Christmas Favorites and Monkee Adventures

Unfortunately, I overslept this morning and barely had enough time to grab breakfast and rush to work. Even with the rushing, I was a minute late. Fortunately, that was the worst that happened all morning. We were dead the whole four hours. We're between holidays, and even with it being the beginning of the month, a lot of people may still be getting rid of Thanksgiving leftovers or focusing on other shopping. It remained sunny, but still really cold, and much windier. Cold aside, I had no problems, and I was in and out.

Changed when I got home, then put on The Monkees. Davy discovers that rock contests can be a real drag when the guys get him into a dress for a mixed-gender contest in "Some Like It Lukewarm." To his dismay, not only does Jerry "Geater" Blavat (the real-life Philly DJ) fall for him, but he falls for the seemingly male member of their female rivals The Westminster Abbies. It's not until he sees her again in the dressing rooms and they admit that they've done something wrong that the duo come up with a solution to bring both groups together. (And look for Davy and Wiz creator Charlie Smalls working on a soul song of their own in the last sequence.)

Peter's in trouble again in "Monkees Blow Their Minds." This time, he goes to devious mentalist Oraculo (Monte Landis in his last role on the show) and his lackey (TV director Jim Frawley) in order to get help releasing a writer's block. Oraculo decides to steal their gig instead and gives him a potion that makes him into his slave. Mike tries to find out what they're doing to Peter, but he falls under his spell, too. It's up to Micky and Davy to save their friends and prove that Oraculo is more fake than fabulous. (Look for Mike and Frank Zappa playing each other and destroying a car in the opening.)

"The Frodis Caper" ends things on a seriously weird note...which shouldn't be surprising, given it was written and directed by one Micky Dolenz. Peter and almost everyone in Malibu Beach has been hypnotized by a pulsing eye on their television screens. Micky, Davy, and Mike discover that the evil Wizard Glick (Rip Taylor) is using an alien plant (voice of Micky) to control everyone on Earth and try to foil his plot. Honestly, Tim Buckley singing his own "Song of the Siren" in the finale makes more sense, even if Micky did manage some nifty directorial touches (like the "Good Morning" sequence in the opening).

And other than the Christmas episode, which I'll run when we get closer to the holiday, that is that. The show only ran two seasons because the guys wanted to do a variety program and NBC wanted things to stay the way they were. Personally, I thought they had a good balance at the end of the second season, with the guest stars at the beginning or end. I wish the guys could have gotten off their high-horses and compromised, but it was clear that they and the show's creators had pretty much lost interest by the time "Frodis Caper" aired. 

I largely prefer the second season over the first. The first is a better introduction to the guys...but while the second season has some pretty awful lows, it also has some of the best episodes of the entire series. My personal favorite episode, "The Devil and Peter Tork," is from the mid-second season. I also love "Fairy Tale," "It's a Nice Place to Visit," "Some Like It Lukewarm," and "Hitting the High Seas." 

I really wish the DVD sets for this show weren't out of print and the Blu-Ray wasn't incredibly expensive. I've had my DVD sets for 20 years now. If you're a classic rock fan or have fond memories of when this was on TV originally, in re-runs on cable and Saturday morning, or on digital channels, you'll want to see if you get music-based digital channel AXS TV (where this is apparently re-running now) and check out the adventures of the funniest fictional band who pushed themselves into reality. 

Put up the remaining Christmas decorations while I watched the guys. This is all of the little bits and bobs I've found or been given over the years, like the Santa and Mrs. Claus porcelain salt and pepper shakers Mom gave me, the mini light-up ceramic Christmas tree I bought in Collingswood two years ago, and the "Falalala" and "Hohoho" signs Linda Young made for me years ago. The mini tree from college goes with the smaller stuffed animals on top of one of the book shelves in my bedroom, along with the Whitman's tin I got from Mom a few years ago. There's a whole army of Beanie Baby Christmas toys, including two angel bears, and the stuffed tree, candy cane, and star Beanie-type toys Eckards sold in the late 90's during the height of the Beanie Baby craze. 

Spent the rest of the evening first doing job hunting, then finally finishing out the Cast Album inventory. Added the stage version of Victor/Victoria, a collection of songs from Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals, A Year With Frog and Toad, and the 1999 revival of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. The Very Best of Andrew Lloyd Webber goes back so far, I'm pretty sure I got it from my mom in the mid-late 90's. Lauren sent me the Year With Frog and Toad CD after we became friends in 2004. 

Since I'm already listening to Christmas music, I'll do the inventory for that next. I don't have nearly as many of the holiday albums as I do rock or cast albums. It shouldn't take long to do.

Listened to said Christmas albums while I worked. Christmas In France seems to be part of a series of albums featuring songs from various European countries Capitol released in the 60's. The Child Singers of Versailles performs the songs here. Though they do give us "White Christmas" and "Jingle Bells," the real interest here are traditional French holiday songs like "In That Stable" and "The Three Kings" that capture what they're still likely singing during the holiday season in France to this day.

Firestone released a series of Christmas albums from 1962 through 1968 that mostly focused on classical music, as per their radio and TV shows of the time, though pop singers like Julie Andrews occasionally turned up as well. I listened to Volume 2 and 3 tonight. Volume 2 belongs to Rise Stevens, Brian Sullivan, and the Columbus Boychoir with traditional offerings like "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," "Angels We Have Heard On High," and "The Twelve Days Of Christmas." Gordon MacRae is joined by three opera singers (including Roberta Peters) on Volume 3. Their offerings skewer slightly more recent, mixing "White Christmas" and "Sleigh Ride" in with "Gesu Bambino," "Go Tell It On the Mountain," and "Panis Angelicus."

(I always loved the covers of these albums, with their simple red ribbons and mistletoe against various colored "brocade" backgrounds. They just looked like Christmas in the 60's to me. Mom inherited two of these from her mother, and we'd listen to them during the holidays.)

Switched to Match Game Syndicated during dinner. In the first episode, Charles kept picking on director Marc Breslow...which meant we saw a lot of Charles' cowboy hat or shots of the side and under him during that episode. Eva Gabor showed off her lovely electric blue dress with the ruffled trim and swirly skirt in the second.

Put on another version of The Nutcracker on Kanopy after I ate. This one came from the Australian Ballet, and up thought the first half, it's pretty traditional. The second half begins with the Mouse King and his people invading the Land of Sweets. Even after they're dispatched, Clara joins the various international candies in their dances.

Finished the night at YouTube with holiday specials from around the world featuring Perry Como. The first was the oldest of the three. Perry's Christmas In Austria from 1976 made a lot of Sound of Music references, including in the opening. We also get to see Tyrolean slap dancers and a sleigh ride to the tune of "Valderi, Valdera."

Perry Como's Early American Christmas from 1978 takes us back to the US for a trip to Williamsburg, Virginia. We get to see how the Colonal colonists celebrated the holidays, with fife-and-drum corps and lots of huge balls and big meals. Diane Canova sings "My Cup Runneth Over," "It Couldn't Please Me More," and joins two ladies for "Making Christmas Dinner." John Wayne toasts Como's good health in the tavern.

Christmas In England from 1984 heads back to Europe, staring with a trip to jolly good London. Ann-Margaret sings "London Is London" before she and Como head off to admire the beautiful and enormous Downton Abbey-style castles and estates. "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" Perry and Ann-Margaret don't. They have an easier time with dancing pub waiters and waitresses in London. 

Oh, and it started raining around dinnertime. I think it rained pretty hard at one point, though it seems to be gone now. At least this is supposed to warm things up a bit. I heard it's going to get into the upper 50's by next week.