Season 461 - Happy Holidays

Well this song goes in two categories since we lost John to COVID in April.

Before the turn of the century we had a folk club held in the Citizens' Forum at Cobourg's Victoria Hall called Folk At The Forum. One Christmas Hootenanny, my friend Cam asked me to play Christmas In Prison with him. I decided to play slide guitar for the first time in front of an audience. Cam and I practised it with me using an open G tuning and it was sounding pretty OK. The night of the show, we went into the washroom (organic echo) to run over it one more time and Cam informed me that it was easier to sing in D. Instead of refusing, I switched to open D tuning, and it still turned out OK. I realised that I could just move down a string and still be in the same relative tuning. I did it in C here without the slide.

I've wondered about John's simile: "She's sweeter than saccharine at a drug store sale". Why compare your dream girl to artificial sweetener? Maybe he couldn't get maple syrup to fit.

 
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Happy Holidays! Andy, big thanks for hosting this week! I think this new original that I wrote should fit the theme AOK (at least the holiday-themed portion!)! :-D

Edit: Technically, I did post this yesterday on my YT, so it may not qualify... no worries if so! It can be tossed upon the shores of the Island! :-D

Thanks Chelle. I posted it to the Season playlist. There are no Holiday castaways sailing my seas.

Both playlists are current to this post.
 
Hello, Andy, and thank you for this festive week! Actually, I'm feeling a bit "Bah Humbug" for all sorts of reasons at the moment ... is this REALLY the last full week before Christmas??? Oh, dear!!! Anyway, in my quest for all songs weird and wonderful, I came across this one - which is actually just weird - and was sung much better by a 9-year-old Brenda Lee than it is here by me!

 
So, a new annual and festive version of the Yazuke original Christmas anthem Christmas Is Coming is a tradition as old as the hills (erm at least those hills that first appeared in December 2018, anyway). The previous two versions can be found here (2018 version) and here (2019 version).

This time we’ve taken an altogether heavier approach, and it’s also more chaotic to reflect the year we’ve all endured since the last silky smooth incarnation. The animation is all Lynda’s own work - what a clever girl she is - it’s fab! The vid is on Lynda’s YT channel but I’m posting it here as she’s been having some issues making the link work.

Cheers for hosting this week Andy, and a Happy Christmas to you all! :)

 
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Here's one I have always secretly liked, despite the terrible idea in the title, and despite the fact that, at this time of year, you can't have the radio on or go shopping for more than an hour without hearing it.

A little known fact - when you hear it on the radio now, you are not listening to the original recording released in 1973. When CDs began to take off in the 80s, EMI wanted to include this on the first big Christmas compilation CD, and re-release it as a CD single. The problem was, they couldn't find the master tapes, and nor could Roy Wood. All they had were the acetates used to press 45s and albums that it had been on - not good enough for CD quality. So Roy went into a studio for a week, and re-recorded it, playing every instrument himself, plus a little help from a local school choir.

 
All I Want For Christmas. . . by Pat McInnis

This tune uses a set of changes that anyone who plays much raggy music will recognise. The same changes work for:
Bring It On Home - Pink Anderson
They're Red Hot - Robert Johnson
Boogie - John Hartford
Alice's Restaurant - Arlo Guthrie
Can't Tame Wild Women - Bill Boyd
How Come You Do Me Like You Do? - Gene Austin and Roy Bergere
and a bunch more.



A first take, so please excuse the cough in the first verse. If I find time to do it again I'll replace it.

I had a request for the changes to this song. Pat does it a little differently and in another key, but here are my changes. I wrote this out a few years back, so I may have changed the way I play it a bit. I know I often start with | C / B Bb | A / A7 / | using the Bb shape.

All I Want For Christmas Is Another Ukulele
Pat McInnis


[C] All I want for Christmas is a[A7]nother ukulele
In my [D7] Christmas stocking [G7] hanging on the [C] wall. [G7]
[C] Just last year I got a [A7] couple CDs
And some [D7] underwear and that was [G7] all.
Now [C] I've got nothing against [C7] brand new clothes
And [F] I love music as [Cdim] everybody knows,
But [C] all I want for Christmas is a[A7]nother ukulele
In my [D7] Christmas stocking [G7] hanging on the [C] wall. [G7]

When [C] I was a kid I had a [A7] Lionel train
That [D7] rolled a[G7]round the [C] floor. [G7]
I [C] had a lot of track and I [A7]had a lot of cars
But I [D7] always wanted [G7] more.
Well, [C] now I'm old and I've [C7] got no trains
But [F] I've got ukuleles [Cdim] on my brains
And [C] all I want for Christmas is a[A7]nother ukulele
In my [D7] Christmas stocking [G7] hanging on the [C] wall. [G7]

Now I've [C] gotta admit I got a [A7] lotta ukuleles
And [D7] some of them are [G7] really [C] neat. [G7]
Got a [C] couple of Kalas and a [A7] Martin with a hole
And my [D7] pineapple can't be [G7] beat,
But [C] who's to say I can't [C7] have no more?
[F] Let's go down to the [Cdim] ukulele store
[C] All I want for Christmas is a[A7]nother ukulele
In my [D7] Christmas stocking [G7] hanging on the [C] wall. [G7]

Now [C] some might say I got e[A7]nough ukuleles
And I [D7] really don't [G7] need no [C] more, [G7]
But [C] Ebay calls and [A7] I gotta bid,
Can't [D7] stop at three or [G7]four.
[C] There's another great uke [C7] that I find,
[F] Gotta make that uku[Cdim]lele mine
'Cause [C] all I want for Christmas is a[A7]nother ukulele
In my [D7] Christmas stocking [G7] hanging on the [C] wall. [A7]
My [D7] Christmas stocking [G7] hanging on the [C] wall. [G7] [C]
 
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I already record a version of this, this week but I thought I would record a different version. This is Tread Softly to the Stable but Lesley Fowkes.
 
And one from the host. Thanks everyone for your submissions so far. The playlist(s) are up to date up to here.



I can't send PM's for some reason. A few have asked, so here are the lyrics and chords...

CHORUS
C F
The Christmas tree’s on fire! It’s burning down the house!
G C
Flames are gettin’ higher and I’m trying to put it out.
C F
I’m beating it back with a tube sock and a cushion off the couch.
C G C
Christmas tree’s on fire and it’s burning down the house.

VERSE
C F
Valentine’s Day, my wife is out of town.
G
But she told me before she went away last month,
C
she said “make sure you take it down.”
C F
She even called last week, and I told her I took it out.
C G C
Now the Christmas tree’s on fire and it’s burning down the house.

CHORUS

C F G C C F C G C

C F
The thing it ‘ain’t been watered since I put it in the stand
G C
And I used the fire alarm battery for the flashlight in my van.
C F
Now the flames are all around me and it’s bound to take my life.
C G C
Which might be a whole lot better than havin’ to face my wife.

CHORUS

F C F C
Well we put it up for Jesus. It stood so tall and true.
F C G7 G F C
Now it’s burning all to hell. And it’s taking me with it too.
 
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Or maybe an adult beverage was involved........
lol! yes very possibly!!! :cheers:



Yazuke original Christmas anthem Christmas Is Coming
:rock: thanks so much for posting that, i was having trouble getting replies to stick, here on the thread, that happens sometimes! and thank you for your wonderful synthing and rock-uke-plinking on this festive classic :cool: !!!



here's a song for the "gone too soon" playlist. des o'connor, who passed away in november this year, and ken dodd, who we lost in 2018, two icons of brit entertainment, co-wrote this very lovely song, orginally released by des back in 1972. i couldn't find any chords online, so here is my guesstimate attempt at "i tried to write a song"...

 
SOTU 461 - "Circle of Steel," by Gordon Lightfoot (1974). A social commentary on poverty and it's consequences set at Christmas and wrapped in a lovely melody. Kevin Griffin on steel stringed baritone uke. Me playing Kanile'a super tenor and Xing Xing on lap and meows.

 
I wonder if I'll get away with this one. I'll go and strand myself on the island if not.

Only You (originally by Yazoo) was a Christmas number one hit in the UK for the Flying Pickets, with their a capella version, and has appeared on several Christmas collections in the UK at least (for example https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01M9K6S7B/ref=dm_ws_sp_ps_dp, which has some other surprising things on it too...)



I might do another one later in the week, and I promise it will involve Santa if so :).

- Edwin
 
Joko sends one for the Gone Too Soon playlist from his quarantine. I’m posting bc of his continued troubles with being able to post to the forum.

 
Probably the most popular Christmas song ever and a good opportunity to wish every body a happy and healthy holiday.
 
I adore this song, and it turns out it's very satisfying to play.

 
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