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| Goodyear “Great Songs of Christmas” Volume 8. 1968 |
For the first time in the series, side one of Goodyear’s “Great Songs of Christmas” Volume 8, published in 1968, contains happy, upbeat contemporary Christmas favorites while side two is filled with the familiar, traditional carols that anyone familiar with the “Great Songs of Christmas” would come to expect from a Goodyear holiday album. Most of the songs on Volume 8 were commissioned by Goodyear and Columbia exclusively for this release.
“For the eighth consecutive year, Goodyear presents the Great Songs of Christmas — as our special holiday greeting to you. And for the first time on any album of Christmas music, you can now enjoy musically
the two moods of Christmas. This exclusive innovation in Album 8 allow you to select the holiday listening that fits your holiday mood. On Side 1, there’s the happy sound of Christmas joy and laughter — a perfect background for you holiday entertaining. And Side 2 presents the best loved carols of tradition — for family listening with all the inspriation of the sacred season. The recording artists gathered here for your enjoyment include the greatest names from the worlds of opera, popular entertainment, and folk music. Ten of the selections are contemporary, popular favorites. Ten more are selections from the season’s most revered traditional carols. Together, they provide almost twice the listening time normally found on two ordinary albums. Each year we try to include one or two less familiar carols, and two of the year’s traditional selections are well loved in England, though less well known here. These are “Little Jesus, Sweetly Sleep”, a Czech carol, and “On Christmas Night All Christians Sing”. Both were recorded especially for this album. In fact, nearly two-thirds of the performanceds here were commissioned by Goodyear and recorded especially for us, including the selections for Robert Goulet and Carol Lawrence, Tony Bennett, Barbra Streisand, Anthony Newley, Sally Ann Howes, Robert Merrill, and Anna Moffo. (Carol Lawrence appears through the courtesy of RCA Victor Records.) Of the popular selections, six have not been included in any of our previous albums — the festive “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” the lilting “Christmas Waltz,” and winter medley “I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm” and “I Love Winter Weather,” the nostalgic “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, ” the children’s favorite “Here Comes Santa Claus”, a happy new song “A Marshmallow World,” and the calypso-like “Mary’s Little Boy Child.” With these beautiful sounds of Christmas go our warmest wishes for joyous holidays and a good new year. Merry Christmas!
(Quoted material from the back of the “Great Songs of Christmas” Volume 8 record jacket. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company. Columbia Records Special Products. Stanley Arnold and Associates. Hampton Court Prod., Inc. 1968).
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