I decided to take a brief break from my countdown of cynical christmas music and go with something a little bit light hearted with Snoopy’s Christmas by The Royal Guardsmen. I’ve always liked the Snoopy vs the Red Baron songs and I like the tip of the hat to the Christmas Truce of 1914
It’s always fun what you find when you’re researching. I’d never heard of this one until recently and it is so funny! So here is Surabaya Santa from Jason Robert Brown’s Songs for A New World featuring Mrs. Claus singing about her… frustrations.
Anytime you can sneak Miles Davis into a playlist is a win for me so here he is this year’s Christmas Playlist with Blue Xmas (To Whom it May Concern) along with Bob Dorough! It’s nearly as cynical as Tom Lehrer’s contribution yesterday… Again. A win.
For today’s Christmas Music we have one of my all time favorites, Tom Lehrer. Regrettably I couldn’t find a live performance of this (if anyone in one is interested, Hong Kong Tenor David Quah, does a pretty good version of this but I’m afraid he comes off as way too nice.)
I don’t really have much of a plan for this year’s playlist other than keep things eccentric or at least interesting.
For the first one is “We Three King”s from A Claymation Christmas Celebration.
I’ve always been a fan of Will Vinton‘s work even at his most commercial. But obviously his side projects are a lot more fun. It’s funny watching this one now it doesn’t feel quite as irreverent as I had remembered it. Still watching the Three Wise Men trying to keep things serious while being interrupted by their doo-wop-singing camels are still fun… and it was either this or Quasimodo conducting Carol of the Bells.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnIFTtW1pko
On the suggestion of a friend I started experimenting with doing the ongoing theme of forgotten Oscar nominees whenever I didn’t have any better ideas,
The first in my selection was Rachel, Rachel a drama directed by Paul Newman starring Joanne Woodward as a repressed 35 year old school teacher who gradually shakes off her shackles and finds sexual freedom after she runs into an acquaintance from high school. Technically it was good enough and did some interesting things switching back and fourth between Rachel’s dreary reality and fantasy life as well as an excellent use of flashbacks. Regrettably I’m afraid I was not really the target audience for this kind of film and while I found it competent I’m afraid that my attention span wasn’t up for it.
An adaptation of the play of the same name this is a magnificent tale of court intrigue, a dysfunctional family and growing old. It’s extremely quotable and O’Toole and Hepburn are fantastic as two people who hate each other and are at the same time perfect for one another. The ongoing duels between verbal martial artists are quite addictive.