Der Bingle's Best of 2016

Here are some of my choices for the Best of 2016 in Christmas Music.  Some of these I've covered here this season, some I didn't.  They are in no particular order, but represent some of my favorite albums, songs, or artists that I added to my collection this year.

Found Wandering

My personal favorite discovery this year was Found Wandering, through their 2015 release "On a Christmas Night", their earlier album "Christmas in Country Village", and their brand new EP this season "Pass the Peace".  This is as good as Christmas music gets, and now that the season is waning, I need to check out their other albums.

Elizabeth Chan - "Five Golden Rings"

Elizabeth Chan ventured into new territory this year by including her versions of Christmas standards on "Five Golden Rings", her 2016 release.  Her creativity and love for everything Christmas comes through clearly as she gave us an album of standards, original songs, and Spanish and Chinese performances!  She keeps getting better and better, and I'm anxious to see what she brings in 2017.

Jordan Smith - "Tis the Season"

Jordan Smith was the gate-to-gate winner of season 9 of The Voice, and released a full Christmas album this year.  Before the album was in my hands, I wondered about the song selections, especially the exclusion of "Mary Did You Know?", which he had performed on The Voice.  Once I got the CD, though, I realized that song selection may never be an issue for Jordan.  He works magic with every song he sings, and is flawless.  I look forward to another Christmas album in the future from the amazing Mr. Smith.

Carly Jamison

Carly Jamison released "Keeping Christmas" this year as her 6th annual original Christmas single.  I hope there are many, many more to come.  Carly's Christmas songs were one of the best surprises of the season for me.

Pentatonix - "A Pentatonix Christmas"

Pentatonix is as hot as they come - a new Christmas album, an NBC special, probably the best selling Christmas record of this season.  And, in my opinion, their success and praise is well-deserved. This turned into a favorite this year.

Phoebe Gildea and Noah Brenner - "All is Bright"

The debut album by soprano Phoebe Gildea and harper/baritone Noah Brenner was an incredibly arranged and performed album.  Coming to life through a Kickstarter campaign, Phoebe and Noah's album is beautiful, and in its own niche in my Christmas music library.

The Snow Globes - "Snowed In"

What is becoming Kansas City's best annual Christmas tradition, the Snow Globes released "Snowed In" this year, an excellent addition to their catalog, and to your Christmas music library!

Tim Neely's Christmas Songs of the Day

Matt Casarino's 200 Days of Christmas

If you don't follow these two gentlemen with encyclopedic knowledge of Christmas music, you should.  Tim Neely gives us a new Christmas Song of the Day throughout the season.  All are excellent, many will be new to even the most dedicated collector.  Matt Casarino ups the game with 200 Christmas songs through 2/3rds of 2016.  Some classics, some new, some obscure, all interesting and meaningful.  I hope Matt is back next year with a new 200 Days.

So, there are some favorites this year, my personal 'best of 2016'.   

Rest in Peace

Rest in Peace

I've said and written that too many times this year.

I am usually very neutral when a celebrity dies.  I didn't know them.  I may or may not have been a fan of their work.  I felt compassion for their families, and those close to them who were experiencing real loss.  I respected them for their work, their talent, and that they made many people happy through their artistry.  Alan Rickman.  Alan Thicke,  George Michael.  Florence Henderson.  Even Prince and Gene Wilder feel into this category.  I felt sadness at their passing, at the loss of their talent, and at their contributions to the world as artists, philanthropists, and human beings, but true personal mourning?  Not very much.

There were four, though.   There were four that hurt.  I certainly didn't know any of them, but their artistry seemed personal.

Leonard Cohen - for writing the best songs ever.

David Bowie - for having an unending, infinite domain of artistry, and the bravery to explore it all and share with us.

Christina Grimmie - energy, talent, beginning to live her dream.  Killed.  I know many musicians who put themselves at risk by playing sketchy venues and going in to the homes of strangers to perform house concerts.  Christina Grimmie is but a step or two away from the musicians I know.  Her death still hurts, and is tragic for our society and our world.  Still nowhere near the loss that her family and friends must feel.

Carrie Fisher.

I was 13 years old in 1977.  For my birthday  that August I got to see this new movie "Star Wars" in the closest movie theater to my house, 20 miles away.  Carrie Fisher was beautiful, and Princess Leia was strong and brave and good.  I *am* the Star Wars generation.  And I've lost part of it now.

But we remember.  We remember these artists every time we see them or hear their work.  I can relive, re-experience, and remember David, Leonard, Christina, and Carrie any time I want to.  Click, click, click, and there they are.  Sometimes that's good.  But sometimes, it's better when memories come from afar and travel distance and time before they arrive.

Leonard, David, Christina, Carrie.  Rest in Peace.

Christmas Eve

It's Christmas Eve morning.  I've been up for about two hours, enjoying serenity, Christmas lights, coffee, fruitcake, and reading.  Soon our Christmas festivities will commence - afternoon Mass, Christmas with my mother, who is celebrating her 98th Christmas, back home for spiced apple cider and "A Christmas Story" on TV.  Certain things have changed a bit on Christmas Eve night, since the youngest Bingle child is now 15, but the spirit and traditions still remain.  Santa will still visit (if all have been good, which they have), though we may not be up quite as early on Christmas morning as years past.   This year the Christmas morning gathering of our children will include a pharmacist and her husband, a teacher and his newly-official fiance (quite a Christmas present!), a new college graduate with aims to be a behavioral counselor for children through dance, a new college Freshman, and a high school Freshman.  It will be, as always, a joyous occasion!

The sharing season here at Merry & Bright has concluded - I hope you have all enjoyed the albums I've been able to share with you this year,  I still have a couple more posts to write before turning the dial to 'simmer'.  I'll be closing out the season with a "best of" post, perhaps some loose ends to tie up, and to make some acknowledgements to all the fine brothers-and-sisters-in-arms of the Christmas music community.

Until then, have a very Merry Christmas!

Aaron Henton
(Der Bingle)

Mystery Share

Tonight's share is a mystery share, offered for a very limited time.  The link goes away on Christmas Eve.  Intrigued?  Get it while you can.

mystery share *Time's Up!*  Merry Christmas!

Christmas on Strawberry Hill

I have a pretty special share for you today, at least for any Kansas City readers.  This is "Sveta Noc:  Christmas on Strawberry Hill", performed by the St. Cecilia Choir from St. John the Baptist Church in Kansas City, Kansas.

Here in the Kansas City metro area (for the uninformed, there is a Kansas City, Missouri and a Kansas City, Kansas), Strawberry Hill is renowned for its povitica, a traditional Croatian nut bread.  You can find the famous Strawberry Hill povitica all around the KC area.  Well, now we know that in addition to Croatian pastry, Strawberry Hill produces some fine music for Christmas worship.  This album contains 18 songs recorded at the Midnight Mass at St. John the Baptist Church.  Most of them are in traditional Croatian (and you'll find other versions on previous shares this year), while a few are historical English carols.  This is a great record capturing a slice of history from this venerable KCK church.

As I noted in an early post, all of the album shares this year came from records owned by Don Lipovac, the Polka King of Kansas City, that I acquired at the family estate sale.  I feel that these records, now shared on this blog, form a small tribute to Mr. Lipovac and the music he shared with so many through his long, successful career.

Please enjoy "Christmas on Strawberry Hill"

download link  Updated!

Strawberry Hill Povitica website

Saturday Night Share: Gunter Kallmann Chorus

12 hours of freezing drizzle + 1 inch of snow + 6 degrees outside = two posts today.

I have a new share for you tonight, "The Gunter Kallmann Chorus Sings in German 28 Christmas Songs".  While I admire the precision, I would suggest hiring an album title specialist next time around.

The Gunter Kallmann Chorus, of which seven handsome choraliers are pictured on the back cover, sing their 28 songs in a collection of 8 medley tracks.  Some very recognizable classics (O Christmas Tree, Silent Night, I'll Be Home for Christmas) are woven in with traditional German carols for a great mix of songs.

This is a very nice album.  The recording is very clean and crisp, the chorus quite talented, the instrumental accompaniment (orchestra and bells) very festive.  Enjoy!

download link

Katie Garibaldi single "Tomorrow is Christmas Morning"

Der Bingle is iced in today in Kansas City - several hours of drizzle yesterday followed by rapidly falling temperatures and snow today have made it impossible to get out of the house.  So, today you may see several posts here on the blog.

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I made a quick reference to San Francisco singer Katie Garibaldi's single "Tomorrow is Christmas Morning" in the last post, in the list of links to new songs by several artists.  Given a bit more time today, I want to highlight Katie's song just a bit more.

"Tomorrow is Christmas Morning" is a very well-written and performed song about two people being apart on Christmas Eve, and the longing to be together on Christmas morning.  What makes this song successful and gives it a fresh identity among all the "we're apart on Christmas" songs is the focus on Christmas morning.  Katie sweetly brings together the imagery of the Christmas season and the space between the singer and her love with the importance of Christmas Morning.  Not Christmas day, Christmas Eve, Christmas dinner, or the season, but the morning.  That strikes home to me personally, as Christmas morning has always been the time that is the most spirited, and the most sacred.  I love that Katie has given us a song that really captures the magic of that very special time of the season.

"Tomorrow is Christmas Morning" is available at all the usual outlets for digital releases.  Katie has hinted that this is merely a preview for a full-length Christmas album coming in 2017.  That's a Christmas wish that I hope comes true.

Katie Garibaldi website
Katie Garibaldi on Bandcamp  (you can buy "Tomorrow is Christmas Morning" here)