This week we are continuing our Classic Christmas in July by covering the good old boys of Mayberry. This episode is centered around “Christmas Story” from the first season of The Andy Griffith Show.
Matt talks about how this show is a favorite of someone important in his life, he offers up his take on a southern accent, talks about how one character probably should have had alcohol poisoning, and, as always, he determines whether or not this should be deemed a holiday classic. Be sure to enjoy your last couple weeks of July, but that means the ‘Ber Months are on the horizon!
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/TGIPod2.png788940e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2022-07-18 23:11:162022-07-19 06:11:55The Andy Griffith Show: Christmas Story
What’s up, dudes? It’s a spin-off episode! Yep, Duane and Scott from Tinsel Tunes did a Little Drummer Boy episode, and it inspired me to cover a cool version by Joan Jett! It’s very classic rock, with the I-bVII-I progression up front in the quasi-bridge section. It also leaves a lot of room for the drummer to…well, drum!!! Electric guitars, rolled “r’s”, and pull-offs! Oh my! So turn up your amp, engage your overdrive pedal, and let the drummer play fills all over this episode!
Welcome to episode 55 of Holly Jolly X’masu! In this episode, I’ll be Yumi Matsutoya’s Christmas songs.
When it comes to Japanese Christmas music, there are a handful of really key artists. Over the past forty years, one of the most influential is Yumi Matsutoya. She’s certainly not the most prolific when it comes to Christmas music, but she helped to revive public interest, and she furthered the success of Japanese Christmas pop songs. While original Christmas pop songs were being written in Japan as early as the 1950s, until the late 1970s they were more the exception than the rule. From 1978 to 1983, a string of Christmas hits written by young Japanese pop and rock artists helped convince the public and the music industry that there was more to Christmas than “Jingle Bells,” “Rudolph,” and Bing Crosby. Yuming was one of the most successful of the bunch.
From 1974 to 2002, Yuming regularly produced Christmas, or Christmassy songs. “MISSLIM,” “Streamline ‘80” and “Surf and Snow” were albums I bought or knew about early on. I found out about the others as I researched her more. I’ve bought copies of most of the albums featuring her Christmas songs, but the rest came from her “Seasons Colours Song Collection” 4-CD set.
I was eager to talk about her music and the impact it has had. One of the things I enjoyed most about researching her was finding videos of some of her old performances. She’s always had a great stage presence, but it’s the older videos, particularly from the 70s and 80s, that I enjoy the most. One I regret not being able to find was a video of her performing “Christmas Waiting At The Lodge” while riding a ski lift. It’s from a late-70s or early-80s television special, and it reminded me of one of John Denver’s specials from the same period.
I hope you’ve enjoyed Yumi Matsutoya’s music. If you’d like to hear more from her, there’s plenty to be found online. A lot of unauthorized videos have been taken down lately, but she has her own YouTube channel and more music is being added there regularly. Her Christmas music is just the tip of the iceberg.
Join me back here on the 25th for my third Christmas In July episode. I don’t expect it to be late, but I’ve run into a lot of snags, including delays to my latest order of records, so there’s a chance it won’t hit until the 26th. I have a great selection of summery Christmas songs lined up and you’re sure to enjoy them.
As always, any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If have any suggestions, or if you’d like to recommend a song or album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know.
Remember, I’ve added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you’d like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. I’ve also opened a Redbubble store. I only have a couple designs up, but keep an eye on it as I’ll be trying to add more. Half of any proceeds or donations received will be donated to support the people of Ukraine, while the rest will be used to purchase new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And if you get a chance, leave me a review on iTunes. Thanks!
Ken Kessler from the Sounds of Christmas continuesa Christmas in July event by talking to hosts of other Christmas podcasts about their podcasts – what they’re about, how (and why) they started doing it (and continue to do it) and what they’ve got planned for upcoming episodes. Today he talks to Tim from the Can’t Wait For Christmas podcast, Art from A Cozy Christmas Podcast and Matt from North Pole Radio!
Can’t Wait For Christmas podcast: https://cantwaitforchristmaspod.com
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/soctree1500.jpg16241500e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2022-07-17 21:29:192022-07-18 06:29:51Christmas In July Podcastpalooza Part Two
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/CPP-Episode-1-mp3-image.jpg15001500e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2022-07-17 20:21:592022-07-17 20:21:59Christmas Podcasts Roundup – June 25th Through July 15th, 2022
This week on Christmas Podding we deep dive into the world of Novelty Christmas Ornaments and dissect why you should NEVER buy one to put on your tree.
Were you smart enough to buy up big in the mid year Toy sales only to have your Christmas Shopping done and dusted for Christmas 2022. Well Liam and Ness are at loggerheads as to why and why not its a good idea, plus
How is Christmas coming to the rescue of the world wide cost of living struggle we are all facing at the moment. We uncover a festive feel good story we know you’ll love.
Join your Aussie Hosts Liam Ness as they talk all things Christmas, all year long on Australia’s ONLY Christmas Podcast, Christmas Podding.
Listen to this episode of Christmas Podding
Author: Liam Renton
Title: Christmas Podding – Why novelty Christmas Ornaments should NEVER make it on your Christmas Tree, EVER.
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🎄 It’s 1985, but we’re rocketing into the future, when apparently urgent veterinary care no longer exists.
It’s Scrooge Sunday, so join us for a glimpse into the space-age year of 2062 to find out if 3 robotic ghosts of Christmas can convince Mr. Spacely to change his stingy ways, while the clock is ticking for the Jetsons’ dog, Astro, on his deathbed.
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Advent-Calendar-House.jpg20482048e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2022-07-17 01:26:522022-07-17 20:43:38The Jetsons: A Jetson Christmas Carol
We continue our Christmas in July series, Xmas Catalogs, by learning all about the websites. In this episode, Corey Groth, vintage Christmas enthusiast and collector, joins us to talk about Christmas catalogs in digital form for this age.
This episode starts with our weekly quiz. Do you know what colour mistletoe berries are? If you do, you’ll get at least one question right. If you don’t…. what? of course you know what colour they are.
Then we have a Story of Shame sent in by the mom of our podcast mascot Elmer, Jennifer Kay.
This week the Do You Hear What I Hear from our podcast barman, Bob Baker, is all about Nappies.
Then I talk about Christmas in July, the history of where it (possibly) originated and how it evolved.
Then I look at 8 different songs that all share the same title: Christmas in July.
Here they are if you want to listen to the whole song:
Jonathan Coulton & John Roderick
Alex the Astronaut
Lizzie Waters
Englewood
The Therapy Sisters
The Ego Trippers
Sufjan Stevens
Nik Whitcomb
This episode’s version of A Christmas Carol is The Jetsons Christmas Carol and if you want to listen to it, you’ll have to check out the latest episode of The Advent Calendar House Podcast with Mike Westfall.
Here’s a link:
https://adventcalendar.house/
This episode’s recommendation is a very funny podcast called Wheel of Misfortune hosted by Alison Spittle and Fern Brady. If you don’t mind a bit of bad language, you’re sure to find it very funny.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08m3z73/episodes/downloads
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🎄 It’s 1995, and a couple of giant space monsters with swords are about to lose a snowball fight against the powerless Power Rangers, who can’t Morph at the North Pole due to a cross-current of holiday magic. And also magnets.
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/adventcalendarhouse.jpg512512e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2022-07-15 01:05:462022-07-15 06:06:14Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: I’m Dreaming of a White Ranger
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Christmas-Morning.png20482048e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2022-07-13 03:16:022022-07-13 06:16:21July 13th – 165 days until Christmas
🎃 It’s 1989, and Rue McClanahan is trapped in an underground castle inhabited by a bunch of Gremlin-looking puppets called Greevils — and for some reason wants to leave.
Join us for a Halloween in July celebration of The Wickedest Witch, co-written and produced by ALF creator Paul Fusco, and starring Blanche from The Golden Girls as the evil Avarissa. As far as we know, this Halloween special only ever aired once, but somehow managed to capture our hearts and burrow itself into the cavernous depths of our memories.
There are 3 copies on YouTube — some include commercials, others hit record a second too late. For the closest we can get to a full picture of the special, here are all 3, courtesy of:
Welcome to episode 54 of Holly Jolly X’masu! In this episode, I’ll be discussing Yumi Matsutoya’s classic 1980 album, “Surf & Snow – Volume One.”
For as big as Yuming is, and considering how easy it is to find reviews, critiques and opinions about her online, I was surprised by the sparse amount of biographical information about her. The highlights are covered, but not nearly to the granular degree of other artists, even ones far less popular or accomplished. I still managed to learn a decent amount about her, which always makes my research more enjoyable. One thing that’s always amused me about “Surf & Snow” is that she never released a Volume Two. Mel Brooks is finally getting around to “History Of The World Part 2,” so I guess there’s always hope.
While researching this episode, I was pleased to find some live videos of Yuming performing some of the songs that I’d never seen before. I wanted to share those and the fantastic video of “Koibito ga Santa Claus” from that 1986 special with you here in the show notes.
I hope you’ve enjoyed my introduction to Yumi Matsutoya and her music. She’s a true icon in Japan, and considering the wealth of music she’s produced, and the breadth of styles she’s covered, you’re bound to find something of hers to enjoy. Join me back here later this month as I cover the rest of her Christmas music. Then join me on the 25th (or thereabouts) for my Christmas in July episode. I’ve run into several delays so it might be a day late, but I’ll be doing what I can to get it out on time. I’ve compiled a great collection of summer-themed Christmas songs and you want to miss it.
As always, any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If have any suggestions, or if you’d like to recommend a song or album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know.
Remember, I’ve added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you’d like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. I’ve also opened a Redbubble store. I only have a couple designs up, but keep an eye on it as I’ll be trying to add more. Half of any proceeds or donations received will be donated to support the people of Ukraine, while the rest will be used to purchase new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And if you get a chance, leave me a review on iTunes. Thanks!
Christmas in July continues to roll right along as we dive into another classic television show. This week we are discussing Happy Days and the episode titled, “Guess Who’s Coming to Christmas”
In this recording, Matt makes another Christmas connection, explains how weird one particular scene is and, as always, tries to determine if this should be deemed a holiday classic. Get your poodle skirts on and slick back your hair as we travel to the 1950s (in the 1970s) on this week’s episode!
“It reminds me of my mother. It’s warm all over” (Yes, that was the most Christmas-line I could get from this episode)
From the creators of Rugrats comes one show that pushed the furthest it could go with its dark imagry and groosout gags. Aaahh!! Real Monsters is an okay show with a ledd then steller Christmas in July Episode.
Regardless, let’s see how the husband/wife team from Klaskey/Csupo and a Soviet born animator teamed to create a series that blended the style of Yellow Submarine with a film noir.
On the second episode of Closer to Christmas, I talk about the card game Peppermint Lane, Something Wild! I talk about how to play the game, and my thoughts and experiences with playing it. At the top of the show, I give an update about an issue with the last podcast.
Please feel free to follow me on instagram, to see any of the things I mentioned on this episode. I will have pictures of the game, and a card pack opening video to check out. You can follow me here: @closertoxmas
You can also email me, I would love to hear your feedback, and if you have ANY experience with or playing with the games I talk about, I would love to hear it! email me at closertochristmaspod@gmail.com
Please rate and review the podcast wherever you are listening, it helps spread the word, and I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart.
And finally, and HUGE thank you to my brother, Kevin, for allowing me to use his music throughout my show. If you like what you hear, you can pick up his album on Itunes, which can be found here: A solstice night on Apple music or A Solstice Night on Amazon
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Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/closertochristmas/message
🎄 It’s 1983, and a young bear and fox are lost in the Big City after accidentally riding the rails on the apparently famous Christmas Tree Train in an obscure special that has little to do with Christmas trees or trains. Climb aboard as we explore the first holiday special starring Buttons and Rusty, known later as the Chucklewood Critters.
Happy Monday, y’all! After a week off due to circumstances beyond our control, we are back!
Journey with Thom, Julia, and Anthony to Smurf Village to discuss the 1982 TV Show, “The Smurfs Christmas Special“! Listen as they discuss their histories with this race of blue people, three apples high, and pose a question to the listeners about what each of their Smurf names would be!
This is a fun, festive, and nostalgic episode you want to be sure not to miss! So, settle back and enjoy! And, as always, thanks for your love and support, y’all!
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