The Peanuts Gang Freak It & Kick Off The Holiday Season
Screen Grab from A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
Image Courtesy of Peanuts Wiki
It's officially the Holiday season. I know this because:
- Each morning I awaken a victim of 40+ e-mail blasts offering me AMAZING HOLIDAY DEALS/DON'T MISS IT!/OFFER ENDS TONIGHT!
- Turn a corner in metro NY: Rockettes everywhere. I've seen less pigeons* lately
- The Rankin-Bass Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer was on CBS this past Wednesday
Both Appeared on CBS, But Rudolph's "Glasses Elf"
Should Not Be Mistaken For Richard "Mel Cooley" Deacon
Should Not Be Mistaken For Richard "Mel Cooley" Deacon
Infographic by Dan Cunningham
So, with this year's Summer and Halloween playlists put away for a while, here's another playlist of 9 song suggestions to get in the Christmas spirit. As usual, these are deeper cuts than what you'll hear on the radio—use them to add a bit of variety to your own Holiday-themed playlist.
Album Art for Christmas 2012 Playlist Suggestions
Reliability might garner a few less people switching stations, but it lacks texture and the fun of anticipation for the listener. Discovery too: plenty of obscure songs that receive less or no play are the most delicious morsels, often leading the listener to go out of their way to discover non-holiday work by the same artist.
Christmas Music Works Best With Variety
Image © and Courtesy of Chef Mom
Walt Disney Promotes a mid-1960s Toys For Tots Drive
Image Courtesy of wdwnews.com
The most interesting and obscure piece of audio here is probably the "Toys For Tots" theme written by composed by Sammy Fain and Paul Webster, and performed here by Peggy Lee, Nat "King" Cole and Nancy Wilson. The tune is charming, catchy and bright, the message is clear, and the three talented stars are giving their all for the recording originally used as a radio PSA to drum up interest for the annual toy drive. The high-pitched chorus that pipes in could likely be attributed to the initial popularity of Ross Bagdasarian's Chipmunks, or possibly intended to be Walt Disney's own chipmunks Chip n' Dale (equally likely, since the Walt Disney Studio designed the official Toys For Tots logo, and contributed promotional artwork to the charity through the years).
The Original 1948 Toys For Tots Poster
© Toys for Tots Foundation, Image Courtesy of www.toysfortots.org
To this day, Toys for Tots continues to be an official activity of the U.S. Marine Corps., serving as a charitable, non-profit organization. You can find a donation center near you at their website HERE
Angels We Have Heard On High
Artist: Relient K
Album: Let It Snow Baby... Let It Reindeer
Amazon iTunes
Happy Holiday (Beef Wellington Remix)
Artist: Bing Crosby
Album: Christmas Remixed: Holiday Classics Re-Grooved
Amazon iTunes
Winter Wonderland (78 Take)
Artist: Chet Baker Quartet (Featuring Russ Freeman)
Album: The Chet Baker Quartet With Russ Freeman
Amazon iTunes
Blue Christmas
Artist: Bob Dorough
Album: (Single)
Amazon iTunes
The Christmas Waltz
Artist: She & Him (Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward)
Album: A Very She & Him Christmas
Amazon iTunes
Greensleeves
Artist: The Vince Guaraldi Trio
Album: A Charlie Brown Christmas – Original Television Soundtrack Recording
Amazon iTunes
Christmas Island
Artist: Leon Redbone
Album: Elf – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Amazon iTunes
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen/We Three Kings
Artist: Barenaked Ladies (With Sarah McLachlan)
Album: A Winter's Night 2011
Amazon iTunes
Toys for Tots
Artist: Nat "King" Cole, Peggy Lee & Nancy Wilson
Album: Ultra-Lounge: Christmas Cocktails (Vol. I)
Amazon iTunes
BONUS CHRISTMAS MP3s
If you've been hanging around here, you know when I put together these playlist suggestions, I like to include a link to a free download of a song themed to the subject. This time I'm able to get you to 31 songs, provided by an excellent travel blogger (and Twitter friend) named Carrie Hayward.
It's a great story as to how Carrie came to post the music, but I'll let her blog post explain the inspiration and history behind the songs she compiled, you can check it out and download the music at her site here:
"See You in Disneyland: Silly Reindeer"
Artwork by Dan Cunningham, © The Walt Disney Company
Medium: Vector Art in Adobe Illustrator
Medium: Vector Art in Adobe Illustrator
* Pigeons are the filthy, scavenging, official birds of Manhattan.
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