Poor Old Rudolph

I was hoping to post a few more entries of substance before the end of the year, but time once again is flying by. All I can manage at the moment is to share some unusual holiday music here in the waning days of the year. This song comes courtesy of Bob Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour. Bob typically chooses a lot of pretty obscure music from the 40s and 50s, mixed in with old standards and more well known artists, but this selection from last year's holiday show is way out in left field. The Bellrays are a band from Riverside, California that call their music "Maximum Rock & Soul," Listening to the Bellrays, they say, "is like getting kicked in the balls by James Brown. Imagine a bus full of Motown recording artists being steamrolled by Black Flag, and you have a pretty good idea of what the Bellrays sound like." Ok. I'll check them out and report back, but in the meantime, dig Poor Old Rudolph, from a 1996 compilation CD titled A Vital Gesture Xmas - Volume 1.

The BellRays - Poor Old Rudolph

We all know the 1964 TV special, but Rudy was first created in 1939 as a coloring book by Robert May, an employee of Montgomery Ward. May's brother in law Johnny Marks put the story to music in 1949, and it has been recorded by many artists, most notably Gene Autry. Marks also wrote the immortal "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" and "A Holly Jolly Christmas." One of my favorite versions of Rudolph is by Dean Martin. I posted this last year, but here it is again.

Dean Martin - Rudolph