Joy to the World - Bianco

Harpist Gene Bianco (1927-2007) abandoned the fields of classical and jazz for easy listening in 1962 when he signed a contract with RCA Victor. Under the deal his records were sold exclusively by a record club formed by RCA and Reader's Digest.

He was billed as "The Rainbow Sound of Bianco" and was backed by a full orchestra for half a dozen high quality albums. The first of these was a holiday LP released for Christmas of '62. Below is a link to a sample track from Joy to the World.

We Wish You a Merry Christmas/Silent Night

Joy to the World appears to be the only Bianco album to appear in a digital format. Amazon is selling it as a download under the title The Rainbow Sound of Gene Bianco. Listen before buying as this may have been dubbed from vinyl.

If you own only one Gene Bianco album it probably should be Harp, Skip and Jump (1958), one of two early jazz efforts for RCA's budget Camden label. His musical partner in this swinging affair is guitarist Mundell Lowe.

Ace Cannon - 12 Saxophone Christmas Classics

Alto saxophonist Ace Cannon is best known for his work with Bill Black's Combo from 1959 to 1961 and for his '62 solo hit Tuff. Cannon had made his first recordings backing rockabbily artists on Sun Records.

Later in his career he had best-selling TV-marketed allbums with Golden Classics and The Entertainer, both recorded for the Nashville-based Gusto label.

Gusto released 12 Saxophone Christmas Classics in 2007, but the tracks were probably recorded at least a decade earlier. The other band members aren't credited. A sample track is available below.

The First Noel

12 Saxophone Christmas Classics is available on CD at a very reasonable price from most of the major outlets. You can also get it as a download.

Here's an interesting interview with Ace Cannon from a local Memphis TV show called George Klein's Memphis Sounds. Probably about three years old, as video was uploaded to YouTube in 2009. Be warned: Video and sound are out of synch.

Duane Eddy - Early Christmas

Each year between 2004 and 2010 guitarist Duane Eddy, rock 'n' roll's all-time best selling instrumentalist, released an original Christmas song, which was posted on the web for fans to download for free. These songs were never released on CD.

The original posting site has long since disappeared so I thought it was time to give people another chance to hear his first offering from '04. The link to Early Christmas follows.

Early Christmas

As you can hear it's just Duane and electronically-generated accompaniment. It sounds OK and his guitar tone is as deep and warm as it has always been. But I think Early Christmas is a tune that cries for a full band treatment, as do some of his other Christmas songs, released only as MP3s. It's a shame that Duane has never done a Christmas album, but I guess there's still hope as he's still very active at age 74. There -- that's my Christmas wish.

To keep up to date with his appearances and recordings, check the Duane Eddy Circle website and perhaps consider joining this long-running fan group.

Duane toured the U.K. this past spring to promote his album Road Trip (recorded in Sheffield, England). Here's a clip from his show at the Cheese and Grain in Frome, Somerset, on May 24.