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