Steve Miller has dropped a little present in everyone's stocking. Along with jazz guitarist Howard Alden, Steve has recorded a fun little bit of holiday cheer, "Jammin' Jingle Bells". The Steve Miller Band has appeared at a few of the Warren Haynes Christmas Jams in the past and, way back in 1989, they recorded "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" for the "Christmas In The Northwest" series. "Jammin' Jingle Bells" is available by email request. Head to the Steve Miller web site. Check the crackling yule log video in the upper left and, just above that, click where it says "Download Jingle Bells mp3 audio here." That'll give you the email address and subject line to send. Moments later, your mp3 of "Jammin' Jingle Bells" will arrive.
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Anybody besides me remember The Krayolas? Back in the 70s, The Krayolas were hailed as the Tex-Mex Beatles. It's Root Rock meets Mexican border meats British Invasion. And if you think that sounds like a crazy stew, it is, but completely in a good way. The Krayolas have done three Christmas songs, so far as I know. The most recent was "Run Rudolph Run" which appears on the band's latest release, "Tipsy Topsy Turvy". "Christmas Time", as it happens, was a 1980 single release before appearing on the 2007 EP "Christmas Time And Other Cheer". "Tex-Mex Rudolph" was on that EP, too, though it's precise origin remains a mystery to me. Anyway, the important thing here is that The Krayolas are giving all three songs away as free downloads this year. It's a pretty good cross-section of Krayolas music, with my personal favorite being "Christmas Time". Head to The Krayolas web site and jump on these bad boys right away, lest they disappear up the chimney. One of the best (and most fun) sites to go searching through, if you're looking for something completely different, is WFMU's Beware Of The Blog. WFMU is a listener supported independent radio station in the Northeast that has a completely free-form format--meaning the announcers there play anything and everything, pretty much as the mood strikes them. Beware Of The Blog features recordings that are not just a little off the beaten path--these recordings have never been anywhere near a path, beaten or otherwise. If someone once pressed to vinyl the sounds of their precocious little rugrats raising hell or if some label once upon a time thought an album of music to crochet sweaters to seemed like a good idea, these recordings will eventually find their way to Beware Of The Blog. Bob Purse, who has his own blog--The Wonderful And The Obscure--is a frequent contributor to the WFMU blog and he's the one we can credit for uncovering this long lost gem. His own blog has been featuring song-poems for quite some time and the Vellez label was known to have issued song-poems, but that wasn't the only thing they released. "My Christmas Won't Be So Blue" (backed with "Jingle Bells") does not appear to be a song poem release. The Allison Sisters were daughters of a North Carolina Methodist minister, it appears, and they recorded and released a very few sides in the late 50s and early 60s. Their Christmas single bears a radio station notation of "12-12-61", indicating this was released in 1961. If you're like me, you are constantly looking for something....well, to use Bob's blog title, Wonderful And Obscure. The Allison Sisters qualify on both counts. Go find, listen to, and download if you like it, "My Christmas Won't Be So Blue" and "Jingle Bells" at WFMU's Beware Of The Blog. December 1st is when Roger McGuinn lays his annual Christmas treat on us. Roger, of course, is best known for his work with the 60s Folk Rock band the Byrds. But, these days, it's pretty much all Folk for McGuinn. Still plays a mean Rickenbacker, though. For 2011, Roger has recorded "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and you can download it from his Folk Den. Look off to the right and you'll notice there are 19 "Seasonal" tracks available (although the most recent before this one was, I believe, a tribute to Spring. You'll also find tunes suitable for the season under "Spiritual" and you might find a few more scattered throughout. |
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