Exhibit recalls the heyday of holiday albums
By Russ Oechslin Journal correspondent | Posted: Sunday, December 16, 2007
A Christmas album cover currently on display at the Iowa Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame Museum, an album by "The Chipmunks." The single version of the "Chipmunks" title song topped the record charts for the four weeks before Christmas in 1958. (Photo by Russ Oechslin, Journal correspondent)
Iowa Rock ’n’ Roll Hall of Fame exhibit Arnolds Park, Iowa
STORY and TWO sidebars
WITH TWO PHOTOs good Christmas COLOR for front of Family or Community?
PLEASE CHECK APOSTROPHES ON ROCK ’N’ ROLL
-- one each side of the N
ARNOLDS PARK, Iowa -- While Arnolds Park is a hot bed of activity through the summer months, this time of year can make Iowa Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame director Doris Welle feel as lonely as the old Maytag repairman. Cars are few up and down Lake Street. And most are just turning in the cul de sac after taking a look at West Lake Okoboji as it freezes over.
What those passers-by are missing is an exhibit of long-playing Christmas record cover art at the Hall of Fame, covers that are long-playing twice over, once because they are the packing for 12-inch, long-playing albums and also for the fact that most have been played for a long time, 30-40 years or more.
"CD cover art isn't the same," because it's so much smaller, explains Hall of Fame board member Tom Golden of nearby Spencer. Golden has more than 3,000 LPs in his collection. Only a few dozen of those are Christmas records, he says.
Welle adds that often, since the music has been re-issued on compact discs, the original covers from the sixties are more valuable that the old scratchy records themselves.
The special exhibit was created to bring back memories of "Christmas Past," says Welle, and will continue through January, when the University of Okoboji Winter Games music of "American Graffiti" exhibit will replace it. Dubbed "A Merry Musical Christmas," the exhibit "is sure to even bring a smile to the face of Scrooge," she says.
Included are albums from Golden's personal collection and also some covers from KRAQ radio's "Class 105." Welle notes that she'd be pleased to have more unusual Christmas album art from area residents on display as well. "There weren't many rock 'n' rollers who made Christmas albums because there was so much Christmas music on the market already back in the fifties and sixties, she explains. "Still there's a lot of great cover art."
That art reflects the pop culture of its day, and includes albums from Alabama, The Beach Boys, The Partridge Family, and Richard and Karen Carpenter, along with one from Kenny Rogers, who appeared at the Clay County Regional Events Center with his Christmas show, Dec. 1.
A Christmas album from the now-popular again Osmond Brothers is also included, as is one from Wall Lake-native Andy Williams and another by the Williams Brothers.
Other Christmas covers highlight the work of Alabama, Elvis, The Lettermen, Johnny Mathis, Tony Bennett, Ray Conniff, and Barbra Streisand. There are also several compilations. Bobby Vinton's "Santa Must Be Polish" album art is also on display.
The number of novelty Christmas albums surprised Welle. "I didn't even know there was a 'Star Wars' Christmas album until I saw this one," she said, holding the MECO album from the 1970s. Other novelty works on display include two from Chipmunks Alvin, Simon and Theodore (characters named by producer Ross Bagdasarian for three Liberty Records executives), and one from the Peanuts cartoon dog, "Snoopy." The biggest surprise to Welle though came when she saw a Phil Spector Christmas cover.
After 12 days of deliberations in September, a jury empanelled to determine Spector's involvement in the 2003 death of Hollywood actress Lana Clarkson ended in a mistrial. Prosecutors said at the time they will try again to convict Spector of a second-degree murder charge.
Also featured in the exhibit are two 78 rpm Christmas records released by cowboy actor/singer Gene Autry as many young people may never have seen a 78 rpm record, says Welle.
"The massive number of Christmas songs that have been written, recorded and performed is amazing," Golden notes. "Most people list Christmas songs among their all-time favorites." But Golden's favorite artists aren't even represented in the display, he says, as Doo-Wop artists apparently didn't record much Christmas music.
The museum is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and is located on Lake Street, in the Arnolds Park Amusement Park. More information about the Hall of Fame Museum is available on the Internet at {M3www.iowarocknroll.com, or by calling (712) 332-6540.
'The Christmas Song' still most popular
The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers which represents more than 260,000 music creators and copyright owners in its catalog, lists "The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire") as the most frequently played Christmas song in the first five years of the 21st Century.
Written by Robert Wells and singing great, Mel Torme on a hot summer day in 1945, the song became a seasonal classic with the release of Nat "King" Cole's 1946 recording and has more recently been covered by numerous artists, including Celine Dion, Luther Vandross, Amy Grant and James Taylor. But Cole's version remains the most played on radio, according to ASCAP reports.
Other tunes rounding out the top five on the 2006 ASCAP list are "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas," "Winter Wonderland," "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town," and "White Christmas." Though many Christmas selections have been re-recorded by contemporary artists, Bing Crosby's version of "White Christmas" is still the most popular, according to ASCAP
STORY and TWO sidebars
WITH TWO PHOTOs good Christmas COLOR for front of Family or Community?
PLEASE CHECK APOSTROPHES ON ROCK ’N’ ROLL
-- one each side of the N
ARNOLDS PARK, Iowa -- While Arnolds Park is a hot bed of activity through the summer months, this time of year can make Iowa Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame director Doris Welle feel as lonely as the old Maytag repairman. Cars are few up and down Lake Street. And most are just turning in the cul de sac after taking a look at West Lake Okoboji as it freezes over.
What those passers-by are missing is an exhibit of long-playing Christmas record cover art at the Hall of Fame, covers that are long-playing twice over, once because they are the packing for 12-inch, long-playing albums and also for the fact that most have been played for a long time, 30-40 years or more.
"CD cover art isn't the same," because it's so much smaller, explains Hall of Fame board member Tom Golden of nearby Spencer. Golden has more than 3,000 LPs in his collection. Only a few dozen of those are Christmas records, he says.
Welle adds that often, since the music has been re-issued on compact discs, the original covers from the sixties are more valuable that the old scratchy records themselves.
The special exhibit was created to bring back memories of "Christmas Past," says Welle, and will continue through January, when the University of Okoboji Winter Games music of "American Graffiti" exhibit will replace it. Dubbed "A Merry Musical Christmas," the exhibit "is sure to even bring a smile to the face of Scrooge," she says.
Included are albums from Golden's personal collection and also some covers from KRAQ radio's "Class 105." Welle notes that she'd be pleased to have more unusual Christmas album art from area residents on display as well. "There weren't many rock 'n' rollers who made Christmas albums because there was so much Christmas music on the market already back in the fifties and sixties, she explains. "Still there's a lot of great cover art."
That art reflects the pop culture of its day, and includes albums from Alabama, The Beach Boys, The Partridge Family, and Richard and Karen Carpenter, along with one from Kenny Rogers, who appeared at the Clay County Regional Events Center with his Christmas show, Dec. 1.
A Christmas album from the now-popular again Osmond Brothers is also included, as is one from Wall Lake-native Andy Williams and another by the Williams Brothers.
Other Christmas covers highlight the work of Alabama, Elvis, The Lettermen, Johnny Mathis, Tony Bennett, Ray Conniff, and Barbra Streisand. There are also several compilations. Bobby Vinton's "Santa Must Be Polish" album art is also on display.
The number of novelty Christmas albums surprised Welle. "I didn't even know there was a 'Star Wars' Christmas album until I saw this one," she said, holding the MECO album from the 1970s. Other novelty works on display include two from Chipmunks Alvin, Simon and Theodore (characters named by producer Ross Bagdasarian for three Liberty Records executives), and one from the Peanuts cartoon dog, "Snoopy." The biggest surprise to Welle though came when she saw a Phil Spector Christmas cover.
After 12 days of deliberations in September, a jury empanelled to determine Spector's involvement in the 2003 death of Hollywood actress Lana Clarkson ended in a mistrial. Prosecutors said at the time they will try again to convict Spector of a second-degree murder charge.
Also featured in the exhibit are two 78 rpm Christmas records released by cowboy actor/singer Gene Autry as many young people may never have seen a 78 rpm record, says Welle.
"The massive number of Christmas songs that have been written, recorded and performed is amazing," Golden notes. "Most people list Christmas songs among their all-time favorites." But Golden's favorite artists aren't even represented in the display, he says, as Doo-Wop artists apparently didn't record much Christmas music.
The museum is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and is located on Lake Street, in the Arnolds Park Amusement Park. More information about the Hall of Fame Museum is available on the Internet at {M3www.iowarocknroll.com, or by calling (712) 332-6540.
'The Christmas Song' still most popular
The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers which represents more than 260,000 music creators and copyright owners in its catalog, lists "The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire") as the most frequently played Christmas song in the first five years of the 21st Century.
Written by Robert Wells and singing great, Mel Torme on a hot summer day in 1945, the song became a seasonal classic with the release of Nat "King" Cole's 1946 recording and has more recently been covered by numerous artists, including Celine Dion, Luther Vandross, Amy Grant and James Taylor. But Cole's version remains the most played on radio, according to ASCAP reports.
Other tunes rounding out the top five on the 2006 ASCAP list are "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas," "Winter Wonderland," "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town," and "White Christmas." Though many Christmas selections have been re-recorded by contemporary artists, Bing Crosby's version of "White Christmas" is still the most popular, according to ASCAP
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