Archive for the ‘Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music’ Category

Dec
0

December 5: A Day to Celebrate – Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2012: Santa's Sequel Sellouts

Santa's Sequel Sellouts - December 5: A Day to Celebrate

Santa's Sequel Sellouts - December 5: A Day to Celebrate

Sequel to: Star Wars (Film, 1977)

Today's song is a perfect example of the alternate type of sequel we outlined in our Introduction: Christmas Songs/Shows/Movies that are sequels to Non-Christmas Songs/Shows/Movies. In this case, Star Wars lit a fire on movie screens in 1977, defining the science fiction genre for decades to come.

So, it was only logical that someone tried to make a Christmas special based on the property, right? Enter the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special, which aired just once… November 17, 1978 on CBS. It was a show about which George Lucas reportedly said, "If I had the time and a sledgehammer, I would track down every copy of that show and smash it." Yes, it was that bad.

Continue Reading…

Dec
1

December 4: The Chanukah Song – Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2012: Santa's Sequel Sellouts

Santa's Sequel Sellouts - December 4: The Chanukah Song

Santa's Sequel Sellouts - December 4: The Chanukah Song

Sequel to: The Chanukah Song (Song, 1995)

I featured Adam Sandler's "The Chanukah Song" back in the 2002 edition of Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music. Following the rules of the 25 Days, once a track is featured one year, it cannot be included again in future installments. This has made it rather difficult to avoid repeat performances in the 303 songs showcased over 12 years. (See, it's actually hard work to pull these off!)

Today's song is more of a sellout rather than a sequel, and we have to thank Neil Diamond for that. For some ridiculous reason, he decided to perform his own version of The Chanukah Song back in 2009… and it's weird. I'm not sure what he was thinking in following-up the original from Sandler, but the style is all wrong. There are also subtle changes in the lyrics, such as discouraging use of marijuana. Additionally, a line is changed from "Tom Cruise isn't but I heard his agent is" to "Tom Cruise isn't, but Jesus Christ is."

Continue Reading…

Dec
0

December 3: All Alone On Christmas – Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2012: Santa's Sequel Sellouts

Santa's Sequel Sellouts - December 3: All Alone On Christmas

Santa's Sequel Sellouts - December 3: All Alone On Christmas

Sequel to: Home Alone (Film, 1990)

The film Home Alone put Macaulay Culkin on the map in 1990, as well as created a new film that many associate with the holidays. It featured a Christmas-oriented plot, in addition to the integration of many holiday carols in the John Williams soundtrack.

There are now 5 films in the Home Alone franchise, with the latest being 2012's direct-to-cable release, Home Alone: The Holiday Heist. However, the only sequel that is probably worth your time is the 2nd of the series, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. It stands out because it featured the same actors, director, producer, and creative team as the original. The rest of the series pretty much falls off a cliff after Home Alone 2.

Continue Reading…

Dec
0

December 2: Frosty's Winter Wonderland (Finale) – Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2012: Santa's Sequel Sellouts

Santa's Sequel Sellouts - December 2: Frosty's Winter Wonderland (Finale)

Santa's Sequel Sellouts - December 2: Frosty's Winter Wonderland (Finale)

Sequel to: Frosty the Snowman (TV Special, 1968)

The iconic Rankin-Bass Christmas TV special, Frosty the Snowman, debuted on CBS in 1968. It featured the voice talents of Jackie Vernon playing Frosty and Jimmy Durante as the narrator.

8 years later, we got a sequel… and today's song – Frosty's Winter Wonderland (Finale).

Unlike most sequels, however, the original production team was part of this project as well. This was another Rankin-Bass production, again with Vernon voicing Frosty. Curiously, Jimmy Durante didn't reprise his role as narrator. At first I thought it was he might have died, however a quick visit to Wikipedia shows that he passed away in 1980, 4 years after this special. Then again, he would have been 82 at the time of this project, so maybe that wouldn't have been the best choice. Instead, the narrator role was shifted to Andy Griffith, who, in my opinion, did a great job.

Continue Reading…

Dec
0

December 1: Grandpa's Gonna Sue the Pants Off of Santa – Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2012: Santa's Sequel Sellouts

Santa's Sequel Sellouts - December 1: Grandpa's Gonna Sue the Pants Off of Santa

Santa's Sequel Sellouts - December 1: Grandpa's Gonna Sue the Pants Off of Santa

Sequel to: Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer (Song, 1979)

This year's theme for Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music is "Santa's Sequel Sellotus," featuring obscure musical follow-ups to popular Christmas tunes, movies, and TV shows. (Learn more about this crazy collection in my Introduction.)

We kick things off with the first of 3 types of sequel styles, "Christmas Songs/Shows/Movies that are sequels to Christmas Songs/Shows/Movies." In this case, the original hit was "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer," performed by Elmo and Patsy Shropshire in 1979. The couple eventually divorced, but Elmo decided to write a sequel to the song in 1992. Grandpa's Gonna Sue the Pants Off of Santa continues the story of the original song, with Grandpa legally going after Santa for killing his wife.

Continue Reading…

Nov
0

Introduction – Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2012: Santa's Sequel Sellouts

Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2012 - Santa's Sequel Sellouts

Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2012 - Santa's Sequel Sellouts

In 1933, Walt Disney released a cartoon short as part of his Silly Symphony series. Titled Three Little Pigs, it was critically-acclaimed, financially successful, and won an Oscar. Of course, being a product from Hollywood, it prompted no less than 3 sequels — The Big Bad Wolf (1934), The Three Little Wolves (1936), and The Practical Pig (1939). The response to these follow-up shorts was less than positive on many fronts, prompting Walt to refocus on creating original content by noting, "you can't top pigs with pigs."

Why is there a Home Alone 5?
New ideas have their risks, and in today's media climate, our world seems risk-adverse to fresh concepts. It's often less financially strenuous to franchise a successful brand into follow-up entities, as customers are more willing to risk their limited entertainment dollars on something familiar vs. an unknown. Thus why the company that bears Walt's name has films like Star Wars 7, Pirates of the Caribbean 5, and Iron Man 3 in development. No matter what decade, sequels have long been part of the landscape, often with mixed results. Rarely are you blessed with something like The Empire Strikes Back; often you're stuck with The Phantom Menace instead. Nevertheless, they seem to perform well enough to keep the sequel train rolling down the track!

Christmas Music Isn't Immune
Thus, for our 12th season of Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music, we'll be exploring obscure musical follow-ups to popular Christmas tunes, movies, and TV shows. Welcome to Santa's Sequel Sellouts, where every day from December 1 through Christmas, I'll be posting a new song that ties into this theme. Fire up the photocopier as we jump into this audio advent calendar.  Don't miss these tunes that you probably won't hear on holiday radio anytime soon!

Continue Reading…

Dec
0

December 25: For Unto Us A Child Is Born – Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2011: Navidaddy

Navidaddy - December 25: For Unto Us A Child Is Born

Navidaddy - December 25: For Unto Us A Child Is Born

And we wrap up our Navidaddy theme here on Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music with a proclamation from a strong quartet! Rebecca Arons leads For Unto Us A Child Is Born. Merry Christmas, everyone!

Continue Reading…

Dec
0

December 24: A Baby Just Like You – Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2011: Navidaddy

Navidaddy - December 24: A Baby Just Like You

Navidaddy - December 24: A Baby Just Like You

From one of my favorite Christmas albums, it's John Denver & The Muppets singing A Baby Just Like You. I miss John Denver.

Continue Reading…

Dec
0

December 23: Blues for Baby Jesus – Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2011: Navidaddy

Navidaddy - December 23: Blues for Baby Jesus

Navidaddy - December 23: Blues for Baby Jesus

Almost 6 minutes of blues is coming your way with Blues For Baby Jesus by Gary Mann! Just something a little different for Christmas Eve Eve.

Continue Reading…

Dec
0

December 22: Christmas Is For Children – Steve's 25 Days of Christmas Music 2011: Navidaddy

Navidaddy - December 22: Christmas Is For Children

Navidaddy - December 22: Christmas Is For Children

Apparently, Christmas Is For Children, at least according to Glen Campbell.

Frankly, I think that's too limited of a view

Continue Reading…