LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW

FRANK SINATRA
SONGWRITERS: JULE STYNE & SAMMY CAHN
COUNTRY: U. S. A.
ALBUM: LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW!
LABEL: COLUMBIA RECORDS
GENRE: CHRISTMAS SONG
YEAR: 1957
 
                 Francis Albert Sinatra (/sɪˈnɑːtrə/; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer, actor and producer who was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century. He is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, having sold more than 150 million records worldwide.
               Born to Italian immigrants in Hoboken, New Jersey, Sinatra was greatly influenced by the intimate easy listening vocal style of Bing Crosby and began his musical career in the swing era with bandleaders Harry James and Tommy Dorsey. Sinatra found success as a solo artist after he signed with Columbia Records in 1943, becoming the idol of the "bobby soxers". He released his debut album, The Voice of Frank Sinatra, in 1946. But by the early 1950s his professional career had stalled and he turned to Las Vegas, where he became one of its best known residency performers as part of the Rat Pack. His career was reborn in 1953 with the success of From Here to Eternity, with his performance subsequently winning an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor. Sinatra released several critically lauded albums, including In the Wee Small Hours (1955), Songs for Swingin' Lovers! (1956), Come Fly with Me (1958), Only the Lonely (1958) and Nice 'n' Easy (1960).
           Sinatra left Capitol in 1960 to start his own record label, Reprise Records, and released a string of successful albums. In 1965, he recorded the retrospective album, September of My Years and starred in the Emmy-winning television special Frank Sinatra: A Man and His Music. After releasing Sinatra at the Sands, recorded at the Sands Hotel and Casino in Vegas with frequent collaborator Count Basie in early 1966, the following year he recorded one of his most famous collaborations with Tom Jobim, the album Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim. It was followed by 1968's Francis A. & Edward K. with Duke Ellington. Sinatra retired for the first time in 1971, but came out of retirement two years later. He recorded several albums and resumed performing at Caesars Palace, and released "New York, New York" in 1980. Using his Las Vegas shows as a home base, he toured both within the United States and internationally until shortly before his death in 1998.
                 Sinatra forged a highly successful career as a film actor. After winning an Academy Award for From Here to Eternity, he starred in The Man with the Golden Arm (1955), and received critical acclaim for his performance in The Manchurian Candidate (1962). He appeared in various musicals such as On the Town (1949), Guys and Dolls (1955), High Society (1956), and Pal Joey (1957), winning another Golden Globe for the latter. Toward the end of his career, he frequently played detectives, including the title character in Tony Rome (1967). Sinatra would later receive the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1971. On television, The Frank Sinatra Show began on ABC in 1950, and he continued to make appearances on television throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Sinatra was also heavily involved with politics from the mid-1940s, and actively campaigned for presidents such as Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan. Sinatra was investigated by the FBI for his alleged relationship with the Mafia.
             While Sinatra never learned how to read music, he worked very hard from a young age to improve his abilities in all aspects of music. A perfectionist, renowned for his dress sense and performing presence, he always insisted on recording live with his band. His bright blue eyes earned him the popular nickname "Ol' Blue Eyes". Sinatra led a colorful personal life, and was often involved in turbulent affairs with women, such as with his second wife Ava Gardner. He later married Mia Farrow in 1966 and Barbara Marx in 1976. Sinatra had several violent confrontations, usually with journalists he felt had crossed him, or work bosses with whom he had disagreements. He was honored at the Kennedy Center Honors in 1983, was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Ronald Reagan in 1985, and the Congressional Gold Medal in 1997. Sinatra was also the recipient of eleven Grammy Awards, including the Grammy Trustees Award, Grammy Legend Award and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. He was collectively included in Time magazine's compilation of the 20th century's 100 most influential people. After Sinatra's death, American music critic Robert Christgau called him "the greatest singer of the 20th century", and he continues to be seen as an iconic figure.
             "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!", also known as simply "Let It Snow", is a song written by lyricist Sammy Cahn and composer Jule Styne in July 1945. It was written in Hollywood, California during a heat wave as Cahn and Styne imagined cooler conditions.
                  Despite the lyrics making no mention of any holiday, the song has come to be regarded as a Christmas song in North America due to its winter theme, being played on radio stations during the Christmas and holiday season and having often been covered by various artists on Christmas-themed albums. In the Southern Hemisphere, however, it can be played during the winter months of June, July, and August; and in New Zealand, some play it at Matariki.

Oh The Weather Outside Is Frightful
But The Fire Is So Delightful
Since We've No Place To Go
Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
 
It Doesn't Show Signs of Stopping
And I've Brought Some Corn For Popping
The Lights Are Turned Down Low
Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
 
When We Finally Kiss Goodnight
How I'll Hate Going Out In A Storm
But If You Really Hold Me Tight
All The Way Home I'll Be Warm
 
The Fire Is Slowly Dying
And My Dear We're Still Goodbying
As Long As You Love Me So
Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
(Backup Voices)
 
He Doesn't Care If It's In Below
He's Sitting By The Fires Gloosy Glow
He Don't Care About The Cold And The Winds That Blow
He Just Says, Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
(Frank) Let It Snow!
(Backup Voices)
 
Oooooh Wee Goes The Storm
Why Should He Worry When He's Nice And Warm
His Girl By His Side And The Lights Turned Low
He Just Says, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
(Frank) I Don't Care!
(Instrumental)
 
(Frank)
The Weather Outside Is Frightful
But That Fire Is Ummm.. Delightful
Since We've No Place To Go
Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
 
It Doesn't Show Signs Of Stopping
And I've Brought Lots Of Corn For Popping
The Lights Are Way Down Low
So Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
(Backup Voices) Let It Snow!
 
(Frank)
When We've Finally Say Goodnight
How I'll Hate Going Out In A Storm
But If You'll Only Hold Me Tight
All The Way Home I'll Be Warm
 
The Fire Is Slowly Dying
And My Dear We're Still Goodbying
Long As You Love Me So
Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

CHRISTMAS SONG

NAT KING COLE
SONGWRITERS: TORME MEL & TORME MELVIN H
COUNTRY: U. S. A.
ALBUM: THE NAT KING COLE STORY
LABEL: CAPITOL RECORDS
GENRE: CHRISTMAS SONG
YEAR: 1961
 
            Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer and jazz pianist. He recorded over 100 songs that became hits on the pop charts. His trio was the model for small jazz ensembles that followed. Cole also acted in films and on television and performed on Broadway. He was the first African-American man to host an American television series. He was the father of singer-songwriter Natalie Cole (1950–2015).
              Nat King Cole recorded "The Christmas Song" with his group The Nat King Cole Trio in 1946. There were two versions made: the first without the strings, and the second with the strings. The second version was released that year, while the first one was put on hold and appeared much later on a compilation "Billboard Greatest Christmas Hits 1935-1954" in 1989.
              Nat King Cole recorded four versions of this song in total: in June 1946, in August 1946, in August 1953 and in March 1961. The first version was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1974.

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire
Jack Frost nipping at your nose
Yuletide carols being sung by a choir
And folks dressed up like Eskimos
 
Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe
Help to make the season bright
Tiny tots, with their eyes all aglow
Will find it hard to sleep tonight
 
They know that Santa's on his way
He's loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh
And every mother's child is gonna spy
To see if reindeer really know how to fly
 
And so I'm offering this simple phrase
To kids from one to ninety-two
Although it's been said many times, many ways
Merry Christmas to you
 
And so I'm offering this simple phrase
To kids from one to ninety-two
Although it's been said many times, many ways
Merry Christmas to you.

IT DON'T MAKE SENSE IF YOU CAN'T MAKE PEACE

WILLY DIXON
SONGWRITER: MÁRIO DE VASCONCELOS SÁ
COUNTRY: U. S. A.
ALBUM: IT DON’T MAKE SENSE
LABEL: COLUMBIA RECORDS
GENRE: BLUES
YEAR: 1984
 
              Dixon was born in Vicksburg, Mississippi, on July 1, 1915. He was one of fourteen children. His mother, Daisy, often rhymed things she said, a habit her son imitated. At the age of seven, young Dixon became an admirer of a band that featured pianista Little Brother Montgomery. He sang his first song at Springfield Baptist Church at the age of four Dixon was first introduced to blues when he served time on prison farms in Mississippi as a young teenager. Later in his teens, he learned how to sing harmony from a local carpenter, Theo Phelps, who led a gospel quintet, the Union Jubilee Singers, in which Dixon sang bass; the group regularly performed on the Vicksburg radio station WQBC. He began adapting his poems into songs and even sold some to local music groups.
               William James Dixon (July 1, 1915 – January 29, 1992) was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was proficient in playing both the upright bass and the guitar, and sang with a distinctive voice, but he is perhaps best known as one of the most prolific songwriters of his time. Next to Muddy Waters, Dixon is recognized as the most influential person in shaping the post–World War II sound of the Chicago blues.
             Dixon's songs have been recorded by countless musicians in many genres as well as by various ensembles in which he participated. A short list of his most famous compositions includes "Hoochie Coochie Man", "I Just Want to Make Love to You", "Little Red Rooster", "My Babe", "Spoonful", and "You Can't Judge a Book by the Cover". These songs were written during the peak years of Chess Records, from 1950 to 1965, and were performed by Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter, and Bo Diddley; they influenced a generation of musicians worldwide.
             Dixon was an important link between the blues and rock and roll, working with Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley in the late 1950s. In the 1960s, his songs were adapted by numerous rock artists. He received a Grammy Award and was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

You have made great planes to span the skies
You gave sight to the blind with other men's eyes
You even made submarines stay submerged for weeks
But it don't make sense you can't make peace
 
You take one man's heart and make another man live
You even go to the moon and come back thrilled
Why you can crush any country in a matter of weeks
But it don't make sense you can't make peace
 
You can make a transfusion that can save a life
Why you can change the darkness into broad daylight
You make the deaf man hear and the dumb man speak
But it don't make sense you can't make peace.

JINGLE BELL ROCK

BOBBY HELMS
SONGWRITERS: JIM BOOTHE & JOE BEAL
COUNTRY: U. S. A.
ALBUM: JINGLE BELL ROCK
LABEL: DECCA RECORDS
GENRE: CHRISTMAS ROCK
YEAR: 1957
 
                Robert Lee Helms (August 15, 1933 – June 19, 1997) was an American country music singer, best known for his 1957 Christmas hit "Jingle Bell Rock". His other hits include "Fraulein" and "My Special Angel".
           "Jingle Bell Rock" is an American popular Christmas song first released by Bobby Helms in 1957. It has received frequent airplay in the United States during every Christmas season since then. "Jingle Bell Rock" was composed by Joseph Carleton Beal (1900–1967) and James Ross Boothe (1917–1976), although both Helms and session guitarist on the song Hank Garland disputed this. Beal was a Massachusetts-born public relations professional and longtime resident of South Ocean Avenue in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Boothe was an American writer in the advertising business.
            "Jingle Bell Rock" was released by Bobby Helms as a single in 1957, and re-released in 1958 and 1960. The B-side was "Captain Santa Claus And His Reindeer Space Patrol".
             According to a 1986 interview, Bobby Helms said, that he wrote the bridge for this song.
           Anita Kerr Quartet provided the backup vocals on this track.
            "Jingle Bell Rock" was featured in the film "Jingle All the Way" (1996) starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sinbad.

Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring
Snowin' and blowin' up bushels of fun
Now the jingle hop has begun
 
Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells chime in jingle bell time
Dancin' and prancin' in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air
 
What a bright time, it's the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go glidin' in a one-horse sleigh
 
Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jinglin' feet
That's the jingle bell rock
 
Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells chime in jingle bell time
Dancin' and prancin' in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air
 
What a bright time, it's the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go glidin' in a one-horse sleigh
 
Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jinglin' feet
That's the jingle bell
That's the jingle bell
That's the jingle bell rock.