Overlooked Christmas Music Recommendations

If you like some solo jazz christmas guitar, this is a great record. Have a listen.

 

“Jólakötturinn” (“The Christmas Cat”) is a beast that, according to Icelandic folklore, eats children who don’t receive new clothes in time for Christmas. The song is Björk’s contribution to the `Hvít Er Borg Og Bær’ Christmas compilation, issued on the Hljóðaklettur label in 1987. “Jólakötturinn” is one of few real Icelandic Christmas songs in which the song and lyrics are both performed and written by Icelanders. The lyrics were written by the Icelandic poet Jóhannes úr Kötlum and the song is by Ingibjörg Þorbergs.

Björk Jólaköttinn

 

Okay, Breaking News! Guess who just released a Christmas album:

Gonna be $24.95 at
Store | Mary Fahl
or Amazon, or the usual places.

Which suddenly I have no better use for the case this year.

Several clips on YuleTube, it's a lush, Christmassy-fully-arranged cradle for that huge, deep-throated voice that's been stunning listeners since October Project. Synths subbing for strings, organ, intimate guitar, just wow in all the right places and spaces. And the song selection...well, this is fresh. There's a Joni Mitchell song...no, not that one. There's nearly-half of a non-traditional Christmas album in there, fully-apropos.

This is a last-minute "divine", the calibre you don't expect this time of year. And I'm not selling this album, no skin in this game whatsoever. But, you need to know about this!!!

 

Ok Dilly, sure your not related to Mary Fahl? Lol
Ok, picked up this record in October. I was a big October Project fan and I've seen Mary solo a couple of times. I was slightly disappointed on the "carols" part of the record, with the exception of The Wexford Carol. The non traditional winter songs I like.

 

Simon & Garfunkel's A Star Carol

This was originally on a promotional Christmas album from the label. It showed up on the Old Friends box set.

 

Has anyone ever managed to completely wipe the “7 O’Clock News” element from their version of “Silent Night” to give us a pristine take of the carol? The song and the news elements are hard panned left and hard right so you can almost create a clean “non-news” mono version of the carol, but it still bleeds through...

 

Really liked October Project so it is good to see Mary again. Such a unique voice.

 

I'm going to add Billy Idol's Christmas album. I love the whole thing and always fits the bill when taking a break from the more traditional favorites.

 

This Moody Blues' song was NOT included on their holiday album, December. A beautiful performance by Justin Hayward:

 

Rosie sells this CD on her website for $15.00.

 

Three Dog Night recorded "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" that only appeared on a various artists LP. Never issued on any Three Dog Night release.
There is even a video for it and I've pretty much given up looking for it on CD.

 

Christmas Favorites by The Hollyridge Strings is an absolute gem of an orchestral holiday album, but it also has a driving rhythm to it with Stu Phillips stupendous arranging skills brought to the Christmas genre in high fashion. He also made a pretty interesting instrumental cover album of The Beatles songs in the 1960's as well. His dramatic version of Jingle Bell Rock is one of the many highlights from his groovy Christmas album that is worth checking out.


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I am often hung up on the greatest of holiday music from the Golden Age of Christmas, but I really dig country singer Clay Walker's Christmas album, which features what might be one of the most majestic orchestral intros that I have ever heard begin a song on the modern holiday classic, Mary Did You Know. The stellar orchestral prelude was arranged by Nashville conductor Bergen White, who also happened to be Elvis Presley's go-to Nashville arranger on many of his hit singles and albums in the 1970's. One of Mr. White's most beautiful orchestral arrangements for Elvis was on the King's version of Bridge Over Troubled Water, which is also worth checking out, if you have never heard it before.

 

I don't know how I feel about that. It is a massive arrangement, but, I don't hear Clay "living inside" that. Mary Chapin Carpenter, I can see doing this.

After years of putting up with Kenny & Wynonna, I'm still more comfortable with Kathy Mattea's more intimate soundscape. My two cents.

 

Funny enough, Bergen White was the arranger for Kenny and Wynonna's better known hit version as well. Yes indeed, Kathy was the first well known mainstream country act that recorded that beauty of a song. I like it well enough, but I probably like the vocals on the duet version the best.

Clay is a fine country singer that has battled MS for some time. He certainly does not have the vocal range of either Wynonna or Kenny, but I really do like Bergen White's stellar orchestral arrangements on both versions. Clay's Christmas album has a huge group of musicians on it, something like 50 or 60 singers and musicians, which is rather unusual for a Nashville based recording. Collin Raye did a similar Nashville based Christmas album in the 1990's, and it has a huge orchestral accompaniment as well. Collin also has a great tenor voice that really adds a great dimension to the dynamics of the whole production. He also has two glorious versions of The First Noel on his Christmas album, one of which lets the huge orchestra go it alone for the entire duration, and it is quite majestic sounding.


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Takes guts to attempt two different versions of "old warhorses" like that, particularly on an album whose subject matter has hundreds of deserving candidates for every track space available. I haven't heard Collin's Christmas stuff since about the turn of the century...gotta go lookin'...

 

I love Collin Raye's The Gift Christmas album. It just might be the best holiday album of standards to ever come out of a Nashville recording studio.

 

The Beach Boys make a cameo appearance on Collin Raye's The Gift, singing background vocals on "Winter Wonderland".

 

Lorrie Morgan's Merry Christmas From London is my all time favorite holiday album by a female artist, although Ella Fitzgerald's two Christmas albums rank up right up there as well. I have well over 300 holiday albums in my collection, so this is high praise by me. Charles Calello did some stellar orchestral arrangements for this underrated masterpiece and hearing Lorrie duet with Christmas legends Andy Williams and Johnny Mathis is just fantastic. I usually lean towards holiday albums from the Golden Age of the late 50's and 60's, but this album from 1993 really fits in quite well with those iconic albums.

 

Not sure if John Denver's Rocky Mountain Christmas record is overlooked d but it has some real good originals on it.

 

For harmony group fans, a reminder that Singers Unlimited makes their final recorded performance, reunited on Gloria Estefan's album, Christmas Through Your Eyes [/I](they did their part in L.A, Estefan monitored digitally from Miami). Also features Patrick Williams arrangements.

 

came across on a friends tape compilation

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"if Christmas can't bring you home," by the Reigning sound. picked it up over a month ago, been playing it over and over. great seasonal moody garage rock. b-side is "that's all I want" and a live version of "jingle bell rock." cover is an homage to the Notorious Byrd Brothers.

 

Bessie Smith - "At the Christmas Ball"