How often is it in life where the simplest things are the toughest? Solving every problem in the world is as simple as putting a little love in our hearts. Or more accurate, letting the love that's already in there out.
"Put a Little Love in Your Heart"
by Jackie DeShannon
Written by Jackie DeShannon, Randy Myers and Jimmy Holiday
Think of your fellow man
lend him a helping hand
put a little love in your heart.
You see it's getting late
oh please don't hesitate
put a little love in your heart.
And the world will be a better place
and the world will be a better place
for you and me
you just wait and see
Another day goes by
and still the children cry
put a little love in your heart.
If you want the world to know
we won't let hatred grow
put a little love in your heart.
And the world will be a better place
and the world will be a better place
for you and me
you just wait and see
Take a good look around and
if you're lookin' down
put a little love in your heart
I hope when you decide
kindness will be your guide
put a little love in your heart.
And the world will be a better place
and the world will be a better place
for you and me
you just wait and see
put a little love in your heart each and every day
put a little love in your heart there's no other way
put a lttle love in your heart, it's up to you
put a little love in your heart...
Musical tastes are as diverse as the number of people in the world. I have listened to thousands of Christmas songs, not only over the years but in preparation for this Inside the Rock Era special. I do hope that I've touched upon songs that you find enjoyable. Only one more day to go, 12 more songs, so let's get right to them!
"Opera of the Bells"
by Destiny's Child
"Carol of the Bells" was the original Ukrainian composition. An alternate English version features more Nativity-based lyrics. Destiny's Child renamed it "Opera of the Bells" for inclusion on their album 8 Days of Christmas.
"Away in a Manger"
by John Denver
Denver's Christmas album, A Rocky Mountain Christmas, contains many great Christmas songs on the same album. Few artists have been able to include so many great recordings on one Christmas album. Denver adds his touch to this spiritual favorite.
"Handel's Messiah"
by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir
No list of the Top Christmas Songs would be complete without this song, an oratorio written by George Frideric Handel in 1741. It includes a scriptural text written by Charles Jennens from the King James Bible and the Book of Common Prayer. It was first performed in Dublin, Ireland on April 13, 1742 and has since become one of the best-known and most performed choral works in Western music.
"Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" by Brenda Lee
I'm sure you and yours will do some rocking around the Christmas tree while this song is played in the background. It was written by Johnny Marks, who has three of his compositions in The Top 150*. When Brenda first introduced this in 1958, it didn't do much but finally in 1960, after she had enjoyed success with "I'm Sorry" and "Sweet Nothin's", the song took off and hasn't looked back. It has now gone over eight million in sales.
"The Christmas Song"
by Nat King Cole
Cole originally recorded this song in 1946, then re-recorded it later in the year with a small string section. It became a massive hit. He then recorded a third version in 1953 and this one, on March 30, 1961 at Capitol Studios in New York City. It is this fourth recording that is the most famous. The instrumentation is nearly identical to that of the 1953 recording, but the vocals are much deeper. It has remained not only the definitive version of the song, but one of The Top 10 Christmas Songs of All-Time ever since.
"White Christmas"
by Bing Crosby
This all-time favorite written by Irving Berlin reached #1 in 1942, 1945 and 1946 although the version you are used to hearing isn't the original. There was so much demand for the song at the record plant that the original master was actually destroyed from overuse! So Bing and group went into the studio and re-recorded it in 1947, essentially remaking the song perfectly. This song is the biggest-selling single of all-time.
1955: The Lennon Sisters were the new featured vocalists on The Lawrence Welk Show on ABC-TV.
1964: The Beatles began a second series of Christmas concerts at the Hammersmith Odeon on London, with help from the Yardbirds, Freddie and the Dreamers and others. 1966: Tommy James & the Shondells recorded "I Think We're Alone Now". 1966: "(I Know) I'm Losing You by the Temptations was the new #1 on the R&B chart, taking over from "You Keep Me Hangin' On" by the Supremes. 1966: The New Vaudeville Band made it four weeks in the #1 spot on the Easy Listening chart with "Winchester Cathedral".
"The Work Song", part of yet another hot album from the Brass...
1966: Not quite like The Planet of the Apes, but the Monkees had taken over the world and their debut album spent a seventh week at #1. The Soundtrack to "Doctor Zhivago" was second while the new album by Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass--S.R.O. moved from 12 to 3 in its third week. Simon & Garfunkel were just beginning to become a major force and this is the album that made people sit up and take notice--Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme at #4. The rest of the Top 10: The Soundtrack to "The Sound of Music" was still up high after 93 weeks, Je m'appelle Barbra was Barbra Streisand's newest smash, Going Places by Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass was at 7 after 63 weeks, The Supremes A' Go-Go came in at position #8, the debut from the Mamas and the Papas and a third entry in the Top 10 for Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass--What Now My Love. 1966: "Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron" by the Royal Guardsmen came roaring into the Top 10 on this date, flying from 30 to 7 after just two weeks of release. 1968: The Golliwogs changed their name to Creedence Clearwater Revival. (Note: several websites report that the Blue Velvets changed their name to Creedence Clearwater Revival, and that the date of the change was January 1, 1968. Saul Zaentz purchased Fantasy Records in December, 1968. He offered the group an opportunity to record an album on Fantasy if they changed their name. At the time, the group's name was the Golliwogs--not the Blue Velvets.) 1967: Jeremy Clyde of Chad & Jeremy appeared on the popular CBS show My Three Sons.
1967: The Bee Gees performed a Christmas special from Liverpool Cathedral in England (which was taped on December 10th), broadcast live on U.K. television. 1968: Led Zeppelin departed for their first tour of the United States, with their first show lined up in Denver, Colorado on December 26. 1972: A loud concert or a riot--neighbors in Miami, Florida decided a riot was better. That was the cause of their actions when they complained about loud noise at a concert by Manfred Mann and His Earth Band at the University of Miami. Police stopped the concert, sparking a riot that lasted two hours. 1973: Tom Johnston, guitarist of the Doobie Brothers, was arrested for possession of marijuana in Visalia, California. 1973: DeBarge remained at the top of the R&B chart for the third week with "Time Will Reveal". 1974: Consider yourself lucky to be in Los Angeles on this date. You got to hear the quartet of Linda Ronstadt, Joni Mitchell, James Taylor and Carly Simon going door to door around the city singing Christmas carols.
The title track from 'Aja'....
1977: Simple Dreams was the biggest album of Linda Ronstadt's career and it spent a fourth week at #1. Rumours continued to make a case for returning to the top for Fleetwood Mac, Rod Stewart was in third with Foot Loose & Fancy Free, Earth, Wind & Fire had #4 with All 'N All and ELO's latest Out of the Blue was #5. The rest of the Top 10: Debby Boone's You Light Up My Life, Commodores Live!, Aja from Steely Dan at #8, Kiss entered the Top 10 with Alive II and Santana held on to 10 with Moonflower. 1977: The Bee Gees had jumpstarted their career and "How Deep Is Your Love" held down the #1 spot on the Adult chart for a fifth straight week.
1977: The Bee Gees captured the #1 spot with "How Deep Is Your Love", ending a Rock Era reign of 10 weeks for Debby Boone's "You Light Up My Life". Linda Ronstadt was one of a select few artists to place two songs in the Top 5 simultaneously with "Blue Bayou" at 3 and "It's So Easy" at 5. In between, L.T.D. with "(Every Time I Turn Around) Back In Love Again" while newcomer Player was at #6 with "Baby Come Back". The rest of the Top 10: Crystal Gayle with her crossover "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue", Dolly Parton enjoyed a hit with "Here You Come Again", ex-Fleetwood Mac member Bob Welch landed his only Top 10 hit with "Sentimental Lady" and Paul Simon reached #10 with "Slip Slidin' Away". 1978: Bjorn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Falkskog, members of ABBA, announced they had separated and were filing for divorce. 1983: The Police appeared at the Brighton Centre in England. 1983: Barry Manilow achieved his 13th #1 song on the Adult Contemporary chart out of 27 releases with "Read 'Em And Weep".
1983: The powerful song "Yah Mo Be There" by James Ingram and Michael McDonald moved from 73 to 50.
Double Duran was back...
1983: Paul McCartney & Michael Jackson's duet "Say Say Say" continued to set the pace at #1 for a third week. Hall & Oates took the runner-up spot with "Say It Isn't So". Duran Duran had one of their biggest with "Union Of The Snake", Yes was up to #4 with "Owner Of A Lonely Heart" and the former #1 Lionel Richie song "All Night Long" dropped to #5. The rest of the Top 10: Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl", Pat Benatar had song #7--"Love Is A Battlefield", Olivia Newton-John and "Twist Of Fate", the Rolling Stones edged in with "Undercover Of The Night" and newcomer Matthew Wilder was up from 18 to 10 with "Break My Stride". 1983: Although it had been 15 weeks since it was a #1 album, the amazing Thriller returned to the top spot on the Album chart on this date after 53 weeks of release. It was this last run that enabled it to become the longest-running #1 album of all-time; as of now, it ranked #3 for the Rock Era with 21 weeks at #1, behind Fleetwood Mac's Rumours (31 weeks) and the Soundtrack to "Saturday Night Fever" (24 weeks). Can't Slow Down by Lionel Richie relinquished its spot, What's New from Linda Ronstadt moved up to 3 and former #1 Synchronicity by the Police was fourth. The rest of the Top 10: Undercover from the Rolling Stones, Quiet Riot was at #6 with Metal Health, Yes rose from 13-7 with their comeback album 90125, Billy Joel edged up with his new album An Innocent Man, Culture Club dropped with Colour By Numbers and Hall & Oates held on to #10--Rock 'N Soul, Part 1. 1988: Nirvana began recording their first album Bleach with $600 borrowed from a friend. 1988: Phil Collins had begun crossing over to the AC chart and "on this date, Two Hearts" reached the #1 position. 1988: U2 moved from 74 to 51 with "Angel Of Harlem".
1988: Poison collected their only #1 with "Every Rose Has It's Thorn". Bobby Brown was second with "My Prerogative", Chicago fell from it's perch at #1 with "Look Away" and Anita Baker had #4 with "Giving You The Best That I Got". The rest of the Top 10: Boy Meets Girl with "Waiting For A Star To Fall", Phil Collins was up from 12 to 6 with "Two Hearts", Guns N' Roses found themselves at #7 with "Welcome To The Jungle", the Bangles were back in the Top 10 with "In Your Room", Eddie Money's "Walk On Water" glided in at #9 and Taylor Dayne remained hot, moving from 15-10 with "Don't Rush Me".
Roy Orbison's "Rattled" on the amazing Traveling Wilburys album...
1988: Another album from Anita Baker reached #1 as Giving You the Best That I Got took over from U2's Rattle and Hum. The Soundtrack to "Cocktail" was third with Guns N' Roses not content to fade away after 70 weeks with Appetite for Destruction. The rest of the Top 10: New Jersey from Bon Jovi, Bobby Brown believed he was above us all and could be cruel while he told others to Don't Be Cruel with his album at #6, Hysteria was still at #7 after 71 weeks for Def Leppard, the Traveling Wilburys and Volume One, Kenny G was attracting fans with Silhouette and Poison couldn't budge from #10 with Open Up and Say...Ahh! 1994: TLC continued to own the top R&B song with "Creep", holding off challengers for a third week. 1994: Madonna raced from 45 to 18 on this date with her newest--"Take A Bow".
1994: Here's a hot album for you--Vitalogy by Pearl Jam moved from #173 to #1 on this date, displacing Miracles - The Holiday Album from Kenny G. The Beatles debuted at #3 with Live at the BBC, Mariah Carey's Merry Christmas was #4 and Boyz II Men slipped with II. The rest of the Top 10: Hell Freezes Over from the Eagles, Dookie by Green Day was #7 after 44 weeks, Nirvana's album MTV Unplugged in New York was next, "The Lion King" Soundtrack came in at #9 and Smash from Offspring captured the #10 position. 1996: Tony Bennett was released from a hospital in Washington D.C. after an emergency hernia operation. He suffered the hernia while preparing to perform at the White House. 1999: Zeke Carey of the Flamingos ("I Only Have Eyes For You") died of a heart attack in Washington, D.C. at age 66.
2000: Nick Massi, bassist of the Four Seasons, died of cancer in Newark, New Jersey at the age of 65 in West Orange, New Jersey.
2003: Simon & Garfunkel donated $1 million to the Children's Health Fund, a charity started by Paul Simon in 1997. 2003: The great album The Diary of Alicia Keys returned to #1.
Born This Day: 1920: Dave Bartholomew, co-writer and producer of "Ain't It A Shame" and "Blue Monday", was born in Edgard, Louisiana. 1924: Lee Dorsey ("Ya Ya" from 1961) was born in New Orleans, Louisiana; died December 2, 1986. (Note: some websites report Dorsey was born in Portland, Oregon--he was born in New Orleans and moved with his family to Portland when he was ten, according to the books '683 Things About New Orleans' by Monica M. Dalide and 'Rhythm and Blues, Rap, and Hip-Hop' by Frank Hoffmann. Some websites list his birth year as 1924, but he was born in 1926, according to 'The Chicago Tribune' and the book 'Musical Gumbo: The Music of New Orleans' by Grace Lichtenstein) 1944: Mike Curb, MGM executive, recording artist ("Burning Bridges") and lieutenant governor of California, was born in Savannah, Georgia. 1945: Lemmy (real name Ian Fraser Kilmister), bassist, vocalist, songwriter and founder of Motorhead, was born in Burslem, Stoke-On-Trent, Staffordshire, England. 1946: Jan Akkerman, elite guitarist with Focus and a solo artist, was born in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. 1957: Ian Burden, keyboardist of the Human League, was born in Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire, England. 1963: Mary Ramsey, lead singer of 10,000 Maniacs after Natalie Merchant began a solo career, was born in Washington, D.C. 1968: Doyle Bramhall II, guitarist and songwriter who worked with Freddie King and Stevie Ray Vaughan, among others, was born in Dallas, Texas; died November 12, 2011 in Alpine, Texas of heart failure. 1971: Ricky Martin was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
This is without question one of the most powerful songs ever recorded. What empathy and caring the members of R.E.M. had when writing this. It's a good song to keep handy when you get depressed. Most people live 70, 80 years or more if they are fortunate. Don't let one bad experience, a bad day, a bad month or even a bad year get in the way of the other 79 years. Trust me when I say that everyone experiences bad luck and misfortune.
A very smart person once said "It's not what happens in life that defines you, it's how to respond that matters." Whatever your problem, you can get through it, and you'll be a much better person for it.
"Everybody Hurts"
by R.E.M.
Written by Michael Stipe, Mike Mills, Peter Buck and Bill Berry
When your day is long
And the night, the night is yours alone
When you're sure you've had enough
Of this life, well hang on
Don't let yourself go
'Cause everybody cries
And everybody hurts sometimes
Sometimes everything is wrong
Now it's time to sing along
When your day is night alone (Hold on, hold on)
If you feel like letting go (Hold on)
If you think you've had too much
Of this life, well hang on
Everybody hurts
Take comfort in your friends
Everybody hurts
Don't throw your hand, oh no
Don't throw your hand
If you feel like you're alone
No, no, no, you are not alone
If you're on your own in this life
The days and nights are long
When you think you've had too much of this life to hang on
Well, everybody hurts sometimes
Everybody cries
Everybody hurts sometimes
And everybody hurts sometimes
So hold on, hold on
Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on
Everybody hurts
We've sifted through all of the Christmas songs and are featuring what we believe to be the cream of the Christmas crop. We began on December 1 and by Christmas Day will have presented The Top 150 Christmas Songs of All-Time*.
"Have a Holly Jolly Christmas"
by Burl Ives
Ives recorded this in July of 1964 for the animated feature "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" which he also narrated. It reached #13 and is one of the most cheerful, infectious Christmas songs of them all.
"Baby, It's Cold Outside" by Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gorme
Frank Loesser wrote this song in 1944 and premiered it with his wife, Lynn Garland, at their Navarro Hotel housewarming. Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gorme recorded what is regarded as one of the best versions of the song and included it on the album That Holiday Feeling.
"All I Want for Christmas Is You"
by Mariah Carey
The song was written by Mariah Carey and Walter Afanasieff. It reached #2 in Australia, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway and the U.K. and charted in six other countries. Since then, it has reappeared on the charts in four different years and has quickly become a Christmas standard, selling over four million copies.
My Grown-Up Christmas List"
by Amy Grant
The song was written by Linda Thompson-Jenner and David Foster, originally recorded by Foster with Natalie Cole in 1990. It was this version, included on Amy Grant's second Christmas album Home for Christmas, featuring altered lyrics and an additional verse that Grant wrote, that caught on.
Amy gives us a message away from materialism and added maturity to Christmas with a Christmas List That Matters.
"Jingle Bells"
by Diana Krall
This song was first copyrighted under the title "One Horse Open Sleigh". Included on Krall's album Christmas Songs and gifted with her signature voice and style, the version has become one of the most-played Christmas songs in recent years.
"Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy"
by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky wrote a two-act ballet called The Nutcracker. Originally, the ballet was not a success, but the suite that Tchaikovsky extracted from the ballet was. Of course now, The Nutcracker is extremely popular and is performed by ballet companies all over the world. This is one of the best versions of "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" performed by the Royal Symphony Orchestra.
1957: The Champs recorded "Tequila" in three takes at Gold Star Recording Studio in Hollywood, California. 1957: A new act appeared on the chart for the first time by the name of Tom & Jerry with the song "Hey Schoolgirl". They have now sold over 105 million albums, but they really didn't take off until they changed their name to Simon & Garfunkel.
1957: Sam Cooke once again was #1 on the R&B chart for a fifth week with "You Send Me". 1959: Chuck Berry was arrested in St. Louis, Missouri for transporting a minor (14 year-old girl) across state lines for an immoral purpose. 1959: The Drifters recorded "This Magic Moment".
1961: The Marvelettes posted their sixth week at #1 on the R&B chart with "Please Mr. Postman".
1961: Jimmy Dean had the top Easy Listening song for an incredible ninth week with "Big Bad John".
1962: Bob Dylan did a show at the King and Queen Pub in London.
1963: Lesley Gore released the single "You Don't Own Me". (Note: some women's websites incorrectly report the single was released in 1964. It was a hit in 1964; it was released in December, 1963--in fact, the song debuted on the chart on December 28, 1963. It is physically impossible for a song to be released after it charts.) 1964: Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys suffered a nervous breakdown while flying from Los Angeles to Houston. As a result, Wilson stopped touring with the group. (Note: 'Rolling Stone' reports that this occurred in 1965, but this is yet another instance of the magazine being wrong. As confirmed by the newspaper 'The Examiner', the Vocal Hall of Fame, as well as numerous other reputable sources, the breakdown occurred in 1964.)
1964: The Beach Boys made their first appearance on the popular television show Shindig!, performing "Little Saint Nick", "Dance, Dance, Dance", "Johnny B. Goode" and "Monster Mash". 1966: Ready, Steady Go! aired for the final time on BBC-TV in the U.K. with the Who as guests.
"Love Me Two Times" from 'Strange Days'...
1967: For the fourth week, the Monkees were at the top of the Album chart with Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. Diana Ross and the Supremes were still at #2 after hitting #1 with their Greatest Hits package and the Beatles were still third after 27 weeks. The Doors remained in the #4 spot with Strange Days and the Mamas and the Papas held on to 5 with Farewell to the First Golden Era. The rest of the Top 10: the Soundtrack to "Doctor Zhivago" after 93 weeks and the Soundtrack to "The Sound of Music" after 145 weeks, Are You Experienced? by the Jimi Hendrix Experience took a turn for the worse, the self-titled Vanilla Fudge at #9 and Dionne Warwick dropped in with Dionne Warwick's Golden Hits, Part One. 1967: The Lemon Pipers moved from 68 to 33 with "Green Tambourine".
Gary Puckett--One of the great voices of the Rock Era...
1967: The Monkees were at #1 for the fourth week with "Daydream Believer". Gladys Knight & the Pips remained second with their version of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine", the Beatles at #3 with "Hello Goodbye" and Smokey Robinson & the Miracles following with "I Second That Emotion". The rest of the Top 10: Gary Puckett from Twin Falls, Idaho with the Union Gap on a hot song--"Woman, Woman", which rose from 12 to 5, the Cowsills and their smash "The Rain, The Park & Other Things", "Boogaloo Down Broadway" from the Fantastic Johnny C at #7, Strawberry Alarm Clock with their former #1 "Incense And Peppermints", Cher's "You Better Sit Down Kids" and Dionne Warwick closed the list with "I Say A Little Prayer".
1968: The Doors released the single "Touch Me". (Note: some websites incorrectly report the song was released in 1969. It debuted on the chart on December 28, 1968, so it is therefore physically impossible for radio stations to report playing the 45 before it is released.) 1969: Elton John and Bernie Taupin began writing songs together. And history was about to be made. 1972: The John Lennon movie Imagine debuted on national television. 1972: Grand Funk Railroad played at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Legends: The amazing Moodies....
1972: The Moody Blues had another big album with Seventh Soujourn, #1 for a third week. Stanley, Idaho's Carole King remained at #2 with Rhymes & Reasons while Jethro Tull's new album Living in the Past moved up to battle the top two. Catch Bull At Four from Cat Stevens held on with the Temptations album All Directions on this date pointing downward. The rest of the Top 10: Al Green's I'm Still In Love with You, Seals & Crofts were up with Summer Breeze, the new James Taylor--One Man Dog ran up from 16 to 8, Yes was headed in the opposite direction with Close to the Edge and Caravanserai from Santana remained at #10. 1972: Bette Midler charted for the first time with her debut single "Do You Want To Dance".
1972: You didn't have to be smart to know where this song was heading--"You're So Vain" from Carly Simon up from 37 to 9 on this date. 1977: Cat Stevens converted to Islam and changed his name to Yusef Islam. 1978: "Le Freak" was the top R&B song for the fourth consecutive week from Chic.
One of the tightest bands of the Rock Era--Toto....
1978: Chic and "Le Freak" was the new #1 song, holding off "Too Much Heaven" from the Bee Gees and toppling the previous #1 "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" from Barbra Streisand & Neil Diamond. Toto reached the Top 10 for the first time with "Hold The Line".
"Fantasy", one of the great songs on EWF's compilation...
1978: Billy Joel had become a superstar and 52nd Street was #1 for a sixth week on the Album chart. The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Volume 1 moved from 19-9. 1989: Phil Collins moved to #1 with "Another Day In Paradise". 1989: "Another Day In Paradise" by Phil Collins was #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart for the fourth week.
1992: Eddie Hazel, great guitarist with Funkadelic, died at the age of 42 in Plainfield, New Jersey from internal bleeding and liver failure. 1995: Whitney Houston had the upper hand on the R&B chart for a fifth week with "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)". 1995: Anthology 1 by the Beatles was the #1 album for the third straight week.
Deep Blue Something landed a Top 10 song that borrowed from Audrey Hepburn...
1995: Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men were a dominant #1 for a fourth week with "One Sweet Day". Whitney Houston was #2 for the fourth week with "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)", Coolio's former #1 "Gangsta's Paradise" was still #4, TLC moved up to 5 with "Diggin' On You", Mariah Carey's former #1 "Fantasy" was sixth, Deep Blue Something moved up with "Breakfast At Tiffany's", the Goo Goo Dolls placed "Name" at #9 and the Beatles debuted at #10, 25 years after they broke up, with "Free As A Bird". 2006: Ciara had the top album with Ciara: The Evolution. 2007: The Police were named the top touring act of the year, with their Reunion tour earning $132 million. Extending into the next year, the tour finished #4 in the decade with over $362 million. 2008: Clint Ballard Jr., who wrote "Game Of Love" for Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders, "You're No Good" for Linda Ronstadt and songs recorded by artists such as the Hollies, the Zombies, Ricky Nelson, Jan & Dean and Frankie Avalon, died at the age of 77 in Denton, Texas. 2013: Ricky Lawson, drummer who worked with Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, Lionel Richie, Phil Collins, Toto, Steely Dan, Bette Midler, Eric Clapton, Quincy Jones, George Benson, Babyface, Al Jarreau, Sheila E. and George Duke, died following a brain aneurism in Long Beach, California at the age of 59.
Born This Day:
1923: Milt Okun, producer of many acts including John Denver and Peter, Paul and Mary, owner of Cherry Hill Music Publishing Company and founder of the Los Angeles Opera, was born in Brooklyn, New York; died November 15, 2016 in Beverly Hills, California. 1935: Little Esther Phillips was born in Galveston, Texas; died August 7, 1984 at UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, California from liver failure due to drugs. (Note: some websites report Phillips died in Carson, California, which is a little humorous. The UCLA Medical Center is on Carson Street in Torrance; it is not its own town.) 1935: Johnny Kidd of Johnny Kidd & the Pirates was born in Willesden, North London; died October 7, 1966 in a car crash in Bury, Lancashire, England while on tour in Manchester.
1940: Jorma Kaukonen, guitarist with Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna, was born in Washington, D.C.
1940: Eugene Record of the Chi-Lites ("Have You Seen Her") was born in Chicago, Illinois; died July 22, 2005 in Chicago after a long battle with cancer. 1940: Tim Hardin, folk artist who wrote "If I Were A Carpenter" (Four Tops and others) and "Reason To Believe" (Rod Stewart), was born in Eugene, Oregon; died from drugs in Los Angeles on December 29, 1980, six days after his 40th birthday. 1942: Declan Cluskey of the Bachelors ("Diane") was born in Dublin, Ireland. 1945: Ron Bushy, drummer of Iron Butterfly, was born in Washington, D.C. (Note: numerous websites report his birthday as September 23; however, the only credible websites that list his birthday ('United Press International', the 'BBC', and 'Allmusic.com', show that Ron was born on December 23.) 1946: Robbie Dupree ("Steal Away" and "Hot Rod Hearts" fom 1980) was born in Brooklyn, New York. (Note: 'Allmusic.com' lists his birth year as 1947, but since they are the only website that shows that and there is no corroborating source, we believe that to be a misprint.) 1946: Luther Grosvenor, guitarist of Spooky Tooth, Stealer's Wheel and Mott the Hoople who later changed his name to Ariel Bender, and who later was a solo artist, was born in Evesham, Worcestershire, England. 1949: Adrian Belew, guitarist and singer who worked with David Bowie and King Crimson, was born in Covington, Kentucky.
1951: Johnny Contardo, lead singer of Sha Na Na and star of the Broadway musical Grease, was born in Boston, Massachusetts.
1956: Dave Murray, elite guitarist and songwriter with Iron Maiden, was born in Edmonton, London.
1964: Eddie Vedder, lead singer, guitarist and songwriter of Pearl Jam, was born in Evanston, Illinois. 1974: Montsho Eshe of Arrested Development
This is a somber but appropriate song for this time of year. As we are celebrating Jesus's birth and a time of great love, happiness and fellowship, we must also remember those less fortunate. So when you pass that old lady in the street, huddled up against a brick building for warmth, do yourself a favor and don't whistle and pretend you don't see.
This Grammy Award winner for Record of the Year is Phil's effort to bring the attention of homelessness to the forefront.
"Another Day in Paradise"
by Phil Collins
Written by Phil Collins
She calls out to the man on the street
"Sir, can you help me?
It's cold and I've nowhere to sleep,
Is there somewhere you can tell me?"
He walks on, doesn't look back
He pretends he can't hear her
Starts to whistle as he crosses the street
Seems embarrassed to be there
Oh think twice, it's another day for
You and me in paradise
Oh think twice, it's just another day for you,
You and me in paradise
She calls out to the man on the street
He can see she's been crying
She's got blisters on the soles of her feet
Can't walk but she's trying
Oh think twice...
Oh lord, is there nothing more anybody can do
Oh lord, there must be something you can say
You can tell from the lines on her face
You can see that she's been there
Probably been moved on from every place
'Cos she didn't fit in there
This is the title song (written by Connick) from his album of 1993, which was the top-selling Christmas album of the year (748,000 copies). It has now gone triple platinum.
"Linus and Lucy"
by Vince Guaraldi
Guaraldi wrote this song in 1964 about the fictional characters Linus and Lucy Van Pelt in the Charles Schultz classic comic strip Peanuts, and it was included on the album Jazz Impressions of a Boy Named Charlie Brown. The song was introduced in the premiere of A Charlie Brown Christmas in 1965. Although it is an instrumental not specifically about Christmas, because of its association with the Charlie Brown special, it has become synonymous with Christmas. In fact, it's tough to hear this song and not think of the Peanuts characters dancing in their lovable way.
"We Wish You the Merriest"
by Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby & Fred Waring
Les Brown wrote this song that was included on the popular 1964 album 12 Songs of Christmas. To have not only Frank Sinatra but Bing Crosby both wishing you the merriest has to mean that you're pretty special.
"Silver Bells"
by Anne Murray
This can be found on the album entitled Anne Murray's Christmas Album. Since it came out, it has received great airplay year after year.
"Sleigh Ride"
by the Ray Conniff Singers
There are some great versions of "Sleigh Ride", including the New Christy Minstrels, the Ronettes . This version really makes you want to go on the sleigh ride.
"Here We Come A-Caroling/We Wish You a Merry Christmas"
by Perry Como
Como is just one of those talents that sounds awesome on every thing he does. Here's one of six that Perry has in The Top 150* to wrap up today's half dozen.
