Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
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This is a blog about holiday songs, Christmas music, and seasonal entertainment, focusing on my annual holiday music mixes and CDs. Unusual, offbeat, vintage, and rare Christmas and holiday songs, including background on my annual holiday music mixes. Features holiday tunes and Christmas carols you probably haven't heard before, plus other holiday fun for all.
Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
1M ago
Late last year, it was widely reported that all was not well between Daryl Hall and John Oates, whose musical partnership produced scores of hit records in the '70s, '80s and '90s, including 12 Billboard Top 10 singles and five #1s. It seems the two had some kind of falling out over ownership rights to their various songs, Mr. Hall sued Mr. Oates and now the whole matter is in court. You can read more about the gory details HERE,
I liked a lot of the material Hall & Oates created, including some of their lesser known releases. I especially liked their 1977 album Beauty on a Back Str ..read more
Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
1M ago
Former President Carter
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter will be honored with a special Christmas ornament this year, the White House Historical Association announced this week. The nation's 39th president, Carter, age 99, is the first living president to be honored by the Association with such an ornament.
Founded by former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy in 1961, the White House Historical Association has been creating and releasing official White House ornaments each year since 1981. The ornaments celebrate the history of the White House and the presidents who serve there. Sale of ..read more
Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
3M ago
Residents from around the world said goodbye to 2023 and welcomed 2024 today, with fireworks, speeches, parties and quiet get-togethers among friends, families and neighbors.
Australia was among the first countries to start celebrating:
Chinese families listened to a New Year's address by their president:
Folks in Singapore were treated to an especially beautiful fireworks show:
In Dubai, another magnificent show kicked-off from the world's tallest building:
And in New York's Times Square, locals and visitors participated in the traditional countdown and dropping of the Times Squa ..read more
Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
3M ago
This One's About Cowbells, Not Sleigh Bells, But It's One of the Best SNL Sketches Ever
Every Saturday from Thanksgiving through New Year's Day, we open the vault to share a classic Saturday Night Live holiday-themed sketch to bring some fun and laughter to your holiday season. With Christmas now over and New Year's Eve just one day away I tried to find a funny SNL New Year's sketch, but there aren't any. Maybe that's because the show is typically on mini-hiatus from mid-December to sometime in January. Anyway, rather than run yet another holiday bit, I thought I'd share what to me remains o ..read more
Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
3M ago
From my earliest memories, December 26 has been a day of decidedly mixed emotions. Sure, there are usually new toys and presents to enjoy, as well as a generous spread of leftover food and drink. And of course there are warm memories of the fellowship and fun of the preceding days. But there's also the let-down that invariably follows any big celebration, and for many of us age 16 and over the reality of the deferred costs incurred.
In many parts of the world, December 26 is celebrated as Boxing Day, which extends the merriment and postpones the inevitable. At this address we've chosen ..read more
Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
3M ago
It's Christmas Eve, and I imagine Santa and his helpers have begun their annual mission to bring joy and laughter to children around the world. Of course, Santa can't make it to every house in a single night. Let's hope the rest of us can do something to fill the gap and spread a bit of happiness as best we can.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and yours ..read more
Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
3M ago
For the past few weeks we've been posting just a bit of background on each of the 37 tracks on my 19th and most recent holiday holiday mix, Christmas Cheer. Today, with two shopping days left to go before December 25, I'm proud to share some information about the final three tracks on the mix. I believe this is the earliest we've ever completed this task, and because we started early we were able to proceed at a pleasant and leisurely pace with nobody getting upsot. There's a lesson in the somewhere, though I'm darned if I can figure out just what it is!
Track 35Yonder, The Sisterhood (1978 ..read more
Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
3M ago
The Time:
December 2009
The Place:
The White House, Washington, DC
The Event:
President and Mrs. Barack Obama Record a Holiday Greeting to the Nation to Mark Their First Christmas in the White House
I guess Donald Trump misspoke when he alleged that neither President nor Mrs. Obama ever said "Merry Christmas" during their tenure in the White House ..read more
Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
3M ago
There's one cherished holiday tradition I've really missed over the past nine years, one that ended when The Late Show with David Letterman went off the air in 2015. For 28 years, Darlene Love had appeared on Dave's final show before Christmas to sing her classic "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)," which is my favorite Christmas song of all time. Well, it's not quite the same, but David got together with Love and his former band leader, Paul Shaffer the other day for a holiday reunion.
There were two other traditional components to the last pre-Christmas show each year. First, Paul Shaffer ..read more
Bells Will Be Ringing Blog
3M ago
It's almost time for one of our favorite holiday traditions -- namely, the annual Sound Opinions Holiday Spectacular, featuring offbeat holiday music expert Andy Cirzan. Andy's been making his annual holiday mixes for even a good bit longer than I have; in fact, it was Andy's mixes that inspired me to attempt my own pale imitations. Each year in December, Andy's the featured guest on Sound Opinions to unveil his annual mix and talk about unusual holiday music.
Sound Opinions is a weekly show where people who love music can come together, make discoveries, debate, learn about pop culture, engag ..read more