Saturday, December 11, 2010

Noël, C'est L'Amour



Contrary to what you might believe given my last couple of posts, when it comes to Christmas music, I'm totally in the traditional camp. (but I'm traditionally camp)


I love being enveloped in strings and harmonies while basking in lights and decorations.  Jackie Gleason's super slow arrangements (they make Perry Como seem like Speedy Gonzales!), are the perfect accompaniment to a glass of scotch and a couple of nuts.


Two of my favourite french songs of the holidays are "Noël, C'est L'Amour", which my BFF Fanny brought to my attention and Roch Voisine's version of Petit Papa Noël from his Christmas album, L'Abum de Noël.



Friday, December 10, 2010

It's a Christmas Disco Party!


Even Santa couldn't escape the Disco tide of the late seventies.  And I have to tell you, as much as I was a dancin' Queen - even I couldn't handle Oh Holy Night at 120 bpm. But these are pretty representative of the genre. 


Turn the music up and the lights down (and close the blinds) 'cause it's time to Disco down the Lane!


Ho! Ho! Ho! and away we go!


Thursday, December 9, 2010

Make Your Yuletide Gay (and Spicy)

 With these bone chilling temperatures and a blanket of snow covering our streets, perhaps it's time to turn up the heat a bit.

I love Latin music and I love camp. So, I brought you both today.

I mentioned The Pee Wee Christmas Special in yesterday's post and though there is a ton of gay gems to mine there, I promise this will be the last one - it's just too easy!  

What can you say about Charo except: "cuchi, cuchi!" I loved her 70's Christmas disco hit: "¿(Mamacita) Donde Esta Santa Claus?" (But that's for another theme day.)

So this "gay"….

And so is this – but SPICY, too!

 

¡Feliz Navidad!

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

An 80's Christmas: Big Hair and Big Shoulders


...And let's not forget the leg-warmers! 


The 80's were something, eh? Cabbage Patch Dolls, Fraggle Rock, Madonna, New Wave and Alexis & Krystle.

It wasn't a great decade for Christmas music.
I worked in the Caribbean a few years so there was a lot of Feliz Navidad. Roch Voisine and Anne Murray (aren't they one and the same?) came out with their Christmas albums and Paul McCartney out cloyed himself with 'A Wonderful Christmastime." (released in '79)


The best selling Christmas compilation album "A Very Special Christmas" was released in 1987;  the proceeds going to The Special Olympics.


Musically, Madonna and M. J. ruled the world (nod to Tears for Fears). It was a decade of "me first" and "greed is good" - plus ça change!  


But it also gave us "Christmas Vacation" and "Scrooged".


G. & I watched Pee Wee's Christmas Special the other night - What was k.d. thinking? It has to be the gayest show I've ever seen! 
Guest list: CherGrace Jonesk.d. langDinah ShoreLittle Richard,Zsa Zsa Gabor,Whoopi GoldbergCharoAnnette Funicello, Del Rubio Triplettes and Oprah Winfrey( Oh, let's not forget the Marines honour guard!) 


Watch it on Youtube: "Pee Wee's Playhouse Christmas Special". (k.d's performance, below)




"…This year, to save me from tears, I'll give it to someone special …SPECIAL"






 


What's your most cherished 80's Christmas memory?

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

It's Snowing – Isn't it Delightful?


Had a bit of a snowfall here in Montréal. Nothing serious, just a few centimeters.  And it's not like Montréal and snow are strangers to each other. They're like Steve and Eydie or Wayne and Wanda; hard to imagine one without the other.

Monday, December 6, 2010

A Blue Monday Christmas



Sometimes Christmas isn't what it's cracked up to be. In fact, the pressure to be social, to snuggle on the sofa in front of a fire with your sweetheart, to be happy,can push people over the edge.

There's nothing like a great "hurtin'" song to make you feel you're in like company. Maybe not surprisingly, there are a lot of sad Christmas songs and some that are just downright depressing.

Here are a couple of my favourites: what's yours?



Sunday, December 5, 2010

A Supreme Sunday with a Sprinkle of Christmas

All of you who know me know that I'm a Supreme nut. (pun intended).  I love the Supremes.  I'd scan the TV guide every week to see which variety show they'd appear on.


I would sit transfixed in front of our black and white set each Sunday to watch Diana, Mary and Flo (then Cindy) for each of their 17 Ed Sullivan performances. I remember their last one as The Supremes on December 21st, 1969 and as they sang "Someday, We'll Be Together", I was hoping they would be.


Of course I have  "Merry Christmas: The Supremes" – two of my favourite things in one title: Christmas and Supremes!


To be honest, it's not great album, few Christmas ones are. And it definitely was produced with an eye to marketing The Supremes as a supper club act.


Apart from the Motown original: "Children's Christmas Song" written by Harvey Fuqua (of The Moonglows) and Isabelle Freeman, the songs are pretty traditional.  (We always get a kick out of how Miss Ross sounds like she's bossing these poor little Motown kids around on this song.)


Trivia: Did you know that Jimmy (MacArthur Park) Webb wrote a Christmas song? It's one of my favourites on the album: "My Christmas Tree".


The other one, which I remember very clearly watching on Ed Sullivan, is their trés Copacabana version of "My Favorite Things". It's another one of those seasonal songs that really don't have a lot to do with Christmas, but has become a Holiday classic nonetheless.


Do you have a favourite Motown Christmas song?




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