The Magnavox Chorus and Virgil Fox - Christmas Favorites

My friend Ernie shared this one many years ago, but I decided to transfer my own copy, not so much because I am crazy about the Magnificent Magnavox Chorus (they aren't) but because they split the LP with the magnificent Virgil Fox (he is).

Oh, the Magnavox folks aren't bad - they are pleasant to listen to. But Fox is a constant delight, and this album is half his doing. It's a nice addition to his Christmas catalog, some of which has appeared here previously.

Virgil Fox

The LP was a promotional item, probably given away by dealers who handled the Magnavox line of audio equipment and televisions. I believe it is either from 1957 or 1958. The notes make reference to 1956 in the past tense, and in 1959, the LP would likely have had to be in stereo, to be current with the dual-channel equipment that was new in the market. This one is mono. (UPDATE: reader Boursin, a wily person, checked the matrix numbers in the dead wax, which have a code that tells us that the record was pressed in 1956.)

The choir's repertoire is almost exclusively holiday favorites. Fox, however, ranges more widely. The cover and labels do not identify what he is playing, unfortunately, and I don't know most of the pieces. So I have labeled them generically as "Organ Interlude" and the like. If any organ savants out there know these pieces, please let us know what they are!

Just to be clear, the chorus and Fox do not perform together. Magnavox must have licensed the organ cuts to fill out the LP and bring some star power to the proceedings. As far as I can tell, the Fox items do not appear on any of his other records. He performs at the organ of Riverside Church in New York, where he was in residence from 1946-65.

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