Before the Christmas season ended last year, my mother was hospitalized with congestive heart failure and other problems due to her diabetes. I'm happy to report that she's doing much better now (not out of the woods yet) and we're glad St. Nick and all the other saints smiled on my mom.During my visit to see her at the hospital outside of Chicago, I broke away for an hour to check out some used CD stores that I used to shop at when I lived in the area.
With only three days before Christmas, my selections were limited. However, the one store that I visited yielded this absolute gem of an album!
I had known of this album and CD for many years but this was the first time I listened to what Frankie Valli and the others had to offer.
The first track "The Merry Christmas Medley" was a mix of strings, harpsicord, and lush arrangements. As tracks 2 thru 7 played, I thought to myself that the album was going to miss the target terribly. The only bright spot was the standout vocals of the group. To hear Frankie Valli hit those high notes on "The Excelsis Deo Medley" might have caused some welcome speaker damage! I was waiting for them to cut loose...
Track 8 was "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" and all the swagger and sound from earlier hits like "Sherry" and "Big Girls Don't Cry" was evident! What a tune! The following tracks alternated between the smooth sound of the first part of the album with some rocking versions of "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" and a reworked version of "Jingle Bells called "Jungle Bells".
The best part of this whole experience was that as I was listening to this for the first time, my mom was listening from her home shortly after her release from the hospital. In her words, it was "some good medicine". I couldn't agree more and hope some of these songs get more radio airplay at Christmas time.
On to the next new album in my collection...
Capt
