It's that time of year again. We all have our own traditions to celebrate the birth of Santa Claus. One of my traditions is to re-run my stale old Favorite Christmas Records column. You're welcome. As a very special treat this year, I will throw a few more presents under the tree.
Like this one:
"The elves are dressed in leather
And the angels are in chains
The sugar plums are rancid
And the stockings are in flames"
Sorry, that's as good as it gets. This 7" single from 1984 doesn't quite capture the magic of the movie, but nothing does.
On a more traditional note, we have Der Bingle. This is quite a nice little artifact, even though some lunkhead wrote "AUlD LANG SYNE" on Bing Crosby's furry hatband. It doesn't bother me so much when people write on record sleeves, but what really irks me is when people write in ALL CAPS - except for the the letter "L." For example, the phrase "ALL CAPS" would look like "All CAPS" and the word "AULD" looks like "AUlD." Didn't you pay attention in First Grade when they taught all that stuff about upper and lower case letters? I see you used a capital L in "LANG" so you know what one looks like, don't you? If you're going to be wrong, at least be consistent.
Christmas with the devil indeed.
Anyway, back to Bing Crosby. This record was probably given away in the 50's to demonstrate the new GE "Trimline" stereo record players which are advertised so stylishly on the back. I like that one side is in mono and the other is in stereo.
Here a nice 45 from 1982. The Dave Edmunds version of "Run Rudolph Run" is fairly faithful to the Chuck Berry original. It's almost as good as the Keith Richards version, but I don't have that.
The Kinks "Father Christmas"
This is a nice heart-warming story of Santa's English counterpart getting mobbed by a bunch of kids demanding money and saying "we'll beat you up if you don't hand it over." If Bing Crosby wanted to really endear himself to the rock and roll generation, he should have covered this song instead of doing that "Little Drummer Boy" duet with David Bowie.
The Dickies "Silent Night"
I thought I had this one, but I can't find it. It's still comforting to know it exists somewhere.
In the Long Playing (LP) record category, we have:
"An Austin Rhythm and Blues Christmas" from 1986. It's a nice compilation with the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Lou Ann Barton, Charles Sexton, and other known notables. It's pretty good and worth looking for.
Remember CD's? They were all the rage in the 90's.
Here's an interesting relic from 1991 - "The White Christmas Album" compilation from Doctor Dream Records, the now-defunct label based in Orange, CA.
It kicks off in fine form with "Little Drummer Boy" as performed by Joyride. I think that this recording captures their live sound better than their albums did. Another highlight here is The Cadillac Tramps version of "Santa Claus is Back in Town." Other than those two songs, nothing really jumps out.
Booker T. & The MG's "In the Christmas Spirit"
This one gets almost as many spins as "The Ventures Christmas Album." Nice late-night Christmas Eve listening.
Ringo Starr "I Wanna Be Santa Claus"
He's got my vote. Stellar versions of "Winter Wonderland" and "Blue Christmas." Does he sing "Little Drummer Boy?" Yes he does.
Ringo is no Der Bingle, but then again, Bingo is no Der Ringle.