Christmas Countdown December 10 The Voices

I like to call myself a traditionalist when it comes to Christmas music, by which I mean I am drawn to the great American crooners singing tunes synonymous with Christmas. Bing Crosby singing "White Christmas" or "Silent Night" always makes for good listening as far as I'm concerned. Perry Como, Johnny Mathis and Andy Williams probably made a good chunk of money performing Christmas songs, and rightfully so. They had, and, in the case of Williams and Mathis, still have the kinds of voices that sounded sincere when singing about the holiday. But let's not count out the Rat Pack of Frank, Dean and Sammy. "A Jolly Christmas from Frank Sinatra" I think is a classic Christmas cd.

What is it that draws me to singers and songs of that era, from the 1940's through about the mid-60s? Well, as you can see in the accompanying video, men looked good in suits and ties. I guess, in general, people dressed better then. But there's something about America from that period of time, a feeling of unity perhaps? A feeling of strength, almost an invincibility? After helping World War II Americans possibly found that their feeling of Americas destiny for greatness was finally being proven and fulfilled on a world stage. That feeling was in the music. During the war, Bing Crosby sang "Ill be Home for Christmas" for all the GI's longing for the comforts of home. When the war ended, there was a new found national confidence you could hear in the popular voices, especially in someone like Sinatra and especially in the Sinatra of the 1950s. It was a confidence borne of sacrifice, and there was a thankfulness that, while there was sacrifice, we, Americans, had done the right thing.