Day 21 of my marathon, and the end is in sight! I said I’d be catching up with favourites this week, and this first one is definitely one of those:

Chris de Burgh has been rather looked down on by ‘serious’ music lovers (e.g. me) since the execrable Lady In Red, but there is no denying that some of his earlier stuff is very good. This song was originally released on his 1975 album Spanish Train And Other Stories, and was a #1 hit in his half-native Ireland. A re-recorded version was released in 1986 to cash in on the success of the aforementioned vomit-inducer, and reached #40 here, and he then made a third version of it in 2010, which is the one in this video. On its original release the song was deemed blasphemous and was banned in South Africa – but only on the vinyl album, as the cassette version was allowed to slip through. Weird, or what? This video was the winning entry in a competition, and I think it’s rather lovely.

You know that thing about catching up with favourites this week? Well, this is one, but I don’t think I’ve ever played it, in any of its many versions. So it’s about time I did:

This was originally written in 1948 as an instrumental piece, by Leroy Anderson, and the lyrics were added in 1950 by Mitchell Parrish. The Ronettes version, which I’ve always loved, was recorded in 1963 for Phil Spector’s album A Christmas Gift For You, one of three songs by the group on it. Not being helped by its release being on the day JFK was assassinated, it didn’t get into the main US albums chart that year, and only reached #13 on the US Holiday albums listing. It has been re-released several times, attaining peak positions in the main album charts of #12 in the US, in 2018, and of #19 in the UK, in 1983. The Ronettes’ version has never been officially released under their own name, either as a single or on their only album, though in these days of downloads it has achieved singles chart placings as high as #33 in the UK and #13 in the US. I still think it’s great, and this new official video from last year is a lot of fun. There have been a number of other versions, notably by Johnny Mathis, Ella Fitzgerald, Gwen Stefani, The Carpenters, and the Spice Girls, and that Carey woman has done it too.

I mentioned the other day that Andrea Von Kampen, the lovely voice behind the Hafod Hardware ads, has recently released a new Christmas single. It seems like a good idea to share it with you:

On her YouTube page, Andrea says “I wrote this song while thinking about a wintry day that feels magical and timeless. I wanted the music to sound like the song you hear when you open a music box as a kid. The strings add a lush and full presence while the rhodes adds that music box feel.” I think she has achieved that: it is a perfect little piece for this time of year.

And speaking of Hafod Hardware, this would also seem to be a good time to complete my reprise of their wonderful Christmas ads with their fourth, and most recent, from 2020:

As always, that was the best ad I saw that Christmas, beautifully capturing the spirit of giving what you can, and with yet another stunningly lovely song by Andrea. It’s a real shame that family reasons have prevented them from making one this year, but I live in hope for next year.

That’s all for today’s music, so that must be my cue for an image of the day. For those of us in the UK this is rather topical:

See you again tomorrow 🎅