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Between 1963 and 1969, The Beatles issued ephemeral holiday greetings to members of their fan club on flexidiscs. These were collected onto an LP in 1970, but for the most part, escaped a proper issue for the masses (excepting the 2017 limited edition set).
In this holiday edition of SATB, Gary Wenstrup (Beatles Olympiad shows) and I take a deep dive into the history of these recordings, providing context and analysis. In their way, the seven messages serve as a microcosm of the group’s career, reflecting the state of the band each year.
You can hear the entire collection here: https://tinyurl.com/23v8vuwe
“Beatles Christmas Supermash” by Tom Teeley.
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Really enjoyed the show on the xmas records. I can’t shed any light on the ‘old brown shoe’ part but (and you may know this already) the guys are referencing the wartime standard, We’ll gather Lilacs In The Spring’, written by Ivor Novello.
Really enjoyed the show on the xmas records. I can’t shed any light on the ‘old brown shoe’ part but (and you may know this already) the guys are referencing the wartime standard, We’ll gather Lilacs In The Spring’, written by Ivor Novello.
Excellent program. Had been looking forward to a serious look into the Beatles Holiday LP recordings and their back stories for years. Interesting that Robert wasn’t familiar with Perrey and Kingsley’s, “Baroque Hoedown” (1967) and attributed it to a Beatles creation. Baroque Hoedown was actually also used for a Mexican TV show called El Chapulin Colorado in as early as 1973. I first heard, “Baroque Hoedown”, while watching El Chapulin Colorado in Lima, Peru and thought it originated from that program. It wasn’t until 1979 when my family went to Disney in Orlando, Florida that I heard the Electrical Parade version.
I heard the Beatles sampling of “Baroque Hoedwon” from a cassette version of Good Day Sunshine fanzine by Charles F. Rosenay in 1985 which was a really nice experience and funny full circle.
Also, the unearthed bootleg audio from 1965 Beatles holiday chatter about the Vietnam war is historically significant and hope scholars will rouse this material up and contextualize it along with other subversive music and singers of the time, Byrds, Martha Reeves, Miriam Makeba, etc.
Lastly, there is a reference to the composition, “wonderful Christmas Time” (1979) that I read in a book about the Beatles that stated Paul McCartney actually wrote the song in 1969 and intended on using it for a Beatles holiday LP but was never finished at the time.
Any truth to this, Robert?
Thank you Robert Robert Rodriguez and guest, Gary Wenstrup for a magical epsiode.
Excellent program. Had been looking forward to a serious look into the Beatles Holiday LP recordings and their back stories for years. Interesting that Robert wasn’t familiar with Perrey and Kingsley’s, “Baroque Hoedown” (1967) and attributed it to a Beatles creation. Baroque Hoedown was actually also used for a Mexican TV show called El Chapulin Colorado in as early as 1973. I first heard, “Baroque Hoedown”, while watching El Chapulin Colorado in Lima, Peru and thought it originated from that program. It wasn’t until 1979 when my family went to Disney in Orlando, Florida that I heard the Electrical Parade version.
I heard the Beatles sampling of “Baroque Hoedwon” from a cassette version of Good Day Sunshine fanzine by Charles F. Rosenay in 1985 which was a really nice experience and funny full circle.
Also, the unearthed bootleg audio from 1965 Beatles holiday chatter about the Vietnam war is historically significant and hope scholars will rouse this material up and contextualize it along with other subversive music and singers of the time, Byrds, Martha Reeves, Miriam Makeba, etc.
Lastly, there is a reference to the composition, “wonderful Christmas Time” (1979) that I read in a book about the Beatles that stated Paul McCartney actually wrote the song in 1969 and intended on using it for a Beatles holiday LP but was never finished at the time.
Any truth to this, Robert?
Thank you Robert Robert Rodriguez and guest, Gary Wenstrup for a magical epsiode.
Very interesting show! Thanks for all the fascinating insights. The American fan club, Beatles USA Ltd., sent rectangular-shaped postcards containing the Christmas messages to members in 1966 and 1967. The messages were pressed into a vinyl coating on one side of the postcards and could be played at 33 1/3 RPM on a record player (a bit of a challenge, but do-able). I absolutely loved them — free-form Beatles, so witty and wacky. The postcards were sent third-class mail without an envelope or other protection. It’s a wonder they arrived in decent condition.
In the interests of nit-picking accuracy: King Wenceslas. 10th century Duke of Bohemia, was not the same person as St. Stephen, a first century Christian martyr. The story of Wencelas is told in an English Christmas carol derived from a Czech poem (the same carol spoofed in the 1963 Christmas message). The connection is in the lyrics: Wencelas goes out to aid the poor on the Feast of Stephen, which is indeed the day after Christmas/Boxing day. Wencelas was a revered saint in both Bohemia and Britain.
Thanks again for the podcast!
Very interesting show! Thanks for all the fascinating insights. The American fan club, Beatles USA Ltd., sent rectangular-shaped postcards containing the Christmas messages to members in 1966 and 1967. The messages were pressed into a vinyl coating on one side of the postcards and could be played at 33 1/3 RPM on a record player (a bit of a challenge, but do-able). I absolutely loved them — free-form Beatles, so witty and wacky. The postcards were sent third-class mail without an envelope or other protection. It’s a wonder they arrived in decent condition.
In the interests of nit-picking accuracy: King Wenceslas. 10th century Duke of Bohemia, was not the same person as St. Stephen, a first century Christian martyr. The story of Wencelas is told in an English Christmas carol derived from a Czech poem (the same carol spoofed in the 1963 Christmas message). The connection is in the lyrics: Wencelas goes out to aid the poor on the Feast of Stephen, which is indeed the day after Christmas/Boxing day. Wencelas was a revered saint in both Bohemia and Britain.
Thanks again for the podcast!
Great episode with the thoughtful analysis we’ve come to expect from SATB.
May I ask who is the artist and orchestra who performed Beethoven’s Fifth?
It was a worldwide hit in ’69-’70 by Miguel Rios.
https://youtu.be/JTbknyBjYnA
Great episode with the thoughtful analysis we’ve come to expect from SATB.
May I ask who is the artist and orchestra who performed Beethoven’s Fifth?
It was a worldwide hit in ’69-’70 by Miguel Rios.
https://youtu.be/JTbknyBjYnA