I haven’t planned it like this, but I seem to have been getting into a run of alternating quieter days with more raucous ones. So, to avoid any thought of getting myself into a rut, today is a day of variety. This will be a mix of two of my older favourites, plus a brand new one from a covers band I’ve shared with you earlier in the month. I like them all, and I hope you will, too!
I haven’t shared Joni Mitchell‘s music on the blog as much as I might have done, given that I have been a fan since her earliest days, and particularly of her early albums – from which this song comes:
An absolutely beautiful song, and the video of Snoopy and the Peanuts characters is such a perfect fit for it. I’ve shared this before, but it is so lovely that I just had to include it again. If you haven’t seen it before, do watch it to the end, as it has a subtle little life lesson for us. You probably already know that the song was on Joni’s Blue album, released in June 1971, and which I still think is her best album ever. Ten tracks, and they are all brilliant. The album peaked at #15 in the US, at #9 in her native Canada, but I’m pleased to say that we did best by it, as it reached #3 here in the UK. Fifty years ago, and it still sounds as fresh as ever. Joni suffered an aneurysm some years ago, which has severely affected her, but it is good to know she is still recognised for her music: she has received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Historical Album, for her Archives, Vol. 1: The Early Years (1963-1967) collection – the Awards’ winners will be announced on January 31, 2022 – and earlier this month she was one of this year’s honorees for the Kennedy Centre Honours. It seems that the US has adopted this Canadian as one of their own but she has been living there since 1965, to be fair! She looked frail at the event, but it was great to see her being able to accept the honour in person.
My second choice is a Christmas single released by my favourite live band. To back up my comment that I was mixing things up today, this takes us from the sublime to the (vaguely) ridiculous, but it is a lot of fun:
I’ve been to many of their shows, including a Christmas one, and they really are as anarchic as the video suggests. But if one of the purposes of music is to entertain, Bellowhead do it in huge amounts: no one ever leaves one of their shows feeling short-changed. If they were moving around too quickly for you to count, they have eleven members and describe themselves as a ‘folk big band.’ This was released as a non-album single in December 2013, with a re-recorded version of Jingle Bells on the B-side (as distinct from the version I shared on Day 6 of this series). It didn’t make the charts but, unusually for a folk act, four of their five albums have all been in the UK albums chart, two of them making it into the top twenty. This video is, as I said, a lot of fun, and I probably couldn’t have given you two more different ones!
I thought I’d give you a third song again today. On Day 1 I shared a video of a covers band I had found on YouTube, providing me with the first version of Wham‘s Last Christmas that I have actually liked. They have been releasing new Christmas videos weekly during Advent, and this is their latest:
The band, if you don’t remember them or missed the big logo at the beginning of that, is First To Eleven, and if you want to read more about them it is in the previous post, the link to which is above the video. If you have been following this series you may recall that on Day 9 I shared my all-time favourite version of this song, by Brynn Andre: do follow that link if you want to see that one again. I’m not saying that this is better, but I’ve really grown to like First To Eleven since I found them some months ago, and I think this is a rather sweet version of the song, with some great guitar work. And any excuse to see the cute Audra Miller again isn’t going to be missed by me!
That’s all for today’s songs. All that remains is to leave you with an image of the day Looking back, I think I’ve been really restrained with these, as I have a library of them which I probably wouldn’t put on here, ever! This one of the more borderline ones:
Well, it made me laugh, anyway! I’ll be back with some more good taste tomorrow, and a real bumper edition of songs – there will be five in all, three of which I’ve never shared before. Now there’s a treat you can’t afford to miss! See you then 🎁
Take It Easy 
Hi Clive – The Peanuts and Joni song/video was a good pairing – and did you mean the life lesson was the falling after the huge smile and success – take heed as the next fall is imminent??
And Belowhead must be amazing to see in person
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*Bellowhead
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It’s wonderful, Yvette, isn’t it? Yes, the old ‘pride comes before a fall’ message was what I meant.
Bellowhead really are amazing at their shows. There are eleven of them so there is always something going on – they have just as much fun as the audience do!
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🎄💚
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I’m not a huge fan of Joni Mitchell, but I sure love this tune. Part of what makes a live show fun is seeing a group having fun. One certainly gets that impression with Bellowhead. You’ve played so many great songs in this series, Clive, but I think you’ll be pleased to know that nearly every day, I’m still playing Last Christmas all the way back to Day 1. I had never heard of this cover band until you introduced them to me. I’ve since listened to many of their non-Christmas songs. I like this one too, but it’s the guitar and drum work of Last Christmas that hooked me.
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Joni Mitchell has always been someone whose music I love, and this video is perfect for this time of year.
Bellowhead always provide a lot of fun at their shows, so much so that it can be easy to forget what good musicians they all are!
I’m really pleased that you have been enjoying First To Eleven so much, as I think they are very talented.
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Its always a pleasure to listen to Joni..First to Eleven are a great find Clive… another enjoyable post of Christmas music 🙂 x
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Thanks, Carol. Unsurprisingly I agree on both counts, and I’m glad you enjoyed the post 😊 x
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Good to have Bellowhead featured.
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For the second time this year – you can never have too much of a good thing 😊
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The River is one of my favorite somgs, Chrismas or otherwise.
love the Bellowhead song – thanks for introducing me to them a ahiel ago – they are fanstastic…
and First to Eleven is quite the cover band!
another great Advent Calendar post…
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It’s a beautiful song, one of the best by one of the best.
I’m glad you enjoyed the other two as well. There was nothing quite like Bellowhead, and they are planning a tour next November to mark ten years since their first top twenty album. Most of the dates are already close to sold out: they’ve been missed! And First To Eleven have been a real find for me – so talented, and most of them are only in their early twenties.
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I’m too lazy too look, since I am sure you know the answer off the top of your head. Does First to Eleven have any original material?
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Not under that name – just the ten albums of covers plus a Christmas album, also covers. But three of them – Audra, the drummer and guitarist – got themselves a recording contract to do their own songs. The band name is Concrete Castles and their debut album came out on my birthday, back in September. It’s called Wish I Missed U, and it’s very good. Puts me a bit in mind of Evanescence.
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thanks for that info; have you profiled the Concrete Castles yet? and I’m sure it should ring a bell, but I don’t recognize the name Evanescence…
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They’ve only had a brief mention in passing when I shared FTE on Day 1 of this series. Maybe in the New Year…
Evanescence are a rock band led by a female singer, Amy Lee, hence the comparison. Their debut single, Bring Me To Life, was a massive hit on both sides of the pond. They’ve released just five albums in eighteen years – and they sell by the truckload!
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I’ll have to look up Evanescence!
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I love that Joni Mitchell song. Sad to hear she’s frail now, but hey ho, such is life…
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So do I. It’s from a pretty special album. It was lovely to see her make the Kennedy Centre shindig, and to see the esteem in which she was held by her fellow musicians.
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The River is one of my favourite Christmas songs and of course I love our Joni. She was born near where I lived in Canada, a prairie girl like me. The song reminds my friend of her mom, who passed away relatively young. Every time she hears it she bursts into tears. First To Eleven’s version of Let it Snow is great! Thanks again for keeping me happy with Christmas music.
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Anyone with good musical taste loves Joni – you don’t have to be Canadian, but I guess that helps! It’s such a beautiful song and that video is a perfect fit for it. I’m glad you enjoyed First To Eleven too – they have been a real find for me.
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