Ring Christmas Bells - Boris Brott, Hamilton Philharmonic

Earlier I mentioned a theme for 2010's posts, and now it's time to reveal that theme: Christmas Made in Canada! Yes, that's right, Hi-Fi Holiday is HQ'd in the Great White North. What better place in the world to celebrate the Yuletide season, where it's very cold outside, baby, for almost five months a year!

Kicking off Christmas Made in Canada! is Boris Brott conducting members of the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra on Ring Christmas Bells. Where's Hamilton, you say? Well, it's in Southern Ontario, about 45 minutes ride from stunning Buffalo, NY. You could say Hamilton, ON is the Pittsburgh of Canada -- a hard-working, blue-collar, steel town that has of late fallen on some hard times. Considering these tough times and the current state the city is in, it's surprising Hamilton once supported a Philharmonic orchestra - however, Hamilton was once as cosmopolitan a city as any in the 1920s-1950s.

The group dubbed as the Hamilton Philharmonic playing Ring Christmas Bells is a smaller ensemble than the kind which traditionally churns out powerhouse arrangements of orchestral Christmas music, so the feeling here is distinctively intimate and very late 1970s, what with the addition of reverb in the album mix.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Wayne King

Before I begin posting the promised "themed" albums this season I thought I'd first post an album (or two) I've wanted to share but for one reason or another never had the opportunity.

The first is the fantastic Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (1963, Decca) performed by Wayne King and His Orchestra & Chorus featuring the Wayne Robinson Singers.  I've nabbed two tracks from the album for my annual comps - the free-wheeling ode to Christmas shopping, "Jing-a-ling-a-ling", and a just-dramatic-enough rendition of "Carol of the Bells", with steady rhythm kept by low harp plucks. Much of the album, however is mellow ("The Christmas Song", "Winter Wonderland") -- King, like many bandleaders at the time -- knew how to arrange a tune for maximum listening pleasure.  Speaking of which, this is one rare Christmas album that plays well all the way through, making it perfect for merry-making without riding the stereo controls.

I realize this album has been posted on other great Christmas music blogs & websites, but I thought my rip of the stereo LP was too good not to share! You'll have to excuse the cover scan -- scanners don't like shrink wrap.

Link after the jump!

Christmas 2010 Preview

Hi, folks! Sharing time -- and Christmas -- are right around the corner, and I'm hurriedly recording some great music for Hi-Fi Holidays.  This year my posts will probably be themed (more on that later), so I hope you come back in a few weeks to check out what's new.  See you then!

11/9/10 - Update! All new links will be hosted on Mediafire.  Older Rapidshare links will be updated ASAP.  Enjoy.

Caroling Caroling by The Gene Lowell Chorus

I've been slacking a bit, so it's time to show Hi-Fi some love.  Here's a new album:  The Gene Lowell Chorus' Caroling Caroling (that's right, no punctuation!)

Released on album in 1958 (Warner Bros. Records / WS 1233), this warm-sounding, yuletide fest for male choir is a great Christmas Eve mood-setting choice.

Consisting mainly of the aforementioned male choir, there is also occasional brass accompaniment ("Hark! The Herald Angels Sing").  Gene's singers carry classic tunes with a friendly, professional and inviting tone ("Silent Night").

Despite the age of the album, I managed to make a clean rip of this rich sounding stereo recording (listen to those deep bass tones in "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"!)

The Christmas Voices of Walter Schumann - Walter Schumann

Woohoo, Christmas 2009 is fast approaching! Well, it's about three months away. But I can't wait, because I've recorded a handful of albums this summer that I need to share. NOW.

First up is The Christmas Voices of Walter Schumann, the Pickwick Records re-issue and electronic stereo-ification of 1951's Christmas In The Air.

The contents of this album have been shared out a few times on some great Christmas music-themed blogs, but the date of the recording, coupled with some cheap pressings has meant the sound was less-than-stellar.

This LP recording was a multi-step process that took several tries to get right. The first attempt was fraught with hazard. The stereo was phasing in and out. I tried recording it again, only to encounter the same problem. I then came back a few weeks later, tried once more, and miraculously, I scored a clean recording. There was some small stereo phasing, but it was manageable.

I then passed it through declick and denoise software (ClickRepair, still the best). However the left channel randomly cutting out began to knaw at me. So I mixed the stereo track ("electronically processed stereo" mind you) into a mono file. I then mixed it back to stereo and applied some light VST stereo effects using Bias Peak Pro. The results, I hope, are the best you'll hear this album (until someone remasters it and reissues it on CD).

The Spirit of Christmas - The Living Strings

One more in the series of 'Living' albums, and perhaps the last post this year, here's The Spirit of Christmas by The Living Strings. This one might be the most shared Christmas album on the planet, I'm not exactly sure. But since I recorded the album for myself, I thought I should share it here too.

It's up to the usual standards of the series with nice arrangements by composer Johnny Douglas, who is most notable to this child of the '80s as a regular contributing composer on animated series like Transformers and G.I. Joe. Before all that Saturday morning magic, Douglas arranged a few of the Living albums, including the more recent vintage (if you consider 1974 recent) The Christmas Songbook for The Living Voices.

Notable interpretations include Harry Belafonte's hit "Mary's Boy Child", which stands out from this traditional orchestral pack due to it's strong Calypso-flavour. The medley "We Wish You A Merry Christmas / We Three Kings / It Came Upon A Midnight Clear / O Holy Night / Silent Night" could very well set the record for most Christmas tunes performed in under five minutes. Check out the sweetly warm sax in "It Came Upon A Midnight Clear" mashing up with a reprise of the Calypso percussion from "Mary's Boy Child" for a study in Johnny Douglas' deft skills as an arranger.

Hey! Did you know this album is now available to purchase? Yes, that's right, Dulcima Records, dedicated to releasing the music of arranger Johnny Douglas, has released 'The Spirit of Christmas', 'White Christmas' and 'A Christmas Songbook' on a 2-CD set.

Click here to order now!

I'd like to thank everyone that has visited Hi-Fi Holiday, downloaded an album and posted a comment. The comments this year have been especially gratifying.

I sincerely wish you a safe and Merry Christmas and hope the New Year brings better times for all. I'll see you next year!

The Best-Loved Carols of Christmas - Nelson Eddy

Christmas music blogs are a wonderful thing. There's a handful of really great ones that dig deep each year by taking the time to restore and share some great LPs that were once lost to time. If there's a downside, it's that these great blogs have posted some great stuff I'd planned to share! I'm not going to ask them to stop -- just the opposite. But that's enough whining, it's almost Christmas, so let's get some cheer going. Here's something I hope you'll enjoy, Nelson Eddy Sings The Best-Loved Carols of Christmas.

Unfortunately the Harmony/Columbia LP does not include info on recording date, or the orchestra and singers that accompany Eddy's baritone (though I believe this might be a straight re-issue of Eddy's 1951 Christmas album Songs of Christmas).

The Joy of Christmas - The Living Guitars

The "Living" series continues with... The Living Guitars! Yes, this is an entire album featuring your favorite Christmas classics all accentuated for guitars. But this should really be called The Living Guitars and Organ and Bells, because that's what you'll find in the 1969 selection.

It's a breezy and brief album (just shy of twenty-three minutes), with the arrangements best suited for lighter fare like "Jingle Bell Rock/Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree", "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus/Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas", and "Deck The Halls", all of which are album highlights (though it's not easy to single a few out -- they're all gems!). Indeed all of the tracks are presented as medleys, so if you dig "Silver Bells", get ready to meet "The Real Meaning of Christmas".

The Joy of Christmas is certainly pleasant Christmas eve background music for some yuletide merriment where a delicate balance between cheer and mellow mood is required.

New Link! Nov/26/13 — Please enjoy: The Joy of Christmas - The Living Guitars

Christmas with The William Booth Singers and Salvation Army Band

The actual title of this one is Christmas With The William Booth Singers and The International Staff Band of The Salvation Army. But that's too long to fit in a blog post title!

CWTWBSATISBOTSA, for short, is a neat little album. It's a mix of vocal tracks with band, and instrumental only tracks, warbled out with gusto by the brass-heavy Salvation Army band. It's the only Christmas music I've heard that alternately sounds like Christmas Eve in a Catholic Church and a bustling downtown Santa Claus parade.

After a couple of years of rummaging through piles of neglected old LPs at local Salvation Army stores, it's nice to rescue a title like this. The Salvation Army has done so much for Christmas music in general, and this album proves it!

I wasn't able to track down any release info for Christmas With..., but my Google educated guess dates sometime within the early 1960s. Allegedly, Alma Records released several titles on it's Christian Faith Records imprint within that period. If you've heard this one before or have any further info, please post a comment.

Wishing You A Merry Christmas - Johnny Cole and His Chorus

Johnny Cole (aka Johnny Kaye, aka The Voices of Christmas, aka...!) must have been a workhorse for Crown Records. Under a number of guises he churned out a handful of Christmas albums for the label , including Wishing You A Merry Christmas. All while while channeling his very best Perry Como.

On Wishing You..., Johnny's sleepy tone is backed by his enthusiastic chorus. It's not the pinnacle of the Christmas music art form (kind of like the cover art - quaint, chintz), but there are some goodies, like "Jingle Bells", with slip-sliding choral harmonies and jaunty organist accompaniment. Though thinking about it, it's hard to do "Jingle" wrong.

I'm not sure what particular vintage this pressing of Wishing You A Merry Christmas is, as it appears another Johnny Cole album with the same name (but different contents and cover) was released by Crown Records in 1959. You can grab it at Christmas Forever.

If you like what you hear, download the remastered tracks with a subscription or free trial from emusic.com.

Merry Christmas - The Mills Brothers

We're rolling now. It's Fall, the temperature is dropping (at least here it is) and it's time to start posting some albums. I've been waiting all summer for this!

First up is Merry Christmas by The Mills Brothers. 12 familiar favorite songs all performed with emphasis on the Mills' vocal stylings, with minimal accompaniment (organ, chimes, harp). Highlights include "O Holy Night" (when isn't it a highlight?), "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and "I'll Be Home For Christmas". The Mills Bros. have soft, light voices -- perfect for the material. Great stuff too to put on later in the evening, when all the Christmas hub-bub has you beat, put this on and relax!

Originally issued on LP in 1959 (from which this recording is sourced from), it was later re-issued on DOT in the '60s and Pickwick in the '70s. Universal Special Products re-issued the same contents on CD in 1993. That CD is now way-out-of-print (that's worse than just out-of-print) and used copies go for big bucks ($70) on Amazon.com. Short version: Merry Christmas is otherwise unavailable. So I hope my LP recording will provide some relief while you track down a copy of the CD... Paying $70 for it.

Christmas Suite for Orchestra - Richard Benson

It's July... Time for some Christmas tunes?

Here's a quickie, "Christmas Suite For Orchestra" by Richard Benson and Orchestra from the Reader's Digets 4-LP set Joyous Music For Christmas Time.

According to a review on Amazon of the set, Joyous Music For Christmas Time originally retailed for:

"$7.99 ($1 more if you wanted stereo.)

This album was available every year until 1973 and eventually sold over a million copies."

This almost nineteen-minute suite is a smorgasbord of your favorite carols all given fresh orchestral arrangements and recorded in pristine stereo sound. The suite was issued on CD at one point, but has now gone out-of-print. This recording is taken from the LP set.

I couldn't track down any info on Richard Benson or his orchestra, so if you know something please post in the comments!

Just checking in...

Hi folks, seems like there's people visiting here even as the temperature rises outside and Christmas is a distant memory.

I'm checking in to let you know there's more music to come. I've been recording a lot of LPs over the past month, some gems, some less so! Please stop by every once and awhile and hopefully you'll find something you like.

The Christmas Album - Paul Mauriat

Regretfully I've been so busy with work that I haven't had the opportunity to post as many albums as I'd like before Christmas. So I'm going to add one today - Paul Mauriat's The Christmas Album - and one tomorrow to make up for it.

This is a top-notch offering from Mauriat, for full orchestra and wordless chorus. There's the old favourites here: "Jingle Bells", "White Christmas", "Silent Night", plus lesser-known titles like "Entre Le Boeuf Et L'Ane Gris" (aka "Among The Cattle and The Grey Donkey" - a Mauriat original?) and "Il est ne Le Divin Enfant" ("The Divine Infant Is Born"). All arranged and performed for maximum festive impact!

This album was re-issued on CD in a less complete form. That CD is now out-of-print. (and note: argh! "Trois Anges Sont Venus" ("Three Angels Appeared") plays twice in this file - once right after "White Christmas", so they're the same MP3 file. Quality control has been fired for this!)

Shell's Wonderful World of Music - Longines Symphonette Society

A double-LP set deserves a long title, and this one has one! This is Shell's Wonderful World of Music: Special Christmas Edition by the Longines Symphonette Society. According to Wikipedia, The Longines Symphonette Society was a record label created by the watch company Longines. Makes perfect sense.

Here are 20 carols performed in the wholly inoffensive choral/orchestral tradition ("Little Drummer Boy", "White Christmas" are highlights), with arrangements that are clean and straightforward. This is great background listening for Christmas gatherings where you don't want bombastic, jazzy or swinging variations to overload your celebratory subconcious.

Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer - As Told by Paul Wing

As I write this, Christmas is just 29 days away. Wow, it seems like I was just putting up an album in July!

Seasonal sharity is in full swing so I figured I'd get my butt in gear and join in. My first album of Christmas '07 is the kiddie-centric record Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer and Rudolph's Second Christmas, featuring two stories narrated by Paul Wing, written by Robert May, with music by Norman Leyden. There are also four delightful renditions of "Suzy Snowflake" performed by Dale Evans, "The Night Before Christmas Song" performed by Gisele McKenzie with Ray Charles' orchestra and choir, "Frosty The Snowman" performed by Vaughn Monroe and "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer" from The Voices of Walter Schumann. What a line-up -- it's the Yuletide version of Circus of The Stars!

This recording comes from the Pickwick re-issue, which is presented as stereo, albeit processed from mono. I actually have two versions of this album, the aforementioned Pickwick issue and one from RCA/Victor (which features a better cover, see above). According to a recent eBay auction, the Paul Wing stories were also released on two 45rpm records in the 1950s.

This is a little gem of an album. You have two wonky stories to entertain the kids and four brilliant arrangements of familiar favorites.

The John Gary Christmas Album

John Gary wishes you a Merry Christmas! How do I know that? It says so, right on the back of this LP!

Who is John Gary? He was a versatile vocalist (3 whoppin' octaves), born in 1932 who passed away in 1998. While he never achieved the mainstream status of many of his contemporaries, he recorded 23 albums for RCA Victor (see more at Wikipedia), including this gem, The John Gary Christmas Album.

Featuring the soothing vocals of one John Gary, orchestra arranged by Peter Matz and background vocalists, this is a wholly enjoyable little Christmas album. Straight laced, and timeless in that early 1960s mode. All of the standards are here, with a few lesser-known titles like "Little Snow Girl" and "Sweet Little Jesus Boy", beautifully rendered by our new tree-gazing music friend, John Gary.

But wait! Wasn't this released on CD, you ask? It was. In 2000 on Restart Records and now languishing out-of-print. Plus, the version I've uploaded is in Mono (RCA also issued a stereo LP). Consider this the best way to hear this album without taking away sales of an album no longer on sale... (Got that?)

Update! — This album is now available - in stereo - on John Gary's official website. Buy it today!

Christmas Serenade - Sammy Kaye

Okay, let's get this party started. To celebrate Christmas In July, here's Sammy Kaye's Christmas Serenade a 10" LP from Columbia Records (CL 2541). I haven't been able to track down a recording date for this LP, but Ernie Not Bert's blog shared an album with the same name last year (though with different contents). That LP was dated 1951 (see link).

This is a mix of fun tunes with more serious choral renditions. I hope Kaye's variations of "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town", "Jingle Bells" and "Winter Wonderland" make it into your Christmas music rotation come November!

Christmas in July

Hi folks. It's July, and apparently the Christmas music blogs begin to wake up and add a few new albums to celebrate the halfway point between last Christmas and next Christmas. I too have a few classics I'll be adding to Hi-Fi Holiday over the next few weeks. Time to fire up the record player!

All of my previously shared albums are still available for download, so if you've been waiting (and why?) grab 'em!

Happy New Year

Well, it's 2007, and officially the end of the Christmas season. Thanks to everyone who visited, and checked out the music. Special thanks to those who posted their comments. You made it worthwhile!

I now have 12 months to get more Lps recorded, and cleaned and ready for next Christmas. I might add one to the blog here and there throughout the year, so check in every once and a while to see if something is new. It's never too early for Christmas music, is it?

Thanks again, everyone!

Best,

Ryan

Firestone Presents... Vol. 6 - Various

Okay, another album before Christmas... It's that time of the year... Wait, didn't Jack Jones sing that on Firestone's Your Favorite Christmas Carols? He did, and that's the latest album on the blog.

It's like Circus of The Stars: Jack Jones, the Vienna Choir Boys, and Roberta Peters all perform a mix of new, old and non-secular tunes arranged and conducted by Irwin Kostal.

The highlight is Jones' perf of "This Is That Time of The Year", so good it's lauded on the cover. This one could stand shoulder to shoulder quite nicely with Andy Williams' "It's The Most Wonderful Time of The Year" and Perry Como's "It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas". Also new to this compilation is the sprightly "Dance of The Christmas Doll" by Edward Thomas.

The Little Drummer Boy - The Living Voices

We're hurtling towards Christmas here, so I guess I should step on the gas a bit and offer another album.

This one is The Little Drummer Boy by The Living Voices and just happens to be my personal favorite album this year. Why? Well, to me it's just perfect Christmas music: the mixed vocals are in that mid-'60s stylization, and the orchestral accompaniment is light -- there's nothing on this album that will add stress to the hectic time that leads up to the big day. Add to that faithful (but unique) arrangements (by Anita Kerr) and you've got a heart-warming and upbeat album. Perfect!

Highlights include "Be A Santa", a song I was unfamiliar with before this LP, and now love, "What Are You Doing New Years Eve" and the real show-stopper, the ultra-tranquil, incredibly beautiful "Do You Hear What I Hear", perhaps the greatest performance of this very non-secular Christmas classic. I get chills from this track and to me it's never sounded better. Eat your heart out, Engelbert!

Please enjoy: The Little Drummer Boy

This LP is now on CD and now available at Amazon.com.

Merry Christmas - John Clayton

Here's a nice little album from 1958, Merry Christmas (imaginative title, yes?) performed by John Clayton his Orchestra and Chorus. Who is John Clayton? Can't tell you. A search of Google only finds jazz arranger and band leader John Clayton, who is still very much alive and would have been just a few years old when this record was released. It's unlikely than that he was involved with recording it!

There are a couple of highlights on this album that I'd like to draw your attention to. "I'm Getting Nottin For Xmas", in what must be one of it's earliest recordings(?), the rollicking "Home For The Holidays", "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" and "Sleigh Ride". Why is it that "Sleigh Ride" is always the most interesting variation on every Christmas album?

The Sounds of Christmas

The first album I'd like to share isn't really comprised of the standard set of Christmas favorites. Instead it's a 1973 songs, sound and story album from Disneyland Records called The Sounds of Christmas, featuring Peter Renoudet (aka Renaday) singing and narrating his heart out. Renoudet sounds like a mock-sincere Will Ferrell character, and the album's twice-sung title track, "The Sounds of Christmas" is perhaps a little cheesy.

The story and sound effects are the real bonus here -- perfect for mixing into your annual Christmas compilation. If you have a sick and twisted sense of humor, you might find the part where Dad hauls in the Christmas Yule Log laced with innuendo.

Kicking off the Season

Hi all - and welcome to this new blog, devoted to the Christmas music of yesteryear. Please join me as I share some of the musty old LPs I've been lucky enough to discover these past few months.

What's with the URL? Well, I had some difficulties remembering my login/password for hifiholidays.blogspot.com, so when I went to re-register, half-paying attention, I typed in hif-fi-holidays. Let that be a lesson to all ye potential registrants with Blogger: pay attention!

I am humbled by the contributions found at the sites to the top right of this page. Their generous contributions to my own Christmas music collection has inspired me to do the same for others.

Hopefully I'll post some long out-of-print albums that will be good enough to make it into your Holiday playlist, warm your heart, and help spread some Christmas cheer.

If you like what you hear please leave a comment. Recording, declicking, editing and assembling these records takes a bit of work. Hearing from you makes it worthwhile!

Enjoy and Merry Christmas!