True, this is technically not a version of "The Twelve Days of Christmas", but I really enjoy this parody and thought it would appropriate enough in the spirit of things.
Today is the last day of Christmas, which makes tonight Twelfth Night. Yes, just like the Shakespeare play!
A still from the 1996 film version starring (among others) Helena Bonham Carter.
I'm going to be moving in the next few days, so I won't be posting again until I find my new apartment in San Francisco! I hope you've had a lovely new year and have at least been amused by my little plan.
I chose this due to my New Year's resolution, which is to buy as few products Made in China as is humanly possible in this day and age.
I know, it seems a bit pretentious, but it's not out of some self-righteous attitude I've taken up. I'm just fed up with poorly made products. We'll see how it goes.
Today's two items could not have less to do with each other, but they're both interesting in their own ways.
This version of "The Twelve Days" is translated into American Sign Language. I've been trying to teach myself ASL for quite some time now, and I've heard that translating songs is one of the best and easiest ways to learn.
Today's second feature is a song and dance from "Yolanda and the Thief". Probably Fred Astaire's biggest flop, it was originally intended as a fame vehicle for Fred's costar (and then lover) Lucille Bremer. It had the opposite effect, however, and Astaire retired after making only one more film. Despite being an overall flop, "Yolanda" does have its moments - this number being one of them. Though Astaire took a backseat to choreographer Eugene Loring, he did insist for this number that they do something he'd never done before. Supposedly Astaire made the production team sit through every one of his movies taking copious notes in order to find something fresh for Astaire and Bremer. What did they come up with? It's an almost indistinguishable element of the song, but if you watch for the subtitles everything will be clear:
My favorite kind of music is A Capella. So, naturally, today's version is by an A Capella group called Straight no Chaser:
Today, along with your gift, y'all get a fun tid-bit about "The Twelve Days of Christmas". The line "four calling birds" is actually a common mispronunciation of "four colly birds". A colly bird is another name for a blackbird - like the four and twenty baked into that famous pie.
On to the gift. Though today's 12 version isn't by a barbershop quartet, they are my favorite kind of vocal harmony groups. Here are four delightful videos for you to enjoy:
This first is from "The Music Man", one of my favorite musicals. True, this isn't completely A Capella, and, true, Shirley Jones sings as well but I don't think either of those things detract from the song as a whole.
This next one is less interesting for its soundtrack than for its fascinating timeline of men's Barbershop Quartet Fashions from 1939-2008. Look out for 1950 (the original Buffalo Bills) and 1972 (the most terrifying suits I've ever seen):
The third is fun not just because of the spectacular vocals, but also because of the nostalgic television show theme songs!
The fourth is a great personal nostalgia moment for me. I had the Simpsons music CD as a kid, and I must have worn it out for listening to it so much. My favorite track?
This extra one is just plain fun. Crude language warning (but it's worth it)!
The more erudite among you will definitely enjoy today's "12 'isms' of Christmas". The less erudite will probably have to look up most of these , along with the meaning of the word "erudite". I'm just teasing - I actually had to look up a few of these myself:
(Just FYI this video does contain some strong language)
As your gift for today, I'll add an "ism" to that list: Symbolism. Hands-down, my favorite artist of this movement is Gustav Klimt. The following are photographs from "AE" magazine, via Kattaca (who I believe did the Art Direction for this shoot) on Behance Network. Click the image to see the rest of the photo shoot. They are absolutely stunning.
Today I feature two variations on the theme with local flavor:
The Twelve Yats of Christmas - Benny Grunch and Da Bunch
The Twelve Days of Cajun Christmas - Tee Jules
If you're not from these here parts you probably won't understand many of the gifts. Even I who have been exposed to Cajun culture since birth didn't catch everything. If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments below and I'll be sure to clarify!
Today's "gift" is brought to you by the Tired Old Queen at the Movies - two wonderful holiday recommendations that I plan on taking up as soon as find some time. Enjoy:
Since I've been so pitiful about posting in the past few weeks, and because I know I'll be posting very little in the weeks following New Years since I'll be moving and hunting for my first apartment, I've decided to post on each of the Twelve Days of Christmas. For each of the days (traditionally from December 25-December 5), I will post a new version of this well-known song:
I know, you're probably thinking, "Oh, gosh! This should be terribly, terribly boring..." Well, I promise you it won't be. I won't simply be posting the same song covered by 12 different bands. In fact, the original song in it's totality only appears thrice, and these are already quite different. The rest are spin-offs, local variations, or something else entirely.
In addition to this, I'll be posting "gifts" I deem appropriate to fit with each of the numbered days. Today's gift is the Victorian episode of "Super Sizers", whom I reviewed in a previous article. I chose them despite having covered them so recently because this episode features a traditional Victorian Christmas feast, which I deemed quite appropriate considering the date. Enjoy this over some eggnog, but be ready for some pretty grizzly sights!
