorded for the Russian state recording company Melodiya, which then licensed the results to Western companies. But there were exceptions - the Leningrad Philharmonic and Yevgeny Mravinsky did a famous set of Tchaikovsky for Deutsche Grammophon, for example. I don't think that originated with a Russian company, but I could be wrong.
ReplyDelete"I think Carol Medley was Bill Medley's sister."
Good one, Buster! She was Righteous, too!
ReplyDeleteAnd as a matter of fact, I did need more classic rock after yesterday. Thanks, Ernie!
Believe it or not, I've got more from Carol Medley coming up later, so I'm glad you enjoyed this one!
ReplyDeleteI liked Al Goodman's version of Toyland. Six Feet of Snow was fun! Robert Maxwell didn't sound like Robert Maxwell. His version of Moonlight in Vermont sounded a bit different than his other stuff. The instrumental parts without the harp were nice, but I didn't really like this version when the harp chimed in. Nice way to close out this share with a personal fav - Silver Bells (Thanks!).
ReplyDelete