Harry Belafonte - Belafonte's Christmas,

This version of Belafonte's Christmas was released in 1976 by RCA Records Canada. Many of the recordings apparently date back to 1958, and this collection is the same as the 1962 reissue that added "Mary's Boy Child" to the song order. I did see the earlier version in the bin, but it was in really poor condition and, other than reversing the side order, appeared to be the same. Besides, the cover on the one I picked up looked brand new. The vinyl, while not quite as pristine, was really nice.

Listening to this now, I think re-sequencing the song order to start with "Mary's Boy Child" was the right call. It's a great song, and a great way to start the album. It's too bad they didn't close the album with "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day." Then again, that would likely have meant remastering the album, and it was cheaper to relabel the sides and put the hit first.

Harry Belafonte is one of those singers who can captivate you with his voice. Belafonte's Christmas is a really good Christmas album, and he performs a number of the standards: "Silent Night," "The Twelve Days of Christmas," and "The First Noel." But then he goes deep and pulls out songs like "Christmas Is Coming," which is sung in a round, sort of like a festive "Row, Row, Row Your Boat," and it's better than you'd think.

Of course, bringing "Mary's Boy Child" into the festive carol canon was a coup, but he didn't stop there. His version of "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" remains one of my favourite songs over the holidays. People like to show off by saying, "Oh, that's Henry Wadsworth Longfellow," which is true. He wrote the poem, but it was Johnny Marks who brought this to life as we know it. If you're not up on Johnny Marks, you should be. It's strange to me that Bing Crosby, who had recorded the song before Mr. Belafonte, did not include it on his Merry Christmas album.

I've played this through a few times now, and there's a sombre reverence to most of the songs. There is a short essay on the back cover by Watson Wylie that encapsulates the album perfectly:

"As every Belafonte follower knows, he moves easily and vividly from boisterousness to tenderness, from merriment to soul-searching."

This explains why he can get away with singing the ever-irritating "The Twelve Days of Christmas" and then pull on your emotions with "The Son of Mary."

A good find, and a great addition to my Christmas collection. I suppose this is out of fashion now, as it's an album that needs to be listened to, and not merely played in the background.

It's worth the effort.

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