i guess it's pretty obvious from the title of this morning's entry that i'm a fan of a charlie brown christmas. well, truth be told, it happens to be my favorite christmas special of all time.
this year is the 50th anniversary of the first telecast of this christmas classic. it's kind of cool to be the same age as your favorite christmas show.
anyway, one of the aspects that makes a charlie brown christmas so special is the wonderful soundtrack filled with the music of jazz impresario vince guaraldi. here's two of the most popular songs from it, and for those of you in the u.s., i defy you to listen to these songs and not think about your christmas as a child. i hope the memories are good ones that bring at least a little bit of joy to your heart.
oh, by the way, a charlie brown christmas has a repeat airing on december 24, so check your local listings for channels and times.
christmas time is here
linus and lucy
-vince guaraldi trio both from the album a charlie brown christmas
Saturday, December 5, 2015
and that's what christmas is all about charlie brown
christmas can mean a lot of things to those of us who celebrate it. it can be a time for the gathering together of people we love. it can be a time for shopping and gift giving for those specials someones. it can be baking cookies, sending christmas cards, decorating mantels and trees and doorposts with green and red and silver and gold (and even blue, brown, and purple). it can be watching wide-eyed children looking out for santa on christmas eve. and it can be the celebration of the birth of jesus christ, a cause for great joy to millions around the world.
even though my own spiritual journey has led me to this time in my life where i engage to a very limited degree in organized religion, i still believe in and treasure the story of the child born in a manager, who would grow up, live, die and live again so that we may know and live in the truth of our great worth as children of god.
this story that has been shared for over 2,000 years has long inspired my approach to this holiday. in that small town in bethlehem god lavished upon us this extraordinary gift as a sign of his incomparable love for us. as such, because of this extravagant gesture, i believe we should give and love extravagantly at this time of year.
the song i'm sharing this morning is a lush medley filled with wonderful imagery that harkens to the christmas story. i hope the thought of god with us inspires that spirit of giving and loving extravagantly in you.
sing we now of christmas/o come, o come emmanuel/emmanuel medley - michael w. smith from christmastime
even though my own spiritual journey has led me to this time in my life where i engage to a very limited degree in organized religion, i still believe in and treasure the story of the child born in a manager, who would grow up, live, die and live again so that we may know and live in the truth of our great worth as children of god.
this story that has been shared for over 2,000 years has long inspired my approach to this holiday. in that small town in bethlehem god lavished upon us this extraordinary gift as a sign of his incomparable love for us. as such, because of this extravagant gesture, i believe we should give and love extravagantly at this time of year.
the song i'm sharing this morning is a lush medley filled with wonderful imagery that harkens to the christmas story. i hope the thought of god with us inspires that spirit of giving and loving extravagantly in you.
sing we now of christmas/o come, o come emmanuel/emmanuel medley - michael w. smith from christmastime
Friday, December 4, 2015
it's time for an xtina xmas
time to get those hips a swayin', those shoulders a movin' and those hands a clappin' (and if you're really feeling brave, get on up and really shake your thang).
christmas time - christina aguilera from christmas
christmas time - christina aguilera from christmas
indeed it is
so i've started compiling a list of potential holiday season songs to share over the course of this month. as i've done so, it's quickly becoming apparent that if i want to get through all of them, i'm going to need to start at least doubling up on songs shared each day.
with this plan in mind, some days i will do a morning and an evening entry. other days, there may be two songs shared in one post. today will be an example of the former approach.
the song i'm sharing in this first of two entries today was a no brainer as to the need to post it here. it's probably in my top three of all holiday songs, and, in fact, i'm surprised it's taken me this long to post. each time i hear this song, it brings a smile to my face and a lightness to my heart, so having this among my selections was easy. the slightly more difficult choice, given the large number of wonderful performances of the song (it seems to be a staple of the christmas album genre), was which rendition to share.
it came down to two choices, the person who first popularized the song and the one who popularized it for me. i chose the latter artist because she is the one who introduced me to this song. the fact that she is one of my all time favorite singers didn't hurt either (and believe me this will not be the last song you hear from her this month).
it's the most wonderful time of the year - amy grant from home for christmas
with this plan in mind, some days i will do a morning and an evening entry. other days, there may be two songs shared in one post. today will be an example of the former approach.
the song i'm sharing in this first of two entries today was a no brainer as to the need to post it here. it's probably in my top three of all holiday songs, and, in fact, i'm surprised it's taken me this long to post. each time i hear this song, it brings a smile to my face and a lightness to my heart, so having this among my selections was easy. the slightly more difficult choice, given the large number of wonderful performances of the song (it seems to be a staple of the christmas album genre), was which rendition to share.
it came down to two choices, the person who first popularized the song and the one who popularized it for me. i chose the latter artist because she is the one who introduced me to this song. the fact that she is one of my all time favorite singers didn't hurt either (and believe me this will not be the last song you hear from her this month).
it's the most wonderful time of the year - amy grant from home for christmas
Thursday, December 3, 2015
yes we do!
so here's a cheerful and energetic holiday song. the interesting thing about this song, and a fact that is not readily known by many people in this day and age, is that the song originates from the broadway musical mame. here's what wikipedia tells us about the song's context in the show:
"We Need a Little Christmas" is a popular Christmas song originating from Jerry Herman's Broadway musical, Mame, and first performed by Angela Lansbury in that 1966 production.[1]
In the musical, the song is performed after Mame has lost her fortune in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, and decides that she, her young nephew Patrick, and her two household servants "need a little Christmas now" to cheer them up.[2] The original lyrics include the line, "But, Auntie Mame, it's one week past Thanksgiving Day now!" Since the time the song was written the phenomenon of Christmas creep has resulted in the normal holiday season beginning much earlier than it once did, which has led to more recent recordings changing the line to, "But, Auntie Mame, it's one week from Thanksgiving Day now!"
i mention this little factoid because often the line sung by patrick is left out of many modern recordings of this song. well, i've picked a version that has left it intact (and the original lyric to boot). enjoy!
we need a little christmas - the cast of glee from glee: the music, a christmas album
"We Need a Little Christmas" is a popular Christmas song originating from Jerry Herman's Broadway musical, Mame, and first performed by Angela Lansbury in that 1966 production.[1]
In the musical, the song is performed after Mame has lost her fortune in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, and decides that she, her young nephew Patrick, and her two household servants "need a little Christmas now" to cheer them up.[2] The original lyrics include the line, "But, Auntie Mame, it's one week past Thanksgiving Day now!" Since the time the song was written the phenomenon of Christmas creep has resulted in the normal holiday season beginning much earlier than it once did, which has led to more recent recordings changing the line to, "But, Auntie Mame, it's one week from Thanksgiving Day now!"
i mention this little factoid because often the line sung by patrick is left out of many modern recordings of this song. well, i've picked a version that has left it intact (and the original lyric to boot). enjoy!
we need a little christmas - the cast of glee from glee: the music, a christmas album
Wednesday, December 2, 2015
more on angels
i always enjoy when traditional christmas carols are approached in a new way. i'm sure i will be sharing many of that type over the course of this month (as well as those of the commonly performed type).
it's difficult for me to believe that this rendition is fifteen years old. it seems like only yesterday that i picked this album off the shelves during what i'm sure was a frenzied bout of holiday shopping. how time flies by (whether you're having fun or not).
the angels medley -- avalon from the album joy
it's difficult for me to believe that this rendition is fifteen years old. it seems like only yesterday that i picked this album off the shelves during what i'm sure was a frenzied bout of holiday shopping. how time flies by (whether you're having fun or not).
the angels medley -- avalon from the album joy
Tuesday, December 1, 2015
embracing the season
well, it's officially the christmas season, and for the first time in what seems like a long while, i feel like participating wholeheartedly in it. i've begun decorating the house and listening to christmas music pretty consistently.
as i sat here in my office, listening to a particularly favorite album of holiday music, i thought it would be a great idea to expand my past practice of sharing a few holiday songs to spending the month of december sharing a fuller variety of my favorite songs that commemorate this special time of year. after all, the music is for me one of the best parts of the holiday season -- a belief that is evidenced by the fact that i have a collection of about 100 cd's (and growing) of holiday music.
i'm going to do my best to share both original songs and new arrangements of the more traditional fare. hopefully, there will be something for everyone over the course of the month. i'll also do my best (time permitting) to provide at least a little introductory commentary to each song i share.
so, let's start with the song that inspired this idea of a month of sharing holiday music. this song comes from an album that i adamantly refuse to play before the first of this month (we all have our idiosyncratic traditions at this time of year, and this is one of mine). i think it perfectly evokes that special nostalgic feeling of hearth and home that comes to mind at this time of year.
angels in the snow - kenny loggins from the album december
as i sat here in my office, listening to a particularly favorite album of holiday music, i thought it would be a great idea to expand my past practice of sharing a few holiday songs to spending the month of december sharing a fuller variety of my favorite songs that commemorate this special time of year. after all, the music is for me one of the best parts of the holiday season -- a belief that is evidenced by the fact that i have a collection of about 100 cd's (and growing) of holiday music.
i'm going to do my best to share both original songs and new arrangements of the more traditional fare. hopefully, there will be something for everyone over the course of the month. i'll also do my best (time permitting) to provide at least a little introductory commentary to each song i share.
so, let's start with the song that inspired this idea of a month of sharing holiday music. this song comes from an album that i adamantly refuse to play before the first of this month (we all have our idiosyncratic traditions at this time of year, and this is one of mine). i think it perfectly evokes that special nostalgic feeling of hearth and home that comes to mind at this time of year.
angels in the snow - kenny loggins from the album december
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