Vince Guaraldi Trio - A Charlie Brown Christmas: The Original Sound Track Recording Of The CBS Television Special
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Free Music Notes for A Charlie Brown Christmas: The Original Sound Track Recording Of The CBS Television Special
Free Music Review: From a Non-Jazz lover
Hit: 5 Stars
Let me preface this by saying that I'm not a big fan of Jazz music. Nonetheless, this CD is my favorite Christmas CD. Likely much of this is nostalgic as I love the "A Charlie Brown Christmas" special so much. Still, the music is lighthearted and fun. It avoids the heaviness of other Christmas music CDs while not disappearing into the background too much. It starts off with "O Tannenbaum" and you realize that you made the right choice. You'll easily picture the Peanuts kids dancing to "Linus And Lucy." "Skating" is one of my favorite songs and I only wish it was longer. Can't you just see Snoopy skating around on the pond? The kids sing so nicely in "Christmas Time Is Here" and "Hark, The Herald Angels Sing." The rendition of "My Little Drum" is based on the "The Little Drummer Boy" and is just magnificent. "Christmas Is Coming" and "The Christmas Song" are aptly named for musically conveying the anticipation and joy of Christmas. "Fur Elise" and "Greensleeves" round out the classic feel of this CD. There just aren't any "skip over" songs on this CD and all the music is timeless in that my kids and I all greatly enjoy it. If you love piano music and Christmas music you'll love this CD. I dare you to try to listen to "Linus And Lucy" without smiling!
Merry Christmas to you!!!
Free Music Review: Stands on Its Own
Hit: 5 Stars
Peanuts fan + Jazz fan + Christmas = Guaraldi's Peanuts Xmas album. I suspect that this is a similar equation for many people who are considering purchasing this album. I always loved the Peanuts cartoon and as a fan of jazz I thought the music was a great accompaniment, especially around the holiday season. However, does the music stand on its own, without the positive association of Christmas and Charlie and his gang? The resounding answer is yes! Since buying this CD I have watched the Peanuts CBS special once, but I've probably listened to the album >40 times. As such, the music now stands apart from the album and I don't even think of Charlie Brown when I listen to "Linus and Lucy" (aka the Peanuts theme). The Vince trio blends funky rythyms and cool jazz into a collection of songs that hold together as an uplifting and soothing album...not just for Christmats time but for the whole year. While Guaraldi does not have the inventive modal variations of his contemporaries such as Miles Davis or John Coltrane (btw, I highly recommend Coltrane's version of Greensleeves), his musicianship rivals that of any of the other famous 1960s jazz composers. This CD a must have, not just for any Christmas music collection, but for any jazz music collection.Free Music Review: Put 5 stars for Guaraldi on the top of Charlie Brown's tree
Hit: 5 Stars
It wasn't only the wonderful humor of Charles Schulz and the adorable child voices that made "A Charlie Brown Christmas" such an enduring holiday favorite. The score by Vince Guaraldi was sophisticated and sensitive and stands alone as one of the best holiday albums ever. Frankly, we play it all year long, yes, Christmas in July or June or whenever.)The original compositions ("Skating", "Linus and Lucy", "Christmas is Coming") are brilliant, quirky and humorous, yet are far from childish. They are jazz compositions of real merit, and Guaraldi must have been a true "Peanuts" fan because he really was able to interpret Schulz's characters in musical form.
The score also has Guaraldi's interpretations of favorite Christmas carols. In "Greensleeves" in particular, you can hear how Guaraldi flavors this English classic with snippets of the Charlie Brown music--very clever and makes the score hang together as a unit and not just a patchwork of holiday tunes.
Sometimes the sound is a bit fuzzy on this recording (made originally in 1965), but that doesn't detract much from the pure pleasure of the score. This is a CD we play frequently and I must say, it never palls. I hear new things every time.
Free Music Review: Brings Back Warm Memories. Really Great Music!
Hit: 5 Stars
This is a masterpiece of cool jazz. "Christmas Time is Here," "O Tannenbaum" and many others are just sublime. What a great CD to listen to with people you care about or are thinking about.In the liner notes of the album, Ralph Gleason notes that the album is a spendid achievement of expressing two artists' inspiration: Charles Schulz's feeling about Christmas and his ideas of life in his Peanuts characters; and the West Coast jazz sound of Vince Guardaldi.
Schulz formulated his Peanuts characters and outlook on life growing up in Minnesota, an enthusiastic ice skater, and his Minnesota upbringing and Upper Midwest values on life are apparent in his art. He moved to New York as his career took off, then settled on the other coast in Santa Rosa and adopted it as his new home. He met Guardaldi from the San Francisco scene and the whole West Coast Jazz sound. The rest is history. Just listen to the CD. Guardeldi's Trio is so "on," and the music has that gentle Charlie Brown touch.
Think of the theme of the movie. Charlie Brown champions an unloved Christmas Tree that is the neediest of all. It's about caring for others. You can feel the art of Schulz in the music.
I just love the song "Skating!"
Free Music Review: Magical! Purely magical! This CD is Christmas
Hit: 5 Stars
"Charlie Brown Christmas" is as essential to Christmas as the decorated tree. It's a jewel. It magically touches all your Christmas senses. It's as simple as that. Your childhood memories, the visions of Christmas you grew up with, the Peanuts gang in all their innocense and simplicity, a perfect winter day with all the winter landscape. If this doesn't put you in the Christmas mood, nothing will. Even in your adulthood, you can justify this CDs presence. The instrumentals are ageless, and haunting, in the best of ways. You might just find yourself "snapping out of it" after a tune or two. A great accompaniment to Christmas errands around the house, or in the Car while shopping. While this CD is a non-stop assault on your Christmas senses, it's never overbearing - perfect background music while talking with guests. While I've always been partial to both versions of "Christmas Time Is Here", there's really no point in judging or singling out any particular song. They're all essential, gorgeous Christmas melodies. Like most Christmas music, this CD is never outdated, and one that's never played too often during the season. Buy it for yourself, but be the star of the holiday and buy one for your friends too.