FaLaLaLaLa

Our friend Mitch Kezin posted some footage for his Jingle Bell Rocks documentary.

In it he talks with the inimitable Bob Dorough (whom most folks of my generation will recognize as the voice behind so many classic Schoolhouse Rock songs).  Dorough discusses how he got together to work on the only Christmas song that Miles Davis ever recorded.

Take a look (and listen). 

Well, I haven’t been around Emusic for a while but just couldn’t turn down their latest "come back" offer of 75 free downloads. As I’m poking around the holiday music section, I happen to find that Dave’s True Story have a Christmas album!

Now I’m a big fan of DTS. Back in the early nineties, my girlfriend at the time worked with the singer, Kelly Flint, and we used to go see them play in NYC. I even went to Kelly’s wedding to musician Richard Julian where the bride rode in on the back of a Harley. But that’s the past.

DTS have released several Christmas songs on various compilations and their jazzy lounge style seemed right for a full Christmas release. And now we have it.

At the moment you can download three tracks (Mele Kalikimaka, Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree, and Baby It’s Cold Outside) at their website. The whole album is also available via Emusic, (a site I highly recommend for Christmas music and more).
—————- Listening to: HTTP Stream via FoxyTunes

This lovely little LP is newly posted over at Big Balls of Holly.  It’s listed as by the Longines Symphonette directed by Mantovani.  We’re curious as to whom the singers might be.
There’s a distinct possibility that it could be our faves, The Mike Sammes Singers, who have recorded Christmas music with Mantovani.
Pop on over and download this and hear what you think.

Christmas Eve Favorites

Powered by ScribeFire.

I’ve moved the site to a new host, so things may run somewhat strangely for the next few days.

Things should return to relatively normal soon.  You should be enjoying the holidays with your family anyway….

Well, it was 10 years ago today–December 27, 1997–that my best friend and I got married.

It was a beautiful ceremony in this tiny little church in Northumberland, PA.  There were about 25 or so in attendance and it was very intimate and special.  The reception was held at the very newly renovated Lewisburg Hotel and we spent the night at Anni’s B&B (I did the websites for both the Hotel and the B&B).

We spent part of our honeymoon at the Harry Packer Mansion (model for Disney’s Haunted House ride) and the rest at my sister’s apartment in Manhattan.

The whole event definitely had a Christmas vibe to it.  The church, the hotel, the B&B’s were all done up for Christmas.  A little before the evening ceremony we got some light snow.

Ever since, it has been Christmas every day in my life.  I have the great joy and privilege of spending all my days with my favorite person in the whole world.  And I feel more strongly for her now than I did 10 years ago (and the crazy thing is she feels the same!).  So we have a lot to celebrate!

So, happy anniversary to my friend and wife, the Queen of Jingaling!

2007 FaLaLaLaLa.com ADVENTure in Carols
Various Artists
2007

 

 

1. Deck the Halls - Veo Gray and the Jodie Lyons Singers
2. The Most Wonderful Day of the Year - The Quinto Sisters
3. Jingling Bells - Danny Davis & the Nashville Brass
4. Buon Natale/Jingo Jango/Jingle Bells/Bossa Nova Noel - Living Strings & Living Voices
5. Santa’s North Pole Band - Line Material
6. Midnight Clear - Ed Sullivan
7. Fum Fum Fum - The Glad Singers
8. Christmas Journey - Wayne Newton
9. Christmas Isn’t Christmas - Dawn Vandepitte
10. Let It Snow Let It Snow Let It Snow - Ronnie Aldrich
11. Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy - Hal Mooney & his Orchestr
12. Christmas - Metro Strings
13. I’d Like To Find You In My Stocking - Vincent Lopez
14. Hey Daddy (I’m Gonna Tell Santa On You) - Billy Beau
15. Ding Aling Dong, The Sleighbell Song - The Cricketones
16. I Saw Three Ships - The Mike Sammes Singers
17. The Christmas Cha Cha - The Merry Macs
18. Blue Christmas - Living Voices
19. It’s Christmas Again - The Harry Simeone Chorale
20. Chree-see-mus - The Commander Shea Boys’ School Choir
21. Jingle Bells/Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - Ruth Welcome
22. Pinheirinho Agreste - Luis Bordon
23. Merry Christmas Music - Jose Melis
24. Silent Night - Les Djinns Singers
25. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - Merv Griffin

Here it is, my fourth ADVENTure In Carols collection.

I owe a debt of gratitude to two guys who really made this possible.

First, my old friend Ed McKeogh who designed the cover.  I’m so psyched that a good friend from my past has become part of this new tradition.  The art itself is great, but it’s more meaningful because it’s from a friend.  Thanks, Ed!

Second, this whole thing would be pretty empty if it weren’t for my friend Ernie.  He’s responsible for so much of the classic Christmas music that has been shared here and elsewhere.  As my life and this site have changed over the past four years, I spend less time recording albums from LP and more time as an administrator–answering emails (TONS of ‘em), searching for records for people, posting links, etc.  My original intent was for the AiC to represent songs that I recorded from vinyl myself.  This has become less and less the case as my life (and FaLaLaLaLa) have grown more complicated.  Without Ernie’s tireless work, this collection–and this website–would be much poorer.  Thanks, Ernie.

So download the collection, burn a disc, share them with friends.  Make this music part of your Christmas memories for years to come.  And in time the people who own these original recordings will find their way to rereleasing them….

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE ENTIRE COLLECTION (including all songs and artwork).

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD ONLY THE ARTWORK (for those who’ve already downloaded all the tracks).

DOWNLOAD 2004 ADVENTure In Carols
DOWNLOAD 2005 ADVENTure In Carols
DOWNLOAD 2006 ADVENTure In Carols

I post this song in memory of Merv Griffin, who passed away this year.

When I was growing up, Merv was entertainment.  This was before Oprah, Entertainment Tonight, E! and 24-hour entertainment television.  Of course this album precedes my youth by a few years.

But I love Merv sitting on Arthur Treacher’s lap here (the look on Treacher’s face is priceless, though you can’t see it at 160×160 pixels).

This song is bittersweet, as Christmas often is itself.  For many of us, the reality doesn’t quite meet up with the anticipation and the idea of Christmas that comes from TV, movies and–well, to be honest–Christmas songs.  Our family is more ornery and disagreeable than the Baileys.  Our mean uncle Scrooge is not reborn, he’s as nasty as we remember him.

But we hold out hope.  All may change.  The future is ahead of us and it is up to us to make all the songs come true.  With love and compassion we can all make them come true.

May your Christmas dreams come true this year and every year.

 

Peace & Merry Christmas,

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE MP3 FILE and come back later today for the cover art, CD booklet and the whole package in one zip file.

Anybody who has been around here all season probably has enough Christmas music to last them through NEXT Christmas (or maybe even 2010!).  So you have lots to listen to during your celebrations.

But to me the greatest aspect of this site is the ability to connect with other people who love Christmas music.  We talk and we share and we laugh.  It’s a great community and it’s not because of the music, it’s because of the people and the personal connections.

So, one of the great people around here is our friend, Jon Solomon.  He’s been hosting a 24-hour Christmas marathon on WPRB in Princeton, NJ for 20 years.  He goes on at 6PM tonight (Christmas Eve) and drags himself home tomorrow at 6PM.  In between he plays TONS of great and unusual Christmas music.  Also, our other good friend Mitch Kezin will be there filming for Jingle Bell Rocks, so it’ll be a big part if we’re all listening!

So please tune in (which you can do through online streaming) and connect with a great person, and know that lots of others are listening to him too.  This makes our connection to the music and to each other that much stronger.

Also, do like I’ve done for the past several years and give Jon a call, especially during the graveyard shift when he gets kind of spacey and needs help staying up (I kid! I kid!).

Request Lines: 609.258.1033 or 609.258.1233

Silent Night always seems the appropriate song for Christmas Eve.

In the long winter night, it’s a time to reflect, to sit in the stillness and take account of where we have been and where we want to go.

It is the anticipation.  Awaiting salvation or Santa or our own best nature.

So be still.  Be silent.  And listen…

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE MP3 FILE and come back tomorrow for the final song, the cover art and the whole works.
 

Now this could easily be the theme song here at FaLaLaLaLa.

Here are the words:

Joyous Christmas bells are ringing
Season’s Greetings everywhere
Have a Merry, Merry Christmas
How their music fills the air

Hear the joy of children’s laughter
Christmas carols old and dear
Hear the happy voices greeting
How it warms their world with cheer

Merry Christmas, Mr. Brown
Merry Christmas, Mrs. Jones
Merry Christmas to all

May the voice of Heaven calling
Touch each heart with love so strong
Echo Merry Christmas music
Join all men in ?? song.

[If you can get that penultimate word, let me know.]

Ernie shared the stereo version of this, but this is from my mono copy.  (I can’t keep raiding Ernie all the time….)

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE MP3 FILE and come back tomorrow for another song download.  (Remember to click to the second page of files or select to view more than 20 per page.)