Johnny Mathis • Sending You A Little Christmas

Earlier this fall, Johnny Mathis released a new Christmas album, and somehow, I managed to miss the news. Thankfully, my buddy JD Doyle of Queer Music Heritage did not, and sent me a note to check it out. It is a 'no brainer' that I would, since his first holiday album, 'Merry Christmas', is a favorite of mine. The album was a part of my own holiday soundtrack, for I have been hearing Johnny sing Christmas music all my life. In fact, I remember hearing his Pop songs and his Christmas music on the radio, and in the house. That first holiday album was released 55 years ago, yet I still play it every year. On the new album, Mathis works with such amazing artists as Billy Joel, Natalie Cole, Jim Brickman, Gloria Estefan, Susan Boyle, Vince Gill and Amazy Grant, and delivers another album I think I might be playing every year! This is the list of songs.

01. The Christmas Song (with Billy Joel)

02. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas (with Natalie Cole)

03. This Christmas

04. Sending You a Little Christmas (with Jim Brickman)

05. Mary's Boy Child (with Gloria Estefan)

06. This Is a Time For Love

07. Do You Hear What I Hear (with Susan Boyle)

08. Home for the Holidays (featuring The Jordanaires)

09. Merry Christmas Darling

10. Decorate the Night

11. I'll Be Home for Christmas/White Christmas (with Vince Gill & Amy Grant)

12. Count Your Blessings

Now, I thought it would be fun this Christmas morning to let you hear the whole album, and let it be the soundtrack to your Christmas morning. It is a great holiday treat, and I am sure you will love it. So grab your cup of coffee or tea, and start opening your presents. Have a great Christmas day, and enjoy 'Sending You a Little Christmas'.

I must admit, Johnny Mathis has also been a hero of sorts for me. The man was courageous enough to come out of the closet in 1982 in 'Us' Magazine, long before it was the popular or safe thing to do. Handsome, talented, and gay, who could ask for anything more? You can purchase 'Sending You a Little Christmas' from iTunes and Amazon. You can still purchase 'Merry Christmas' from iTunes and Amazon as well. For more about Johnny Mathis, visit his official website. You can also 'like' him on Facebook.

Visit Theo Tams for the Holidays

Well, it should come as no shock to anyone that my next subject is in my list of favorites. In 2008 he was named winner of Canadian Idol, and can truly say his is the only winner of that brand that I listen to. He is still the only franchise winner to be out during the run of the show, which is impressive. I didn't see the show, and only became aware of his music with his debut album, Give It All Away. I caught the video for Lazy Lovers online, and was hooked. I got my import CD, and when I talked about it on this blog, named it one of the very best Idol-related albums I had heard, world-wide. I so enjoyed his music, I drove to Toronto this past summer to see him performing live, my first ever trip to Canada. I had seen the video for Wait For You, where Tams made the gutsy choice to shoot it live, creating a new version of the song off his debut.



Well, the trip was quite worthwhile, for I not only got to meet several other Theo fans, now my friends, I also had the chance to meet Theo, and he is even more charming and sweet in person than I thought he would be! And I had the chance to hear some new music live, which certainly enhanced the trip. So, when it came time to put this series together, I had no choice but to ask him about his favorite holiday music.

"By far my favorite Christmas Album is Home For Christmas by Amy Grant," Theo remembered. "It speaks volumes about the family that I come from. My sisters would always belt out these songs at the top of our lungs while Mom and Dad would drive us around looking at Christmas lights." Well, I would be just a Grinch if I didn't help recapture those memories, right? So here is Amy Grant singing Grown Up Christmas List.



Knwoing he had written a Christmas song, I couldn't wait to hear his favorite holiday song to perform. I was a bit surprised. "Do You Hear What I Hear was always my favorite Christmas song," he answered. "I finally got a chance to record it as a duet with another emerging Canadian singer, Ali Slaight. It went to number 1 last year which was a craaazy great Christmas gift," he said, laughing. Here is the video for the song, made to raise money for the War Child charity, offering assistance to children affected in areas of conflict, and post-conflict. You can check out War Child's website here.



As I asked the others, I was eager to know about his hopes for the New Year. "To keep on keeping on," he answered. "Simple as that. To find more balance. To make more melodies, and tell more stories." I think that is what many of us would like, my friend.

Trying to dig into Theo's iPod, I asked what was his favorite song and/or music from 2010. "That's hard," he said, thoughtfully, "there has been a lot of great music this year. I would have to give the edge to Lady Antebellum. Need You Now has struck a chord with a lot of listeners, the vulnerability is exposes is very human."

With 2011 on the horizon, I wanted to know what he was looking forward to musically. "Working on the new record already, so 2011 will be writing, recording, and waiting (not patiently!)," he said excitedly. "Then it'll be a bunch more touring which I love - life on the road brings me closer to my fans and those are always very special times. I feel like I am meeting more family every day - what a wonderful part of this crazy journey." I had mentioned before he had written, with Luke McMaster, Simon Wilcox and Greg Johnston, so I thought it might be nice to hear it now. The name of the song is Christmas Dream, and it is quite lovely. This video was recorded at a radio interview Theo had, which also raised money for abused and neglected children.



Theo is currently hard at work on his follow-up album, due out in the new year. I, of course, will be eagerly awaiting that one. And, hopefully, the tour to support it, when I might be making my second trip to Canada! You can find more about Theo at his official website here. You can also find him on FaceBook here, and Twitter here. And, quite regularly, you can find him playing on my iPod!