From the serious to the not-so-serious we go. Every year, the grand finale for the holiday season is Robert Alex Anderson’s Mele Kalikimaka. My daughter and FooFoo are back, and for 2021, Aria does the kazoo solo:
This was our fourth year together. Mahalo for watching, and best wishes for a happy holiday season. May jolly Saint Nicholas bring you a musical instrument and perhaps lessons to go with it. Aloha!
After a little fun with unrequited love at the holidays, I am solo on this recording with one of my favorite Christmas carols, O Holy Night. This song is based on a poem written by French poet Placide Cappeau in 1843. The music was later composed by Adolphe Adam in 1847 with English lyrics eventually penned by John Sullivan Dwight in 1855. That would have been an ASCAP nightmare!
What I am playing here is a mix of several different arrangements, as well as a few flourishes I added myself:
The grand finale is next as my daughter makes another appearance!
We had a grand old time last week with the Jose Feliciano holiday staple, Feliz Navidad. Up next, a song that receives much mockery in our house, soley from my wife who despises it. This makes me question whether she loves Christmas at all. Aria and I, however, love this tune, which was a big hit in 1984 and continues to be a prime mainstay of holiday radio. Presenting Wham!’s Last Christmas, daddy-daughter style:
We have one more song to do together, but first, I’ll have a solo piece later this week of a well-known Christmas carol.