The King’s Speech won because it had everything the Academy likes to honor in one film. I’m not being sarcastic, because it was a good film, but I’m disappointed because it was just so obviously Oscar bait. If there’s one thing Harvey Weinstein knows how to do, it’s to promote the heck out of a well-made but not necessarily deserving film and getting it an Oscar. (I’m looking at you, Shakespeare in Love.)
The King’s Speech has everything older Oscar voters love to honor in movies. And Academy Award history proves me correct:
+ Period Film (Out of 83 Oscars, 52 of them have been set in time periods other than the “present day.)
+ War Setting (30 films set during wartime, ancient history to present day)
+ Main Character Overcomes Adversity (60 films where protagonist overcomes odds to achieve something)
+ British Actors (31 films where main characters are played by Englishmen)
+ WWII Setting Specifically (since WWII, 16 films set in or having scenes during that war)
There have been many years when the Oscars have clearly gone to the wrong movie.
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Like the above mentioned films, there will come a day when film historians question the Academy’s choice for 2010’s Best Picture. And they’ll say, “The King’s Speech was fine and well-acted. But it probably didn’t deserve that Oscar…”
The best picture of the year was Toy Story 3. But since there’s no way the Academy is going to give the Oscar to an animated film (in spite of the fact that it was the best reviewed movie of the year and the year’s biggest moneymaker), they should have given it to The Social Network. That movie captured the completely uninspiring story of the creation of Facebook and made it into something amazing, while making a completely unlovable protagonist interesting without redeeming him at all.
Sorry, your majesty, but I am “de-friending” your Oscar and giving it to the people who really deserves it. Heck, you overcame a speech impediment. Fine. The heroes of my “best picture” overcame kidnapping, abandonment, torture, prison, ridicule, and the fact that they are in danger every time mom gets that “Goodwill look.” Here’s to you, Woody and Buzz. Thank you for 3 wonderful toy stories.
It’s been awhile since I’ve posted anything. Not because I’ve not been writing–more about that in a minute–but because it’s been an incredibly busy several months. Hard to believe I’m already on the last day of the 2nd month of 2011, but here we are. I thought I’d just unload a few random thoughts into some equally random buckets and let it get sorted out.
1) Ministry. My ministry at New Life Church has exploded over the past year. This last Sunday, we had 903 kids and volunteers, with 499 kids alone at our 11 am service. This changes everything and the way I look at what I do. The average church size in America is 100 people. I anticipate by the end of 2011 we will have 1300 kids and volunteers, which would put us into the ‘mega-church’ category. And it will hopefully lead to a few more paid positions on my team.
2) Theology. Rob Bell’s new book, Love Wins, hasn’t even been published yet, but it appears that he is fully embracing the idea of universalism–meaning, nobody goes to hell and eventually everyone goes to heaven. This is SO contrary to scripture, so against Biblical Christianity. I posted a link to an article on my Facebook page–and received only 1 “like.’ I commented on the Oscars and received hundreds of comments. What’s scary about this to me is that it’s clear we live in a day and age where Christians aren’t as concerned about bad theology as they need to be. I don’t know what Rob Bell is up to, and I’ll find out more when I read the book, but this is a very slippery slope.
3) Writing. I’ve been writing scripts and creating storylines. I’ve written a 5 day VBC script called The Warrior Chronicles for a church in Ohio and am thrilled by how it has turned out. A medieval sword and (not really) sorcery epic battle of good and evil with a girl hero. I love the story, love the idea, and am going to do my best to actually novelize the whole thing. I’m also writing a script for a big kids’ conference coming up here in the Northwest, and that has been challenging yet rewarding. And once a month, David C. Cook publishes my lesson as part of its Real Life Download curriculum. That is a very cool thing to be able to do.
4) Video Games. I go in spurts when it comes to gaming. I’ll not play hardly at all for months and then suddenly dive right back in. Since Christmas, I’ve played Fable 3 (and beat it last week), Dragon Age: Awakenings, the expansion of my 2nd favorite Xbox game, Dragon Age: Origins, and started playing the epic Western, Red Dead Redemption, which has truly blown me away. This year I’m looking forward to playing the new sequels to Dragon Age and Mass Effect, as well as the DLC for Alan Wake, Assassin’s Brotherhood, and the chapter in the Elder Scrolls series. Yes, on this level, I am a complete dork.
5) Family. Trying to establish greater connections to my children and wife is not easy. We’re all busy, and we all get tired. But I’m learning that intentionality in my interactions with my kids is going to be huge in helping them become the men and women I know God has created them to be. I am blessed by good kids. They are all good in different ways, and all of the bless me individually. My goal is to bless them in the same way they bless me.
There. That’s five big buckets that a lot of “stuff” is going into right now. I can’t wait to see what happens next.
Looking back on the last year of my life, I’m amazed at what a great year 2010 was.
I say that, in spite of the fact that my wonderful mother-in-law, Virginia Murphy, passed away on October 1st. You see, my MIL would tell me to not let her passing stop me from celebrating all that God did, all that He allowed my family to experience. In fact, she would probably say that His allowing her to pass from death to life should be celebrated, and to not let it cloud my recollection of this year.
Looking back on the year, I can see she would be right. This year was pretty spectacular.
Robyn and I took several trips this year. In February, we took our annual trek to Hayden, Idaho, with students from Seattle Christian for the annual ACSI Speech Meet. Three days of cold weather and good fun, in spite of the fact that we lost First Place by 1/1,000th of a point to another school. In March, we took 16 students from SCS to Los Angeles for a week, where we experienced amazing places like Stella Adler Acting Studio, the Kodak Theatre, Disneyland, Warner Brothers, and more. In June, I travelled back to Hudson, Ohio for a week of VBC with my amazing friends at what used to be known as Hudson Community Chapel. In July, Robyn went to Portland to experience her third Jamie Cullum concert in a year. August found the whole family getting in the car and driving across the Great American West. And in December, Robyn drove to San Francisco for a few days with an old friend.
We continued to be proud of our children, who amaze us all the time. Audrey continued with her dancing, Austen with his soccer. Both of them did amazingly well in school, and continued to grow “in wisdom and stature and favor with God and man.” Autumn started pre-K and discovered how much she liked school, August got glasses and looked even more like me than before. We laughed and played games with them, created memories around the Xbox Kinect, Legos, iPods, music, leading worship, and more.
Our ministry at New Life Church exploded beyond what we could have ever dreamed. Moving into the new KidTown building, remodeling and themeing The Boardwalk, hiring an amazing new director of our nursery, and watching God grow us from 400-500 kids to 800 in thc course of 9 months–it was humbling, awesome, and exhilarating. And tiring. We had a great time creating new experiences for families all summer long, and were so thrilled to watch our VBC grow from 200 kids to more than 500 in just a year. Our Fallapalooza event for Halloween saw nearly 1,000 parents and kids in costumes wandering the straw maze, inflatables, and more things we created for them to enjoy. And in December, our first annual Jingle Jam was a hit with nearly 1300 parents and kids experiencing a great stage show, the Christmas train, and even more things–all to help families realize that church is a fun and safe place for them to be.
We were blessed to develop deeper friendships with wonderful people and experienced the best care and love from our church family following the death of Robyn’s mom. We were blown away by the amazing blessings of God, who helped us get further out of debt, to open new opportunities (like my writing curriculum for David C. Cook), and use our talents and abilities for His glory. Robyn leads the Kids Worship Team of 20+ kids who dance and sing every Sunday and choreographed the Jingle Jam songs in addition to returning to acting with great friends Justin Robey, Dan Thiessen, LeDair Porter, and Tyler Gunhus. I get to teach 500 kids every Sunday, sing and lead worship, and work with the amazing pastoral team at New Life.
The hole left by Virginia’s death will never be filled. And that’s okay–it’s God’s way of helping us hold on to our memories of her, to remember the joy with which she lived life, and what she meant to each one of us. Perhaps the greatest privilege and honor I had this year was holding my dear mother-in-law in my arms two days before her death. She wanted to sing, so I started singing worship songs and she began singing with me. I quoted scripture to her and she responded in such a way that I am certain she had already started the journey from this life to the next. Her final lucid words were apt. She sang along with the song “Everlasting God,” singing “You do not faint and You don’t grow weary” in a quiet–yet beautiful way. And then she said, “Come on, Duane, you can do better than that.” Teasing me, making me laugh until the end–with a firm grasp of eternity.
This year was filled–like many years–with great joys and great sorrows. Yet we are confident that God has ordained every step. That His mercy and grace are sufficient. That we will continue to rest in His everlasting arms. Looking to 2011, that is my greatest hope and joy and consolation. Happy New Year to you.
It’s the celebration of that moment in time when heaven and earth met—when God wrapped himself in humanity and became not a conquering hero, but a tiny, helpless baby. Just one child among millions born into this world. And yet, this One Child—this is the One Child that cannot be forgotten or ignored.
History is full of moments when its course was forever changed because just one child was born.
Imagine, for just a moment, what the world would have been like if Jonas Salk had never been born—we might never have found a vaccine for polio—and millions of children might still be suffering from that disease today. Imagine a world without Abraham Lincoln. We might be living still in a divided nation—half slave, half free. Without the birth of Julius Caesar, there would have been no Roman empire, without Guttenberg, no printing press.
Of course, recent history, history that still holds us captive, was forever changed because of just one child’s birth. A child that grew up to hijack a plane—a child that grew up to be a rescue worker. Our collective memories can picture these people—and realize that our lives have been changed because these people were born. You see, one child can make a difference in this world.
One Child has made the difference in this world.
That One Child, Jesus Christ, who came to earth not just to affect human history and change the world—but to affect your history and change your life. This One Child, born in an obscure village in a tiny corner of the Roman empire, became the centerpiece of all history. Our calendars are based on His birth. Every year the entire world stops and celebrates His arrival. Oh, it gets a bit more obscured every year. “Happy Holidays” and eliminations of the name of the actual day are just more obvious attempts to pretend that His birth doesn’t matter. And yet–for all of the obscuring, for the attempts to wipe away the word “Christmas,” it is still there. Obvious. Obscure it all you want, it won’t be ignored.
Why?
Because this One Child was born to do something no other child was born to do: to give. To give hope to the hopeless, joy to the joyless—to be a friend to those in need. This Child grew up to be the Man who changed the world—the Man who conquered death with life and stands ready today, ready to tell you that your life does matter—that you do make a difference—and that His love is all you need.
As this year’s celebration of His birth draws to a close, I pray that your life will be impacted–and perhaps changed–by the One Child who forever changed the world.
To begin with, snow is falling, the Christmas decorations are already up, and as I write this, I hear the Osmonds singing “The Christmas Waltz.” It almost feels like December 25th, but there’s no tree dropping pine needles on the floor and the kids didn’t wake me up at 5 am.
For the first time in our 12 years of marriage, Robyn and I are hosting family for the dinner later today. We have a turkey sitting in the kitchen, ready to have done to it whatever it is one does to a turkey, and the table is set for 12 people. It all feels a little surreal. Perhaps the reason for that is because this Thanksgiving we are hosting not out of tradition, but because of circumstance. This year, you see, was to be our year with Robyn’s mom.
Virginia with Austen about 9 years ago.
Robyn’s mom was an amazing woman. Virginia loved to have the family around her and she loved Thanksgiving. She loved the preparation, the noise of the kids playing, the craziness of coming and going, and all the cacophony that arrives with a family holiday. This was to be her holiday. And yet, this year, she is gone. Gone too soon because of illness that felled her suddenly and without warning. Her day of celebration happened on October 1st when she went home to be with her Savior. That was her Thanksgiving Day.
So here we are today, on this day when we celebrate and thank God for His blessings, missing a very important part of it. Her warm smile will not be present, but her silver was proudly put on the table last night for the first time ever. Her laugh will not be heard in our house, but her love will be felt in every hug and kind word shared between her children and grandchildren. Her insistence that we eat more will not come sounding from the kitchen, but her presence–and the lack of her presence–will be felt by all.
We have much to be thankful for, and the snow falling reminds me that that the pain and loss we have felt since Virginia’s departing can be covered with the grace and peace of God. The world looks better covered in a blanket of snow, and even the saddest heart feels lifted when covered in God’s mercy. Every snowflake I see from my living room window reminds me that God’s love–and Virginia’s love–is a gift that we can cherish and hold close–and be so very thankful for this Thanksgiving Day.
This is a different Thanksgiving for us today, but I feel that it will be a good different. And that we will have started a new tradition–and perhaps–perhaps–from where she celebrates the day with my loved ones who have gone before (thinking of my two grandfathers, Gerald Gladstone Woodhouse and Thomas Clark Montague), we will hear an echo of her laughter and be reminded of just why we have so much to be thankful for.
It’s been a few days–life was crazy with Halloween events and the actual day itself, but now we’re in November, which means the Christmas music can start coming out in full force. After all, the store shelves are full and the song “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” is appropriate much earlier–much much earlier than it did when it was written. I know, I know, there are some purists out there who think we shouldn’t have any hint of decking the halls until after Thanksgiving, but come on! There’s just SO MUCH good music, it has to be shared.
Today’s selection is a practically perfect album from the 1960’s, by one of it’s most popular folk groups.
Some hidden gems you’ll love.
The New Christy Minstrels were a folk pop group founded in 1961. They won a Grammy Award in 1962 and had a huge hit with a song called, “Green, Green.” An unusual folk group in that it had 14 members, they had a bright and lively sound. Spoofed beautifully as “The New Main Street Singers” in Christopher Guest’s A Mighty Wind, the New Christy Minstrels launched the careers of such artists as Kenny Rogers and Kim Carnes, Gene Clark and Barry McGuire.
However, of all their albums, none is better and more timeless than this 1963 album. Featuring a number of original songs as well as some traditional tunes, it’s a beautifully sung and arranged collection. Every song is sung by the group, with several solos throughout. Standout new songs are “The Shepherd Boy, “Christmas Wishes,” and “Christmas Trees.” These are all quiet, somewhat contemplative songs, and at least one, “Christmas Wishes,” should have discovered a life away from this album.
Arrangements of more familiar songs tend by boisterous and more “folky,” more like the arrangement of their hit version of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land is Your Land.” “Beautiful City,” “It’ll Be a Merry Christmas,” (which is a Christmas-themed rewrite of “She’ll Be Comin’ Round the Mountain,”) and “Go Tell It On the Mountain” all get the full “big sound” New Christy Minstrel treatment. A fun original is the story of “Parson Brown (Our Christmas Dinner).”
Whether you like folk music or not, this is a standout addition to your Christmas collection. This album was recorded at the height of their popularity, and much higher in quality than the later Christmas collection called Christmas With the Christies. While this later collection is still quite good, there isn’t an original song in the bunch, which is disappointing since the best songs on Merry Christmas! were all new. Sadly, this album, by itself, is no longer available. It is available with the second album on a collection recently released called Christmas with the New Christy Christies: Complete! You can order it from Amazon here.
Here’s my favorite song from the album, the short and beautiful Christmas Trees.
Wayne King was a Chicago band leader in the 1930’s, with an eponymous orchestra playing nightly at the Aragon Ballroom. Never getting as famous as Benny Goodman or Artie Shaw, Mr. King was still hugely popular, especially in his hometown of Savanna, Illinois, which gave him parades, toured his “golden saxophone,” and treated him like a hometown hero. He was a professional football player in the early days of the sport, got his start in Paul Whiteman’s orchestra (the same Paul Whiteman who commissioned George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue”), and even did a concert with his orchestra at Disneyland’s Carnation Gardens in 1970.
I don’t know much about Mr. King other than what I’ve read online–the internet is such a wonderful place for looking up information about even the most obscure things–but I am a huge fan of his 1963 Christmas album, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. Released by Decca, it’s never been released on CD and is known only to lovers of obscure holiday treasures. People like me.
It’ll Make Your Ears Go Pop. In a good way.
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
Wayne King and His Orchestra and Chorus
Released in 1963 on Decca (OUT OF PRINT)
The liner notes on the original LP are wonderful:
‘Tis the season to be jolly, and rightly so. Here is a holiday album gift-wrapped with that very special Wayne King touch to enhance the pleasures of this heart-warming season. Mind you . . . this is the Maestro making music in his own inimitable style–with all the color and lilting tempos that have kept him America’s favorite over the years. And credit Wayne Robinson for his brilliant arrangements that blend the sounds of Christmas joy with the music of Wayne King. There’s an appropriate choral note, too, with the chorus raising its voice in the gleeful and familiar lyrics.
The songs Wayne King has sentimentally selected for this recording express the many moods of the Yuletide days. All are musical treats designed to make this an album that you’ll play again and again. The title song is the surest clue to your guaranteed listening enjoyment. HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS is more than a good wish; it comes from the king–so it’s a command.
Wayne and his entire gang extend a sincere season’s greeting you’ll treasure for many a year.
You don’t have a choice. You HAVE to have yourself a merry little Christmas. And you may. Some of the arrangements are great, bright, and fun. It’s perfect background music. Since Wayne was known as a saxophonist, you’ll get to hear his golden sax on a few songs. Namely, the title tune. He plays the sax more like a clarinet in style, so it sounds a bit more like Benny Goodman than Boots Randolph, but it’s nicely arranged. There are two standout tracks that make the album worthwhile.
The first is a song called “Snowbound,” which is a new (circa 1963) song in the style of Leroy Anderson’s “Sleigh Ride.” Cheerful, with jingling bells, whip cracks, and a bouncy lilt, it’s a nice little tune. It’s also available for purchase from Amazon.com as an mp3 single. Listen to the song and purchase it here.
My favorite song, wonderful in its kitschy way, is a song that should be used in Gap or Target commercials at Christmas. There are few songs that celebrate the focus of American Christmases better than this one. “Jing-A-Ling-A-Ling” is a great little song about how wonderful it is to go Christmas shopping.
Take a listen to the wonderfulness that is this song, and ask yourself the question I have asked myself: why hasn’t this shown up in a Target commercial yet?
Sadly, the whole album is out of print. But you may still be able to find it at one of my favorite Christmas music haunts on the world wide web. Some of the greatest albums that are out of print are lovingly found in their record form and restored digitally and shared by people who want other people to love Christmas music as much as they do.
I don’t have that kind of time on my hands. But I am very grateful for FaLaLaLaLa.com for the joy they bring me and my Christmas music collection every year.
So have fun with Wayne and the gang. It’s so good, your eyes will pop. In a good way.
One of my goals with these Christmas music blog posts is to hopefully expand your Christmas musical horizons. So many people have the same albums or artists: Bing Crosby, Perry Como, the first “A Very Special Christmas” collection, the soundtrack to Home Alone. And while I love many of the traditional, best-selling Christmas albums, I also love the stuff that flies below or completely off the radar.
How many of my readers have heard the song “Too Fat for the Chimney” by Canadian artist Gisele MacKenzie? Her album, Christmas with Gisele is actually pretty wonderful (she has a kind of Doris Day-Kay Thompson sound–no wonder she was on Your Hit Parade for years), but if you had the choice between Gisele or the new EP from Lady Antebellum, which would you choose? And that is why I feel obligated to highlight some albums and artists you may have never heard of.
A Great Album You've Never Heard Of.
But today I don’t want to talk about an obscure album. The artists are pretty famous, especially if you’re a fan of choral music, English church music, or both. I was introduced to today’s featured artists while attending Biola University and singing in the Biola Chorale under the direction of the incomparable Loren Wiebe. Each year, Biola put on a Fine Arts Festival called “Celebrate the Son,” and as part of that festival, the Chorale would perform, twice nightly, “Lessons and Carols,” based on the famous service from King’s College in Cambridge. One year, we performed, nearing the close of the service, a song called “What Sweeter Music.”
Composed by John Rutter with lyrics by Robert Herrick, a 17th century English poet, the song is quite possibly the most lovely Christmas song ever written. A beautiful paean to the wonder of the birth of Christ, the song alternately soars and quiets, and causes anyone who listens to it to take pause. After performing it so frequently that Christmas, I knew I had to own a recording of it. The only recording at the time, and the definitive one in my opinion, was available on today’s featured album:
A Lovely Way to Spend Christmas
Christmas With the Cambridge Singers John Rutter and the Cambridge Singers, The City of London Sinfonia
Released in 1989 by Collegium Records (OUT OF PRINT)
It’s simply one of the most beautiful Christmas recordings of all time. Perfect choral arrangements and singing in the English style, with mostly traditional carols, including some you most likely have never heard before, newer songs, and original compositions by John Rutter, are what you’ll hear on this album. Divided evenly into two sections, with the first 10 songs being songs of joy and the second 10 being songs of peace, there is not one bad song on the album.
English choral music sounds much different from American choral music, and the style of The Cambridge Singers fits beautifully into that tradition, with the female voices taking more of a boychoir sound than what you may hear from, say, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and the emphasis is on clarity, and simplicity, even when singing complicated arrangements. Most of the arrangements on the album were by Rutter, and while some may appear deceptively easy, it only takes one attempt to sing them as they appear in Oxford Publishing’s Carol collections to realize that it takes work to make them sound so beautiful and effortless at the same time.
Favorite songs on the album include “Hodie Christus Natus Est,” “The Sussex Carol,” “‘Twas in the Moon of Wintertime,” “The Shepherd’s Farewell,” “What Child is This?” and “A New Year Carol.” These aren’t songs you’d hear from Perry or Bing, and even the songs that are a bit more familiar (like “What Child is This?” or “Silent Night” or even “The Coventry Carol”) take on a heightened beauty and dimension in these arrangements. The soprano counterpoint on “What Child” is heartbreakingly beautiful.
There are two original compositions on the album, “Angels’ Carol” and “What Sweeter Music.” The first song is a lilting contemporary choral work. Well-written lyrics and wonderful harmonies are highlights of every Rutter composition, but I especially love the tenor lines on this song. And the final verse-chorus, “He will bring new light to a world in darkness, like a bright star shining in the skies above. He will bring new hope to the waiting nations when He comes to reign in purity and love! Let the earth rejoice at the Savior’s coming! Let the heaven’s answer with a joyful noise: Gloria in excelsis! Hear the angels singing, ‘Christ is born!'” are absolutely lovely. As a choral student and performer, it’s the kind of song one can’t help but wish to sing.
But the standout of the album is “What Sweeter Music.” It’s truly the most beautiful Christmas song ever written. The lyrics are anything but trite, and cause one to actually pause and think as it is being sung. And Rutter’s melody and arrangement give each section of the choir something to add to the depth of thought and haunting quality of the lyrics. Once used in a Volvo commercial, the song is simply perfect.
“What sweeter music can we bring than a carol for to sing
the birth of this, our heavenly King?
Awake the voice! Awake the string! Dark and dull night, fly hence! Away!
And give thee honor to this day, that sees December turned to May. Why does the chilling winter’s morn smile like a field beset with corn?
Or smell like a meadow newly shorn, thus on the sudden? Come, and see, the cause why things thus fragrant be: ‘Tis He is born, Whose quickening birth gives life and lustre,
public mirth to heaven and the underearth. We see Him come, and know Him ours, who with His sunshine and His showers,
turns all the patient ground to flowers. The Darling of the world is come, and fit is we find a room to welcome Him: The nobler part of all the house here is the heart Which we will give Him and bequeath this holly and this ivy wreath,
To do Him honor who’s our King, and Lord of all this revelling. What sweeter music can we bring than a carol for to sing
the birth of this, our heavenly King? The birth of this, our heavenly King?”
Christmas With the Cambridge Singers is one of the finest choral Christmas recordings ever made. Sadly, it is out of print in this incarnation. New copies of the CD sell for over $100 on Amazon, although used copies are available. Several of the original compositions can be downloaded from iTunes, but I highly recommend getting this collection. Even if it is used.
What sweeter music indeed.
Find out more about the album on Amazon. Or listen to samples from the iTunes store.
It’s been a busy day. Took the kids to the pumpkin patch, the same place we’ve been going since Audrey was about 3 years old. We had a great time, and August really enjoyed it. So there you have it. My excuse for why I’m late today.
But here is today’s recommended Christmas album:
An Instrumental Classic
Hymns, Carols, and Songs About Snow Tuck Andress
Windham Hill, 1991
Tuck Andress is a first-rate fingerstyle guitarist. This Christmas album represents some of his most impressive playing. Sometimes, it sounds like three guitars are playing, but no, it’s only one, and he’s easily one of the most talented guitarists you’ll ever have the privilege of ever hearing. Not a lot of folks have even heard of Tuck (normally one part of the duo husband and wife team, Tuck & Patti). You also don’t have to be a fan of guitar music to enjoy it. It’s a fun, upbeat recording with an ample sampling of the styles in the title: hymns, carols, and songs about snow.
It’s a GREAT album. Expertly played and executed. Find out more and listen to the recording herehere.
Yesterday began my attempt to introduce a Christmas album a day until December 25th.
Some nice responses, including one from my sister-in-law, who informed me that her whole family enjoys listening to The Animals’ Christmas, which was my first suggestion. I think that’s a great idea, actually. Most people put Christmas music on just to put them in the holiday mood, or as background music, but there’s something extra nice about sitting and actually listening to the music.
Sitting by the fire, Christmas lights twinkling, with a wonderful album playing, can be a lovely way to spend an evening. And there is no shortage of musical styles to enjoy within the Christmas music genre. Everything from true jazz albums like Wynton Marsalis’ Crescent City Christmas Card or Christmas Jazz Jam, to the traditional stylings of Perry Como, Bing Crosby, or Andy Williams. You have pop-inspired albums like Mariah Carey’s Merry Christmas to You to instrumental classics like Mannheim Steamroller’s Christmas. And you also have those genre-busting albums like Billy Idol’s Happy Holidays: Noel Rebel Yell (and yes, it’s better than you may think it would be) and Stan Freberg’s mini-musical satire, Green Chri$tma$. The good thing about Christmas music is that no matter what style you like, you can find a version of “Away in the Manger” you’ll appreciate.
And then you have albums that seem to transcend any particular style. And that is what today’s album is. A true Christmas classic that actually served as the inspiration for another classic album more than 20 years later.
Not the Best Christmas Album Cover Art, But...
Let’s Sing a Song of Christmas Spike Jones & His City Slickers, The Judd Conlon Chorus, The Junior City Slickers
Collection Released in 1998 on Verve Records
If you’re not familiar with the name Spike Jones, then you didn’t grow up in the 1940’s and 1950’s. Spike Jones and His City Slickers were some of the finest musicians, musical satirists, and flat-out funny recording artists of the 20th century. You’re probably most familiar with two songs that every kid has annoyed their parents by singing during the holidays, “All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth,” and “I’m Getting Nuttin’ for Christmas.” These comedy songs were gold when they were released and became huge hits in their own right. Of course, Spike was already famous for his recording of “Der Fuhrer’s Face” from the Donald Duck cartoon of the same name–a song which made clear that the Nazis were “Nutzi” and managed to blow raspberries at Adolf Hitler, Goebbels, and the rest. Exactly who you think would be perfect for a Christmas recording, right?
Let’s Sing a Song of Christmas will definitely surprise you. The artist famous for blowing whistles and sirens during his songs, who made no secret of his love for skewering schmaltz, put out one of the most beautiful–and at the same time gently satirical–holiday collections of all time. And this collection, which bring his music together on one album, is spot-on perfect, and the music can be divided into three musical styles: “kiddie comedy,” choral, and sacred. Through it all, the arrangements of both choir, orchestra, and band, is simply beautiful, and the chorus’ harmonies are intricately-wound and jazz-perfect tight.
The “kiddie” songs are ones your children will definitely enjoy more than you: “I’m the Angel in the Christmas Play,” “Santa Claus’ Son,” “My Birthday Comes on Christmas,” and “All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth,” feature vocals by George Rock, famous for his kid voice. They are a mixed bag that can grate after more than one listen, so you may want to keep them off your child’s iPod. The bridge of “All I Want” is classic Spike Jones, with kazoos, sneezes, bells, and whatnot coming in at random intervals. It’s what his audience of the time expected, and he doesn’t disappoint. There’s a few kid chorus moments, and they are exactly what you think they sound like. Nothing great, nothing bad, but it’s perfect 1950’s kid singing. Vanilla and deliciously inoffensive. (But there’s also no fake vibrato, so that’s a plus.)
The chorus songs are absolutely wonderful. The choral arrangements by Judd Conlon, who was one of the primary musical arrangers for Walt Disney Studios in the 1950’s (his chorus is also heard singing on the soundtracks to Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Cinderella, and more), are beautiful.
You've Heard Those Voices Before.
At times lovely, often charming, and always sung with impeccable style by the Judd Conlon Chorus, they are the true highlight of the collection. Some of the songs are obscure and have only been heard on this album. (And one more, but that comes later.) “First Snowfall/Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!” and “Winter Wonderland/Silver Bells/White Christmas” are two standout medleys where the Spike Jones style only slightly intrudes on the proceedings. “Christmas Alphabet/Merry Christmas Polka,” “Christmas Island,” as well as the more expected songs, all sound fresh and bright in the classic 1950’s choral sound, and put to shame most other versions you may be familiar with.
One of the standout medleys on the album is “It’s Christmas Time/Sleep Well, Little Children.” The first song is a bright, madrigal-like song that segues beautifully from the quick melody of the opener to a haunting and lovely lullaby. It’s an a capella piece featuring Dennis Day in one of his two solos on the album. Dennis Day was an “Irish tenor” who gained huge fame on The Jack Benny Show. He also has a Disney connection as the sole performer in Disney’s story of Johnny Appleseed. It’s just a beautiful song, perfect for listening to before bed on Christmas Eve.
The sacred songs are what you would expect, familiar carols in bright and cheerful arrangements. The Judd Conlon Chorus delivers standout performances on every single one, with special mention being given to their version of “Silent Night” (reminding me Stokowski’s arrangement of “Ave Maria” from Fantasia) and a new arrangement of Brahms’ Lullaby that becomes “Christmas Cradle Song.” It’s clearly of it’s time–you can almost see Donna Reed tucking the kids on her TV show, and the whole album feels like it only exists in black and white, but it’s just such a great selection of songs, perfectly arranged, that even the hardest-hearted cynic will have a hard time keeping his heart from growing two or three sizes by the time the album is done.
Spike Jones Let’s Sing a Song of Christmas features 20 songs, and almost all of them are standouts. What’s amazing is that this album, and it’s arrangements by Jones and Conlon, ended up influencing another artist nearly 20 years later. Some of the titles I’ve mentioned may sound familiar to you, especially if you came of age in the 1970’s and 1980’s. One of the biggest “traditional” Christmas albums of that time period borrowed, practically in wholesale, the arrangements and style of this album.
“The First Snowfall of the Winter/Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!” and “Winter Wonderland/Silver Bells/White Christmas” and “Sleigh Ride” and “It’s Christmas Time/Sleep Well, Little Children” all make an appearance on a true Christmas classic, A Christmas Portrait. By The Carpenters. (We’ll talk more about this album at a later date, it’s definitely going to be on this list.)
Richard Carpenter Pays Homage to Judd Conlon & Spike Jones
If you love truly traditional-sounding Christmas music, with wonderful songs, amazing arrangements, and a bit of fun, I highly highly highly recommend Spike Jones’ Let’s Sing a Song of Christmas. It’s still in print by his label, Verve (yes, the jazz label home of most of the genre’s greats), and it’s also available via digital download on iTunes or via Amazon. One listen to “It’s Christmas Time/Sleep Well, Little Children,” and you’ll know you’ve made the right choice.
Duane S. Montague 