"Jingle Bells" - Part 77 - Andy!

As we continue with "Jingle Bells," it's not too far of a jump from Perry Como to Andy Williams!

Not that I think Andy was really any competition for Perry, but I do think Andy kind of tried to emulate Perry's laid back attitude, cardigan sweater and all, but Andy was more square.

In any event, in the early 1960s it was practically mandatory for an artist like Andy Williams to record a Christmas album, and in 1963 he released the aptly title "The Andy Williams Christmas Album" on Columbia Records.

A standout track was Andy's version of "Kay Thompson's Jingle Bells":

That somewhat awkward title is self-explanatory, as that's "Jingle Bells" as reworked by Kay Thompson, the actress/singer/composer/author and everything else renaissance woman!

Kay Thompson with the Williams Brothers

I've always wondered if Kay did that arrangement of "Jingle Bells" specifically for Andy's album, but it seems unclear. I do know that Kay was a mentor to Andy and her connections were of immeasurable help in getting his solo career off the ground (he had performed with his brothers).

It does seem that Kay wrote the song "The Holiday Season" and blended it with Irving Berlin's "Happy Holiday" for another track on Andy's Christmas album:

Those are a couple of fun tracks!

In addition to her skill as a s vocal arranger, Kay Thompson was a successful author with the adventures of her "Eloise" character.

Of course, Eloise got her own Christmas book in 1958:

Back to Andy Williams, his most famous Christmas track was also featured on that 1963 album:

You still hear that one a lot!

I will say that on the whole I prefer Andy's 1950s records on the Cadence label vs. his Columbia records from the early 1960s on.

He did actually have a Christmas single on Cadence in 1955:

Not a bad record, but neither song went anywhere!

Such are the ways of Christmas music!