Leslie Odom Jr album for a buck (he's in Hamilton, and the album is awesome!)
3Interested in a nice jazzy (like actually good jazz) Christmas album for a buck! Then this is for you! You have to buy it in the Microsoft store, but it’s an amazing album, so you should buy it!
Any other favorite Christmas/holiday albums that you would recommend that aren’t horribly cheesy?
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Oh Holiday cheese from the WordGirl episode of the same name.
@PlacidPenguin Nope, this is MORE cheesy, I want less cheesy please
@luvche21
I don’t listen to this music, so…
The Magic Of Christmas by Natalie Cole
$1.29 on Google Play
(a little less cheesy)
These are great suggestions!
My theory regarding religious music, including Christmas music, is that one can have only a tenuous or cultural connection to the religion (as opposed to partially or fully accepting any of those beliefs) and still value the music and other religiously inspired art and traditions.
The Kings College Choir at the gorgeous medieval Kings College Chapel produces some of the most ethereal and lovely sounds I’ve ever heard. They sing in a very restrained, Anglican tradition.
Most of their stuff doesn’t seem seen to be on sale right now.
At Google Play one more might start with:
https://play.google.com/store/music/album/King_s_College_Chapel_Choir_A_Festival_Of_Lessons?id=B7fdi7xts3zaqqbehoqysuk2qem&hl=en
For $5.99
"A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols".
This album is a collection of the songs sung one year at their famous Christmas Eve Service.
Another year’s recording of the music from the same service is here, for $6.99.
https://play.google.com/store/music/album/Kings_College_Choir_A_Festival_Of_Lessons_And_Caro?id=Bi7jvhyjdn5gnuuflatggtbbddm&hl=en
Those Christmas Eve services traditionally open with a stunning version of the beautiful “Once in Royal David’s City”. The service is traditionally broadcast on the BBC, and also round the world on the BBC World Service radio and internet stream (don’t know which channel. (Since at least the 1930’s)
The other carols in the service, and their arrangements vary somewhat year to year. I think “Oh Come, All Ye Faithful” is almost always included.
All their album prices are a considerable savings over the per song cost.
They also do traditional “Christmas music” albums, and lots of Handel and Bach.
More albums at Google Play are here:
https://play.google.com/store/search?q=Kings college choir&c=music&docType=2&sp=CAJiFQoTS2luZ3MgY29sbGVnZSBjaG9pcg%3D%3D%3AS%3AANO1ljKyrTY&hl=en
An Amazon link to their music is here:
https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_nr_p_n_feature_browse-b_0?fst=as%3Aoff&rh=n%3A163856011%2Ck%3AKings+college+choir%2Cp_n_feature_browse-bin%3A625150011&bbn=163856011&keywords=Kings+college+choir&ie=UTF8&qid=1481569379&rnid=625149011
If you have Prime, several of their albums are included in Prime Music.
The choir consists of Cambridge students and boys admitted to the choir school. Therefore the membership changes each year.
To give an idea, here are three different years’ renditions of “Once in Royal David’s City”.
Incidentally, which boy will have the solo opening is not known to the choir members until the choirmaster signals who is chosen at the moment the song begins. All the boys rehearse it, and the Choir supposedly has that tradition in order to prevent the chosen boy being overwhelmed by nerves.
2015
2013
2010
Here is an entire service, which includes the readings I think.
About an hour and a half.
@f00l Or one could have purchased CDs of the services in past and uploaded them to one’s Amazon Music account so Alexa could play them on request.
@OldCatLady
Yes one could.