Ellyn Oliver is an Aberdeenshire-born, Glasgow based singer-songwriter. Her style crosses over a number of genres such as gospel, pop, blues, folk, soul and jazz. Working alongside a number of notable music projects over the last 5 years, Ellyn released her debut EP, ‘Arms Wide Open‘ in August 2019 so much critical acclaim. Ellyn regularly travels around the UK, sharing her stories of faith through solo work, teaching in schools and singing at weddings. Oliver is a very talented vocalist — I’ll feature three songs from her 2020 EP, Ring the Bells.
I teased the Dublin Gospel Choir in early November and then decided against featuring them prior to Christmas. It’s not for a lack of talent. It’s just that the accompanying video is very strange.
The video features a family descended upon by the choir in a very cult-like manner. The family tries and tries to avoid giving in but eventually does. I’m guessing the message was there is Joy in Christmas if you just “let go and let God.” However, the choir members were just too cult-like for my taste.
The Dublin Gospel choir is an amazing chorale so I didn’t want to scrap it entirely — hence the move to the post-Christmas rotation. (Guess what, as a song on your Christmas playlist without video, it’s great!)
I’ll also post them singing Now Behold the Lamb simply because it’s so good.
We call you Messiah Messiah is your name
Son of God anointed one heaven sent to save
We call you Savior Savior is your name
Holy one redeemer that is why you came
Emmanuel Emmanuel
God right here with us
Emmanuel Emmanuel
Your name is Jesus
The holy one from heaven
The promise for all man
Emmanuel Emmanuel
Linda Ronstadt is 72. Take that in for a second. 72.
She also suffers from Parkinson’s and has not been able to sing for nearly ten years.
“Brushing my teeth is the hardest thing I do all day,” she said. “I’m like a window washer without a safety harness. Of course, I have a hard time talking, and traveling is ridiculous. It’s just the nature of the beast.” Ronstadt added that she makes a point of working out regularly. “It’s important to push that signal through my brain,” she explained. “It takes a lot of will.” ultimateclassicrock.com
Despite her illness, in 2017 and 18, Ronstadt has been touring via spoken word events where she shares stories about her career and how her life has changed since the diagnosis. Interestingly, Ronstadt feels she probably first had symptoms of Parkinson’s when she was 51 (in 1997). She wasn’t officially diagnosed until 2012.
Ronstadt released A Merry Little Christmas in 2000. It was met with mixed reviews (mostly by rock reviewers who remembered her from her rock and roll days). The album is made up of the typical Christmas classics, like Silent Night, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, River and so on. Despite the reviews, A Merry Little Christmas was the #1 top selling Christmas record in 2000 (SheDaisy, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Christina Aguilera were among the dozens released that same year).
Ronstadt wrote and released her autobiography, Simple Dreams – A Musical Memoir in 2013. You can find it here.
I’m going to feature Ronstadt’s outstanding version of the English Christmas Carol, Past Three O’Clock.
I’m going to feature two highly contrasting styles of music today; a pop band from Singapore and a vocal/piano duo from Germany, The Same Willows and Sund Yard. Sund Yard’s music and style is about as far removed from The Sam Willows as can be imagined. And that’s OK — they both work in their own genre.
The Sam Willows is the name of the Singapore based pop-band started by a brother and sister named Narelle and Benjamin Kheng. Their first release was a four-song EP in 2012 followed by their first full record in 2015 and their second album this year.
The Sam Willows released their Christmas EP just a few days ago (November 30th 2018) — it features three traditional covers and one original, (I’m Gonna Be Loved) This Christmas, a pure pop yet a very catchy tune. If it gets any radio airplay, it’ll become a perennial holiday favorite.
BTW, the band just held a Christmas Concert with all benefits going to childhood cancer research. The concert comes on the heels of a music video they recorded with a fan, Nurul Shafikha Bte Kamsani, a 16-year old who was diagnosed with a brain tumor late last year. Shafikha’s dream was to become a singer/songwriter. The members of The Sam WIllows took her into the studio with them and recorded her song, Why Me? (embedded below as well).
The Sam Willows – (I’m Gonna Be Loved) This Christmas
The Sam Willows ft. Shafikha – Why Me?
And now for something completely different.
Sund Yard is a vocal/piano duo from Germany. Elena Janis (vocalist) and Wolfgang Torkler (pianist) have just released their Christmas album, “Weihnachtslieder (Christmas Songs)” featuring interpretations of old, classic German Christmas carols. Janis and Torkler describe their music as, “a voice, a piano–simple and stirring”. Every song is just as advertised, a voice and a piano.
“It’s time for a tasteful and modern Christmas CD! One that you can hear while decorating trees or at dinner with friends. One that does not drip with kitsch and yet is devout. One that you would like to hear in 10 years’ time. We have reworked and arranged our favorite Christmas carols, and that’s what the world is going to hear!”
Elena & Wolfgang
If you love the old German carols, ever so slightly re-imagined and stripped to their bare essence, Sund Yard is for you. It’s beautiful music.
Tom's Christmas Music Blog 