Christmas with Bob Dylan -- or maybe better, without
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by Ken
Has anybody bought the Bob Dylan Christmas album? (Amazon will sell you a "180-gram vinyl edition with bonus CD" for only $25.63! Stock up for the holidays -- MLK Day, Presidents Day, Valentine's Day, etc.) Has anybody figured out what to make of the album?
A friend has been sending out MP3 files of individual numbers, and the couple I've listened to have sounded, well, kind of creepy. Today it was "O Little Town of Bethlehem":
I'm not sure, though, that that's much creepier than this:
Where are Alvin and the Chipmunks when you need them?
Now, if you want Christmas music you can believe in -- or at any rate I can believe in -- here is the great Swedish tenor Jussi Bjoerling singing "O Holy Night" in his native language (I know there's at least one broadcast performance in English, but I don't have access to it):
"O Holy Night" always takes on a more martial, stiff-backboned character in its original identity as the "Cantique de Noël" by Adolphe Adam (yes, the composer of the ballet Giselle and the opera Si j'étais roi). Most famously, in the version by the great tenor Georges Thill, when he sings, "People, on your knees," you will damn well get down on your knees if you know what's good for you, with no fussing.
Here's a recording of the "Cantique de Noël" by the clearly veteran bass-baritone José van Dam (just because I happen to have it and you probably don't know anyone else who does):
And this concludes our Christmas music for 2009.
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Labels: Bob Dylan, Christmas, O Holy NIght
posted by KenInNY @ 6:00 PM
9 comments
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9 Comments:
Bob sort of has the same cadence as Alfalfa, when he used to sing "The object of my affection, has turned my complexion, from white to rosy-red!" just before the AAAAAmeeeeennnnn! Yup. Creepy.
Interesting comparison. I find that McLachlan imposes her style upon the song and doesn't let it come through. Dylan on the other hand gets to the core of the song itself, letting it's melody and soul channel through him. He feels the song so you do too. The texmex meets country soul arrangement is brilliant and understated where it needs to be. I didn't expect to like it but I think it's great.
Bjoerling's approach is similar to Dylan's in that he too knows the value of letting a song be a song and not letting one's ego get in the way. Both draw the open listener in and almost make you listen. I don't find either of them creepy. Soulful yes. Creepy no.
Thanks, J, and fair enough, Mr. S! Swell observations all, and thanks for sharing them.
Speaking just for myself, I would have been happy if I'd gotten some sense of a song happening in either of the "O Little Town of Bethlehem" performances.
Cheers,
Ken
Thank you for directing me to the Bjoerling's version of "O Holy Night". After a hectic Xmas day with our hyper kids, an empty orgy of presents, a bevy of dainties, treats, snacks, drinks, and the obligatory turkey feast at our traditionally over-indulgent and insane family gathering - then followed by a 90 minute white-knuckle drive through a blizzard here on prairies it was exactly what I needed: a touch of THE SUBLIME!
Again thanks.
ing it through a
Oops, kindly ignore my typos on previous comment, ... t'was the passion for the music that is to blame - it leaves no time for proofreading.
For sharing a story like that, F.A., I need to be thanking you!
It is a pretty stupendous piece of music-making, though!
Happy holidays ,
Ken
Dylan sounds either drunk or trying to imitate Tom Waits when Waits is drunk.
Does anyone remember a parody album in the late '60s called Boston Soul? It was by a comedy troupe called the Hardly Worthit Players and it included impersonations of various politicians of the day sort of singing. A semi hit came out of it, a takeoff on "Wild Thing" done as RFK and attributed to Senator Bobby. At the very end of the album they had "Bobby the Poet" doing "White Christmas and it was a spot-on Dylan parody. The point of all this is that I've heard the new Dylan Christmas album and let's just say I'd much rather listen to Bobby the Poet doing "White Christmas." The real Christmas album by the real Dylan is, well, as Howie said, kind of creepy.
Critics of Dylan have been saying the same things for 47 years. Years ago, I didn't like his voice and he wasn't getting through to me. His talent prevailed and I am richer for it. All it took was my Progressive open heart.
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