Badfinger (Max)

Bruce Springsteen – Merry Christmas Baby

We are getting close to Christmas. I hope everyone is ready…and most, if not all, of your shopping is done. There have been many versions of this song but this one is the one I listen to the most. The dynamics in this version are great.

This Dec 31st, 1980 performance of Merry Christmas Baby was recorded at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, NY, during The River Tour. The song was played in its E Street Band arrangement. It was released in November 1986 as the B-side to WAR. This was the lead single from the Live/1975-85 box set.

Although Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley covered “Merry Christmas Baby” before Bruce did, it sounds like he based his version on Otis Redding’s 1968 version.

Lou Baxter wrote this song but it was called “Merry Christmas Blues” and Charles Brown took it home to work it out. He rewrote it with the new title. Baxter wanted Charles Brown to record it the way Charles rewrote it and it became a big hit with Brown singing with Johnny Moore’s Three Blazers.

Then the music business struck again…The company promised Charles he would have a co-writer credit but of course, it didn’t happen and Johnny Moore had his name listed on the song instead. Charles never got paid royalties for the song. It was originally released in 1947 and peaked at #3 in the Charts.

Moore died, largely unknown, in the 1960s. Brown, meanwhile, became renowned as a pioneer of the laid-back, piano-driven style of West Coast blues and was recognized as an early influence on Ray Charles; he had a renaissance in the 1990s, touring with Bonnie Raitt.

Charles Brown was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999 but died before the induction.

It was also on a complication album A Very Special Christmas of various artists released in 1987.

Merry Christmas Baby

Bring it down, band!

Now, I just came here tonight to say…
I just wanna say…
I just wanna say…

Merry Christmas baby, you surely treat me nice
Come on, merry Christmas baby, you surely treat me nice
I feel just like I’m living, living in paradise

Now listen
Now you see, I feel real good tonight
And I got music on the radio
And I feel real good tonight
And I got music on the radio
And the boys in the band are playing pretty good!
Now, I feel just like I wanna kiss you
Underneath my mistletoe

But now listen
Santa came down chimney, half past three
With lots of nice little presents for my baby and me
Merry Christmas baby, you surely treat me nice
And I feel like I’m living, just living in paradise
Come on boys!

Well now, Santa came down chimney, half past three
With lots of nice little presents for my baby and me
Merry Christmas baby, you surely treat me nice
I feel like I’m living, I’m living in paradise

And I just came down to say
Merry Christmas baby
I just wanna say, merry Christmas baby
I just wanna say, merry Christmas baby
I just wanna say, merry Christmas baby
And happy New Year, too!
Oh yeah!
Play it boys, go!
Merry Christmas
Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-happy New Year
Ohhhh!

Oh yeah!
Merry Christmas baby!

Scrooged

Sheila mentioned this movie yesterday while talking about A Christmas Carol. I always wanted to write it up anyway so today is a good day and I thank Sheila for bringing it up. After this review…the name I would like you to remember over any other name is Michael O’Donoghue. He was the key to this movie and Saturday Night Live’s first years. O’Donoghue and Mitch Glazer were credited as the writers of this movie. O’Donoghue hated the finished film and he said that he and Glazer wrote a much better story than was shown. He was such a talented writer and died at an early age. He is not as remembered as much as he should have been.

He claimed that director Richard Donner ruined the film (using only about 40% of his script, eliminating subtler material going for big broad laughs, etc). The writer hated what Murray did with the movie’s final redemption speech. Despite co-writer Glazer imploring the actor to get over his nerves (Murray had been away from movies for four years) and just deliver the words as written, Murray went off on an emotional, big-actor-moment tirade. Glazer actually thought Murray was having a nervous breakdown. After Murray finished that scene…O’Donoghue remarked “What was that? The Jim Jones Hour?” O’Donoghue was a comedy trailblazer with National Lampoon and added dark humor to SNL. When I say dark humor…I mean very dark humor. So much so that Lorne Michaels eventually had to step in and stop O’Donaghue from going too far on SNL.

I do love this movie no matter what O’Donoghue thought. Not only Murray but so many actors and actresses did such a great job. You had Robert Mitchum, Carol Kane, Karen Allen, Michael Pollard, John Forsythe, David Johansen, Bobcat Goldthwait, and so many more. I’m a Bill Murray fan anyway and this movie he was terrific in. This movie is a different take on A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens and was released in 1988. It has become a cult classic. Christmas is not the same without this movie. I didn’t see it until the late 90s and I attempt to see it before every Christmas. I watch it alongside the glorious Alistair Sim version, for although they are poles apart, they both entertain for very different reasons.

Scrooged marked Bill Murray’s return to a lead role after a four-year hiatus following the success of Ghostbusters. The movie was a moderate hit but since then it has grown in popularity. I also love the closing song…Jackie DeShannon’s Put A Little Love In Your Heart to close it out.

The movie also has some great lines. After Frank Cross played a violent commercial for their version of Scrooge, Bobcat Goldthwait (Eliot Loudermilk) said the commercial looked like the Manson Family Christmas Special.

Frank Cross: Do you think I’m way off base here?
Elliot: Yes. You’re, well, you’re a tad off base, sir. That thing looked like The Manson Family Christmas Special!

_______________________________________

PLOT IMDB (Spoilers)

Frank Cross is the president of IBC Television, a network obsessed with ratings. Frank is a modern-day Scrooge: rude, selfish, and focused only on himself. On Christmas Eve, while preparing for a live broadcast of A Christmas Carol, he fires an employee, Eliot, for questioning his plans. Frank also pushes away his sweet ex-girlfriend, Claire, who still believes in kindness and helping others.

That night, Frank is visited by the ghost of his old boss, Lew Hayward, who warns him to change his ways or suffer terrible consequences. To drive the point home, Frank is told he will meet three ghosts:

The Ghost of Christmas Past: A loudmouthed cab driver who takes Frank back in time to see his lonely childhood and the moment he lost Claire because of his greed.
The Ghost of Christmas Present: A violent, glittery fairy who shows Frank how his selfishness is hurting others, including his assistant Grace and her son, Calvin, who hasn’t spoken since his father died.
The Ghost of Christmas Future: A terrifying, Grim Reaper-like figure who shows Frank what will happen if he doesn’t change—his death will be lonely, and everyone he knows will suffer.

Shaken by these visions, Frank has a change of heart. During the live broadcast, he takes over the show and delivers an emotional speech about love, generosity, and the true meaning of Christmas. He makes amends with Claire, Grace, and even Eliot, and ends the night singing with the cast and crew.

____________________________________________

Bill Murray: “We tore up the script so badly that we had parts all over the lawn, there was a lot I didn’t like. To remake the story, we took the romantic element and built that up a little more. The family scenes (which featured real-life siblings Joel and Brian Doyle Murray) were kind of off, so we worked on that.”

Bill Murray was asked if he had problems with director Richard Donner. He replied “Only a few. Every single minute of the day. That could have been a really, really great movie. The script was so good. There’s maybe one take in the final cut movie that is mine. We made it so fast, it was like doing a movie live. He kept telling me to do things louder, louder, louder. I think he was deaf.”

…

Bing Crosby & David Bowie – Peace On Earth / The Little Drummer Boy

I love unions like this…I will start to have some holiday posts mixed in on the way to Christmas as a second post like this one. In 1977 Bowie released his album Low at the beginning of the year and he toured as Iggy Pop’s keyboardist that year.

I know what I was doing on November 30, 1977. I was watching Merrie Olde Christmas special as a kid. I didn’t appreciate the weirdness of the combination of Bing Crosby and David Bowie at the time. Something that the seventies did well…was to intersect generations on variety shows. This one was a great combination.

This special had guest stars Twiggy, David Bowie, Ron Moody, Stanley Baxter, and The Trinity Boys Choir. It was the duet with Bing Crosby and David Bowie that has been remembered. I remember watching this knowing that Bing Crosby had died the month earlier. The duet was taped on September 11, 1977, and Crosby died on October 14, 1977.

David Bowie’s mother was a huge Bing Crosby fan and Bing Crosby’s children were big David Bowie fans…so the two agreed to sing together. It was questionable at first if it would work out.

Mary Crosby: “The doors opened and David walked in with his wife, They were both wearing full-length mink coats, they have matching full makeup and their hair was bright red. We were thinking, ‘Oh my god.'” Nathaniel Crosby, Bing’s son, added: “It almost didn’t happen. I think the producers told him to take the lipstick off and take the earring out. It was just incredible to see the contrast.”

Another possible hitch happened with Bowie. He didn’t like The Little Drummer Boy and refused to sing it. The writers then wrote a revised version of the song that he liked. They wrote a counterpart section for Bowie to sing. Crosby liked the challenge of his part. The rest is history and one of the most unusual pairings you will ever see…

One funny part is Bowie’s idea of “older fellas” at the time is John Lennon and Harry Nilsson.

Here is the complete show if you want to give it a try

The Little Drummer Boy (Peace On Earth)

Come they told me pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
A newborn king to see pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Our finest gifts we bring pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Rum-pum-pum-pum, rum-pum-pum-pum

[Verse 2: Bowie and Crosby]
Peace on Earth can it be?
Come they told me pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Years from now, perhaps we’ll see?
A newborn king to see pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
See the day of glory
Our finest gift we bring pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
See the day, when men of good will
To lay before the king pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Live in peace, live in peace again
Rum-pum-pum-pum, Rum-pum-pum-pum
Peace on Earth
So to honour him pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Can it be
When we come

[Bridge: Bowie and Crosby in unison]
Every child must be made aware
Every child must be made to care
Care enough for his fellow man
To give all the love that he can

[Verse 4: Bowie and Crosby]
I pray my wish will come true
Little baby pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
For my child and your child too
I stood beside him there pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
He’ll see the day of glory
I played my drum for him pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
See the day when men of good will
I played my best for him pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
Live in peace, live in peace again
Rum-pum-pum-pum, rum-pum-pum-pum
Peace on Earth
Me and my drum
Can it be

Can it be

A Christmas Carol (1951)

I will be watching this movie this week. It gets me in the mood for Christmas. Alastair Sim is such a pleasure to watch and he is why this is my favorite interpretation of A Christmas Carol.

There have been countless takes on A Christmas Carol, but the 1951 version is something special. It’s not just a holiday movie—it’s a haunting, moving, and uplifting journey that brings home the power of compassion and redemption. Whether it’s your first time watching or your fiftieth, this is the version that truly captures the heart of Dickens’ story. When I think of Scrooge…I think of Alastair Sim.

The movie is in black and white which turns some people off but it makes it that much better to me. They do have a color version but trust me…watch the black-and-white version. It gives the movie a darker feeling. The effects they use are obviously not CGI but they get the point across well and serve the story very well. I like the scene where the ghost of Jacob Marley is warning Ebenezer of being greedy…the two were not on the set at the same time…it looked really good for being 1951…or anytime for that matter.

The film feels like you are stepping into Victorian London…gritty, cold, and yet somehow magical. Scrooge’s transformation feels real, earned, and deeply satisfying. In 1971 Sim voiced the same character in an animated version of A Christmas Carol and it’s great as well.

So get some hot butter rum, sit back, and watch this great movie. The recipe for Hot Buttered Rum is here, or you can go to the bottom of the post. I haven’t tried this recipe but I want to this year. When I was younger I would go to TGI Fridays…they had great hot buttered rum.

From IMDB…spoilers

Ebenezer Scrooge (Alastair Sim) is a greedy businessman who thinks only of making money. For him, Christmas is, in his own words, a humbug. It has been seven years since his friend and partner, Jacob Marley (Sir Michael Hordern), died and on Christmas Eve. Marley’s ghost tells him he is to be visited during the night by three spirits. The Ghost of Christmas Past (Michael Dolan) revisits some of the main events in Scrooge’s life to date, including his unhappy childhood, his happy apprenticeship to Mr. Fezziwig (Roddy Hughes), who cared for his employees, and the end of his engagement to a pretty young woman due to a growing love of money. The Ghost of Christmas Present (Francis De Wolff) shows him how joyously is nephew Fred (Brian Worth) and his clerk, Bob Cratchit (Mervyn Johns), celebrate Christmas with those they love. The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come (Czeslaw Konarski) shows him what he will leave behind after he is gone. Scrooge awakens on Christmas morning, a new man intent on doing good and celebrating the season with all of those around him.

Cast

Alastair Sim (Ebenezer Scrooge)
Kathleen Harrison (Mrs. Dilber)
Mervyn Johns (Bob Cratchit)
Hermione Baddeley (Mrs. Cratchit)
Michael Hordern (Jacob Marley)
Glyn Dearman (Tiny Tim)

Ingredients

2 quarts hot water
2 cups brown sugar
½ cup unsalted butter
1 pinch salt
6 whole cloves
3 cinnamon sticks
2 cups rum
1 cup sweetened whipped cream
ground nutmeg to taste

Directions

Combine hot water, brown sugar, butter, and salt in a 5-quart slow cooker. Add cloves and cinnamon sticks.
Cover slow cooker; cook on Low for 5 hours. Stir in rum.
Ladle buttered rum into mugs. Top with whipped cream; dust with nutmeg.

Twilight Zone – The Night of the Meek

★★★★★ December 23, 1960 Season 2 Episode 11

If you want to see where we are…HERE is a list of the episodes

I haven’t re-run any of my Twilight Zone reviews but since it’s Christmas…I thought I would post this one. It’s a very touching episode and you get Art Carney and some great character actors in this one like John Fiedler, Robert P. Lieb, and Val Avery.

This one is a sentimental, touching, and timeless, episode of the Twilight Zone. I watch this every year around Christmas. One of the reasons Rod Serling wrote this episode is to see Art Carney play Santa Claus. This is a genuinely funny episode, with the humor feeling natural and enhancing the characters. There are no big laughs but rather many great moments.

John Fiedler plays Mr. Dundee does a great job and has good comedic moments with Robert P. Lieb who plays Flaherty. Fielder would appear on the Bob Newhart Show later on in the seventies. It was taped just three weeks before Christmas, it had a special effect on the cast and crew, and especially on the many children on the set. Production assistant Lillian Gallo later said more children were performing on that show as extras than on the other tape shows, and she remembers their excitement and their joy. Sometimes, it was difficult for them to contain themselves during the times that you had to be quiet during the show.

One sour viewer was so enraged at the blasphemy of presenting a drunk as Santa Claus that he sent outraged letters to Serling, the network, and several newspapers. Can’t Santa have a cheery night?

This show was written by Rod Serling

Rod Serling’s Opening Narration:

This is Mr. Henry Corwin, normally unemployed, who once a year takes the lead role in the uniquely popular American institution, that of the department-store Santa Claus in a road-company version of ‘The Night Before Christmas’. But in just a moment Mr. Henry Corwin, ersatz Santa Claus, will enter a strange kind of North Pole which is one part the wondrous spirit of Christmas and one part the magic that can only be found… in the Twilight Zone.

Summary

Henry Corwin is a down and outer who is normally unemployed and who definitely drinks too much. Every year he works as a department store Santa Claus. This year however, he’s spent just a little too much time in the bar and is quite drunk by the time he shows up for work. He’s fired of course and deeply regrets what he’s done. In fact, Henry has a big heart and worries not only about the children he’s disappointed at the store but about all of those children who will not get what they’ve asked for Christmas. When he comes across a large bag of gifts, everything changes for the kids and for himself as well.

Rod Serling’s Closing Narration:

A word to the wise to all the children of the twentieth century, whether their concern be pediatrics or geriatrics, whether they crawl on hands and knees and wear diapers or walk with a cane and comb their beards. There’s a wondrous magic to Christmas and there’s a special power reserved for little people. In short, there’s nothing mightier than the meek. And a Merry Christmas to each and all.

CAST

Rod Serling … Narrator / Self – Host (uncredited)
Art Carney … Henry Corwin
John Fiedler … Mr. Dundee
Robert P. Lieb … Flaherty
Val Avery … The Bartender
Meg Wyllie … Sister Florence
Kay Cousins Johnson … Irate Mother (as Kay Cousins)
Burt Mustin … Old Man
Steve Carruthers … Bar Patron (uncredited)
Andrea Darvi … Kid with Santa (uncredited)
Jimmy Garrett … Street Child (uncredited)
Larrian Gillespie … Elf (uncredited)
Jack Kenny … Man in Mission (uncredited)
Caryl Lincoln … Store Customer (uncredited)
Mathew McCue … Man in Mission (uncredited)
Frank Mills … Man in Mission (uncredited)
Mike Morelli … Man in Mission (uncredited)
Nan Peterson … Blonde in Bar (uncredited)
Ray Spiker … Man in Mission (uncredited)
Glen Walters … Store Customer (uncredited)

…

Slade – Merry Xmas Everybody

This is fast becoming my favorite rock Christmas song second only to John Lennon’s Happy Xmas (War Is Over). This week is going to be Christmas week. I will let up on the weekend but let’s bring in the cheer.

This is a great Christmas song that was released in 1973 and ever since it re-enters the charts every December in the UK. The song never hit in America but it went to #1 in the UK Charts. I first heard it on a Doctor Who episode in the mid-2000s and have liked it ever since.

This was based on a psychedelic song, “My Rocking Chair,” which Noddy Holder wrote in 1967. In 1973 the Slade vocalist decided to convert it into a Christmas song after a night out drinking at a local pub.

He and the band’s bass player and co-writer Jimmy Lea camped out at Noddy’s mother’s house and got down to changing the lyrics to make them more Christmassy. Jimmy Lea incorporated into the verse parts of another song which he was then writing and Noddy re-wrote the words incorporating different aspects of the Christmas holiday season as they came to mind.

This went straight in at #1 in the UK, selling over 300,000 copies on the day of its release, making it at the time the fastest ever selling record in Britain. It eventually became Slade’s best-ever selling single in the UK, selling over a million copies.

In the UK this has become a standard, and it is usually reissued in its original form each Christmas. On several occasions, the song has re-entered the Top 40.

UK copyright collection society and performance rights organization PRS For Music estimated in 2009 that 42 percent of the earth’s population has heard this tune.

The song was written by Noddy Holder and Jim Lea of Slade. It was produced by Chas Chandler formerly of the Animals. The harmonium used on this is the same one that John Lennon used on his Mind Games album, which was being recorded at the studio next door.

Noddy Holder: “I wrote the original verse with the lyrics, ‘Buy me a rocking chair, I’ll watch the world go by. Bring me a mirror, I’ll look you in the eye,’ in 1967 in the aftermath of The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper,” I was being psychedelic. Dave (Hill) wrote another part to the song but it didn’t work so we put it away. Then in 1973 he remembered my verse one day when we were trying to write a Christmas single. We changed the words to, ‘Are you hanging up your stocking on the wall?’ and the rest fell into place.”

Noddy Holder: “As a lad we used to knock sleds with old orange boxes and go tobogganing down this big old quarry in the snow at Christmas. It was the inspiration for the line ‘are you hoping that the snow will start to fall.’”

Someone…anyone…give me that hat for Christmas PLEASE!

Merry Christmas Everybody

Are you hanging up a stocking on your wall?
It’s the time that every Santa has a ball
Does he ride a red nosed reindeer?
Does a ‘ton up’ on his sleigh
Do the fairies keep him sober for a day?

Chorus:
So here it is merry Christmas
Everybody’s having fun
Look to the future now
It’s only just begun

Are you waiting for the family to arrive?
Are you sure you got the room to spare inside?
Does your granny always tell ya that the old are the best?
Then she’s up and rock ‘n’ rollin’ with the rest

Chorus:
So here it is merry Christmas
Everybody’s having fun
Look to the future now
It’s only just begun

What will your daddy do
When he sees your Mama kissin’ Santa Claus?
Ah ah

Are you hanging up a stocking on your wall?
Are you hoping that the snow will start to fall?
Do you ride on down the hillside in a buggy you have made?
When you land upon your head then you’ve been slayed

Chorus (4x)
So here it is merry Christmas
Everybody’s having fun
Look to the future now
It’s only just begun

…

Ronnie Lane and Pete Townshend – Til The Rivers Run Dry

When I hear this song I think to myself…it’s pretty cool that I met the writer several times. It’s a song written by Don Williams and Wayland Holyfield. I’ll get in a mood where I have to hear something rootsy or down to earth. I usually pick either The Band or Ronnie Lane. So today’s posts with Rick Danko and Ronnie Lane fall into that. Combine that with that mid to late 1970s country sound and I love it. This music is something you could play on your back porch.

In 1976, following an extensive tour, The Who took a hiatus to focus on individual projects. Ronnie Lane initially approached Pete Townshend to produce his album but later invited him to collaborate on songwriting. Townshend, hesitant as he had never co-written songs before, ultimately declined. However, they did succeed in co-writing the album’s title track, Rough Mix. The album featured a mix of songs written individually by Lane and Townshend, with the two performing on most tracks together. This song is the one cover they did. The producer was the legendary Glyn Johns.

An album with Pete Townshend and Ronnie Lane you would figure to be huge at the time. It wasn’t huge but it was a great album and has been highly regarded since. Personally, it’s high on my list of albums made in the 1970s along with Lane’s solo material. Like with the Danko album of 1977, Punk and Disco ruled the airwaves and probably had an effect on the commercial success of this album.

Don Williams’s music was really hot during this period. Eric Clapton was covering it and suddenly country music was popular. The album peaked at #44 in the Billboard Album Charts, #70 in Canada, and #45 in the UK in 1977.

Til The Rivers Run Dry

Till the rivers all run dry
Till the sun falls from the sky
Till life on earth is through
I’ll be needing you

I know sometimes you may wonder
From little things I say and do
But there’s no need for you to wonder
If I need you ’cause I’ll need you

Till the rivers all run dry
Till the sun falls from the sky
Till life on earth is through
I’ll be needing you

Too many times I don’t tell you
Too many things get in the way
And even though sometimes I hurt you
Still you show me in every way

Till the rivers all run dry
Till the sun falls from the sky
Till life on earth is through
I’ll be needing you

…

Rick Danko – Sip The Wine

I have had someone ask me my favorite singer from The Band. I always say that it depends on the song. They were brilliant in dividing up who would sing what. Robbie Robertson would write songs for one of their three top-notch singers. He knew exactly how to divide them up. Danko had one of the most recognizable voices of the bunch because it was so soulful and unique.

I first heard this song in The Last Waltz. Martin Scorsese was interviewing Danko in the control room and asked him what he was doing now. He started to play this song and turned it up. It’s always stuck with me. After seeing the film this past Thanksgiving I thought I would write it up.

During the Last Waltz, Danko was working on a self-titled solo album. He was the first member of the band to release one. He did have some help with Eric Clapton, Ronnie Wood, Blondie Chapman, Doug Sahm, and members of The Band. An ad for the record claimed, “Once you get a taste of Rick Danko, you’ll never get enough.” Unfortunately, the album didn’t have much commercial success. This song was written by Tim Drummond and was originally called To Lay Down Beside You and it was originally recorded by Joe Simon. Ronnie Wood played the solo on this song.

At the time the album was released in 1977, disco and punk music were dominating the airwaves. The album contains different kinds of genres but not punk and disco.

Rick Danko: “We’ve been together for 15 or 16 years and I for one wouldn’t stop making albums with the Band. Just so long as the Band wants to continue making records, I’ll be there.”

Sip The Wine

I want to lay down beside you
I want to hold your body close to mine
Like a grape that grows ripe in the sunshine
There comes a time when we must sip the wine

I can tell by looking you’re not mine, girl
I believe everything I told you was true
There’s a child here that wants to start livin’
Well, you know that this child will get its start
From me and you

(Close your eyes)
Now close your eyes
And don’t you think of nothing
(Let your thoughts)
Let your thoughts remain here
Inside this room
(Lay your head)
Lay your head beside me on my pillow
And I will share this night with you

(We must sip the wine)
Til it feels alright
(We must sip the wine)
Into the night
(We must sip the wine)
Together

…,

James Wilsey – The Rattler

I love instrumentals and this one and the complete album has some great ones.

I told CB when he sent me this link…I would not know his name but I would know it was Chris Isaak’s guitar player by just listening. He had a unique sound all his own which I admire. I would know his guitar sound anywhere…I listened to his album El Dorado this week along with the Chris Isaak album San Francisco Days. These instrumentals are great and I wish I could have said this first…but a reviewer said the album is Wilsey paying homage to the cinematic soundscapes of the American West…and I totally get that. This song has such a fantastic sound.

His guitar playing really helped make Wicked Game such a fantastic and popular song. He used a 1965 Fender Stratocaster and reverb, delay, and slight vibrato. You could tell he was influenced by Duane Eddy, Link Wray, James Burton, and others from that era.

He grew up in Indiana. In the late 1970s, he joined The Avengers, a punk rock band from San Francisco, where he played bass. They would go on to influence The Dead Kennedys and others. They released two EPs and one album in 1983. The self-titled album was made from studio takes because Wilsey had left the band by then. He joined Chris Isaak’s band The Silvertones in 1980. In the late nineties and the 2000s, The Avengers would release 4 more albums that were live and studio cuts with Wilsey.

He made four albums with Issak. Silvertone (1985), Chris Isaak (1986), Heart Shaped World (1989), and the last one San Francisco Days (1993). He and Isaak would soon be estranged and Wilsey went his own way. One of the problems was Wilsey’s growing substance abuse.

He formed an instrumental band called The Mysteries (they never recorded an album) in the late nineties but it was in 2008 that he made his only solo album of instrumentals called El Dorado. In 2018 he would pass away because of substance abuse.

Chris Isaak – Round ‘n’ Round

In 1993 Chris Iaasak released the album San Francisco Days. I’ve had this album playing at work, where I listen a lot. It is well-balanced and very likable. I picked this song for the guitar sound of James Wilsey, it’s a little different from his reverb playing because it has more crunch to it. He is the guitarist who played the guitar for Wicked Game and made it memorable with that dreamlike quality.

San Francisco Days was his fourth studio album, was inspired by the city, and features some rock, blues, and his unique singing style. He is a guy that I know because of Wicked Game but like Greg Kihn, there are more things to like but the hits by him. He did have a hit on this album called Can’t Do a Thing (to Stop Me) that peaked at #7 on the Billboard Alternative Charts and #36 in the UK. I will post it above Round ‘n’ Round at the bottom.

When Chris was growing up he was influenced by 1950s rock and roll and country music. Two of the artists that influenced him were Elvis Presley and Roy Orbison. You can hear those two artists in his work, especially Orbison. He developed a unique singing style and he can be called a crooner. He released his first album, Silvertone, in 1985. He did get some critical acclaim but not much commercial success. That all changed with this third album Heart Shaped World with the single Wicked Game which was featured in the David Lynch film Wild At Heart.

Chris Isaak on making San Francisco Days: “I kind of set out to make this one a little bit different, People did say that the other albums were very similar. But I’ve always felt like I had something legitimate to say with that style. Otherwise, it would be like a painter saying, ‘I already used blue in my early paintings, so I’m not using it anymore.’ Still, I always want to learn some new tricks.”

Round ‘n’ Round

Here we go round & round.
State your case and then sit down.
Tell me why you want to go,
I don’t love you anymore.

Here you go mad again.
Tell me that your just a friend.
Tell me something I don’t know.
I don’t love you anymore, I don’t love you anymore, yeah.

When I do go, I’ll let you know.
It might hurt you, but I don’t think so.

Here we go round & round.
State your case and then sit down.
Tell me why you want to go,
I don’t love you anymore, I don’t love you anymore, I don’t love you anymore.

…

Kinks – Father Christmas

We have just over a week til Christmas. I’m looking forward to it. I hope all of you are doing well.

Father Christmas, give us some money
We’ll beat you up if you make us annoyed
Father Christmas, give us some money
Don’t mess around with those silly toys

This song always brings a smile to my face. Any Kinks Christmas song would have to be different…and this one is.

I’ve always liked this raw and rough Christmas song. A writer at the NME wrote, “Successful Xmas songs are more about mood than specifics, but as this is an anti-Christmas song, it’s fine.” This is the kind of song you would expect from Ray Davies. Anti-Christmas or not…it has become a popular classic Christmas song that gets airplay every year.

The single was released during the height of punk rock and certainly exudes a punk attitude. Dave Davies told ABC Radio that he “always thought The Ramones would do a great version of it. I don’t know why they didn’t do it.”… thinking about it…Dave was right…it would have fit them perfectly.

The song was released in 1977 with the B side Prince Of The Punks. The track was included on the Arista compilation Come Dancing with The Kinks and is also available as a bonus track on the CD reissue of the Kinks’ 1978 album Misfits.

In England, Father Christmas is the personification of Christmas, in the same way as Santa Claus is in the United States. Although the characters are now synonymous, historically Father Christmas and Santa Claus have separate entities, stemming from unrelated traditions.

Ray Davies: “When the record came out we were on tour with a very successful band at the time supporting them,” he recalled during an interview with Southern California radio station KSWD. “I went on dressed as Santa at the end of the show to do ‘Father Christmas.’ And the other band found it hard to follow us. The following night with the same band I went to run on but there was a bunch of heavies preventing me from running on stage. And I was protesting. But the people said, ‘The Kinks didn’t do an encore but Santa Claus was there and they were stopping him from going on stage.'”

Father Christmas

When I was small I believed in Santa Claus
Though I knew it was my dad
And I would hang up my stocking at Christmas
Open my presents and I’d be glad

But the last time I played Father Christmas
I stood outside a department store
A gang of kids came over and mugged me
And knocked my reindeer to the floor

They said
Father Christmas, give us some money
Don’t mess around with those silly toys
We’ll beat you up if you don’t hand it over
We want your bread so don’t make us annoyed
Give all the toys to the little rich boys

Don’t give my brother a Steve Austin outfit
Don’t give my sister a cuddly toy
We don’t want a jigsaw or monopoly money
We only want the real mccoy

Father Christmas, give us some money
We’ll beat you up if you make us annoyed
Father Christmas, give us some money
Don’t mess around with those silly toys

But give my daddy a job ’cause he needs one
He’s got lots of mouths to feed
But if you’ve got one I’ll have a machine gun
So I can scare all the kids on the street

Father Christmas, give us some money
We got no time for your silly toys
We’ll beat you up if you don’t hand it over
Give all the toys to the little rich boys

Have yourself a merry merry Christmas
Have yourself a good time
But remember the kids who got nothin’
While you’re drinkin’ down your wine

Father Christmas, give us some money
We got no time for your silly toys
Father Christmas, please hand it over
We’ll beat you up so don’t make us annoyed

Father Christmas, give us some money
We got no time for your silly toys
We’ll beat you up if you don’t hand it over
We want your bread so don’t make us annoyed
Give all the toys to the little rich boys

A Complete Unknown… private movie showing

My son Bailey saw a private screening of the new movie about Bob Dylan called A Complete Unknown along with the star of the movie there at the theater as well. His name is Timothée Chalamet and Bob Dylan said he did a great job portraying him.

Bailey did say they got the era down really well. Everything looked right for that time period compared to real footage he had seen. He loves the film. Bailey is probably a bigger Dylan fan than I am and that is saying a lot.

Bailey wrote the following.

I got to see Timothée Chalamet from shorter than arm’s reach. Here are a couple of photos I was lucky enough to get with my phone.

I got to see the film early due to a record store I follow on Instagram promoting free tickets.

A Complete Unknown follows Bob Dylan from 1961 to 1965 as he becomes a folk legend to a rock n roll rebel. The film really lets you see how Dylan progresses with his fame alongside his own character wanting to do what Dylan wants to do. You also get insight into other characters like Pete Seeger, Joan Baez, Woodie Guthrie, and Sylvie Russo in their relationship with Dylan.

I was really pleased with how this film paced itself. It wasn’t trying to make a buck out of you. It was trying to make you feel moved. There are times you laugh at a clever witty comment Dylan makes to feeling annoyed like he does with what people want him to be… instead of what he wants to be. The entire film moves you towards the Newport folk music festival in 1965. It was so cathartic with what followed ( I can’t say anymore from here). I really loved every second of it and cannot wait to see it again. It is now one of my favorite films.

Chuck Berry – Run Rudolph Run

Nice little Christmas song by Chuck Berry… the father of Rock and Roll. The song has a “Carol” vibe to it and that is never a bad thing. It was one of the first rock and roll Christmas songs and it was released in 1958.

Berry based this song on “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer,” giving Rudolph a bit of an attitude as he delivers the toys. The song is credited to Johnny Marks and Marvin Brodie. Johnny Marks wrote Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. Chuck puts his stamp on this song.

The song is sometimes known as “Run Run Rudolph,” which is how it appears on some other covers. Other artists to record the song include Sheryl Crow, Bryan Adams, The Grateful Dead, Jimmy Buffett, Dwight Yoakam, Bon Jovi, and Keith Richards.

The song peaked at #69 in the Billboard 100 in 1958 and has re-charted many times through the years…it peaked at #36 in the Billboard 100 in January of 2020…and I’m sure it is charting now.

The song appeared in a lot of films including Home Alone, Diner, The Santa Clause 2, Cast Away, and Jingle All the Way.

I’m adding this per Randy about the royalities for the song.

Johnny Marks wrote the song Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer but NOT the story or the character. Robert L. May wrote the story and Marks wrote the story off of that. The song was released and only Berrys name was on it. Marks sued Chuck for infringing on his song by using the name Rudolph. Mind you Marks didn’t create the character or story he only wrote a song about it. Of course Marks had good lawyers and won the case and was awarded a ridiculous 100% of royalties and a change in song credits.

Run Rudolph Run

Out of all the reindeers you know you’re the mastermind
Run, run Rudolph, Randalph ain’t too far behind
Run, run Rudolph, Santa’s got to make it to town
Santa make him hurry, tell him he can take the freeway down
Run, run Rudolph ’cause I’m reelin’ like a merry-go-round

Said Santa to a boy child what have you been longing for?
All I want for Christmas is a rock and roll electric guitar
And then away went Rudolph a whizzing like a shooting star
Run, run Rudolph, Santa’s got to make it to town
Santa make him hurry, tell him he can take the freeway down
Run, run Rudolph, reeling like a merry-go-round

Run, run Rudolph, Santa’s got to make it to town
Santa make him hurry, tell him he can take the freeway down
Run, run Rudolph, reeling like a merry-go-round

Said Santa to a girl child what would please you most to get?
A little baby doll that can cry, sleep, drink and wet
And then away went Rudolph a whizzing like a Saber jet
Run, run Rudolph, Santa’s got to make it to town
Santa make him hurry, tell him he can take the freeway down
Run, run Rudolph ’cause I’m reelin’ like a merry-go-round

Max’s Drive-In Movie – Fantastic Planet

We will take a short break from the Christmas posts.

This is the first animation that I’ve featured on my Drive-In movie series. This is not The Flintstones, The Simpsons, or anything close to normal. I mean that as a compliment…the visual of this movie is fantastic…no pun intended.

In 2012 I was sick with the flu and it was around midnight. I had nothing to do so I remembered a movie that a co-worker wanted me to watch. It was the 1973 movie Fantastic Planet and I was blown away. Bailey, my son, came into the room and asked me what I was watching. He started to watch and couldn’t believe the animation and what it was all about. He was 12 at the time and I was amazed as well. I’ve never seen anything like this movie before or since. I still watch it from time to time and I find things in the film I missed before.

Fantastic Planet (original French title: La Planète Sauvage) is a 1973 French-Czech animated science fiction film directed by René Laloux. The film is known for its surreal, dreamlike visuals and its hidden meanings, which explore themes of oppression, freedom, and coexistence. It’s based on Stefan Wul’s 1957 novel Oms en série, the film became a cult classic, especially in the science fiction and animation communities.

I’ve read some about the making of this movie. The film uses cut-out animation (a form of stop-motion animation using flat characters, props, and backgrounds cut from materials such as paper, cards, stiff fabric, or photographs. The props would be cut out and used as puppets for stop motion. ), a labor-intensive method that gives the movie a distinct, dreamy feel. The style was heavily influenced by Roland Topor, a French artist and writer known for his surrealist work, who also co-wrote the screenplay and designed much of the film’s visual style.

It’s very hard to describe this movie or try to put it in words. You would have to watch it yourself. The full French version of the movie is at the bottom, underneath the trailer. Unfortunately there are no english subtitles. My son Bailey now teaches classes at college for his Master’s degree, and he took this movie to show his class. He said they were amazed and lost. They wanted to know more about it, and many said they had never seen anything remotely like it before.

If you are looking for something different…give this a try because it fits that description totally. I think you will be amazed at the animation they used. You also have a very seventies soundtrack which only heightens it to me.

Plot

The film is set on the planet Ygam, where giant blue humanoid aliens known as Draags dominate the planet and keep human-like creatures, called Oms, as pets. Oms are treated as inferior beings, with some Draags experimenting on them or exterminating wild Oms who resist control. Then, an Om boy becomes educated, thanks to a young female Draag. This leads to an Om rebellion, which weakens the Draag control over their race. Will the Oms and the Draags find a way to coexist?

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Vince Guaraldi Trio – Linus and Lucy

It’s hard to resist this song. It automatically makes me happy when I hear it. I see the Peanuts gang doing their thing.

This song I can hear anytime of the year and be happy. It’s associated with Christmas also…whichever… I never get tired of it.

I was reminded of this song this year in Hanspostcard’s song draft when run-sew-read’s pick was this song.

Ironically, just about everyone would call this “the Charlie Brown song” even though it’s actually titled after Linus and Lucy Van Pelt, brother and sister in Charles Schulz’s Peanuts comic strip universe.

The song is most famous for its use in the yearly favorite A Charlie Brown Christmas, which first aired in 1965, but it was written two years earlier for a documentary about Schulz and the Peanuts gang called A Boy Named Charlie Brown, which never aired.

Producer Lee Mendelson was in charge of the documentary and asked Vince Guaraldi to compose music for it

Guaraldi was huge in the jazz world and won the 1962 Grammy for Best Original Jazz Composition for “Cast Your Fate To The Wind” for his group, the Vince Guaraldi Trio. Mendelson was searching for what kind of music to play for the documentary when he took a taxi cab and “Cast Your Fate To The Wind” was playing as he crossed the Golden Gate bridge. He loved it and his decision was made.

Guaraldi wrote a series of songs for the project, including “Linus and Lucy,” that he recorded with his group, the Vince Guaraldi Trio. Even though A Boy Named Charlie Brown was shelved, the soundtrack was released in 1964, which is where “Linus and Lucy” first appeared.

In 1965, Mendelson put together the first Peanuts TV special, A Charlie Brown Christmas, using many of the same people who worked on the documentary. “Linus and Lucy” formed the score, and a song he wrote with Guaraldi called “Christmas Time Is Here” was included in a key scene.

When A Charlie Brown Christmas debuted in 1965, it quickly turned the Peanuts franchise into a television institution. That first special also shot Guaraldi to greater fame, and he became connected to all subsequent Peanuts shows.

Guaraldi would continue to work on Peanuts films until his death in 1976.

No words…just enjoy

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