I like Christmas music myself, and golly, do the visitors here like it! Holiday records are far and away the most popular things I share. Let's start things off with a most enjoyable 78 album from just before the LP era. It is called, sensibly enough, "A Merry Christmas" and it features several artists then associated with the Signature label, which was run by longtime industry figure Bob Thiele.
Ray Bloch gets top billing here. The orchestra leader was then active on radio, and later on TV (including with Ed Sullivan). Here he presents two songs ("Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" and "Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow") with a good vocal group called the Eldorado Five. He also provides backing for the excellent vocalist Monica Lewis, who may remind you of Dinah Shore. She does a touching version of "White Christmas" and a good one of "The Christmas Song" (although her initial entrance misses the mark on pitch).
Also on board is bandleader Johnny Long, an exponent of the inexplicable swing era convention called the band vocal, in which the musicians form a tuneless chorale and bark out the lyrics of the song. Long had just had a big hit with "In a Shanty in Old Shanty Town" with Decca, which thanked him by showing him and the boys the door. They ended up with Signature, a much smaller label.
For this album, Signature had Long do "Jingle Bells" and "Winter Wonderland," and the results are surprisingly pleasing, mostly due to the fine band vocalist Francey Lane.
Lane and Lewis were both highly attractive, and had brief stints in Hollywood in addition to their singing careers.
For this album, Signature had Long do "Jingle Bells" and "Winter Wonderland," and the results are surprisingly pleasing, mostly due to the fine band vocalist Francey Lane.
Lane and Lewis were both highly attractive, and had brief stints in Hollywood in addition to their singing careers.
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| Francey Lane |
The sound on this 1947 release is quite good, and the records were in fine condition. I really enjoyed transferring this set - hope you like it as well.
Note (June 2024): This has now been remastered in ambient stereo.
