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Rebecca Schiff–“How to Be a Slut” [The 2017 Short Story Advent Calendar #23] (2017)Fd.m

Posted in Alison Moyet, Bob Seger, Bon Jovi, Brave Combo, Bruce Springsteen, Bryan Adams, Canadian Content, Christmas Album, Eurhythmics, Feminism, History, Huh?, John Cougar Mellencamp, Madonna, Poetry, Rebecca Schiff, Run D.M.C, Sex, Sexism, Short Story, Stevie Nicks, Sting, The Pointer Sisters, The Pretenders, The Short Story Advent Calendar, U2, Virginity (Loss of), Whitney Houston on December 23, 2017| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS (1987).

I remember when this album came out.  I think it was one of the first Christmas albums in which a lot of very popular musicians contributed to it. Of course proceeds went to charity.  By now, 30 years later, many of these songs are deemed classic enough that you will hear them regularly at Christmas.

Suffice it to say I hated this when it came out.  Now, I have grown to appreciate (some of it) it more.

THE POINTER SISTERS-“Santa Claus Is Coming to Town”
I really didn’t like this song back then.  I think it has grown on me enough that I just don’t mind it any more and it is certainly a staple.

EURYHTMICS-“Winter Wonderland”
I really like Annie Lennox’s own Christmas album.  This song is fine, it’s a little too 80s sounding, but over all its enjoyable.

WHITNEY HOUSTON-“Do You Hear What I Hear?”
People really like to overdo this song.  This version is okay.

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN AND THE E. STREET BAND-“Merry Christmas Baby”
This is a classic Christmas song by this point, but boy do I dislike the sax.

PRETENDERS-“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”
This version I don;t thin I hear too much.  Probably because it’s understated and quite nice.

JOHN COUGAR MELLENCAMP-“I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus”
I don’t particularly like this song.  I love the musical style that JCM plays, although I don’t like the way he sings it.

STING-“Gabriel’s Message”
I don’t know this at all, I guess everyone skips it.  It’s rather pretty if you can get past the fact that it’s Sting at his more pretentious.

RUN-D.M.C.-“Christmas in Hollis”
This is an all time favorite.  The song is fantastic and must be heard every year.  I live that I write a Christmas card that goes to someone in Hollis.

U2-“Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)”
I’ve heard this a million times.  I don’t particularly like this song, but I do like this version.

MADONNA-“Santa Baby”
My most hated Christmas song, done by Madonna at her most grating.  Ugh.

BOB SEGER & THE SILVER BULLET BAND-“The Little Drummer Boy”
Can Bob Seger ever do anything that doesn’t sound like him?  I don’t really like this song, but this version is kind of fun given how over the top it is.

BRYAN ADAMS-“Run Rudolph Run”
Never liked this song either.  It’s a lame lyrics to make into a rock n roll Christmas song.  All versions sound basically the same to me.

BON JOVI-“Back Door Santa”
I do not know this song at all.  Is it always skipped because it’s so bad?  Man the synths are awful.  Although it makes me realize just how unfair it was to both Bon Jovi and heavy metal that they were lumped into the same category.

ALISON MOYET-“The Coventry Carol”
I think Alison Moyet is the only artist here who most people probably don’t know today.  Her voice is really great though and this song is very cool.  Not exactly my favorite here, but certainly the most interesting.

STEVIE NICKS-“Silent Night”
It’s entirely possible that Stevie Nicks forgot how to sing on this song.  She seems really flat and then doesn’t even do most of the lead vocals half way through the song.  The “grace notes” are appalling too.

So it seems that the songs that were pretty good have stayed with us, the rest have faded away.  And there are a couple that need to be brought into rotation again.

[READ: December 23, 2017] “How to Be a Slut”

Once again, I have ordered The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This year, there are brief interviews with each author posted on the date of their story.

Hello. Welcome. It’s finally here: Short Story Advent Calendar time.

If you’re reading along at home, now’s the time to start cracking those seals, one by one, and discover some truly brilliant writing inside. Then check back here each morning for an exclusive interview with the author of that day’s story.

(Want to join in? It’s not too late. Order your copy here.)

This year I’m pairing each story with a holiday disc from our personal collection. (more…)

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Nathaniel Hawthorne–“The Christmas Banquet” [The 2017 Short Story Advent Calendar #22] (1846)

Posted in 19th Century, Angst, Canadian Content, Christmas Album, Death, Demons, Fears, Food, Huh?, Humiliation, Jealousy, Lies, Marriage Trouble, Morality, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Nightmares, Regrets, Religion, Short Story, The Short Story Advent Calendar, Violence on December 22, 2017| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: ‘TIS THE SEASON: Praise and Worship Christmas: A Collection of Inspirational Holiday Classics (2001).

s-l500This Christmas Collection came from Sarah.  As you can tell from the title and subtitle and sub-subtitle, this is a religious disc.  And as you can tell from the title and subtitles, they have gone way over the top.

The group consists of a bunch of performers and a choir from something called The Evergreen Community Church/The Rock.  Presumably not the actor The Rock, although that would be pretty cool.

As with a lot of contempo-Christian music, they’ve decided to add a rock flair to it.  So these are 13 songs sung very passionately and with little restraint.  Because if you can have an echo pedal, you should use it.  And for some reason, nothing says Christmas like alto saxophone.

“O Come All Ye Faithful” features that sax prominently.  Up next, I was pretty surprised to hear a rocking harmonica solo on “Joy to the World.”  For the most part the folkiness was okay until the choir at the end.

“Do You Hear What I Hear” has a solid drum machine and an excess of R&B vocals.  Up next, the music for “What Child is This?” is understated and pleasant.  Shame that the singer is shooting for the rafters.  Their version of “Go Tell It On the Mountain” is not gospel-tinged and, stranger yet, they changes the stress of the chorus to the “ow” of mountain.

“Angels We Have Heard on High” brings that saxophone back and back and back.   “O, Little Town of Bethlehem” has a quiet piano motif, but once again, it is oversung.

“We Wish You A Merry Christmas” makes excessive use of that echo pedal on the vocals.  “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” was pretty good.  No complaints.

But try to imagine just how over the top and ponderous you could make an a capella (plus echo) version of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel.”

“Silent Night” loses all of its power in this folkie rendition.  I’m noticing the fretless bass and cheesey sax rather that the echoed vocals.  Amazingly, “Amazing Grace” is understated musically with just an acoustic guitar but the singer overcompensates.

The disc ends on a high note (not literally).  On “Joy to the World” the folkie harmonica and guitar work nicely.

[READ: December 22, 2017] “The Christmas Banquet”

Once again, I have ordered The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This year, there are brief interviews with each author posted on the date of their story.

Hello. Welcome. It’s finally here: Short Story Advent Calendar time.

If you’re reading along at home, now’s the time to start cracking those seals, one by one, and discover some truly brilliant writing inside. Then check back here each morning for an exclusive interview with the author of that day’s story.

(Want to join in? It’s not too late. Order your copy here.)

This year I’m pairing each story with a holiday disc from our personal collection. (more…)

Read Full Post »

David Wiesner & the Art of Wordless Storytelling (2017)

Posted in Big Books, Biography, Cats, Charles Sheeler, Children's Books, Christmas Album, Clouds, David Wiesner, Essays, Fairy Tales, Fantasy, Frogs, Graphic Novel, Hayao Miyazaki, Illusion, Joseph Stella, Katherine Roeder, Lynn Ward, Max Ernst, Moebius, Non-fiction, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, René Magritte, Salvador Dali, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Surreal, The Glenn Miller Orchestra, UFOs on December 21, 2017| 2 Comments »

SOUNDTRACK: THE GLENN MILLER ORCHESTRA-In The Nutcracker Mood (2012).

Glenn Miller disappeared just before Christmas on December 15, 1944. His Orchestra, in the too-short run under his personal leadership, had officially recorded only one Christmas song (“Jingle Bells”, October 20, 1941).

Year later, the orchestra has recorded three Christmas albums.

A list of desirable players was compiled. There were a few requisites — musicians had to be working currently; only alumni of the Glenn Miller Orchestra would be recruited; each individual had to have recognized and outstanding talent; each veteran had to be able to take a leave-of-absence from his current “gig”; and, of course, be available to come to New York City to record.  The average age of this band is about 50. The length of time each player performed with the Glenn Miller Orchestra ranges from as little as 6 months to well over 10 years. The cumulative experience of this band recreating the authentic Miller “sound” is well over 100 years!

The first recording, “In The Christmas Mood”, was released in 1991. It was so successful that a second recording, “In The Christmas Mood II,” was produced and later released in 1993.

Almost all of the musicians performing on all three of these recordings, are the same. The only differences are the pianist for the first recording, and trombonist, Larry O’Brien, the then leader of the Glenn Miller Orchestra, was unable to make the second recording due to being on tour. Larry is noticeably back on this recording as evidenced by his beautiful trombone solo on Toyland.

My parents loved Glenn Miller and I grew up listening to him.  So when I saw this, I knew I had to get it–combining Glenn and the Nutcracker!

“Miniature Overture” a fun overture that puts the swing in things.
“March” I don’t know if Brian Setzer put the swing into this song before they did, but it has Glenn all over it.
“Dance of the Fairy Dragee” doesn’t differ too much for the original at least until the middle when the jazzy drums kick in.  The end totally swings.
“Russian Dance”  fast and peppy and wonderful with a big band flourish at the end.
“Arabian Dance” I love that the more Arabian sound comes from a muted trumpet.
“Chinese Dance” There’s some extra big band solos thrown into this one–cheating a bit I think.
“Dance of the Mirlitons” Some nice swinging in this dance too of course.
“Waltz of the Flowers”  This song is usually pretty sedate, but they big up the band.   The main part is still a pretty waltz, though.

“Jolly Old St. Nicholas”  The band’s singers enter on this song.  I have to admit I never really liked the Miller songs with words.  But this sounds pretty accurate to me.
“Toyland” A slow romantic ballad that I don;t recognize from elsewhere.  I could see Lawrence Welk and his bubbles doing this song.
“Ode to Joy”  You don’t hear jazzy versions of this too often, but they have the Glenn Miller sound perfectly for this swinging Classic.

“A String of Carols; Here We Come a-Caroling, Up On the House Top, a Child Is Born in Bethlehem, Deck the Halls”  The swingers are back with this nice medley of carols.

“Parade of the Wooden Soldiers” I love that they threw in a few bars of In the Mood into this song.
“Old Fashioned Christmas Tree” and “March of the Toys” I’m not sure if they are from something or just goo old swinging fun.
“What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?” returns the vocals to the end of the disc.  I fitting end for the Christmas holiday.

The Glenn Miller Orchestra:
Saxes: Ralph Olson Lead Clarinet, Alto Saxophone & Flute; Lee Lachman Clarinet, Alto Saxophone & Piccolo; Mark Vinci Clarinet & Tenor Saxophone; Frank Perowsky Clarinet & Tenor Saxophone; Richy Barz Bass Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone
Trumpets: Tom Snelson; Ken Brader; John Hoffman; Dale Thompson
Trombones: Larry O’Brien; Eric Culver; Randy Purcell; Dennis Good
Piano: Tony Monte
Bass: Lanny Fields
Guitar: Jay Patten
Drums: Danny D’Imperio
The Moonlight Serenaders: Annette Sanders, Arlene Martell, Al Dana, Paul Evans, Kevin DiSimone

[READ: April 25, 2017] The Art of Wordless Storytelling

This book is a companion to an exhibition of Wiesner’s art at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.

Wiesner has created some of the most beautiful children’s pictures books ever.  And most of them have no words at all.  His books include Free Fall (1988), Hurricane (1992), Tuesday (1991), June 29, 1999 (1992), Sector 7 (1999), The Three Pigs (2001), Flotsam (2006), Art & Max (2010), Mr Wuffles! (2013) and Fish Girl (2016).

This book taught me that all of his art is done in watercolor and done in such a way that he adds layer upon layer of color to create intense depth of color and shade–I’d always known his art was great but had no idea why.  But then I read that when most books are created they print all of the colors at the same time, effectively muting his work.  So all of the subtlety in his work is lost when it comes out in book form.  His original drawings and paintings sound breathtaking.

In addition to seventy some plates of paintings, this book contains a few essays and Q&A with Wiesner. (more…)

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Rebecca Rosenblum–“The First Day of Winter” [The 2017 Short Story Advent Calendar #21] (2017)

Posted in Ages and Ages, Andrew Bird, Angst, Black Prairie, Brave Combo, Calexico, Canadian Content, Christmas, Christmas Album, Eleanor Friedberg, Food, Fun., Funny (ha ha), Futility, Hamburgers, Heartless Bastards, Holly Golightly, Parenting, Paul McCarthy, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Punch Brothers, Rebecca Rosenblum, Romance, Rufus Wainwright, Sallie Ford, Salvador Dali, Sharon Van Etten, Short Story, The Civil Wars, The Decemberists, The Head and the Heart, The Shins, The Short Story Advent Calendar, Tweens, Veggie Burgers, Y La Bamba on December 21, 2017| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK:  HOLIDAYS RULE (2012).

This collection is fairly new (a second volume has just come out this year).  It was curated by Chris Funk from The Decemberists.  It’s a nice mix of contemporary bands and classic songs.  The disc is mostly fun–it gets a little bogged down in the middle–and upbeat.

FUN-“Sleigh Ride”
The first time I heard this  had no idea who it was (I didn’t look at the disc).  I actually thought it was a female pop singer.  After listening a few times I’m mixed but favorable on it.  I love the sound effects in the background.  It’s fun, even with the autotune.

THE SHINS-“Wonderful Christmastime”
This is one of my least favorite Christmas songs, but I like this version better than Pauls’s.  It doesn’t sound especially like The Shins to me though.

RUFUS WAINWRIGHT AND SHARON VAN ETTEN-“Baby, It’s Cold Outside”
I love Rufus’ distinctive voice–he does louche so well.  Sharon is somewhat indistinct here but she is well-matched with him.

PAUL McCARTNEY-“The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire)”
This might be the only disc I have where someone covers a song by an artist on the disc.  His version of this is way too slow.  But I am intrigued that he says “some holly and some mistletoe” (Because he’s vegetarian).

BLACK PRAIRIE featuring SALLIE FORD-“(Everybody’s Waitin’ for) The Man with the Bag”
I typically don’t care for this song, but I love this bluegrassy version.  It’s stomping and fun (and Chris Funk plays on it).

THE CIVIL WARS-“I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”
The Civil Wars are downbeat folk artists but, man, their voices together are so lovely.  Their harmonies make this song essential despite the less than upbeat rhythms.

CALEXICO-“Green Grows the Holly”
This song sounds so wonderfully Calexico.  I love it and would even have assumed it was an original of theirs if I didn’t know better,

AGESANDAGES-“We Need A Little Christmas”
I’m torn about this song.  They modify the delivery and I think I like it.  It’s also pretty infrequently played so it gets extra points.  But it feels like a real downer when you can hear the lyrics so clearly.

HOLLY GOLIGHTLY-“That’s What I Want for Christmas”
I don’t know who this is. And I don’t really care for this song which is kind of slow and ponderous even if the message is a good one.

IRMA THOMAS WITH PRESERVATION HALL JAZZ BAND-“May Ev’ry Day be Christmas”
This is big brassy version of the song which sounds like it could be quite old with Thomas’ husky voice.

HEARTLESS BASTARDS-“Blue Christmas”
I dislike this song to begin with, so making a countryish version certainly doesn’t help.

ELEANOR FRIEDBERGER-“Santa, Bring My Baby Back to Me”
So this song is interesting with its strange chord choices and themes.  And it would be great if it were like 2 minutes long.  It seems to end quite naturally at that time, but then some vibes come in and the song gets all slinky.  That would be fine except it just repeats the same line and vibes section for 3 minutes!  WTF Eleanor?

FRUIT BATS-“It’s Beginning to Look Like Christmas”
It drives me nuts the way this guys says Creeesmas.  Why does he say it like that?  It’s crazy.  And I can’t get past it because he says it a bunch.

Y LA BAMBA-“Señor Santa”
This song is more or less “Mister Sandman” but sung with the lyrics of Mister Santa.  There’s a wheezy accordion and the great accented voice of the lead singer Luz Elena Mendoza.  I love this and more artists should invent songs like this for the holidays.

PUNCH BROTHERS-“O come, O come, Emmanuel”
The Punch Brothers are awesome and this version of this song terrific.  Chris Thile sings wonderfully as he gets that mandolin worked up.  I love that they turn it into an opportunity to stretch out some, too.

THE HEAD AND THE HEART-“What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?”
A terrific duet with the unmistakable voice of Charity Rose Thielen.  This is a sprightly and fun song and they do a great job.  I love the way she sings “maybe I’m crazy” and the vamping at the end is fantastic.

ANDREW BIRD-“Auld Lang Syne”
Andrew plays some high-spirited violin and sings briskly.  There’s a kind of countryish feel to it, which is quite different for this song.

Overall this is a good collection to add.  Nothing offensive or off-putting and maybe just one or two duds.

[READ: December 21, 2017] “The First Day of Winter”

Once again, I have ordered The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This year, there are brief interviews with each author posted on the date of their story.

Hello. Welcome. It’s finally here: Short Story Advent Calendar time.

If you’re reading along at home, now’s the time to start cracking those seals, one by one, and discover some truly brilliant writing inside. Then check back here each morning for an exclusive interview with the author of that day’s story.

(Want to join in? It’s not too late. Order your copy here.)

This year I’m pairing each story with a holiday disc from our personal collection. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Adam Gallardo & Todd Demong–100 Girls (2005)

Posted in Adam Gallardo, Adventure, Ballet, Chanukah Album, Christmas Album, Clones, Death, Erik Satie, Feminism, Frédéric Chopin, George Enescu, Graphic Novel, Johannes Brahms, Orphan Black, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Sci-fi, Shirim Klezmer Orchestra, Todd Demong on December 20, 2017| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: SHIRIM KLEZMER ORCHESTRA-Klezmer Nutcracker (1998).

I love this klezmer version of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker.

The first 7 songs of the disc are the popular, quickly recognizable melodies from the ballet.  But each song has been klezemerfied–which means minor keys and clarinets and spirited dances that are really peppy.

So even though the musicianship is top-notch, there’s plenty of humor here.  As this review puts it

It combines the zany wit of a Spike Jones with the class and craft of a Duke Ellington and recasts the Nutcracker as a Hannukah classic with images of a dancing Latkes Queen and marching Macabees.

The humor even extends to the titles:

A Klezmer Nutracker

  • Kozatsky ’till You Dropsky
  • Dance of the Latkes Queens
  • March of the Macabees
  • Araber Tants
  • Dance of the Dreydls
  • Waltz of the Rugalah

The rest of the disc is made up of Other Klezmer Classics.  Despite the abundance of Satie, these songs don’t quite do it for me.  They are fine, but Gustav’s Wedding and Romanian Rhapsody are a bit too long.  Although Hungarian Goulash is wonderful

Perhaps I just prefer the songs with which I’m familiar.  Having said that, the second half is full of very good klezmer, so don’t dismiss it outright.

  • Gustav’s Wedding 4:25
  • Romanian Rhapsody by G. Enesco 4:40 (see, these two are too long)
  • Gnossienne 1 by E. Satie
  • Gnossienne 2 by E. Satie
  • Gnossienne 3 by E. Satie
  • Hungarian Goulash (based on Brahms)
  • Nekhome–Solace (after “Prelude 4,” Chopin)
  • Turk in American
  • Russian Bulgar
  • Gymnopedie 3 by E. Satie

[READ: July 9, 2017] 100 Girls

I really enjoyed this book (first in a series apparently), and was about to say it’s really good for an Orphan Black-type premise, and then I saw that it came out in 2005–many many years before Orphan Black. So, three cheers for the originality then.

The book begins with Sylvia waking up from a nightmare.  Right off the bat the drawing style is notable–Todd Demong’s style is really interesting–angular and exaggerated but not “cartoony,” the proportions and angles make the story more hyper-real than cartoony, which is pretty great.

When she wakes up, she hears her parents talking about her…how she has changed and become more difficult.  Her dad blames it on her being a teenager, but her mom thinks its something more.  As she walks to school with her friends, we see that a car is doing surveillance on her. (more…)

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Kelly Link–“The Game of Smash and Recovery” [The 2017 Short Story Advent Calendar #20] (2017)

Posted in Canadian Content, Chanukah Album, Christmas Album, Guster, Huh?, Iain M. Banks, Kelly Link, Outer Space, Sci-fi, Short Story, The LeeVees, The Short Story Advent Calendar, The Zambonis, Unreliable narrator, Vampires on December 20, 2017| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: THE LEEVEES-Hanukkah Rocks (2005).

The collection of Hanukkah songs is fantastic. I love this album more than a guy who doesn’t celebrate Hanukkah should.

The LeeVees are Adam Gardener from Guster and Dave Schneider  from The Zambonis (with help from The Time Share Choir).  Dave and Adam write super catchy poppy-but-rocking songs all about the holiday.  Most of them are funny or have a humorous aspect, but the songs all rock and stand up to repeated listens.

“Latke Clan” begins as a sweet ode to everyone’s favorite potato pancake  “Santa is cool but Hanukkah Harry’s the man, come and join of Latke Clan.”

“Applesauce vs Sour Cream” is the perennial decision you have to make with your latkes.  “just tell you mom to fry, not bake.”

“Goyim Friends” Goyim friends make lists and get snowboards and paintball guns, but “we will march on, six pairs of socks from each other’s mom.”

“At the Timeshare” is a hilarious, catchy song.  It’s swinging and loungey and is all about their parents wanting to live down at the time share in Boca or was it Boynton.  Or Daytona. Or Talahassee (There’s no Jews there).

“How do you spell Channukkahh?” is a hilarious goof on the spelling of this holiday and it totally rocks.

“Kugel” is a sweet mournful song about how times change–“you were once sweet and creamy, no you’re low-fat.”

“Jewish Girls”  Go to the mitzvah Ball, you may be surprised to find who is in the tribe.

“Gelt Melts”  This punky number says what everyone knows–if you keep the gelt in your pocket, you’ll be sorry.  “If goys can eat an Easter Bunny, why can’t we eat chocolate money.”

“Nun, Gimmel Heh Shin”  Yup, a dreidel song without the music from the dreidel song.

“There’s” also a bonus track called “Holiday,” a simple acoustic guitar song with the two guys singing about a lovely relaxing holiday.

[READ: December 20, 2017] “The Game of Smash and Recovery”

Once again, I have ordered The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This year, there are brief interviews with each author posted on the date of their story.

Hello. Welcome. It’s finally here: Short Story Advent Calendar time.

If you’re reading along at home, now’s the time to start cracking those seals, one by one, and discover some truly brilliant writing inside. Then check back here each morning for an exclusive interview with the author of that day’s story.

(Want to join in? It’s not too late. Order your copy here.)

This year I’m pairing each story with a holiday disc from our personal collection.

This was one of those stories where the character and setting are otherworldly–completely alien.  The main characters have a full story arc, and yet we are never provided any kind of context for where or even what they are.

The question is, of course, does it matter.

In some respects, no, and yet it is so frustrating to read this whole thing and have so many fundamental questions unanswered.

The main character is Anat.  She loves Oscar, her brother, who has raised her practically from childhood.  Their parents have been absent for as long as she can remember.  They left when they realized that Anat was different–what was she? (more…)

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Max–Pasmados/Spellbound (2016)

Posted in Christmas Album, Cyclops, Death, Deliropolis, Foreign Books, Graphic Novel, Johnny Cash, Max, Nobrow, Oliver Veek, Translation on December 19, 2017| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: JOHNNY CASH-Christmas with JOHNNY CASH (2003).

I am not really a fan of Johnny Cash, but Sarah really likes him.  But we both found this album to be pretty awful.  Someone on Amazon said “This CD was mostly the “droning” Johnny Cash, rather than the compelling Johnny Cash.”  And I have to agree.

The music is pretty spare, almost nonexistent.  And Johnny barely sings at all–it’s either sing-speaking or just narrating.  You will not feel uplifted by this disc in any way.

I will say that the story songs “The Christmas Guest” and “Christmas as I Knew It” are quite moving–but nothing you’d want to hear more than once a season.

The fact that he made so many Christmas discs makes me laugh as well because I can’t help but hear

I love thee, Lord Jesus; look down from the sky
But I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die.

I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day
The Christmas Guest
Hark The Herald Angels Sing
The Gifts They Gave
Blue Christmas
Merry Christmas Mary (this song is not meant for Catholics, as Catholics do not forget Mary at all).
O Come All Ye Faithful
Away In A Manger
The Christmas Spirit
Joy To The World
Silent Night
Christmas As I Knew It

[READ: July 21, 2017] Pasmados/Spellbound

Max is an illustrator from Spain (his full name is Max Bardin).

This book collects a number of his prints and places them next to texts from A Map of Astonishment, an unpublished work by Oliver Veek.

It doesn’t really explain that the two items weren’t designed together, so it was a little hard to see how all of the items connected.  The drawings are cool, for sure, and sometimes you can see a connection, but not always.  I also wasn’t sure if the book was sequential in any way (it’s not).

Max has a great cartoon style–big thick lines and oversized/undersized character traits.  The first panel is of a giant, staring goggle eyed at a small skull.  The caption “So it was me who was the weirdo?” doesn’t exactly work, but you could see it connecting–and certainly setting the tone. (more…)

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Lindsay Hatton–“The Friend” [The 2017 Short Story Advent Calendar #19] (2017)

Posted in Canadian Content, Christmas Album, Combustible Edison, Esquivel, Gods, Lindsay Hatton, Myths, Ocean, Short Story, The Short Story Advent Calendar, Violence, War, Work on December 19, 2017| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: ESQUIVEL-Merry X-mas From the Space-Age Bachelor Pad (1996).

Esquivel was a master of the Space-Age Lounge/jazz music.  He combined groovy chill lounge music but he added zipping steel guitar sounds and backing vocals like “Zoo zoop!  Pow!”

And of course, his records were mixed as stereo masterpieces for kick ass hi-fi equipment.  He flourished in the late 50s but had a resurgence in the 1990s, when this collection was released.  All of these songs were recorded in the late 1950s.

Esquivel himself doesn’t sing on these tracks (he does provide the spoken intro (with music by Combustible Edison)) on a terrific “Jingle Bells” (zoo zoo zwee).  The rest of the songs feel delightfully loungey with fun accents from the insturmets and vocals.  Xylophones, keybaords and great use of strings.

It feels cheesey, and it kind of is, but the musicianship and experimentation are very cool.  This is great addition to anyone’s Christmas collection.  Sprinkle a few of these songs into a mix and see if people zu zu zoom along.

Jingle Bells
White Christmas
Here Comes Santa Claus
Parade of the Wooden Soldiers
The Christmas Song
Frosty the Snowman
Snowfall
Sun Valley Ski Run
Blue Christmas
Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town
Auld Lang Syne (Adios from Esquivel!)

[READ: December 19, 2017] “The Friend”

Once again, I have ordered The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This year, there are brief interviews with each author posted on the date of their story.

Hello. Welcome. It’s finally here: Short Story Advent Calendar time.

If you’re reading along at home, now’s the time to start cracking those seals, one by one, and discover some truly brilliant writing inside. Then check back here each morning for an exclusive interview with the author of that day’s story.

(Want to join in? It’s not too late. Order your copy here.)

This year I’m pairing each story with a holiday disc from our personal collection. (more…)

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Diane Williams–Fine, Fine, Fine, Fine, Fine (2016)

Posted in Boredom, Christmas Album, Diane Williams, Fears, Feminism, Flash Fiction, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Harper's, James Taylor, McSweeney's, Sex, Sexism, Short Books on December 18, 2017| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: JAMES TAYLOR-At Christmas (2006).

James Taylor is a folk icon with a smooth voice.  It seems like it would be perfect for a chill Christmas album.

Well, since I last heard Taylor (1976’s Greatest Hits album) he has gotten a little away from that folk sound (imagine that) and more into a kind of bland(er) adult-contemporary sound.  This album has hints of light jazz in it too.  And, worse yet, he tries to lighten some of it up with humor.  Gasp.

When we got this disc we were so disappointed that I don’t think it has been listened to since.  Well, it wasn’t as bad as I remembered, but it’s a pretty long slog through the holidays (and it was nominated for a Grammy, of course).  Almost any one of these songs is a fine addition to any Christmas mix, but too many will put everyone to sleep.

This was originally released in 2004 and distributed by Hallmark Cards, which really does tell you all you need to know.  This was resequenced and a couple new songs were added.

“Winter Wonderland” has all the jazz trappings–muted trumpet, brushes on drums and Taylor’s voice which isn’t quite as comforting as it used to be.

“Go Tell It On the Mountain” sees him modifying this song somewhat and turning it far away from the gospel tradition.

“Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town” has him scatting and be-bopping a little…which is not really his forte I hate to say.

“Jingle Bells” has him making it jazzy.  It’s a bit too much frankly.  Especially when it’s followed by

“Baby It’s Cold Outside” a duet with Natalie Cole, which really tells you everything you need to know about this disc–safe, safe choices.  The “joking” in this song was meant to be cute, but it comes off a little creepy.

After getting annoyed by the first half, I felt like the rest of the album worked pretty well.  He lays off the jazzyness and focuses on his voice.

“River” open with a pretty “Good King Wenceslaus,” on the acoustic guitar.  It switches to a fine version of Joni Mitchell’s “River.”  This is my favorite song on here and it was not included on the original Christmas release of 2004.

“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” sticks in my head because he changes the words from “from now on” to “in a year our troubles will be out of sight.”  Why so specific?  And why every time?

“The Christmas Song” In this nice version, he sings “some holly and some mistletoe” like Paul McCartney does.  Interesting, as I don’t think he’s a vegetarian.

“Some Children See Him.”  This is a song I was unfamiliar with until a couple of years ago.  It’s quite sweet and suits him well.

“Who Comes This Night” I didn’t know this song at all.  But again the piano and bells suit his voice better than the jazzy songs.

“In the Bleak Midwinter” is a slow song, but man he slows it down even more.  And the disc ends with “Auld Lang Syne” which is surprisingly long and would be much better served without the “wailing” guitar solo.

Not every Christmas CD can be a winner.

[READ: June 16, 2017] Fine, Fine, Fine, Fine, Fine

This is the third McSweeney’s book in a row (all read around the same time) that I really didn’t like.

It’s not surprising, as I tend to not like Diane Williams’ stories at all (looking back, I don’t think I’ve ever liked anything she’s written).  I only read this because McSweeney’s sent it to me.

The book jacket is just covered with hagiography about what great writer she is and how she upends convention and stuff like that.  But to me, these aren’t stories at all.  And most of them don’t even make sense as themselves.

Rather than saying much more, I’m just posting some stories in full, to show what I mean. (more…)

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Martin MacInnes–“Chemistry” [The 2017 Short Story Advent Calendar #18] (2017)

Posted in Brian Wilson, Canadian Content, Christmas Album, Martin MacInnes, Romance, Science, Short Story, Technology, The Beach Boys, The Short Story Advent Calendar on December 18, 2017| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: BRIAN WILSON-What I Really Want for Christmas (2005).

I was never really a fan of The Beach Boys. I mean, sure I liked some of their songs, but to this day I don’t even own Pet Sounds.  Shocking right?

So I was flabbergasted to find out how much I liked this Christmas album.   It’s partly his voice, but also the backing vocals and the wonderful arrangements that really make this disc special.  I also really love that he wrote some originals to go with the traditional carols (and his own earlier songs).

“The Man with All the Toys” Brian updates his own song for this record.
“What I Really Want for Christmas” I really like this new song, written by Brian and co-written by Bernie Taupin.
“God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” I love the way this is sort of undersung, almost casual and fun for a religious song.
“O Holy Night” I love this song in general, but the production on this is terrific.
“We Wish You a Merry Christmas” I love hearing the bass harmonica on this song.  And of course that they sing about figgy pudding.  The backing vocal notes and flute are also quite lovely.

“Hark the Herald Angels Sing” I love that he doesn’t try to falsetto this song up–his voice is great at the tone he chose.  “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear” More bass harmonica and great backing vocals.  “The First Noel” Sung slowly and beautifully with (again) great backing harmonies.

“Christmasey” Written with Jimmy Webb this is my favorite “new” Christmas song.  The music is great and the lyrics are wonderful.  “It didn’t snow but we all agree its so Christmasey.”   “Little Saint Nick” I just like that his voice is deeper–I like this version better than the original even though it’s almost exactly the same.

“Deck the Halls” Guitar and “Wooweeooo” backing vocals make this a fun version of this song.  “Auld Lang Syne” is delightful in this a capella version.

“On Christmas Day” This is fun song with a really catchy chorus.  “Joy to the World” Some great backing vocals on this song and a cool vocal melody at the end of each verse.  “Silent Night” is one final a capella number.

Maybe I should check out this Pet Sounds after all.

[READ: December 18, 2017] “Chemistry”

Once again, I have ordered The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This year, there are brief interviews with each author posted on the date of their story.

Hello. Welcome. It’s finally here: Short Story Advent Calendar time.

If you’re reading along at home, now’s the time to start cracking those seals, one by one, and discover some truly brilliant writing inside. Then check back here each morning for an exclusive interview with the author of that day’s story.

(Want to join in? It’s not too late. Order your copy here.)

This year I’m pairing each story with a holiday disc from our personal collection. (more…)

Read Full Post »

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