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Some Fairly Common Selections - A Few Rarities

08/26/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"There are three factors common to these releases by Time Life Music - excellent sound reproduction, sparsity when it comes to tracks offered - and a bit over-priced for what you're getting.



In this one tracks 1 to 4 and 7 are not that difficult to find, although sometimes the version of The Little Drummer Boy you find on many compilations is not always the original done in 1958. This one is. In fact, all 12 tracks are original versions.



Of the other seven, the real finds include the Louis Armstrong presentation of Winter Wonderland released by Decca in 1952 with, I would guess, Gordon Jenkins & His Orchestra backing. The liner notes by Charles K. Wolfe don't say that, but it's a good guess since the Jenkins orchestra was backing Louis at that time on many of his charted hits. Another where the Jenkins orchestra might be involved is on The Andrews Sisters version of LeRoy Anderson's Sleigh Ride, a 1950 release.



I knew that the Jimmy Durante rendition of Frosty The Snowman was used in the 1964 animated cartoon release on TV starring Jackie Vernon and Billy DeWolfe, but what I never knew before was that he recorded it in 1950 for MGM, although it was not one of the hit versions that year.



Among the other rarities are the Peggy Lee, Brook Benton, and Fontane Sisters tracks. Peggy's It's Chrismas Time Again was written by Sonny Burke, Jack Elliott, and James Harwood, and released by Decca in 1953. Why this delightful seasonal tune never charted is beyond me. And the Benton performance on the tender This Time Of The Year [# 66 Hot 100 in 1959] has turned it into a Christmas classic.



What attracted me to this CD in particular, however, was Nuttin' For Christmas by The Fontane Sisters and Billy Vaughn & His Orchestra, a # 36 Billboard Pop Top 100 in 1955 and one of five charted versions of the song that year. The one you ALWAYS see is the Art Mooney/Barry Gordon release for MGM which, I suppose, is understandable since it was the highest-charting version [# 6]. Also relatovely easy to find is the Stan Freberg recording for Capitol [# 53].



But this one, which reached # 36 for the Dot label, is NOT that easy to locate, nor are the two by Joe Ward [# 20 for King] and Ricky Zahnd & The Blue Jeaners [# 21 for Columbia] - which is a hint for producers of coming Christmas compilations. Rounding out the package is a nice rendition of the carol It Came Upon A Midnight Clear by The Ames Brothers [Roy Ross & His Orchestra?), a 1950 Coral release.



The liner notes include a discography of the contents and three pages of notes by Wolfe, who provides a little bit of information on each track except the one by Peggy Lee. The cover art is taken from among the many posters produced by H. Armstrong Roberts.



Only used copies are available at this time - which is how I purchased mine - so I would recommend you order fast if there is anything in this package you would really like to have in your collection. A bit on the expensive side - but worth it."