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If you want the true spirit of Christmas with choral music both sacred and contemporary.(for the 1950's) with a touch of nostalgia from a simpler time, this is the album for you and your family. With a tenor that can sing like an angel and the rest of the choir of solo quality, yet blending so wondrously.keep this cd in your collection. It's the best every made.
Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians were radio and TV stars from the 1930s to the 1950s, and released "Now is the Caroling Season" in 1957. Fred Waring has long been a family favorite of ours for Christmas music. This disc contains 21 songs full of strong harmonies that will put you in a festive mood.
The remastering still isn't bad but could be a bit better. This album will really bring you back to christmas of yesteryear (the christmas of your childhood, perhaps).While my favorite christmas album from FRED WARING AND THE PENNSYLVANIANS is their 1961 album, THE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS, this album, NOW IS THE CAROLING SEASON, is still almost as wonderful and fully recommended if you like chorus christmas music.
This is for sure one of the greatest chorus christmas albums ever recorded and has a nice orchestra backup in some of the songs such as SLEIGHRIDE (perhaps the best version of this song) or SILVER BELLS (again, perhaps the best version of the song).Then there are just the voices of the chorus in songs like O CHRISTMAS TREE or O COME, O COME EMMANUEL. Of course, as is the norm with FRED WARING'S chorus, these versions are some of the best accapella versions ever recorded.WHITE CHRISTMAS has a nice and fresh original arrangement of the song and as is customary with FRED WARING, among the best versions of that song.
What can I say about FRED WARING AND THE PENNSYLVANIANS - NOW IS THE CAROLING SEASON album from 1957 that others haven't said. The style of this album is that of an old-timey or old fashion style with both the chorus and backing orchestra.
So too is a slower version of WINTER WONDERLAND or a deep and powerful version of THE CHRISTMAS SONG.Two new wonderful songs for me on this album are NOW IS THE CAROLING SEASON and especially, CHRISTMAS WAS MEANT FOR CHILDREN. The latter, CHRISTMAS WAS MEANT FOR CHILDREN, is already a classic for me and I can't believe others haven't recorded it as there were so many other christmas albums that came out in the last few years of the 1950's and so many more in the 1960's.There are many other, mostly rare, christmas songs on the religious side that make up the rest of this album and they are all strong songs.
I only wish the remastering job could have been better such as on the FRED WARING 2 cd set, CHRISTMAS MAGIC, which contained 2 christmas albums from FRED WARING AND THE PENNSYLVANIANS, one from 1959 (THE SOUNDS OF CHRISTMAS) and the other (the one I mentioned above, THE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS) from 1961. The original album cover which is kept as the cd cover (minus the COLLECTOR'S CHOICE MUSIC logo at the bottom right corner) is also one of the nicest christmas album covers of all time.100% recommended for your christmas listening pleasure.
First, I would like to state that this recording is great, no pops or such and they did do a great cleaning job from the old recordings. Our family had this old Capitol Recording (MONO too.). for many years. For some of you ' X-Generation ' - the record companies back in those days offered 2 versions of one recording, one was usually " Hi-Fidelity Mono " and the other was labled " Hi-Fi Stereo " or " Full Dimensional Stereo ", cause you see that was the transitional phase from owners of the old Hi Fi Mono Record players, to the newer Hi Fi Stereo Record players.Until everyone had bought a new Stereo player this method of offering 2 versions lasted for several years.I personally place this recording at the top of my Christmas CD music list, along with The Carpenters Christmas, Mannheim Steamroller's/Chip Davis Christmas CD's, The Trapp Family Christmas Album, Merry Christmas - Jackie Gleason Album, Walter Brennan's " 'Twas the Night Before Christmas.Back Home', Bert Kaempfert's Christmas Wonderland.
It should be included with every family's collections of "classic" Christmas songs. I was thrilled to see this finally available on CD. I grew up with this on vinyl, and it has some of the most beautiful arrangements of Christmas songs not usually included in popular collections. In fact, 32+ years ago, my High School chorale director was able to obtain some of these arrangements to use in our chorale ensemble, and we were booked constantly through the holidays, often with listeners praising the choices of the arrangements. You will not be disappointed.
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