Friday, December 07, 2007
and there were leftovers for the rest of the week
Okay, the second-to-last lost thought from the original set of five days ago:
First and foremost: when the hell did "My Favorite Things" become a Christmas song? It's a great song from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music and I've heard it covered by several people though my preference is still the 1965 movie's singer, Dame Julie Andrews (who has done a few different renditions over the years).
Despite the wintery images it was sung, in the movie, during a summer thunderstorm! This one has been on my mind for a couple years. I have heard a couple not-actually-Christmas-songs get played on the radio or included in CD compilations this year, most recently Robson & Jerome's cover of the 1953 Frankie Laine hit "I Believe", which at the time was essentially the Korean War's version of Bette Midler's cover of "From A Distance". (Curious parallel in a second way: she re-recorded that song for her Christmas album. Off-topic comment: It always cracks me up when Jewish artists like her or Barry Manilow make Christmas albums... A great album it is despite that track, for the record.) I'm not one of those people who criticizes whether Christmas music or celebrations should be about the birth of Christ or about being visited by Santa Claus; I believe they can coexist, and most of the singers record music from both camps -- some even putting the two together, like the unsanitized version of "Here Comes Santa Claus" (such as Gene Autry's rendition) or Max Headroom's "Merry Christmas Santa Claus (You're A Lovely Guy)" having the Baby Jesus saying the song's title. [Okay, hmm, maybe that was a little off...] I don't get technical if the song is just about winter without a holiday involved, like Rosemary Clooney's "Here Comes Suzy Snowflake" or the Bing Crosby/Danny Kaye ode to "Snow". I even try not to get weirded out by the logistics of David Hasselhoff singing "Feliz Navidad", which he did. But regardless of what one's interpretation of the season or holiday, c'mon, make sure your seasonal or holiday music IS about the season or holiday!!
The last one is better... and slipped my mind again!
First and foremost: when the hell did "My Favorite Things" become a Christmas song? It's a great song from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music and I've heard it covered by several people though my preference is still the 1965 movie's singer, Dame Julie Andrews (who has done a few different renditions over the years).
Despite the wintery images it was sung, in the movie, during a summer thunderstorm! This one has been on my mind for a couple years. I have heard a couple not-actually-Christmas-songs get played on the radio or included in CD compilations this year, most recently Robson & Jerome's cover of the 1953 Frankie Laine hit "I Believe", which at the time was essentially the Korean War's version of Bette Midler's cover of "From A Distance". (Curious parallel in a second way: she re-recorded that song for her Christmas album. Off-topic comment: It always cracks me up when Jewish artists like her or Barry Manilow make Christmas albums... A great album it is despite that track, for the record.) I'm not one of those people who criticizes whether Christmas music or celebrations should be about the birth of Christ or about being visited by Santa Claus; I believe they can coexist, and most of the singers record music from both camps -- some even putting the two together, like the unsanitized version of "Here Comes Santa Claus" (such as Gene Autry's rendition) or Max Headroom's "Merry Christmas Santa Claus (You're A Lovely Guy)" having the Baby Jesus saying the song's title. [Okay, hmm, maybe that was a little off...] I don't get technical if the song is just about winter without a holiday involved, like Rosemary Clooney's "Here Comes Suzy Snowflake" or the Bing Crosby/Danny Kaye ode to "Snow". I even try not to get weirded out by the logistics of David Hasselhoff singing "Feliz Navidad", which he did. But regardless of what one's interpretation of the season or holiday, c'mon, make sure your seasonal or holiday music IS about the season or holiday!!The last one is better... and slipped my mind again!
Comments:
<< Home
Christmas has the word "Christ" right in its name, so for me it's a no brainer. I can't imagine Christmas without Santa Claus though because he's just ingrained into the holiday for me, and I love the jolly fellow. So, like you, I happily let them co-exist when it comes to celebrating Christmas.
I love hearing Christmas music playing in the stores.
It makes me cheery!
Post a Comment
I love hearing Christmas music playing in the stores.
It makes me cheery!
<< Home
