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Not intended to spark any kind of religious debate (please), just because Iâm quite fond of some of the older, traditional carols, and there are some interesting and beautiful contemporary renditions out there. I personally prefer it when they donât deviate too far from the original idea, but Iâm sure others may feel otherwise.
Hereâs John Denver with his version of âCoventry Carolâ â a bit sombre to kick off with, the subject matter being Herodâs massacre of the innocents, but itâs one of the oldest still sung, I suspect, and dates right back to 1591 ⦠amazing, the longevity of this lullaby â
[video=youtube;TywNxroKiN4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TywNxroKiN4[/video]
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." ~ Bill Watterson
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Have to say, I would never in a million years have imagined that Mark Lanegan would record Christmas carols at all, never mind do it without interfering too much with their integrity. Those he chose to include on his Christmas EP suit his demeanour and the wonderful timbre of his voice perfectly, particularly âWe Three Kingsâ. As a child I used to think âOrientareâ was a place! Lol! Dark Mark does Christmas; you live and learn!
That track - [URL="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOZra97t2EM"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOZra97t2EM
[/URL]
⦠and his rendition of âOh Holy Nightâ â not often you hear him hitting the upper registers (or at least what for his baritone counts as âupperâ!!).
[video=youtube;5LxUEzU9CNc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LxUEzU9CNc[/video]
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." ~ Bill Watterson
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I like the traditional Christmas tunes....
I like some of the rock and roll era pop Christmas tunes also,
Of all the pop ones you cant go past the Elvis Presley ones IMO,
nor can you go past the rich lush sounds of BoneyM neither.
Ones to avoid,IMO are, Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan.
I'll post a few of my favourites later today, some you will know,
others may be unfamiliar with(unless you grew op or live in the UK
or Australia.
"BTO....Bachman,Turner,Overweight
They were big in the 70s....for five minutes,on a Saturday,after lunch..." - Me 2014.
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Not a traditional Christmas carol but a gem written by Bruce Cockburn!
[video=youtube;a1joh8DEE_g]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1joh8DEE_g&feature=player_detailpage[/video]
The ultimate connection is between a performer and its' audience!
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^Thanks SteveO â I quite liked that!
Dan Fogelberg put together a very tasteful Christmas album IMHO â
The First Christmas Morning. One of his choices - this ancient carol from the 15[SUP]th[/SUP] century -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mv4qGq-qoQ
These, from the same album are composed by him, and not traditional, although they sound as though they could be â¦. three gorgeous renaissance/baroque inspired instrumental pieces (there's a fourth instrumental which is equally pleasing - "Winterskol" - it just happens not to be included in this clip). He arranged and played most of the instruments and really deserves to have been taken more seriously; the last one, âSnowfallâ, is just too beautiful for words â¦.
[video=youtube;0EV7ynVvtiM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EV7ynVvtiM[/video]
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." ~ Bill Watterson
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other than The Christmas Song it's the traditional stuff for me
you know, the ones you sing in church
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Final flurry of 'carols' before they become passé for another year!
This one because it sounds beautiful, even if the didgeridoo is not a traditional Canadian instrument!! And I find the history quite interesting - a strange and muddled world we live in!! The Jesuit missionary who wrote this in around 1642 did so in the Huron language, using frames of reference that the local population could relate to ... he certainly seems to have been well-intentioned.
[video=youtube;DgPeEvUl06Y]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgPeEvUl06Y[/video]
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." ~ Bill Watterson
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James Taylor - well, why not?
[video=youtube;ytgrNPBUfs4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytgrNPBUfs4[/video]
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." ~ Bill Watterson
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Good King Wenceslas because I always liked him - The Crash Test Dummies ...
[video=youtube;Lrfl6ODkrwc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lrfl6ODkrwc[/video]
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." ~ Bill Watterson
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... and bowing out with the appropriately titled "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen", courtesy of Mr Anderson & Co.
Have a Happy Christmas everyone!
[video=youtube;D3JMcW1D69g]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3JMcW1D69g[/video]
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." ~ Bill Watterson
