Have A Joyous Christmas!

I've got a little something different for you here, something I'm hoping you'll enjoy. I love to try and collect all the records in a series almost as much as I love Christmas music, so show me a series of Christmas records and I want to try and get the whole set. Between 1967 and 1973, Columbia put together a series of seven Christmas albums sponsored by The Beneficial Finance System and sold in support of The Senior Concert Orchestra. Much of the material on these records duplicated Columbia's other Christmas comps of the time, most notably the infamous Goodyear series. But this series also included some custom recordings from the aforementioned Senior Concert Orchestra and a couple of other associated artists. This orchestra was a group that supported musicians as they aged out of their usual employment venues and helped to keep them active in the music scene. You can imagine the talent that would accumulate in such a group, and I think that's evident in these recordings. Also showing up in this series are a choral group calling themselves The Beneficial Singers, named after the sponsors of the records. I suspect that they are actually the same group who are billed on Volume 3 as The Senior Concert Choir, they were just renamed. But that's just speculation on my part, I really have no idea. Anyhow, I've taken all the recordings by these three groups and created a large compilation of music that's not been reissued in any form to my knowledge. There's some minor track duplication, especially in the frequent medleys, but it's not too bad. There are a few bonus tracks of artists being backed by the orchestra, and some various Boy Scout troop performances that also seemed unique to this series. I'm bringing it all together for your enjoyment in one single record (though as long as it is, it would need to be a double album!). Also of note is the special title song that was written for the series by Johnny Marks himself, a songwriter known for Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer and many other Christmas songs that you may be familiar with. I wouldn't put this song into that same category but it's catchy. I've put it all together with a snazzy collage of a cover and called it A Joyous Christmas (Ernie (Not Bert), Stereo, 2023). Enjoy!

1. The Senior Concert Orchestra With The Beneficial Singers-Joyous Christmas
2. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen; O Tannenbaum
3. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Old-Fashioned Christmas: O Come, All Ye Faithful; Lo, How A Rose Ere Blooming; A-Carolling We Will Go
4. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
5. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Waltz Of The Flowers From The Nutcracker Suite
6. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Skaters' Waltz
7. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Adeste Fidelis
8. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Joy To The World;  Auld Lang Syne
9. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Yuletide Greetings: While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks; Away In A Manger; Angels We Have Heard On High
10. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Memories Of Christmas: Good King Wenceslas; Away In A Manger
11. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-The Music Box
12. The Beneficial Singers And The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Toyland
13. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Christmas Is Forever, Medley: Here We Come - A Caroling; It Came Upon A Midnight Clear; God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
14. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Auld Lang Syne
15. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Dance Of The Sugarplum Fairies From The Nutcracker Suite
16. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Salute To Johnny Marks: Holly Jolly Christmas; Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree;  I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day
17. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-First Noel; Jingle Bells; Deck The Halls
18. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza, & The Beneficial Singers-Christmas Fantasy: Jingle Bells; Silent Night; Adeste Fidelis
19. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Petersburg Sleighride
20. The Senior Concert Orchestra-"Danse Des Mirlitons" From The Nutcracker Suite
21. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Holiday Souvenirs: Jolly Old St. Nicholas; O, Tannenbaum; Angels From The Realms Of Glory
22. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Good King Wenceslas
23. The Senior Concert Choir-Yuletide Medley: The First Noel; O Little Town Of Bethlehem; Angels We Have Heard On High
24. The Senior Concert Orchestra-David Mendoza, Conductor-Prayer From The Opera Hansel And Gretel
25. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
26. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Christmas Festival: Deck The Halls; We Three Kings Of Orient Are; I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day
27. The Beneficial Singers-The Lost Chord
28. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza, Featuring Brenda Lewis, Soprano, Of The Metropolitan Opera-Babes In Toyland
29. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Go Tell It On The Mountain
30. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Hark! The Herald Angels Sing; Deck The Halls With Boughs Of Holly
31. The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-O Holy Night
32. The Senior Concert Orchestra-David Mendoza, Conductor-Christmas Favorites: We Wish You A Merry Christmas; We Three Kings; Silent Night; Joy To The World
33. The Beneficial Singers-Joyous Christmas (Reprise)
34. Bess Arlene, Soprano, With The Senior Concert Orchestra-Conducted By David Mendoza-Rejoice Greatly From "The Messiah"
35. Eugene Moye, Jr. (Greenwich, Conn., Boys' Club) Cello Solo-Ave Maria
36. Boys' Clubs Of America Choir (Rome, Georgia)-Jingle Bells
37. The Boys' Clubs Of America, Gramercy (N.Y.C.) Boys' Club Choir-We Wish You A Merry Christmas

MEGA

I know the tags seem to jump back and forth a bit, sometimes including the conductors name and sometimes not, that's just how it was credited on the original issue. I've included the covers of all those original albums for your enjoyment in the download. And please don't ask me to share the full original albums, that music is all out there for you do grab elsewhere, you just might have to pay for it and assemble the original comps yourself. Oh, there's also a note in the comments telling you where each track came from originally. And there were two very nearly identical recordings of Joyous Christmas, I could only tell the difference when I pulled up the WAV files and compared. I only put the one in here. They seemed to reuse the same recording on several of the records, not sure why it seems to have changed one time. Once again, enjoy the music!