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Christmas Music Guru
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  • Register:09/07/2005 11:04:22

Date Posted:11/14/2010 10:08:46Copy HTML




 


The great conductor Stanley Black’s magnificent 1956 LP, Christmas Holiday For Romance, is sadly little remembered today -- which is a pure tragedy as it has an honored place it the history of great classic Christmas music, as it remains one of the greatest instrumental Christmas albums ever recorded.

 

Besides being a major force in the world of orchestral easy-listening music for many years, Mr. Black in his career also scored numerous themes for films and television. In addition, he hosted his own shows on radio and television in the U.K., where he was a native.

 

To give you an idea of just how great his 1956 Christmas LP is; it not only resides in the 1st Tier of my Top 500 (albums 1-125), but it cracks my Top 50, coming in at #30.

 

For this In The Spotlight tribute to this great artist and this great album, I chose to showcase the opening number on the LP: the great contemporary Christmas composition "Santo Natale" (which like this album, is sadly not as well-known today as it should be). Perhaps, if I am successful one day in getting this classic album back in print, both will change. In the meantime, this In The Spotlight tribute will have to suffice to introduce this forgotten treasure of music to a whole new generation of Christmas music lovers.

 

So here now for your listening enjoyment is the incomparable Stanley Black and his wonderful interpretation of "Santo Natale."



 Click Here ~ "Santo Natale"





For my second Stanley Black selection, I chose another contemporary Christmas composition that sadly today is also not near as well-known or performed as it should be; it’s the delightful "Christmas Island."


 Click Here ~ "Christmas Island"





Lawrence F. "Chip" Arcuri Owner/Webmaster | The Yule Log.com
Christmas1964 Share to: Facebook Twitter MSN linkedin google yahoo #1
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  • Register:08/10/2009 03:46:14

Re:Stanley Black: Santo Natale & Christmas Island

Date Posted:11/15/2010 01:14:24Copy HTML

Thanks, Chip.  I was beautiful.

Lisa
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  • Register:09/07/2005 11:04:22

Re:Stanley Black: Santo Natale & Christmas Island

Date Posted:11/15/2010 04:34:23Copy HTML


You're welcome Lisa; glad you enjoyed it.


Lawrence F. "Chip" Arcuri Owner/Webmaster | The Yule Log.com
johnnyelectron Share to: Facebook Twitter MSN linkedin google yahoo #3
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Re:Stanley Black: Santo Natale & Christmas Island

Date Posted:11/15/2010 05:29:11Copy HTML

IIRC, Patty Page had a very nice version of "Santo Natale" on one of the Columbia special products Christmas compilation LP's for Grant's stores in the late 60's.
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Re:Stanley Black: Santo Natale & Christmas Island

Date Posted:11/15/2010 06:56:50Copy HTML


Yes, Patti Page did a beautiful version of the song. And yes, it was indeed included on one of the Grant's A Very Merry Christmas compilation albums; in fact, it was the very first volume that was released in 1967. However, Patti originally released her rendition of the song on her 1965 Columbia Records LP, Christmas With Patti Page.

By the way, the original version of Santo Natale was actually recorded by British singer David Whitfield in 1954. And the arrangement and musical accompaniment? It was provided by none other than Stanley Black, which is one of the primary reasons why he recorded and released it on his own Christmas album two years later in 1956.



Lawrence F. "Chip" Arcuri Owner/Webmaster | The Yule Log.com
Christmas Music Guru Share to: Facebook Twitter MSN linkedin google yahoo #5
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  • Register:09/07/2005 11:04:22

Re:Stanley Black: Santo Natale & Christmas Island

Date Posted:11/07/2014 10:46:46Copy HTML





I'm still working to get this great classic Christmas album by Stanley Black back in print; but in the meantime, it will be available for download from Amazon U.K. beginning November 29, 2014: click here.

The artwork for the album shown by Amazon U.K. on the page for the download was the one that was used for the U.K. LP release. It was nice, but the artwork used for the U.S. LP release was so much nicer. It's pictured above.



Lawrence F. "Chip" Arcuri Owner/Webmaster | The Yule Log.com
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