Smorgasbord Christmas Breakfast Show with William Price King and Sally Cronin – Music to get you into the festive spirit

Welcome to the Christmas Breakfast Show which we hope you will enjoy. William Price King has selected three of his favourite festive tracks, and I have chosen three of mine.

Thank you for joining us today and I hope your preparations are going well for Christmas Day.. here are three festive songs I hope you will enjoy.

Jingle bells  –  Ella Fitzgerald 

“Jingle bells” was written by James Lord Pierpont and published under the title “The one horse open sleigh” in the autumn of 1857. Supposedly, it was originally written to be sung by a Sunday school choir, or as a drinking song but became associated with Christmas music in the 1860s and 1870s. It was initially featured in a variety of parlor song and college anthologies in the 1880s and was first recorded in 1889 on an Edison cylinder.

Carol of the bells  –  The Mormon Tabernacle Choir

This Carol was written in 1914 by the Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych with lyrics by Peter J. Wilhousky, and is based on the Ukrainian folk chant “Shchedryk.” It has been performed in many genres: classical, jazz, country, metal, rock, pop, and rap, and has been featured in films, television shows, and parodies

Nat King Cole  –  The Christmas Song 

“The Christmas Song” (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire as it is commonly called, or Merry Christmas to You, as it was originally subtitled) was penned by Mel Tormé and Robert Wells in 1945. According to Tormé, the song was written in July during a blistering hot summer in an effort to “stay cool by thinking cool.” The Nat King Cole Trio first recorded the song in June 1946, and this version was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1974

Now time for my selection and I hope you will be dancing and singing along to the songs.

Mariah Carey – All I Want For Christmas Is You

“All I Want for Christmas Is You” is a Christmas song by American singer Mariah Carey. She co-wrote and co-produced it with Walter Afanasieff for her fourth studio album and first holiday album, Merry Christmas (1994). Columbia Records released it as the lead single from the album on October 29, 1994.

It is Carey’s biggest international success, topping the charts in twenty-six countries including Australia, Canada, France and Germany. In 2019, it topped the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time, 25 years after its original release, thus breaking several records, including the longest trip to number one. The following year, it also topped the charts in the United Kingdom for the first time, spending a record 69 weeks in its top 40 prior to reaching number one. Mariah Carey 

Leona Lewis – Just One More Sleep

“One More Sleep” is a song recorded by British singer Leona Lewis for her first Christmas album and fourth studio album, Christmas, with Love (2013). It was written by Lewis in collaboration with Richard “Biff” Stannard, Iain James, Jez Ashurst and Bradford Ellis, and produced by Richard “Biff” Stannard. It was released in the United States on 5 November, in Ireland and the United Kingdom on 29 November and many parts of Europe on 2 December. “One More Sleep” is recognised as one of the biggest recent Christmas songs in the UK according to the Official Charts Company. leonalewis 

Johnny Mathis – It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

“It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” is a Christmas song written in 1951 by Meredith Willson. The song was originally titled “It’s Beginning to Look Like Christmas”. The song has been recorded by many artists, but was a hit for Perry Como and The Fontane Sisters with Mitchell Ayres & His Orchestra and Bing Crosby recorded a version on October 1, 1951, which was also widely played. This version by Johnny Mathis is one of my favourites.

Additional sources: Wikipedia 

Your Hosts for The Breakfast Show

William Price King is an American jazz singer, crooner, and composer.

His interest in music began at an early age when he studied piano and clarinet in high school. At Morehouse College in Atlanta where he grew up, he sang in the Glee Club and studied classical music. After graduation he went off to the Yale School of Music where he earned a Masters degree. From there he journeyed to New York where he created a jazz trio ‘Au Naturel’ which performed in some of the hottest venues in Manhattan including gigs on Broadway and the famous ‘Rainbow Room.’ These gigs opened doors for performances in Montreal and a European tour.

While touring Europe he met a lovely French lady, Jeanne Maïstre, who, a year later became his wife. King left the group ‘Au Naturel’ and settled in the south of France where he started a new life on the French Riviera, opening his own music school – the “Price King Ecole Internationale de Chant.” He has had the pleasure over the years of seeing many of his students excel as singers on a professional level, and some going on to become national celebrities. He continues to coach young singers today, in his spare time.

Blog– IMPROVISATION – William Price King on Tumblr – Buy William’s music: William Price King iTunes – Facebook – William Price King – Twitter – @wpkofficial
Regular Venue – Cave Wilson

Sally Cronin is an author, blogger and broadcaster who enjoyed four years as part of the team on Onda Cero International’s English speaking morning show in Marbella and then for two years as a presenter on Expressfm the local radio station in Portsmouth. She co-presented two ‘Drive Time’ shows a week with Adrian Knight, hosted the live Thursday Afternoon Show and The Sunday Morning Show guests including musicians and authors. Following this she became Station Director for a local internet television station for two years, producing and presenting the daily news segment, outside broadcasts and co-presenting the Adrian and Sally chat show live on Friday evenings.

She and her husband David have now returned to Ireland where they live on the Wexford Coast where she blogs and continues to write books.

Books :Amazon US – And: Amazon UK – More reviews: Goodreads – blog: Smorgasbord Blog Magazine Twitter: @sgc58 – Facebook: Sally Cronin – LinkedIn: Sally Cronin

We hope you will tune in next Tuesday for the first part of hits from 1985 as always we love to hear from you.. thanks William and Sally.