Arts and Entertainment
Song of the Day 12/21: The Drifters, “White Christmas”
Did you know that there was one version of this song — out of the more than 500 that have been recorded — that angered composer Irving Berlin so much he waged a campaign to get it banned from radio stations? No, it wasn’t this one, which was a hit for the original Drifters in […]
Song of the Day 12/20: The Piano Guys, “I Saw Three Ships”
The era of audio-only music might have ended with MTV, but we’re now into an age in which viral video is the best way to break into the music business. The Piano Guys — four middle-aged dudes who stumbled into YouTube stardom by making videos to advertise a music store — are a perfect example. […]
Song of the Day 12/19: The Kinks, “Father Christmas”
The best punk Christmas song, period. There are other punk-style efforts, but they just sound like punk songs with a few words about the holiday. Ray Davies, as usual, had more in mind, so you get punk energy, a singable melody and sympathy for the poor kids reduced to mugging a department-store Santa in this […]
‘Bulo’s Fave Tunes Of 2019: #’s 20-11
At this point, I think more about the order of the songs. We’re in for some real treats today: 20. 19. Belongs here for the weirdness factor alone: 18. 17. 16. 15. 14. The saddest song of the year. David Berman (of Silver Jews fame) released this album, and committed suicide soon thereafter. The […]
Song of the Day 12/18: Jethro Tull, “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”
Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson has written several Christmas songs, and he’s also given many traditional carols new, jazzy arrangements that show off the band’s chops. This is one he played in concert for many years before recording it in 2003 for Tull’s “A Christmas Album.” That album, the last studio effort from the band, featured […]
‘Bulo’s Fave Tunes Of 2019: #’s 30-21
Some of our most senior readers have requested that I slow down the pace of this thread, all the better to savor the tunes in a more languid fashion. I’m all for languor, so: 30. 29. 28. 27. 26. 25. 24. 23. 22. 21.
Song of the Day 12/17: Louis Armstrong w/ Benny Carter and his Orchestra, “Christmas Night in Harlem”
TRIGGER WARNING: When this was written by Raymond Scott in 1934, it was perfectly acceptable for white men to mock black society and call it comedy (this was shortly after the Harlem Renaissance was put to rest by the Depression). Some people will find the original by the Paul Whiteman Orchestra, linked below, to be […]
‘Bulo’s Fave Tunes Of 2019: #’s 50-31
OK, let’s get a few things out of the way first. I’m a 68-year-old white guy. I consider myself musically adventurous–for a 68-year-old white guy. Some genres just don’t appeal to me. ‘Dance pop’, whatever that is, being one of them. Rap, while represented on my list, will invariably be underrepresented. Death metal will not […]
Song of the Day 12/16: Johnny and Edgar Winter, “Please Come Home for Christmas”
Brothers singing harmony always sound special, but we rarely got to hear these two together because they each led their own bands. Both Johnny and Edgar were musical prodigies, performing together even as kids. They first teamed up on this holiday blues in 1961, the year after it was written and recorded by Charles Brown. […]
Song of the Day 12/15: Donny Hathaway, “This Christmas”
Donny Hathaway had a lofty goal when he wrote and sang what’s easily the most soulful song ever to attain the status of a Christmas classic — he wanted it to represent a distinctly African-American expression of the holiday. Sadly, Hathaway died years before it ascended to the yuletide pantheon. Hathaway started out working for […]
Song of the Day 12/14: John Coltrane Quartet, “My Favorite Things”
I totally get it if you’re one of those people who can’t stand Christmas music. Even people who don’t mind it are sick of it by this date. I therefore observe a strict rule about Christmas music: 12 days of it is plenty. So starting today I’ll feature holiday music through Christmas day, then that’s […]
Song of the Day 12/13: Prince, “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man”
In his heyday, Prince was often compared to Michael Jackson, but while both could sing and dance like nobody else, Prince also wrote his own songs, produced his own albums and might have been the most underrated great guitarist in rock. He wrote this song in 1982, when he still mixed a lot of pop […]
Song of the Day 12/12: The Tubes, “What Do You Want From Life?”
The Tubes were — actually, still are — a comic theater-rock troupe that formed in San Francisco in the early ’70s. They never sold all that many records, but their live shows were legendarily loopy, and they created some catchy tunes while they were at it. Their biggest hit came in the MTV era with […]
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