For Christmas of that phantasmagorical, psychedelic year of 1967, the Beatles produced Magical Mystery Tour for BBC TV, and the equally zany Christmas Time is Here Again, my favorite of the records they made for their fan club.
Listening to this, you shouldn’t be surprised that the boys also recorded You Know My Name (Look Up the Number) in 1967, but it wasn’t released until 1970, as the flip-side of the Let It Be single.
A very popular online Christmas card is an animated version of the song White Christmas, from a 1954 (or perhaps ’53) recording by the original lineup of the Drifters. The animation was done by Joshua Held in 2002. This is the video he posted on YouTube.
The YouTube video has better sound than in Held’s original Shockwave Flash file, which has the advantage of better image quality. Here’s the SWF for comparison. Note: Once it starts playing there’s no pause option.
Joltin’ Joe Sinnott’s granddaughter Erin has been posting a very enjoyable weekly series of video Q&A’s with Joe on his Facebook page. Joe’s fans and friends know that he’s a big fan of Bing Crosby, and this week’s question comes from a fellow Der Bingle fan, who’s none other than my co-conspirator in fanboy endeavors, Dennis F. Rogers.
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Joe’s praise for Bing singing the plaintive Hang Me, Oh Hang Me makes it deserving of a listen, so here it is.
[audio:https://s3.amazonaws.com/dogratcom/Audio/2012/12/BingCrosby.mp3|titles=Bing Crosby – Hang Me Oh Hang Me]I’m pleased no end that Joe Sinnott also has a connection to the Beatles, because when they came to America in 1964, Joe had the distinction of being picked to illustrate the authorized comic book of their story…
… and here’s Joe talking about drawing the Beatles. A couple of years later he would be in the thick of his legendary run with Jack Kirby on The Fantastic Four.
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Validation. Not the kind that gets free parking, but should gain entry into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Sunday night, at the Beacon Theatre in New York City, the Monkees rocked a packed house. It was a happy, yet bittersweet night with the loss of Davy, but thanks to Mike Nesmith appearing as a Monkee for the first time in more years than I know, they have proven once and for all that what began in 1965 as a casting call for a new TV show became something real and great and enduring. If the Monkees had been just a TV show, all they could do would be autograph signings, but by the time Dennis and I got to the theater there was a line that stretched for more than a city block — for an act that, keep in mind, hit over 45 years ago! Here’s their entrance as seen from my seat. (Sorry for the poor video quality. The camera has only a 3x optical zoom and it didn’t auto-focus correctly.)
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A highlight of the show for me were the songs from the Monkees’ movie, Head. Here’s Mike doing Circle Sky, taken by somebody else in the audience.
The tributes to Davy were sincere and touching. This one in particular.
For guys like myself and Dennis who have, from the age of eleven, when the Monkees debuted, never wavered in our appreciation of the Monkees, last night was an amazing, unforgettable experience. What made it possible was the presence of Michael Nesmith who, after the album More of the Monkees appeared without their knowledge, said to the men who had control over their lives, “this shall not stand.” With the promise that the Monkees would continue making their TV show as contractually obligated, Don Kirshner was fired and the Monkees were given creative control over their music. That unique, angry, and powerful act of defiance resulted in their third album, Headquarters, and turned the Monkees from teen idols into a legitimate band. It’s past time for Mickey, Mike, Peter, and Davy to take their rightful place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. They have validity, and now they should have vindication to go with it.
I will be in NYC tonight, seeing one of the two musical acts in this old poster.
Some hair coloring, not too close-up a pose, a little digital touching up, and old Paul looks like the Paul of old!
