Was Radar O'Reilly a Tenor?

I guess we'll never know for sure, as the Corporal extraordinaire is not in the Ottumwa, IA High School Concert Choir from 1970.  But what I do know is that this high school choir makes some very pretty Christmas music.

These high school choir records fascinate me.  I posted a few songs from one a few years back, the Bentley High School Choir, and really didn't know that making these records was a thing.  I guess it is.  Makes sense, if you think about it.  Since the advent of digital music production, it's been easy to record concerts and make CDs.  Before digital, it wasn't as easy to record a school concert and save it on audio media for posterity, but I'm sure the desire was always there to save a historical record.  For schools with the means, or the fundraising efforts, it was certainly possible.  This is evidenced by Bentley and now, Ottumwa.

This is a record of the 1970 Ottumwa High School Concert Choir's Christmas concert.  Their concert was a mix of traditional spiritual songs ("O Come All Ye Faithful"), classical ('Hallelujah Chorus'), and seasonal classics ("Jingle Bells", "Sleigh Ride").  The youngsters in the choir sound great, making this a nice little record in the Christmas music sub-genre of "high school choir".

I was able scan the front and back covers (very understated, by the way, making it really interesting), but couldn't scan the inner gatefold, so it is a digital photo.  My apologies for the lower quality of the inner.

Good stuff here, says Der Bingle.  If you know someone who may have been in the Ottumwa Choir in 1970, point them here to bring back some memories.  If you were in the choir, post a comment!

Please enjoy a Christmas concert from young vocalists hailing from Radar O'Reilly's hometown!

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A Heartwarming Story from the Past

In addition to Christmas music, I collect, or in most cases "accumulate" would be more accurate, Christmas items of all types.  Books, ornaments, and vintage Christmas decorations have all found their way into my house, emerging for two months every year, and waiting for my children to joyously squabble over their future holiday inheritance.  Well, maybe not so much on that last item, but the point is that I collect more than just music.  I have an entire set of Cuneo Christmas books, many other collections of Christmas fiction, poems, and non-fiction.  I love reading about Christmas as much as listening to the season's music.

Earlier this year I, like the fool I am, did a random eBay search for something like "Christmas magazine annual", just to see what I would find.  Up popped listings for "Christmas: An American Annual of American Literature and Art".  A little research told me that this was an annual publication from the Augsburg Publishing House, beginning in 1931 and produced annually for over 50 years.  My collector tendencies kicked in and I bought a few editions online.  The publication is an absolutely amazing labor of Christmas love.  Each edition contains beautiful artwork, stories, songs, poems, essays, and, each and every year, a retelling of the Christmas story through the Gospels of Luke and Matthew, enhanced by a new selection of artwork.  I was thrilled to be able to enjoy these journals, many from the 1940s and 1950s.  (Alas, I don't think I'll ever be able to collect the entire run - the earliest editions from the 1930s are either not listed online or very expensive).

Sometimes these old periodicals tell their own unique stories of the holidays.  They are given as gifts, or are used as a scrapbook to hold precious memories.  One such edition arrived to me in it's original paper wrap, telling me its story as a gift from Edna Anderson to Esther Knutsen back in 1968.

Several came to me that had been owned by a Mrs. Selma Hanson.  Mrs. Hanson had written her name in the upper right corner of the masthead page, claiming the edition as her own, but careful not to mar the page,  Several of Mrs. Hanson's now grace my own collection of "Christmas" editions.  One of Mrs. Hanson's included a page from a December 1956 Chicago Daily Drover's Journal newspaper, folded and pressed between the pages.  There were Christmas-related news items and columns, and certainly something that Ms. Hanson held precious.  Maybe the fruitcake recipe submitted by a reader.  Maybe she knew someone who had their Christmas item printed.  Maybe for the "Bible Thought for Today", or maybe for the news that Jackie Robinson had been traded from the Brooklyn Dodgers to the New York Giants.  Though we'll never know the reason, we can take a little trip to the past and imagine why she held this page dear enough to preserve.

One edition, though, tells a very special Christmas story that warms your heart.  It's Christmas through and through.  The 1966 edition of "Christmas" is in excellent condition, graced with a painting of Mother Mary and Baby Jesus, with cherubs looking on, a beautiful piece of artwork.

Inside, on the blank page facing the cover, I found an inscription to Mrs. Hanson, a note from a Thomas Roth, wishing Mrs. Hanson a Merry Christmas, dated for remembrance.  From the looks of the inscription, I took it to be from a young Mr. Roth, maybe 9, 10, 12 years old.

Paging through the book, I discovered an envelope tucked away inside, addressed to Mrs. Hanson.

Inside the envelope was a lovely card.

The card, from Mr. and Mrs. Roth, thanking Mrs. Hanson for her work with Thomas.

The story began to unfold in my imagination.  Mrs. Hanson must have been a teacher, and young Thomas her student, one with whom she had spent extra time, maybe for some extra help when needed, maybe time just to spur on his love of math, or science, or art.  Maybe Mrs. Hanson was Thomas' favorite teacher, and Thomas wanted to do something special for her at Christmas.  He picked out the edition of "Christmas" at a local store, and wrote his personal message to her inside.  Thomas' parents were equally grateful for her work with him, and made sure to enclose their note of gratitude.

Can you imagine Thomas' smile when Mrs. Hanson received this Christmas gift?  Can you imagine Mrs. Hansen's delight when Thomas gave her the book?  A thoughtful present from a bright young boy, making her day just as much as his.

This is the story I find in this book and the mementos that traveled along with it - one of the Christmas spirit and the blessings of the season.  A story of gratitude, a selfless story of wishing to make another happy.  A story of Christmas itself.

CD Review: Maestro Classics "The Nutcracker"

"The Nutcracker" is as much a part of the Christmas tradition as Santa Claus, Rudolph, and Bing Crosby.  The music from the classic ballet is everywhere, and in all forms - the classical arrangements, jazzy, swingy versions, even acapella vocal takes from groups such as Straight No Chaser.  The imagery of the Nutcracker, the Mouse King, and the Sugar Plum Fairy have their rightful place in the upper echelon of our Christmastime celebrations.

Maestro Classics has released a CD version of "The Nutcracker", as performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Stephen Simon.  What do we as Christmas music lovers stand to gain from another recording of "The Nutcracker"?  As it turns out, quite a lot.

Maestro Classics specializes in producing classical music targeted at children.  Their "Stories in Music" series includes "Peter and the Wolf", "The Sorcerer's Apprentice", "The Story of Swan Lake", and nine others, now including "The Nutcracker".   Their mission statement is telling:

"To cultivate a love of music through education and  joyful performances, to expand and develop  listening skills and encourage adults and children to listen together."

What a wonderful mission, so full of heart.

"The Nutcracker" CD features narration by Jim Weiss.  As the Philharmonic performs the music of Tchaikovsky, Mr. Weiss tells the story of Clara and the Nutcracker, from the introductory scene as the party at Clara's parents unfolds, through the arrival of Herr Drosselmeyer and the presentation of his gifts, onward to the battle of the Nutcracker and the Mouse King, to the Land of the Sweets and the entertainment of the dancers, concluding with Clara's awakening back in her parents' home.  

Mr. Weiss' narration is clear, bright, and animated, and is always in a partnership with the music.  A challenge is to not have either the narration overpower the music, or vice versa, to bury the narration too deep and to make it difficult to hear behind the orchestra.  This balance is well managed by the producers, making the story come to life through Mr. Weiss' storytelling.

This edition of "The Nutcracker" is an excellent resource for teachers and parents to introduce the story and music to younger children, and is also great for all to listen and become re-familiarized with the classic story.  The packaging includes a 24-page information and activity booklet, featuring a scene summary, a brief history of ballet, a biographical sketch of Pyotr Tchaikovsky, a lesson about the harp, and some fun and games for the kids!

I'm impressed at what Maestro Classics has to offer, and love their approach to bringing these works to the young generation.  If you have kids, if you're a teacher or know a teacher, I encourage you to check out their website and see what they have to offer.

Maestro Classics website

"The Nutcracker" available on Amazon

Festive Friday!

Well, partially festive, anyway.

Tonight's share is !Something Festive!, a collection of Christmas songs presented by BF Goodrich.  You know, all those tire companies sponsored pretty good Christmas albums back in the day.  If my Dad had been a Christmas music lovin' guy, I can imagine him driving the Buick around to the tire dealers, shootin' the, er, breeze for a while, and then getting the new album.  Didn't happen, but would have been pretty cool.

Anyway, this is a nice collection of music from the good folks at BF Goodrich.  Why do I say partially festive?  Well, I removed the two Herb Alpert cuts from the share file.  I know that those are readily available digitally, so I left them out.  Some of the other cuts may be too, but they are certainly 'rarer' then Alpert's.

Good stuff too.  Liza.  Burt.  Claudine.  Can't go wrong with that bunch.

So, please enjoy somewhat limited holiday festiveness!

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A Change of Pace: Holiday Cards

Although music is the main deal here at Merry and Bright, longtime readers know that occasionally I'll branch out into other avenues about the holiday season.  Tonight's post is one of those, heading down a new path, though still a seasonal little venture.  Maybe you could call it a stop at a holiday shoppe while traveling the Christmas Music Highway.  Maybe Der Bingle should stop metaphoring and get to it :-)

I was at an art show today with many local artists showing and selling their work (and, by the way, the show will lead to a major post in the near future, so stay tuned), and I met a talented young graphic artist named Stephanie Summers.  What caught my eye at her table was a set of beautiful holiday cards.  Although we as a family have moved to sending a family photo card out each year (this year featuring Kansas City Royal Wade Davis, in addition to us - Go Royals!), I still send out a few traditional Christmas cards to friends.  I've bought cards from MoMA, Retro Christmas Card Company, and others, and Stephanie's cards really tickled my Christmas-card fancy.

Stephanie works in digital graphic arts, as well as found material for her unique, high-energy designs.  The holiday card set incorporates petal shapes, loopy whorls, and a light, botanical/leafy background with a fabulous glittery gold "Happy Holidays" to greet the recipient.  I could show you an image of the card, but it's Stephanie's original artwork, so I won't, as I don't want her work to be copied.  I will, though, provide links so you can see for yourself.

Stephanie Summers' website
About Stephanie: link
Her fab art page:  link
And, (ta dah!) her Etsy site for the holiday cards:  link

I love supporting local musicians and artists, and I thought Stephanie's work was creative and lovely, and captured the spirit of a modern greeting while still retain a traditional theme.  Check out Stephanie's work at the links above, and if you like what you see, place an order and support a new artist!

Time to Share Some Drambuie Love!

Well readers, it's that time of the season where I share out a few vintage vinyl records for your holiday listening pleasure.  First up this year is a great little record, "Drambuie Christmas Classics".  This record has been shared out previously on other sites, but I found a copy in good shape, and I love Drambuie, so I got it and decided to rip and share.

This one of those product tie-in records that doesn't provide much information about the musicians.  We have a producer, Paul Whitehead, and a trio of arrangers/conductors.  We have Nashville as a recording location and we know where the lacquering was done (lacquering, not liquoring) and by whom.  But no musicians.  So, I've dubbed them The Drambuie Orchestra.

This is a tangy and sweet collection of a dozen Christmas standards.  Nothing surprising in the selections, with "We Wish You A Merry Christmas" leading off and "Joy to the World" as the closer.  The arrangements and performances are very well done, making this a very enjoyable listening experience.  Good while you're trimming the tree.  Better if you're supervising the tree-trimming while having a little scotch and (ahem) Drambuie.  Perfect! in fact, I'd say :-)

As a bonus for the sophisticated listener, there are Drambuie recipes on the back of the album cover.  Rusty Nail.  Oh yeah.  Frosty Nail.  Sounds intriguing.  Maybe I'll have one of those while watching "Frosty the Snowman".  Eggnog.  Easy as pie.

This is a fine record to kick off sharing season.  Please enjoy "Drambuie Christmas Classics".

Update: I've re-ripped side 2 to (I hope) remove some vibration/skipping.  New zip is at the below link.

download link

Artist Interview: Greg Page

In an earlier post I reviewed Greg Page's Christmas album release,  "Here Comes Christmas!", which is still one of my favorite new albums this year (and is vying for the top spot altogether).  Greg rose to worldwide fame and adoration by the children of the world as a founding member of The Wiggles, and has now returned to the world of entertaining children (and adults!) after a few years off for a health-related hiatus. I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Greg about the album, and his new work on "Butterscotch's Playground".

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Merry and Bright!:  Hello Greg.  Thank you for the opportunity for this interview.  "Here Comes Christmas!" is really a wonderful album, and I'm pleased to be able to share some of your insights with my readers.

Greg Page: Thank you for your wonderful comments about the album, it was a real pleasure to be able to produce this album!

MB:  It's great to see your new family entertainment projects after such a long and successful run as a founding member of The Wiggles.  What led you to start this new phase of your career with a Christmas album?

GP: I’ve always wanted to do a Christmas album – I love the music that is associated with Christmas, probably because of the emotional attachment to the holiday period – good will to all, time spent with family, and children being excited about Santa Claus visiting them.  To be able to re-launch my career with music for children with an album such as this seemed so natural, and something that I was passionate about.  That’s really the origins of it!

MB:  "Here Comes Christmas"! isn't your first foray into Christmas music.  You've recorded many original and classic Christmas songs with The Wiggles.  How did your approach to "Here Comes Christmas!" differ from your earlier Christmas recordings?

GP: Yes, I’ve recorded at least 3 Christmas CDs (that I can think of) with The Wiggles.  The approach with this was really just to find as many great, classic songs and carols as I could think of, and put them into a musical context that would have meaning for children.    At the same time, there were songs that I knew I had already recorded with The Wiggles, so I was mindful of not just “ripping off” those versions I had already sung on.  And of course, I had to throw in some original songs as well, just for good measure!  I’m really happy with how those ones have turned out – I think my favourite would have to be “Christmas Bells.”

MB:  You've shown a very deft touch in adapting Christmas standards to make them very focused for an audience of youngsters without losing  any of their traditional qualities.  Tell us about your process of developing these song arrangements to making them so appealing to kids as well as grownups like me?

GP:  For me, the sounds of Dean Martin, Bing Crosby and Perry Como really drive home that Christmas feel.  It is in the arrangements of the songs as much as the performance that you connect with the audience.  With the arrangements that we did, I wanted to stay true to those original versions as much as possible so as to give children a real sense of musical tone colour.  The instruments of the orchestra have such differing textures, and it is so valuable for a child to hear the difference between brass and woodwind, and stringed and percussion instruments. So in terms of making them “child friendly” the other half of connection comes about from the delivery of  the vocal performance. This is something which I honed over many years with The Wiggles, and I hope that children all over the world will hear that connection still, with the songs on “Here Comes Christmas!”

MB: I love your update of "The Twelve Days of Christmas" with a menagerie of animals.  Tell me, where in the world did 'axolatl' come from?  Puppy dogs, cows-a mooing, piggies oinking, and axolatls!  I love it, but where did you come up with that as one of the animals to be part of the song?

GP: One of my children had an axolotl a few years ago.  It was such a unique pet!  The kids loved it.  So when I was thinking of what kinds of animals children might like to look at and learn about, I thought of axolotls!

MB: Do you have any plans for videos to accompany these songs?  "Twelve Days...", "Rudolph..." and several others seem perfectly suited for music videos for kids.  If so, how will they be released and made available to the public?

GP: There are no plans for any videos as yet.  I would love for this album to go really well, and follow it up with a live concert DVD – maybe that’s a project for next year!  In the meantime, I’ve got some other plans for Yellow Entertainment and some other children’s shows that will be in production under the Yellow Entertainment label.

MB:  I really enjoyed all three of your original songs - "Here Comes Christmas!", "Christmas Bells", and "It's Christmas".  Is it hard to write an original Christmas song that is refreshing and new, and not have it sound derivative of all the other Christmas songs we hear each season?

GP: Glad you liked them!  Luckily I had some help with writing these songs.  Alec Miller, my co-producer was also co-writer of these songs.  When you are working with people as talented as Alec, it makes it a lot easier to come up with fresh ideas that don’t hark too much to songs that have been written before.  The other key thing to remember when writing is that your audience is children and their parents.  Firstly, you have to engage the children, so in terms of content that limits things a little, and secondly you have make it accessible to the parents, so that’s where the fun begins in drawing upon all your musical styles so that parents can relate to the song musically too –even though the content may be for children, the music isn’t dumbed down.

MB: What are some of your personal favorite Christmas songs?

GP: I love so many Christmas songs – "The Little Drummer Boy" is one of my favourite songs – the story-telling aspect of this song has always appealed to me, together with the melody of the song.  I also love some of the more traditional, simple songs such as “Silent Night” and “Jingle Bells”!

MB:  Does Australia have its own unique Christmas song canon, or are the classics you've included on "Here Comes Christmas!" what you would hear in your home country during the Christmas season?

GP: Australia has some of its own Christmas songs, but really we sing most of the same songs as other parts of the world.  The “Australian” Christmas songs have not become big here – they may be known by some, but by and large, all the songs that are on “Here Comes Christmas” are indicative of what people would listen to in Australia.

MB:  Before we wrap up, would you like to share a few words about "Butterscotch's Playground"?

GP: Butterscotch’s Playground is a new brand featuring puppets (a la Henson’s Muppets) that was originally created by Alec Miller and Vera Nakovic.  They approached me to work with them to develop the concept into something that would include me in the show in some way.  Together, we have written and shot 3 episodes that are available on DVD or for download via iTunes.  The crux of the show is that the whole wide world is your playground to explore and learn about – no matter where you go in the world, it always presents an opportunity to learn something new!  Butterscotch (a rabbit), Honey Bear (a bear), Frankie (a monkey) and Charles (a bluebird) live in a literal playground with swings, a slide and a teeter-totter.  I am the caretaker of the playground, and together with the children we set-up wonderful adventures where the children and their cuddly friends can go and see things they may not have ever seen before.  That’s where the whole wide world becomes your playground!  Music is a key driver for this show too – lots of songs that give children the opportunity to interact and engage with movement.

MB:  Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions Greg.  I have to tell you, my 14 year old daughter Audrey (the youngest of 5 children) was really excited about your record - she even called you her idol!  I wish you great success, and hope you continue to be such a positive influence and teacher to children everywhere for many years to come.  Merry Christmas to you and your family Greg!

GP: Thank you so much!  I’m glad that even though Audrey may have grown up a bit, she still remembers her years of watching The Wiggles!  Being part of children’s lives all over the world has certainly been an honor and a privilege!  Merry Christmas to everyone – Audrey too! J

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Yellow Entertainment - Buy "Here Comes Christmas!" purchase link
Greg Page on the Web