Car Boot Christmas Countdown 2016 - Day 3

It's Day 3 of the Car Boot Christmas Countdown, and today's albums are from three male country artists.  Let's start with this, bought in June of this year for £1.

Charley Pride - Christmas In My Home Town (1970)

Charley Pride was born in in Mississippi and enjoyed a successful career as a baseball player before moving on to one in singing, becoming huge in the 1970s, mainly with the nana crowd.  A pioneer in the world of African-American country, he remains one of only three black artists (all men) to be inducted into the Grand Ole Opry.

1998 CD cover

1970's Christmas In My Home Town opens with the tinkling of bells and the cheerful title track, which is among the handful of pop-country Christmas songs here, the others being Happy Christmas Day, and of course Santa And The Kids which featured on Car Boot Christmas 2014. More traditional country style tracks such as The First Christmas Morn and Christmas And Love benefit from the dreamy backing vocals of The Jordinaires, but the carols work less well, his renditions of Deck The Halls and Silent Night falling a bit flat.

The album was reissued on CD in the US in 1998 with a different cover and the title "Happy Christmas Day".  It was remastered in 2013 with three bonus tracks and the original cover image restored.  Charley is still going strong today at the grand old age of 82.


Sadly no longer with us is the legend that was Johnny Cash, and I picked up his 1963 LP The Christmas Spirit at a boot sale in May of 2015 in a 3-for-a-fiver deal.

Johnny Cash - The Christmas Spirit (1963)
Mother in law Maybelle Carter plays autoharp

This was Cash's first Christmas album and four of the twelve songs are written by the man himself, including the spoken-word title track where over piano and choir Johnny dreams of travelling the world.  His journey begins in London where he's greeted by a chestnut seller in Piccadilly, and here Johnny's cockney "Hello mate!" is priceless.

Poverty and Jesus always seem to have gone hand in hand in country music, and there's plenty of both here, the storytelling both sung and narrated in Cash' echoing boom.  The Ballad of the Harp Weaver, a poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay, is probably the most depressing track amongst a rather downbeat collection.  While this isn't exactly a party album, it's still full of Christmas spirit, just not the kind that comes decked in tinsel or slathered in sleigh bells.


I found a slightly battered copy of Gene Autry's Christmas Cracker at a car boot in August of last year, for the princely sum of 25p.

Gene Autry's Christmas Cracker (1966)
What a great cover!

Gene "The Singing Cowboy" Autry hailed from Texas and found fame singing on the radio after being refused a recording contract with RCA Victor in 1928.  He eventually signed with Columbia and his career spanned movies and TV as well as the music industry.  In all he made some 640 recordings, over 300 of which were self-penned or co-written.

Like many Christmas albums, one side of this consists of secular songs, with the other devoted to carols.  His 1949 US no.1 Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer gets Side 1 off to a gallop, followed by other child-friendly favourites such as Up On The House Top written in 1864 by Benjamin Hanby, and an adaptation of the American rhyme 'Ten Little Indians' called Nine Little Reindeer.  Like Charley Pride, Autry's country style is better suited to these than the mostly solemn Side 2, at the end of which an uncredited male lead is joined by a choir for What Child Is This?, rounding things off quite nicely even though Autry's sudden disappearance is quite odd.  There are short spoken sections between some songs, and it's here that my 25p record really shows its age, but I just close my eyes and pretend the crackles are coming from a nice log fire.


You can hear Gene and a whole host of other artists on this year's Car Boot Christmas cloudcast below.  Join me again tomorrow, Sunday the 18th of December, for Day 4 of the Car Boot Christmas Countdown, where I'll be taking a look at two very different seasonal records.


https://www.mixcloud.com/CarBootVinylDiaries/car-boot-christmas-2016/

Car Boot Christmas Countdown Day 2

Charity shops and boot fairs are awash with budget label releases, many of them from the 1970s, so naturally a great deal of my Christmas vinyl finds belong to this category. Despite the cheap nature of these records, gems can usually be found on most.

I found a copy of Christmas Country for 50p:

Various Artists - Christmas Country (1974)

Released on RCA's budget imprint Camden and distributed in the UK by Pickwick, this 12-track compilation came out in 1974, the year I was born.  The gems here come from Charley Pride (Santa & The Kids), Willie Nelson (Pretty Paper) and Chet Atkins' twangy I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day.  Props too for pianist Floyd Cramer's excellent rendition of Jingle Bell Rock.

Tracklisting

Side 1.
1. Jim Reeves - An Old Christmas Card.
2. Skeeter Davis - Santa Claus Is Coming To Town.
3. Porter Wagoner - Frosty The Snowman.
4. Chet Atkins - I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day.
5. Willie Nelson - Pretty Paper.
6. Hank Snow - Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer.

Side 2.
1. Eddy Arnold - Silent Night.
2. Dottie West - You Are My Christmas Carol.
3. Charley Pride - Santa & The Kids.
4. Floyd Cramer - Jingle Bell Rock.
5. The Browns featuring Ed Brown - Blue Christmas.
6. George Hamilton IV - Natividad.


Another 1970's budget album, this time on Ronco, A Christmas Present cost £1:

Various Artists - A Christmas Present (1973)

In typical Ronco style (As Seen On TV!) a total of 22 tracks are squeezed onto this single LP.  These are a mixture of easy listening, classical and traditional Christmas songs, highlights including Percy Faith's Carol Of The Bells with his Orchestra & Chorus, another great version of I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day, this time from the inimitable Johnny Cash, and Aretha's cheeky Kissin' By The Mistletoe.

But perhaps the best thing about this record is the sleeve.  Not the rather drab cover photo, but the wonderful pop-up model of Santa's North Pole that hides inside the gatefold, still in fantastic condition 41 years later:

Although possibly not for much longer:

Dottie has escaped and is terrorising the village

Abandon workshop!

Tracklisting

Side 1.
1. New York Philharmonic - The Twelve Days Of Christmas.
2. Anita Bryant - It Came Upon A Midnight Clear.
3. The Ray Coniff Singers - Greensleeves (What Child Is This).
4. Julie Andrews - Silent Night, Holy Night.
5. Peter Nero - Ave Maria.
6. Jim Nabors - O Little Town Of Bethlehem.
7. Mahalia Jackson - Joy To The World.
8. The Brothers Four - The Little Drummer Boy.
9. Robert Goulet - God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen.
10.John Davidson - Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.
11.The Mormon Tabernacle Choir - The Hallelujah Chorus from Handell's Messiah.

Side 2.
1. Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gorme - Winter Wonderland.
2. Tony Bennett - The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire).
3. Patti Page - Jingle Bells.
4. Percy Faith, His Orchestra & Chorus - Carol Of The Bells.
5. Mitch Miller & The Gang - Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer.
6. Johnny Mathis - White Christmas.
7. Andre Kostelanetz with The St. Kilian Boychoir - We Wish You A Merry Christmas.
8. Doris Day - Toyland.
9. Johnny Cash - I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day.
10.Aretha Franklin - Kissin' By The Mistletoe.
11.The New Christie Minstrels - Sleigh Ride.

Ronco produced a similar album the following year called A Christmas Gift, a 20-track collection this time featuring a pop-up nativity scene: http://www.discogs.com/Various-A-Christmas-Gift/release/1615472

In both cases Ronco made a special Christmas donation to the Save The Children Fund.

Be sure to pop back tomorrow (Weds 17th Dec) for a couple of Yuletide instrumental belters.

You can hear me playing my favourite picks from all my Christmas vinyl finds on the Car Boot Christmas Special 2014.  Listen to the show with the widget below or click the link to go to the cloudcast page.

Car Boot Christmas 2014 by Car Boot Vinyl Diaries on Mixcloud

Win "An Americana Christmas" on CD!

Car Boot Vinyl Diaries is feeling in a festive mood, and is excited to present a very special Yuletide competition.  I'm giving away a copy of brand new album "An Americana Christmas", which features songs from artists new and old, including Bob Dylan, Valerie June, The Band and The Common Linnets.

Various Artists - An Americana Christmas (2014)

More info on the album here: http://theboot.com/johnny-cash-emmylou-harris-dwight-yoakam-americana-christmas/

All you need to do is enter your name (real or internet!), email address and the message "Merry Christmas" in the contact form at the top right of the page, click "send" and you'll be entered into the Grand Draw which will take place at 8pm (GMT) on Monday 8th December.

The competition is open to readers from all countries and the prize will be despatched double-quick so that the winner can enjoy the excellent tunes in the run-up to Christmas.

Tracklisting

1. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing (Luther Dickinson)

2. Everything Is Cool (John Prine)

3. Pretty Paper (Robert Ellis)

4. The First Noel (Emmylou Harris)

5. The Gifts They Gave (Johnny Cash)

6. Just Me And These Ponies (For Christmas This Year) (Corb Lund)

7. Run Run Rudolph (Dwight Yoakam)

8. Must Be Santa (Bob Dylan)

9. Winter Wonderland (Valerie June)

10. Everybody Deserves A Merry Christmas (Ronnie Fauss)

11. Season Of My Memory (Max Gomez)

12. Les Trois Cloches (Ben Keith w/ Neil & Pegi Young)

13. At Christmas Time (The Common Linnets)

14. FaLaLaLaLove Ya (Nikki Lane)

15. Here It Is Christmas Time (Old 97 s)

16. Christmas Must Be Tonight (The Band)

Also, tomorrow (Weds 3rd December) will see the launch of the Car Boot Christmas 2014 Cloudcast, especially made for you, presented by me and jam-packed with almost 1½ hours of festive tunes from vinyl found at car boot sales and charity shops.

Merry Christmas all, and good luck!

One plus one equals everything

There's little I enjoy better than a country duet, and the 1960s and 70s gave us the best from several classic pairings.  I've picked up a few examples at car boot sales this year, all for next to nothing.

The duo on the Porter Wagoner Show

Dolly Parton joined the long-running Porter Wagoner Show in 1967 aged 21 after being invited by the country star. She replaced Norma Jean, who'd also been a relative unknown when she joined in 1961.  Jean left when she married (although there are rumours of a broken romantic entanglement with Wagoner).




She'd been well loved by the loyal audience of "Mr. Grand Ole Oprey" and it took Dolly some time to win them over.

Although Jean had appeared on the show for many years, she'd never performed duets with him.  As part of Wagoner's plan to ingratiate her with his viewers, Dolly performed many, and during the 60s and 70s they recorded a total of 139, 21 of which made the Billboard Country chart.

Their first album of duets was Just Between You & Me (1968) and was followed by 12 others up until 1980.  It was the second of these that I bought for £1 in the summer:

Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton - Just The Two Of Us
(1968) [1971 in the UK]

It's a wonderful album of songs mainly about love and various heartaches, with a couple of darker songs thrown in for good measure (Wagoner recalls a fan at a concert asking "Ain't you killed enough dogs 'n' kids in your songs?") and a lovely cover of Dark End Of The Street. It made no.5 on the country album chart.

The album was released in the US in 1968 and the same year the pair were awarded the Country Music Association (CMA) for Vocal Group of the Year, as well as the Music City News Award for Duet of the Year which they went on to win twice more.

Once Dolly's solo career began to take off she made the move to leave Wagoner's TV show.  This led to a breakdown in their friendship, although they continued to make albums together until the mid-70s.  Famously, her no.1 smash I Will Always Love You was written about Wagoner, and although some legal wrangling ensued once Dolly really hit the big time, they eventually reconciled and remained close friends until Porter's death in 2007, aged 80.

If you have a spare £70-ish you could do worse than spend it on this box set of their complete recordings that was released a few months ago: http://www.superdeluxeedition.com/news/dolly-parton-porter-wagoner-just-between-you-and-me-1967-76/  Looks lovely!


Former rock 'n' roll singer Conway Twitty (real name Harold Jenkins) switched to country in 1965 and finally hit the no.1 spot in '68 with Next In Line.  This marked the beginning of a long and successful career that included a staggering 55 no.1 singles as well as 21 top twenty solo albums in the 1970s alone (US Country charts).

In 1971 he teamed up with Nashville star Loretta Lynn.  By this time Lynn was already a member of the Grand Ole Oprey, country music's biggest-selling female artist and the first of those credited with writing a no.1 single (You Ain't Woman Enough in 1966).

Their first album as a duo was We Only Make Believe (1971) which raced straight into the top three, and it was their fifth album Feelins' (1975) which I got for £1 earlier this year:

Loretta Lynn & Conway Twitty - Feelins' (1975)

Including a cover of the Sir Douglas Quintet's She's About A Mover and the title track (their first no.1 single), their characters as a fictional couple give the impression of a husband and wife who drive each other crazy in more ways than one (see Dyn-O-Mite and You Done Lost Your Baby), with a deep-seated love and shared humour unlikely to fade.  It makes for a great listen; Conway had a beautiful clear baritone and I just love the way Loretta's overbite makes her pronounce her 'S's.

The pairing of Loretta and Conway remains the most successful in country music, with eight of their 11 albums reaching the top ten, four of these going to no.1, as well as multiple awards and chart-topping singles.  Sadly Twitty died aged just 59 in 1993.  Lynn is still going strong aged 82.


A similar warmth and humour is apparent in the duets of Johnny Cash and June Carter, although of course in their case the love is the real thing.  The pair married in 1968 (his second marriage, her third) 13 years after they originally met, remaining together until their deaths just months apart in 2003.   I got a copy of their 1973 album Johnny Cash & His Woman a few weeks ago, also for £1:

Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash - Johnny Cash & His
Woman (1973)

Although billed as an album of duets, in fact June only gets to share lead vocals on three tracks, my favourite being The Color Of Love, a funny, touching look at the realities of married life.  June performs backing vocals on another four songs, including some laughing and screeching on their cover of Chris Gantry's Allegheny.  She is entirely absent from the remaining three tracks as far as I can tell, which is a shame as the duets here are by far the best songs on the album.  I'd highly recommend their Duets album (2006), which contains their best work together, including bit hits like Jackson and It Ain't Me, Babe. http://www.allmusic.com/album/duets-mw0000812507


'First Lady of Country' and two-times divorcee Tammy Wynette married fast-living country superstar George Jones in 1969.  George's talents as a songwriter and performer were matched by his appetite for alcohol and eventually cocaine, and this sadly contributed to his and Tammy's split some six years later.  Despite this they continued to work together, releasing a further three albums post-divorce to add to the six they made during their married life.

I bought a copy of their 1977 Greatest Hits for just 50p last weekend:

George Jones & Tammy Wynette - Greatest Hits (1977) 

It does just as it promises, presenting their ten biggest hits, such as the chart-topping We're Gonna Hold On, Golden Ring and Near You.  It's a short LP, but very sweet indeed. George's phrasing is impeccable, and his and Tammy's remarkable voices blend perfectly.


A song each from the first three records featured here appear on the Car Boot Vinyl Diaries Cloudcast Episode 7, as well as a host of other boot sale-sourced vinyl introduced by me, your inept car boot DJ.   And no doubt a George 'n' Tammy tune (or two) will pop up in future episodes.

Car Boot Vinyl Diaries Episode 7 by Car Boot Vinyl Diaries on Mixcloud

(Title of post refers to "In the arithmetic of love, one plus one equals everything, and two minus one equals nothing" - Mignon McLaughlin)

Cloudcast number two now on Mixcloud

Episode 2 of the Car Boot Vinyl Diaries Cloudcast is now on Mixcloud for your listening pleasure!  Use the widget below to listen, or follow the link to go to the page where you can find the tracklist and leave a comment/like.

This one features Donna Summer, David Bowie, Lee Hazlewood and lots more.

Car Boot Vinyl Diaries Episode 2 by Car Boot Vinyl Diaries on Mixcloud