Christmas Belles

Clockwise: Ella Fitzgerald; Lena Horne; Peggy Lee; Judy Garland; and Pearl Bailey.

With Christmas only days away, I thought I'd pick up that theme with some of the great ladies from days gone by. I came across an old collection called 'Christmas Belles' and found that to be a great source of wonderful music. These are five of the first six cuts, as I could not find one on Youtube. So we can start with the always delightful Ella Fitzgerald as she sings the classic "Sleigh Ride".

I am not sure you can have a collection of greats without putting Judy Garland on it. And it is only natural to sing the song she introduced in the 1944 MGM musical 'Mett Me In St. Louis". It was directed by Vincent Minnelli, and featured a cameo by daughter Liza. But it also had Judy singing "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas".

Lena Horne was a woman of abundant talent, and singing was included. She had scuh style and flair, as well as an amazing tone. You can hear it when she sings "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!"

And when you speak of someone who had great style, it is had to miss the brillaint Pearl Bailey. I remember seeing her appear on the variety shows, like the Mike Douglas Show, and sing all kinds of songs. I don't remember seeing her sing "Jingle Bells Cha-Cha-Cha", but I sure wish I did.

Finally, this is a gorgeous song filled with sweet images. Somewhere along the way, a fan made a video, and it is a nice one. Of course, it is tough to go wrong when you are starting with the talents of Peggy Lee, and when she sings a wonderful song like "Christmas Carousel".

Merry Christmas!

Dark Monday • Before The Parade Passes By

In 1964, the original Broadway production of Hello Dolly! premiered on January 16, at the St. James Theater. The show was based on Thorton Wilder's 1938 play The Merchant of Yonkers, itself a failure. In 1955, Wilder was adapted the play and renamed it The Matchmaker, which was successful both on the stage and screen, starring Ruth Gordon and Shirley Booth, respectively. In the early 60s, Jerry Herman was working on musical remake of the show, and wrote the lead role of Dolly Levi for the great Ethel Merman. It was then offered to Mary Martin, who also turned it down. After many auditions of some of the top Broadway stars of the day, Carol Channing was cast in the lead, and will be forever remembered for this iconic role. Here she is singing the song that closes the first act with a huge exclamation point. This is Carol singing Before The Parade Passes By.



Interestingly enough, Before The Parade Passes By was not in the original tryout version of the show. The Producers and Herman thought the show needed a better end to Act 1, and the song was added. In 1967, an all-black version of the show was on Broadway, featuring the gifted Pearl Bailey as Dolly Levi. Here the two Dollys, Carol and Pearl, singing a few of the songs from the show. This was a clip from the 1969 television special Carol Channing & Pearl Bailey: On Broadway.



To purchase the soundtrack, you can find Carol's original Broadway cast recording on Amazon and on iTunes. You can find Pearl's on Amazon and iTunes. Interestingly enough, Mary Martin played the role in the London production, and Merman took the role in a replacement cast. But none were the choice for the movie version, as the studio cast Barbra Streisand, who was just 27 years old, much younger than the role was played before.