Chestnaaauts roasting on an open faaahr

Have been forced to listen to the all-Christmas channel on the radio by Bunny, my morning traveling companion. She thinks it's good for me. I think it's cruel. But we parents never know when the really important life lessons will come, you know?  For instance, she turned up to full volume the infamous "Happy Christmas (War Is Over)". When Yoko came on for the chorus, I think it hurt the kid as much as it hurt me. Lesson learned? I sincerely hope so.

I have a question. Why do half the young tenors out there in Christmas Carol Land try and affect the style of Nat King Cole? Especially on that 'chestnuts roasting on an open fire' song. All of them try and sound like Nat King Cole. Why?

It's time for an intervention. Now, before Jesse McCartney gets any sudden ideas.

Dear Young Tenors:

I know you are recording Christmas carols because your producer said it would make you sound well-rounded as an artist, and maybe give you a piece of immortality, what with radio stations dragging out your songs every December, long after you gave up the dream and became a paramedic or something. And I know you were probably born in 1994 in Tarzana, California, and have never ridden in - nor even laid eyes on - a one-horse open sleigh. I'm sure there was probably a real dearth of open fire-roasted chestnuts in your life as well. But that's not why I'm writing.

It's about your predilection for trying to sound like Nat King Cole.  Again, maybe it wasn't your idea. But whatever the reason, please stop it. For your information, the world was already blessed with one singer who could sing in the style of Nat King Cole. He was really good, and gained great fame for his Nat King Cole style. I forget his name right now, but believe me, he had the Nat King Cole sound down. The man could do Nat King Cole like nobody's business. He was the epitome, if you will, of the Nat King Cole sound.

Now, he did pass on, as humans do, after a long and illustrious career. People were very sad when he died, yet heartened by the fact that, before he went, he recorded a plethora of Nat King Cole-sounding Christmas carols. In fact, I would venture to say that all the Christmas carols ever written were recorded by the guy who sang in that Nat King Cole style. And then those recordings were carefully catalogued and preserved. We can listen to them any time we want (unless we can't remember the guy's name when we go to the record store and such).

So we don't need any more tenors trying to do that Nat King Cole sound nowadays. If you really must record Christmas carols, just sing in your own style and be yourself. That way you'll recognize your own work in later years when you hear it on your dispatcher's radio. Thank you!

Sincerely,

Pam

Comments

['mouse]

(applause)
On a similar note, so to speak, I picked up three cd's lately from the library (hey, the price was right) which were all "Ella-inspired."

I can't remember her name, but I remember a long time ago there was a woman who did Ella really well. I wish I could remember her name... .

[Anthony]

Where do I start?
With the glockenspiel and the viola, of course!
My problem with Pam's scenario is that if all these young singers are denied communication with their ancestral influences such as the Divine NKC, then will they not immediately descned into the abyss of artistic incoherency and start giving us Christmas albums based on the stylings of, say, Michael Bolton, Babyface or Ricky Martin?
There are worse things than endless channeling of the Cole-Muse. A "Christmas With Usher" CD is likely many of them all at once.
And as much as I venerate the Ancestral Ella muse, do let us remember that Carmem McRae, Betty Carter and Shirley Horne also walked this earth and gave unto us great singing. Not to mention Peggy Lee (a very good, underrated singer) Julie London, June Christie and other chanteuses now lost to us!

[savvy]

I don't get it.

[Kathryn]

I have a similar Christmas carol mini-rant up on my blog. My main complaint with the NKC knock-offs has been and always will be Natalie Cole singing "duets" with her father, including The Christmas Song. Grrrr.

[Dan]

As an antidote to all that, please allow me (and please don't beat me up) to suggest "Soul Christmas." The original one, with Otis Redding singing "Merry Christmas Baby," King Curtis playing "The Christmas Song," Booker T. & the MGs dong "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," etc. The original one, not the later version with the other (pretty nice, but not original) stuff thrown in and some of the good cuts lost. This is the original one:

http://www.amazon.com/Original-Soul-Christmas/artist/B000APXX04

Thanks for your attention to this matter.

[Anthony]

There are THREE, count' em 3, killer versions of "Santa Clause Is Coming To Town." Killer Version (KV) #1 is the all-time glory of the Crystals in 1963 on the "A Phil Spector Christmas Album," KV#2 is Booker T from 1965 and KV#3 is Bruce Springsteen in the 70s and 80s, when he frequently played the song as part of his concert sets. They all rock like God's own annointed reindeer.
Then there's "The Night Santa Went Crazy" by Weird Al which is at least morbidly funny and worth one or two listens.