Supercool Music: A Living Article© Part 56: Supercool December Holidays Music

Starting off this December Holidays article collection featuring numerous songs from varying genres and languages, is this one in honor of Chanukah, which starts this evening. 🙂 Celebrations often include dancing – especially dancing for joy, as is the case in most Jewish celebrations the world over. A song in your heart often puts a lightness in your step. 🙂 Thus I chose this supercool dance melody by a very talented band. The group performing this wonderful tune is Ot Azoj Klezmerband featuring Allan Merovitz. 😎 The song, “A Yiddishe Honga” (“A Jewish Dance”), from the 1999 album “Chanukah – Festival of Lights”, is three minutes and seventeen seconds of delightful, warm, upbeat music that satisfies both the soul and the ears. 🙂 😎 Right from the get-go I love this song! 🙂 It has such a great sound and is played so superbly by this klezmer band! 🙂 The deep notes are so inviting and the higher notes that join in springs with liveliness! The music lowers shortly after a minute into the song in preparation to Allan Merovitz’s excellent vocals. 😎 The musical instruments travel along with his melodious telling and a conversation of voices soon join in for a brief time then its back to Allan’s solo in great tempo. I love the many levels of the music; it tells a story so very well. Very cool music. Supercool. 😎

   One of my favorite Christmas songs – and from my favorite Christmas album, no less 🙂 – is “O Little Town of Bethlehem” by none other than Elvis Presley. 🙂 I like the heartfelt, genuine reverence that Elvis’s voice clearly conveys when he is singing gospel music. The Creator’s very important to Elvis; you can hear it. 😎 Gentle music begins to play then Elvis’s deep, warm voice begins to sing of Bethlehem (which means “House of Bread” – bread is a symbol of sustaining food, much as the Creator’s gift of salvation through Yeshua/Jesus is life-giving to our souls). He tells about the small town, how still and quiet it appears at night, yet in the darkness shines the Everlasting Light: Yeshua/Jesus (Yeshua is Jesus’s Hebrew name, what His mama called Him). All of mankind’s hopes for a Savior/Messiah, for peace and an end to our fears were answered that night in that small area known as Bethlehem in the form of the Creator’s only begotten Son, Yeshua/Jesus, born in the form of mankind, lowering Himself to live among us as one of us so that He could give His life in exchange for ours so that we could have peace with the Creator and live forever. 😎 That’s a miracle. 😎 Elvis continues to sing of how the angels kept watch that night Yeshua/Jesus was born and how the stars proclaimed His holy birth. Praises were sung to God the King; the angels proclaiming peace to Earth, because, through Him, we can have true peace. 😎 There is only peace when the Creator is included in the establishing of it; we humans cannot create nor maintain peace on our own. In our hearts, we know this. Trust and faith are key elements – it’s important to make sure our trust and faith is in the One Who can make true peace a real thing. 😎 Peace with the Creator is the beginning of the road to true peace on Earth.

   Whether it’s a Chanukah, Christmas or New Year’s celebration going on, the beautiful, dreamy strains of the “December Waltz” by Toot Sweet (from the 1999 “Celtic Christmas” album, song #9, 3:29) is just right for sweethearts. 🙂 ❤ ❤

   Now to the song that has always been extra special to me and in the language I love to hear – my native Cherokee/Tsalagi. 🙂 “What Child Is This?”, sung exceptionally well by Jana Mashonee, is a musical treasure filled with heart, soul and powerful meaning. 😎 This popular song points out the amazing Gift that the Creator gave to us – His Son – and brings home the reality of the situation, which never ceases to leave me in awe of the Creator’s great love and forgiveness for each one of us – every person ever born, past, present and future. Amazing. Even if you don’t know Tsalagi/Cherokee, this song is well known and the message can still be heard and its beauty appreciated. 😎 The instruments include a beautifully-played piano, the distinct beauty and poignance of the Tsalagi/Cherokee bells (often worn among the fringes of our ceremonial attire so that it plays as we dance the song from our soul to the Creator with respect and hope and deep joy), and the pleasant tones of Jana Mashonee’s beautiful voice blessed by the Creator. 🙂 😎 Each melodic lift and depth is exactly right, a beautiful thing to hear, because the heart is also there along with the perfection. 😎 This song – and especially this version – is a treasure. 🙂

   Jon Pardi singing “Blue Christmas” at one of his supercool concerts is, well, supercool! 🙂 😎 I was pretty pleased when I first heard Jon say that the Elvis Christmas Album is his favorite Christmas album; it is mine as well. 🙂 😎 He sings it very well, too. 😎 As he’s playing his 1970’s electric guitar, he’s pouring on the country as he sings to the girl in the song that no amount of beautiful decorations is going to make up for her not being there. It just won’t be the same for the fellow if the girl he holds dear isn’t near; he’s wishing they were still together. Jon’s voice and vocal style really makes the song poignant as he sings about blue memories and blue snowflakes falling. She’ll be doing alright with her Christmas of white, but he’ll have “a blue, blue-blue-blue Christmas.” Jon brings the audience into the “ooo’s” and “ahhh’s” along with his own vocals and that of the band’s. He finishes off with some supercool deep notes as he sings about that blue Christmas; his voice and delivery of a song’s story is impressively good. 😎

   For a beautiful, happy Christmastime love song, this one is a real good one. 🙂 Sung by Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton, “You Make It Feel Like Christmas” was written by him for her. 🙂 And they sang it together during the holidays season several times that same year (2017). 😎 I saw two performances of it on television – the love beamed from him to her and likewise her love for him glowed upon her face. ❤ ❤ As is sung in the song: they’re going to be a classic for all time; the song has a great sound and their love has a lasting glow. 😎 The musicians play the instruments of this lively, upbeat tune in harmony with the great vocals that Blake (who’s also playing guitar), Gwen and the backup singers provide. It’s got a solid sound that is timeless and entirely enjoyable. 🙂 They sing about the many material things that are associated with the holidays scene and clarify that those aren’t what makes it feel like Christmas. It’s love. ❤ ❤ True love is a gift from the Creator and you can see that powerful love shining in Blake’s and Gwen’s eyes each time they sang that song – or looked at one another. 🙂 Love is a precious gift. 🙂

   The melody of the song “Silver Bells” has always sounded pleasant to my ears, yet it never sounded better than when I heard Clint Walker sing it. 😎 🙂 Having heard it online, I knew right away I wanted to buy a copy of it and was so happy it was available! 🙂 From the 1960’s Warner Brothers compilation album, “We Wish You A Merry Christmas”, where various stars from that studio sing favorite Christmas songs, I got to hear Clint Walker’s amazing singing of this nostalgic song. 🙂 😎 Bells begin to ring, a chorus of voices then Clint Walker’s deep, pleasant bass voice sings the lyrics of this scene-setting song. 🙂 Pretty female voices join in on the chorus. Clint sings with strength and gentleness, painting a picture of the bustling holiday city sidewalks along the decorated streets and stores. The feeling of Christmas is in the air as children are laughing, smiles are shared among the happy shoppers – window shoppers or in-store shoppers, and an overall fun and happy feeling. He sings of the shoppers’ happy return home and notes again, “Soon it will be Christmas day!” 🙂

   Big Time Rush brought lots of energy and fun as they sang the song “Jingle Bells” in 2010 along with numerous other television stars. 🙂 James, Kendall, Logan and Carlos gave us not only a great show to enjoy, but also lots of enjoyable music. 🙂 This was a bonus song. 😎 “Jingle Bells” is a fun and easy song to sing; I like its upbeat melody. 😎 The crisp, cool winter air breezing by as you ride in an open sleigh pulled by a beautiful horse, dashing through the snowflakes swirling down from a blanketed sky of clouds, zipping over the hills and down the pretty, tree-lined lanes – paints a nice picture, doesn’t it? 🙂 This song is popular all around the world and sung in many languages, too. It’s especially nice to see and hear it sung by some of your favorite television stars. “Big Time Rush” is one of my all-time favorite shows and knowing that James, Logan, Carlos and Kendall are thoughtful people in real life besides on their show adds to the enjoyment of watching the show (I bought them and received some as gifts; now I can re-watch them without commercials! 🙂 ) and listening to their music. 🙂 😎 Their song, “Beautiful Christmas” is forever one of my favorite December songs; I even listen to it during other months of the year! 🙂

   Gene Autry’s singing and merry music is a warm and cheerful gift. 🙂 I recently got to hear the recording from a 45rpm record of the song, “Merry Texas Christmas, You All!” 🙂 It’s a bright and pleasant melody coupled with a friendly, Texas-style explanation on how things are different – and yet in some ways the same (but bigger 😉 ) – in Texas. Like the greeting. 🙂 They don’t tend to have much snow, especially not the sleigh ride kind of snow that they get in the Northern states, but they have green cactus trees and red flowers. 😎 The backing vocals are excellent and the musical instruments sound great in this song, too. 😎 The guitars, bass fiddle, steel guitar and fiddle are all prevalent; I think I heard drums and a little banjo music as well in there. 😎 Texans may not have the scenery many tend to associate with Christmas, but they sure mean it when they say, “Merry Texas Christmas, you all! May your days be sunny and bright. May your hearts be happy and light. Merry Texas Christmas, you all!” 😀 (That’s a big, Texas smile, there. 😉 )

   At only a little over one and a half minutes in length, Paul Revere & the Raiders’ “Wear a Smile at Christmas” delivers an important message of encouragement. 😎 All but one song (“Jingle Bells”) on their album 1967 Christmas album, “A Christmas Present…And Past” was produced and co-written by Terry Melcher and Mark Lindsay. 🙂 An original album with a unique variety of songs. In this opening track for the album, Mark notes how many people are in such a hurry, focused on the trappings of the holidays scene, not taking the time to share a smile with another human being. A genuine, friendly smile can go a long way in brightening up someone’s day and lightening their load. 😎 A few seconds to smile and you’ve given another person – friend, acquaintance or stranger – a powerful gift. Even if you don’t see a smile in return, you shouldn’t be discouraged – keep on smilin’ anyway! 🙂 Everyone needs some sunshine in their soul and a smile will encourage that beam of light to grow. 🙂 😎

   Happy Chanukah, Merry Christmas and may 2019 be filled with joy and blessings for you all! 🙂 😎

Jean247

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Supercool Music: A Living Article© Part 53: “Dirt on My Boots”

Here’s the story: I had enjoyed listening to country music on the radio in the 90’s, when one of my favorite baseball players got me listening to Randy Travis. I soon loved his music along with other great, real country artists like Alan Jackson, George Strait, Clay Walker, Alabama, Pam Tillis, Ricky Van Shelton, Neal McCoy, et cetera. Then the radio stations started playing too much non-country and I stopped listening to them for a long while. I had the good stuff, so why not just pop in a CD instead of subjecting myself to non-music? Very recently – this winter of 2018 – I decided to give country radio another try, just in case they had decided to play some real music again. And guess what I heard? 🙂 Yes! 🙂 They were playing some truly good stuff again. 😎 (I don’t believe that all of what they’re playing is true country, but it’s more evened out now, anyway.) The song that stood out most to me was “Dirt on My Boots”; I immediately recognized its greatness and knew it would sound awesome live! 🙂 Finding out who sang it and then watching footage on YouTube soon followed. Real country. So cool to hear him say he wants to do good stuff similar to the 90’s – the very decade I most enjoyed the rockin’ soul of country music sound! 🙂 😎 No wonder I love Jon Pardi’s music! 🙂 He knows what sounds good and he delivers. 😎 Keeping the good music going, playing what he knows is good. I like it that he goes for the upbeat sound; that’s my kind of music. 😎

   Time to review this supercool, super-country song, “Dirt on My Boots” by Jon Pardi! 😎 (Album: California Sunrise. Released: June 17, 2016. Label: Capitol Records Nashville.) And here we go! 😀

   It starts off with the voice of the fiddle – a pure country fiddle that draws you into the song from the barest sound of that first note, musically pulling you in as the bow is drawn across the strings. 😎 Yes, if you know the song like I do, that takes place in the first second of the track. 😎 More than three minutes remaining in this song filled with musical satisfaction. 😎

   The other instruments join in as the time hits right on the one-second mark. 😎 It immediately sounds really cool; you know you are hearing something great already. It’s got a deep yet laid-back sound to it, perking you up and settling you down comfortably at the same time. It catches your interest and assures your ears that you are in for a great country song. 🙂

   Twelve seconds in and the fiddle sings a happy, upbeat tune, announcing the approaching vocals of Jon Pardi. His voice is the best instrument yet and by his tone and style, he sets the stage for this song, telling it like it is with authenticity. 😎 He’s been up since the crack of dawn, earning his pay in the 100+ degree heat with no shade to be found. He knows exactly how much work he has left in this workday then he’s shutting that tractor down. A half hour after that, having gotten cleaned up some from his rough day at work in the fields, he’s going to go pick up his girlfriend for a date of dancing. 🙂

   And here comes that supercool chorus! He might have a little dirt on his boots, but he’s taking her uptown tonight. And he may have a little mud on his wheels, but they’re going to shine with her up inside. 😎 Great lyrics delivered excellently. 😎 I love the distinct way Jon Pardi sings “got-a-little”; it’s really cool, sounds good. 😎 He sings about how they’re going to dance the dust right off those boots.

   The instruments are played great on the album and, as with Jon Pardi’s singing, it’s even more powerful in concert. 😎 He plays guitar with strength, a comfortable ease and is great to watch. 😎 Most of the performances I’ve seen (thanks again to all of the fans who share concert footage on YouTube so we can all see it! 🙂 ) featured the supercool drumming of Mitch White. What great style, power and smooth precision! If you watched him play the song (any song), but couldn’t physically hear him, you could still “hear” it just by watching his movements. He’s one of the drummers I most enjoy watching. 😎 During this summer, Kevin Murphy started playing the drums, and, as a drum enthusiast, I immediately recognized his strong talent. He seemed to be enjoying it, too. 🙂 I miss seeing and hearing Mitch. I always have room in my heart for more good drummers, so I welcome Kevin, too. 😉 🙂 Solid drumming. 😎 Lee brings that essential bass groove to the music. 😎 Terry Lee plays supercool guitar. 😎 Billy makes his fiddle to sing. 😎 Andy really brings it with his steel guitar work. 😎 Great band, The All-Nighters. 😎 😎 😎 😎 😎 (There’s a “cool” smiley for each of you. 😉 )

   “Got a little dirt on my boots!” As Jon Pardi finishes up that chorus, he sings out a hearty, “Yeah, Girl!” that fits perfectly and is one of my favorite parts. 😎

   The second verse goes a little deeper. 😎 He sings to the girl in the song that he’s worked really hard that day, but he’s going to put even more into loving on her. (Terry Lee’s guitar does a really cool thing right here. 😎 ) He’s going to spin her all around that dance floor. When she’s ready to go, he will take her back to her place. The music brings it down here, as it did at this point in the previous verse – really cool. He assures her she needn’t worry – he’ll kick his dirty boots off on the porch when they get there. 🙂

   Supercool chorus! 🙂 😎 The drums really hit it. 😎

   Coming up on two minutes, the instrumental section starts sizzlin’, really rockin’ it good, then winds down to this really cool tempo by the drummer. 😎 And now we’re at the final verse of this supercool song.

   The third verse goes deeper yet. 😎 A cool play on words – since there’s actual dirt on the boots – as he sings in his wonderfully-timbered voice, “A little dirty dancin’, blue-collar romancin’.” He notes that he can get cleaned up if she wants him to, but – here he gives a tug to his collar and cuffs – “I can only get so fancy!” Love that part! 😀 😎 😎 He sings it with such great delivery; it’s supercool. I looked forward to this part every time it came to it on the radio when I was first hearing it. And I still do. The entire song sounds great, but this part, the way he sang it, really added to the song and made me want to go buy it. And I did. 🙂 I love listening to it! 🙂

   The final chorus continues the strong, solid, rockin’ real country music that this song (and all of Jon Pardi’s music) is filled with from start to finish. The song never lacks, never eases up on its power, never loses its appeal. It’s lively, good and entirely enjoyable. Great song. Great band. Great artist. Great for country music. Keepin’ it real and true. Keepin’ it live and genuine. Keepin’ it with heart and authenticity. Thank you! 🙂

Jean247

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More Jon Pardi Articles:

Heartache on the Dance Floor

Head Over Boots

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