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Jingle Bell Roq
You’ll hear my daughter if you listen to the 100 tracks from past Kevin & Bean Christmas albums that are posted on KROQ’s website. She has one line (“What are their names, Uncle Bobcat?”) in track 97, “Storytime with Bobcat.”
When Bobcat Goldthwait visited Knoxville recently, he and I reminisced about that recording session. Meaghan and some of her classmates from St. Finbar School came to the studio to sing and say their lines, which were written by Jimmy Kimmel. Bob recorded his outrageous part the next day so the schoolkids wouldn’t hear it.
Frank Jr.’s version of “A Visit from St. Nicholas” never really fit the KROQ mold. It was on the 1993 album but lacked the cynicism that characterized the other tracks on “Santa Claus, Schmanta Claus.” Obviously, it became one of our family’s most cherished memories. I posted the audio on my website in 2005.
Frank Jr. re-recorded some lines from the poem as a high school senior in 2007. The remix has become a holiday tradition on the Marc & Kim and Frank show on Star 102.1. I hope you enjoy both versions. Merry Christmas Eve!
Podly Enough
Shaquille O’Neal, Snooki and “The Walking Dead” are typical topics of conversation for Terry Morrow, the TV critic for the Knoxville News Sentinel. He and I were talking about the year in entertainment and it occurred to me that it would make for a fun and interesting podcast. We could get a little more in-depth, you might say more nerdy, than in a broadcast interview. We also discussed Robert Duvall, Miley Cyrus, Kathy Griffin, “Dexter” and several other topics over 30 minutes.
media file: FrankMurphy&TerryMorrow-Podcast-12-22-10.mp3
Hymn and Her
The voice resonating through the parking lot was my wife’s. I heard her singing something in Spanish as my daughter and I arrived at Sacred Heart Cathedral. A new outdoor speaker plays the sound from the microphones inside. My wife was the cantor for Bishop Richard Stika’s 25th anniversary Mass. We got there in time to hear her do an outstanding job with the responsorial psalm and the alleluia. Over the past few years, she has been the cantor for several Masses with the bishop.
I wasn’t sure I would make it to the bilingual service at all, which is why I fulfilled my Sunday obligation at All Saints Church first thing that morning. Around noon, I impersonated Santa Claus at Holy Family Church in Seymour. I had to get home and wash the white dye out of my hair before I could do anything else. I wouldn’t do it, but it might have been funny to show up at Bishop Stika’s celebration in full Santa regalia. After all, the original St. Nicholas was a bishop in the Catholic church.
There were two bishops, one archbishop and one cardinal in attendance at the Mass. Bishop Stika was joined by Bishop David Choby of Nashville, Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville and Justin Cardinal Rigali of Philadelphia. Archbishop Kurtz was recently elected vice-president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Both Archbishop Kurtz and Bishop Stika were kind enough to mention that they occasionally read my blog.
After the Mass, Bishop Stika and Cardinal Rigali visited with the faithful at a very nice reception in the school gymnasium. The huge cake had layers of red velvet, white cake and Italian wedding cake. The bishop cut the cake and joked that it was sugar-free. He couldn’t have any because, like Wilford Brimley, he has the diabeetis.
Lonely Joe
Can someone explain to me the appeal of single-serve coffee makers? First of all, who drinks just one cup of coffee? If I wanted only one cup, all I would have to do is put the appropriate amount of water and grounds into my old-fashioned coffeemaker. There are new drip brew coffeemakers with bells and whistles that look good to me. If my old machine ever breaks, I would only want to replace it with one that allows me to use coffee from any source, including the local roasters that I enjoy.
Once you buy a single-serve machine, aren’t you then stuck using their “K-Cups” or “T-Discs” or whatever? That’s how they get you. It’s like printer ink. Besides, I wouldn’t want to end up with whichever brand turns out to be the Betamax that loses to VHS in this technological battle.
Maryville
The local “dentist-office station” used to play nothing but Christmas music for the month between Thanksgiving and Christmas. This year they seemed to only play a few Christmas songs per hour, mixed in with their regular light-rock playlist. A local Christian station does a much better job of choosing songs for the season. Their all-Christmas playlist is less holly, more holy.
The more I hear “Mary Did You Know?”, the more I think its lyrics are anti-Catholic. Some Protestants mistakenly think Catholics are “Mary worshipers.” Wikipedia describes the song as a “Marian hymn.” I disagree. By asking the question, I think the songwriter implies “Mary Didn’t Know,” which contradicts the Bible.
Did you know,
that your baby boy has walked where angels trod?
When you kiss your little baby,
you’ve kissed the face of God.
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Mary, did you know
that your baby boy is Lord of all creation?
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Mary, did you know
that your baby boy will one day rule the nations?
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Did you know,
that your baby boy is heaven’s perfect lamb?
This sleeping child you’re holding, is the great I AM.
According to the Bible, the answer to all those questions is yes, Mary did know. In the Gospel of Luke, we read that Mary completely understood what was happening to her.
In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.”
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But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
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But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?”
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And the angel said to her in reply, “The holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God.”
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Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
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During those days Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.”
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And Mary said: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For he has looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is from age to age to those who fear him. He has shown might with his arm, dispersed the arrogant of mind and heart. He has thrown down the rulers from their thrones but lifted up the lowly. The hungry he has filled with good things; the rich he has sent away empty. He has helped Israel his servant, remembering his mercy, according to his promise to our fathers, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
Santa Maybe
Fr. Ragan Schriver broached the subject in a text message on October 5th. Would I impersonate Santa Claus at Holy Family Catholic Church like December 12? In Ragan-ese, “like December 12″ turns out to mean December 19. Thinking the gig was the 12th, I began growing out my beard a few weeks ago.
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Last year WBIR’s John Becker had the honor of impersonating the jolly elf. With those big shoes to fill, I had decided to buy theatrical makeup to make me look older. My wife and I thought it would be best to apply two coats of “snow white” hair color. We put on the first application at 7:00 a.m. even though it meant I would attend 8:15 a.m. Mass at All Saints with it on. One person thought I must have an older brother.
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We drove to Seymour and put on the second coat of hair color at the rectory. I made a grand entrance at the Knights of Columbus pancake breakfast. Years of doing improv made it easy for me to ad-lib in character. My job was to pose for pictures but the best part was listening to the kids who were enthralled by the spirit of Christmas.
Hanu-lujah
The 24th Annual Clayton Holiday Concert by the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra contains a perfect mix of sacred and secular music for the season. The pace is set by the opening selection, which is my favorite Christmas piece. “Christmas Festival Overture” is Leroy Anderson’s medley of religious and non-religious seasonal tunes. The transition from “Jingle Bells” to “O Come All Ye Faithful” gives me chills, especially as the Knoxville Choral Society stands to sing their part.
The abundance of Christian songs are complimented by the inclusion of a Hanukkah composition by Lucas Richman. The maestro has a growing repertoire of Judaica. I love that he shares some of it with us each year. My wife, who is a member of the Choral Society, has been practicing the Hebrew portions of the “Hanukkah Fantasy” medley at home. It impresses me that not all the choir members sing all the syllables. For example, many of the singers drop the S sound at the end of words to keep the group from sounding like a leaky tire. The guttural G at the beginning of some words is pronounced almost like a K so that it sounds like a G to the audience.
Another of Richman’s compositions made a welcome return to the program. “Reindeer Variations” is an excerpt from “A Christmas Wish,” in which eight ballerinas play the roles of Santa’s reindeer. The performers from Go! Contemporary Dance Works had great costumes that personified each character. They segued into “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” as a ninth reindeer ballerina came on stage. The dancers returned in the second half for three numbers from “The Nutcracker.”
This year’s secular songs were inspired by Christmas characters from pop culture. The Choral Society sang “Christmas Time Is Here” from “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and two selections from the “Home Alone” soundtrack. The children’s show choir Sound Company sang “Frosty the Snowman” and joined Santa for “You’re Mean One Mr. Grinch,” mixed in with some Who whoing. One of the kids in Sound Company wore his hair in a fauxhawk that reminded me of Puck on “Glee.”
The balance of sacred and secular was best illustrated by Santa Claus singing “Silent Night.” His amazing baritone voice is a highlight of the performance each year. My wife reminded me that the weekend’s four concerts are recorded for later broadcast on WUOT radio. I wish one of the local television stations or production companies recorded the show as well. I dare say that the KSO Christmas program is as good as most of the holiday concerts I watch on PBS each year.
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