Archive for December 2011

Sing Me a Story, an organization uniting the creative talents of children in need and songwriters around the world

Posted by: Sing Books with Emily on: December 31, 2011

I opened up Facebook this morning and discovered a friend has posted information about a wonderful organization that unites the creative talents of children in need and songwriters around the world:

?pg=home

FANTASTIC!!

Lots more info to follow.

**********************

For example, click the link below to see Pavithra’s drawing (a 13 year of child from India) of a fairy to accompany a verse from Rose Fyleman’s poem “A Fairy Went a-Marketing,”
http://www.singmeastory.org/?pg=stories_songs_detail&sid=153&pid=61#wrapper

You can also hear the song it inspired “It Had to Be Magic” by Jamie Polen.

**********************
Related Posts

A FAIRY WENT A-MARKETING, A SINGABLE PICTURE BOOK
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/03/05/a-fairy-went-a-marketing-a-singable-picture-book-a-singable-poem/

Tags: Sing Me a Story (organization)

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, a Singable Picture Book

Posted by: Sing Books with Emily on: December 31, 2011

One of the most beautiful and, some say, one of the saddest of all Christmas Songs was first sung by Judy Garland in the 1944 film, “Meet Me in St. Louis.”

But you can sing it now with this fun, cheerful little book,

*

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
Words by Hugh Martin
Music by Ralph Blane
Illustrated by Liz Murphy
(This book comes with a CD with Bernadette Peters singing this classic Christmas song)

**********************

I listened around a lot, and this is my favorite karaoke sing-along track:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004U1C5EO/ref=dm_dp_trk1?ie=UTF8&qid=1325172253&sr=1-6

**********************

HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS
Words by Hugh Martin
Music by Ralph Blane

Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Let your heart be light
From now on,
Our troubles will be out of sight.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Make the Yule-tide gay,
From now on,
Our troubles will be miles away.

Here we are as in olden days,
Happy golden days of yore.
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more.

Through the years
We all will be together,
If the Fates allow
Hang a shining star upon the highest bough. *
And have yourself A merry little Christmas now.

*NOTE
Original lyric sung by Judy Garland:
“Until then we’ll have to muddle through somehow”

**********************

Holiday Scenes from, “Meet Me in St. Louis

**********************

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5g4lY8Y3eoo

**********************

Informative wiki article about the song:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Have_Yourself_a_Merry_Little_Christmas

**********************

Reading the wiki article about the song (and Singable Picture Book), “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” it was interesting to learn that lyricist Hugh Martin altered a lyric at the behest of Frank Sinatra who requested the change to make the song more cheerful. So Mr. Martin changed the lyric from “We’ll have to muddle through somehow” to “Hang a shining star upon the highest bough.” But the original lyric as sung by Judy Garland in the movie helps with a little variation I made up create a sweet New Year song. I was hoping to find an alternative, or something in addition to, “Auld Lang Syne” to celebrate the coming of a New Year, but not much to be found.

**********************

Just off the top of my head, I sang my children a lullaby, “Have Yourself a Happy Little New Year,” a simple alteration of, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” Doing this will send shivers down the spine of many a musical purist, but I think it’s OK as a sweet sentiment to a loved one:

HAVE YOURSELF A HAPPY LITTLE NEW YEAR

Have yourself a happy little new year.
Let your heart be light.
From now on our troubles will be out of sight.

Have yourself a happy little new year
Make the new year gay.
This year all our troubles will be miles away.

Here we are as in olden days,
Happy golden days of yore.
Faithful friends who are dear to us,
Gather near to us once more.

Through the years, we all will be together,
If the fates allow.
Until then, we’ll have to muddle through somehow.
So have yourself a happy little new year now.

**********************

Andrea Marcovicci is one of the greats of the American Cabaret genre. Few artists give such detailed study to the knowledge and passionate delivery of song. She’s also got a terrific sense of humor. Her performance patter introduction and performance of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” from her LIVE FROM LONDON album is an example. It’s track 17 on the album. She gives a great patter introduction with historical background and interesting information about the song and a wonderful cabaret performance.

http://www.amazon.com/Live-London-Andrea-Marcovicci/dp/B00000DLX2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1326415320&sr=8-1

**********************

A page for the Sing Books with Emily SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

*
“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas“ from the Sing Books with Emily SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
SBWE SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR
Words by Hugh Martin
Music by Ralph Blane
To view or print this page, click here:
SBWE Advent Calendar Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

**********************
Related Posts

*
CHRISTMAS
A Collection of Singable Picture Books that celebrate CHRISTMAS!
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/11/28/singable-picture-books-for-christmas/

*
EASTER PARADE, A SINGABLE PICTURE BOOK
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/04/26/easter-parade-a-singable-book/

*
OVER THE RAINBOW, A SINGABLE PICTURE BOOK
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/03/08/over-the-rainbow-a-singable-book/

*
CHRISTMAS SONG (CHESTNUTS ROASTING), A SINGABLE PICTURE BOOK
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2011/12/28/the-christmas-song-chestnuts-roasting-a-singable-picture-book/

*
SINGABLE PICTURE BOOKS OF THE GREAT AMERICAN SONGBOOK
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2011/09/10/american-songbook-singable-picture-books-and-michael-feinsteins-foundation-for-the-preservation-of-the-great-american-songbook/

*
SING BOOKS WITH EMILY SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2012/11/29/the-sing-books-with-emily-singable-advent-calendar/

*
SBWE Singable Advent Calendar: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2012/11/29/sbwe-singable-advent-calendar-have-yourself-a-merry-little-christmas/

Tags: Bernadette Peters, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Hugh Martin, Judy Garland, Liz Murphy, Meet Me in St. Louis, Ralph Blane

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, a Singable Picture Book

Posted by: Sing Books with Emily on: December 30, 2011

“Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” is a Singable Picture Book SURE THING. I haven’t met a kid yet who didn’t love to sing “Rudolph.”

*

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Words and Music by Johnny Marks
Published by World International Publishing Limited, Great Britain, 1989
ISBN #: 7235-8891-0

This is the only copy I’ve ever found of “Rudolph” the SONG. All other Rudolphs I’ve found have been the original story book by Robert L. May (the story upon which the song is based). It will be great fun to sing the song with the youngsters. They are going to love it!

To view or print this book, click here:
rudolph spb
This book is for home, library or classroom use only.

*

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Original Story by Robert L. May
Written for Montgomery Ward Department Store in 1939
Illustrated by Denver Gillen
Set to Music by Johnny Marks (1948)
(I created a sing-along book for Johnny Mark’s tune with the Denver Gillen Illustrations. Fun to sing!)

To view or print a Singable Picture Book with these vintage pictures and the text of the song, click here:
rudolph song with original story pix (2)

This book is for home, library or classroom use only.

**********************

RUDOLPH THE RED NOSED REINDEER
Words and Music by Johnny Marks
Based on the Character Created by Robert L. May

You know Dasher and Dancer
And Prancer and Vixen
Comet and Cupid
And Donner and Blitzen.

But do you recall
The most famous reindeer of all?

Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer
Had a very shiny nose
And if you ever saw it
You would even say it glows.

All of the other reindeer
Used to laugh and call him names
They never let poor Rudolph
Join in any reindeer games.

Then one foggy Christmas Eve
Santa came to say:
“Rudolph with your nose so bright,
Won’t you guide my sleigh tonight?”

Then all the reindeer loved him
As they shouted out with glee
Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer
You’ll go down in history!

**********************

Kids enjoy singing the song with extra “comments” and actions.

Here are the lyrics and “comments” that kids can sing in (RED) and actions in (GREEN) italic

RUDOLPH THE RED NOSED REINDEER
(with comments and movements)
Words and Music by Johnny Marks
Based on the Character Created by Robert L. May

You know Dasher and Dancer
And Prancer and Vixen
Comet and Cupid
And Donner and Blitzen
But do you recall
The most famous reindeer of all?

Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer
(REINDEER)
(Put hooked first two fingers up behind your head like antlers)

Had a very shiny nose.
(LIKE A LIGHT BULB)
(Flash fingers in front of your nose, from fist to jazz hands)

And if you ever saw him,
(SAW HIM)
(Put your hand up over your eyes like it is a sunny day and you’re looking off the side of the boat like a sailor)

You would even say it glows.
(LIKE A LIGHT BULB)
(Flash fingers in front of your nose, from fist to jazz hands)

All of the other reindeer
(REINDEER)
(Put hooked first two fingers up behind your head like antlers)

Used to laugh and call him names.
(LIKE PINOCCHIO)
(Pinch the end of your nose and draw hand back to mimic Pinocchio’s growing nose when he lied)

They never let poor Rudolph
(RUDOLPH)
(Put hooked first two fingers up behind your head like antlers)

Join in any reindeer games.
(LIKE MONOPOLY)
(Pretend you are moving game pieces around on a game board in the air)

Then one foggy Christmas Eve
Santa came to say:
(HO HO HO)
(Round your arms out in front of you like Santa with a big round belly, and keep doing this until the next movement)
“Rudolph with your nose so bright,
Won’t you guide my sleigh tonight?”

Then all the reindeer loved him
(LOVED HIM)
(Put your hands over your heart)

As they shouted out with glee,
(YIPPEE!)
(One arm “Yippee” gesture)

Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer,
(REINDEER)
(Put hooked first two fingers up behind your head like antlers)

You’ll go down in history!
(LIKE COLUMBUS)
(Salute)

**********************

My son Mo’s depiction of Rudolph pulling Santa’s sleigh,

Santa & Rudolph by Morgan Philip Gleichenhaus, 2009-2011
Santa, Rudlph, my son Mo and the coming of Christmas…

**********************

An informative wiki article about the song, here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolph_the_Red-Nosed_Reindeer

Click here for an interesting set of facts about the song (including that Johnny Marks was the brother-in-law of Robert L. May),
http://bussongs.com/songs/rudolph_the_red_nosed_reindeer.php

Lots of info in this wiki about the Rankin Bass Stop Action Animation that I grew up with and still love to watch with my kids:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolph_the_Red-Nosed_Reindeer_(TV_special)

More great info here:
http://www.rankinbass.com/rudolphhome.html

Link to 2006 New York Times article about the re-discovery of the puppets from 1960 Rankin Bass special and their restoration:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/23/arts/television/23rudo.html

**********************
*
Gene Autry sings “Rudolph,”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6OC7Y4n3xs

*
The Temptations sing “Rudolph,”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcuvlIgSj0Y

*
Burl Ives sings “Ruldolph,” (plus, this video has sing-along lyrics)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io0Wh6urZbY

**********************

A page for the Sing Books with Emily SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: Seems like most everybody loves to sing about Rudolph! If you’re feeling up to it, you can sing the song with the funny comments and gestures, too!

*

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Words and Music by Johnny Marks

To view or print the “Rudolph” SBWE Singable Advent Calendar page, click here:
SBWE Advent Calendar Rudolph

**********************
Related Posts

*
CHRISTMAS
A Collection of Singable Picture Books that celebrate CHRISTMAS!
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/11/28/singable-picture-books-for-christmas/

*
SANTA SONGS
For a post dedicated to Singable Picture Books about Santa (with sing-along track suggestions and YouTubes), click here:
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/12/17/may-i-suggest-sing-about-santa/

*
FROSTY THE SNOWMAN, A SINGABLE PICTURE BOOK
Another SPB “Sure Thing”
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2011/12/27/frosty-the-snowman-a-singable-picture-book/

*
Santa, Rudolph, my son Mo and the coming of Christmas…
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2011/10/23/santa-rudlph-my-son-mo-and-the-coming-of-christmas/

*
SBWE Singable Advent Calendar: Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

Tags: Illustrated Song, Johnny Marks, Robert L. May, Rudolph, Rudolph Light Bulb and Movements, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Singable Picture Book

District of Columbia for “50 Nifty”

Posted by: Sing Books with Emily on: December 29, 2011

In honor of my pal Caroline and her family, a District of Columbia ”Fave” page for “Fifty Nifty States.”

Even if it’s not a state, at the very least, residents of DC should have the same voting rights as states (but that’s a WHOLE other kettle of beans!).

For now, though, my friends in DC can shout out their pride at the end of the song.

*
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA FAVE

Click this link to view or print the District of Columbia page:
FIFTY NIFTY DC FAVE

**********************
From now on, all state pages will be available on the full post for:
*

Fifty Nifty States
Words and Music by Ray Charles
Book Assembled by Emily Leatha Everson Gleichenhaus
This item is for classroom, home, or library use only.

Tags: District of Columbia, Fifty Nifty States, Illustrated Song, Ray Charles, Singable Picture Book

The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting), a Singable Picture Book

Posted by: Sing Books with Emily on: December 28, 2011

“The Christmas Song” (aka “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire”) is one of my favorite songs of all time. Its long lyric lines, lovely images, and warm sentiments make it a delight for every listen and every sing. You can sing it with holiday bravura or as a gentle lullaby (as we often enjoy it in the G-House just before bedtime).

Written by the great singer Mel Torme and his friend Bob Wells, it seems like lots of artists agree with me as it is one of the most recorded Christmas songs.

Here’s a wiki article with some interesting info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Christmas_Song

*** ***

The Christmas Song: Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire
Words and Music by Mel Torme and Robert Wells
Illustrated by Doris Barrette

**********************
THE CHRISTMAS SONG (CHESTNUTS ROASTING ON AN OPEN FIRE)
Music and Lyrics by Mel Torme and Bob Wells

(Optional intro)
All through the year we waited
Waited through Spring and Fall
To hear silver bells ringing and wintertime bringing
The happiest season of all…

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire,
Jack Frost nipping on your nose,
Yuletide carols being sung by a choir,
And folks dressed up like Eskimos.

Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe,
Help to make the season bright.
Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow,
Will find it hard to sleep tonight.

They know that Santa’s on his way;
He’s loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh.
And every mother’s child is going to spy,
To see if reindeer really know how to fly.

And so I’m offering this simple phrase,
To kids from one to ninety-two,
Although its been said many times, many ways,
Merry Christmas to you

(Optional outro)
Love and joy come to you
And to all your loved ones, too
And God bless you and send you
A Happy New Year
And God send you a Happy New Year!

**********************
A Few YouTube Sing-Alongs

*

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IirR7z_024Q

*

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nut0lgTdXn8

*

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyfl04_TQ78
A YouTube video with “The Christmas Song” song history.

*

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOQ4JxPDXIU
I particularly love this one as sung live by Mel Torme and Judy Garland. It is great fun to hear the intros and outros as well. To see them both young, in great voice, and so enjoying what they are doing is a real treat.

**********************

*

For a sweet singable sing-along in a good key, I like this track recorded by “Canadian Brass” for their “Christmas Traditions” album:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00124DPCS/ref=dm_dp_trk19?ie=UTF8&qid=1355483011&sr=8-3

**********************

A page for the Sing Books with Emily SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR

Christmas Song (aka Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)
This is one of my all time favorite songs of any genre. It gives me great joy that my children love it, too. We sing it all year long as a favorite lullaby…

*

The Christmas Song: Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire
Words and Music by Mel Torme and Robert Wells
To view or print the SBWE Singable Advent Calendar sheet for “The Christmas Song,” click here:
SBWE Advent Calendar Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting)

**********************
Related Articles

*
CHRISTMAS
A Collection of Singable Picture Books that celebrate CHRISTMAS!
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/11/28/singable-picture-books-for-christmas/

*
SING BOOKS WITH EMILY SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2012/11/29/the-sing-books-with-emily-singable-advent-calendar/

Tags: Bob Wells, Illustrated Song, Mel Torme, Singable Picture Book, The Christmas Song

Frosty the Snowman, a Singable Picture Book

Posted by: Sing Books with Emily on: December 27, 2011

FROSTY THE SNOWMAN is a Singable Picture Book SURE THING.

If there isn’t a whole lot to be sure of in this world, you can be sure that a roomful of kids will be delighted when you pull “Frosty the Snowman” out of your SING bag.

*

Frosty the Snowman
Words and Music by Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins
Illustrated by Richard Cowdrey

*

Frosty the Snowman
Words and Music by Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins
Illustrated by Lydia Halverson
(This version is lots of fun. The pages are printed and folded like an accordion, so you can pull it straight out to see a looooooong Frosty scene)

**********************

FROSTY THE SNOWMAN
Words and Music by Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins

Frosty the snowman was a jolly happy soul,
With a corncob pipe and a button nose
And two eyes made out of coal.

Frosty the snowman is a fairy tale they say.
He was made of snow but the children
Know how he came to life one day.

There must have been some magic in that
Old silk hat they found.
For when they placed it on his head
He began to dance around.

O Frosty the snowman
Was alive as he could be,
And the children say he could laugh
And play just the same as you and me.

Thumpetty thump thump,
Thumpety thump thump,
Look at Frosty go.
Thumpetty thump thump,
Thumpety thump thump,
Over the hills of snow.

Frosty the snowman knew
The sun was hot that day,
So he said, “Let’s run and
We’ll have some fun
Now before I melt away.”

Down to the village
With a broomstick in his hand
Running here and there
All around the square saying,
“Catch me if you can!”

He led them down the streets of town
Right to the traffic cop.
And he only paused a moment when
He heard him holler, “Stop!”

For Frosty the snow man
Had to hurry on his way,
But he waved goodbye saying,
“Don’t you cry,
I’ll be back again some day.”

Thumpetty thump thump,
Thumpety thump thump,
Look at Frosty go.
Thumpetty thump thump,
Thumpety thump thump,
Over the hills of snow.

**********************

*
Need help with the tune? A straightforward sing-along with lyrics, here:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCjrcjFGQCA

*
Sing “Frosty” with Jimmy Durante:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Pu-bVrndgY

*
Some alternate lyrics and an introduction by Jimmy Durante, here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ytz_XYt6vik

*
Listen to the song, as sung by Gene Autry (with slightly different lyrics), here:
http://www.jango.com/music/Gene+Autry?l=0

**********************

It is always fun to sing a song, even a-capella, especially with a tune as universally familiar as “Frosty,” but singing with music is always MORE fun.

For a “Frosty” instrumental sing-along, my favorite track is by Smoky Mountain Band on their album, “Christmas in the Smoky Mountains”

If you look for the whole album, “Frosty the Snowman” is on Track 3.

Purchase or preview the song, here:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000QM8H3O/ref=dm_dp_trk3?ie=UTF8&qid=1339082528&sr=301-2

I’ve got an affinity for this kind of bluegrass country musical arrangement played on these instruments which are exuberant and joyful with a twinge of sorrow.

If you use this track for singing Richard Cowdrey’s illustration (my admitted favorite), you’ll sing the song through twice and sing the “thumpety thump thump” refrain twice at the end.

**********************
Song History

First recorded by Gene Autry in 1950, “Frosty” was a song written with hopes of riding on the popular sleigh bells of Rudolph.

Interesting info about “Frosty” the song, here:

http://www.christmas-lyrics.org/frosty-the-snowman-lyrics-song.html

Interesting “Frosty” wiki, here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frosty_the_Snowman

SongFacts, here:
http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=9579

**********************

Frosty as depicted by great illustrator Corinne Malvern

**********************

A page for the Sing Books with Emily SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR

Frosty the Snowman, a winter song by Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins.

*

Frosty the Snowman
SBWE SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR
Words and Music by Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins
Illustrated by Richard Cowdrey
To view or print this page, click here:
SBWE Advent Calendar Frosty the Snowman

**********************
Related Articles

*
FROSTY THE SNOWMAN: A SING-ALONG UPDATE
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2012/06/23/frosty-the-snowman-a-sing-along-update/

*
HOLIDAY SONGS FOR EVERYBODY (Part 1)
This is a list of songs has the holiday spirit, but doesn’t mention any particular religion. Themes celebrated include gratitude, love and joy.
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2011/10/30/sbwe-singable-picture-book-set-holiday-songs-for-everybody-part-1/

*
WINTER
Singable Picture Books for Winter
Some of these are sung at Christmastime, but this is a list of songs about Winter that you can sing all season long!
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/12/21/singable-picture-books-for-winter/

*
CHRISTMAS
A Collection of Singable Picture Books that celebrate CHRISTMAS!
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/11/28/singable-picture-books-for-christmas/

*
RUDOLPH THE RED NOSED REINDEER, A SINGABLE PICTURE BOOK
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2011/12/30/rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-a-singable-picture-book/

*
SING BOOKS WITH EMILY SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2012/11/29/the-sing-books-with-emily-singable-advent-calendar/

*
SBWE Singable Advent Calendar: Frosty the Snowman
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2012/12/01/sbwe-singable-advent-calendar-frosty-the-snowman/

Tags: Frosty the Snowman, Illustrated Song, Jack Rollins, Singable Picture Book, Songs for Christmas, Songs for Winter, Steve Nelson

Favorite States

Posted by: Sing Books with Emily on: December 26, 2011

At the end of the song Fifty Nifty States each group of singers gets a chance to show state pride and shout the name of the group’s favorite state (likely the state in which that group is singing).

I’ve made a few gifts of the copies of the book lately and a couple of them have gone out to other states. As I create them, I will post additional “favorite” states, so that if you get the book from me (my printable copy of which comes stocked with “Virginia” as the “favorite” state), then you can visit my blog here to print off a page to reflect your personal favorite.

So far, I’ve got new favorite pages for Indian and Massachusetts:

*
INDIANA FAVE

Click this link to view or print the Indiana page:
FIFTY NIFTY INDIANA FAVE

*
MASSACHUSETTS FAVE

Click this link to view or print the Massachusetts page:
FIFTY NIFTY MASSACHUSETTS FAVE

Tags: Fifty Nifty States, Illustrated Song, Ray Charles, Singable Picture Book

The Songs We Sang in the Last Week Before Winter Break in Ms. Morgan’s, Ms. Howard’s and Ms. Anctil’s Classes

Posted by: Sing Books with Emily on: December 25, 2011

This was a week of sheer Sing Books Delight for me. I am overjoyed and grateful for the chance to visit these wonderful teacher’s rooms and share cultural delights with the beautiful young minds that inhabit those spaces.

In each class, we sang from this list, displayed her in the order in which they came out of the SING bag,

*

When You Wish Upon a Star
Music by Ned Washington
Words by Leigh Harline
Illustrated by Eric Puybaret

*

On the First Night of Chanukah
Words by Cecily Kaiser
Illustrated by Brian Schatell
(Sing to the tune of “Twelve Days of Christmas”)

*

Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah
Traditional Words and Tune
Illustrated by Susan L. Roth

*

Fifty Nifty States
Words and Music by Ray Charles
Book Assembled by Emily Leatha Everson Gleichenhaus
This item is for classroom, home, or library use only.

*** ***

All God’s Critters
Words and Music by Bill Staines
Illustrated by Kadir Nelson
Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, New York, 2009
ISBN 987-0-689-86959-4

*

Silver Bells (a Musical Pop-Up Book)
Words and Music by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans
Illustrated by Robert Steele, Iain Smyth, James Diaz

*

I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas
Words and Music by John Rox
Illustrations by Bruce Whatley

*

Frosty the Snowman
Words and Music by Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins
Illustrated by Richard Cowdrey

*

Jingle Bells (Sing and Read Storybook)
Poem by James Lord Pierpont
Traditional Tune
Illustrated by Darcy May

*

Must Be Santa
Word Adapted by Tim Moore
Words and Music by Hal Moore and Bill Fredricks
Illustrated by Pete Whitehead
Sing with Mitch Miller on YouTube :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42_vCV2_gf0

*

O Christmas Tree
Traditional Words and Tune
Additional words by Debbie Trafton O’Neal
Illustrated by Ande Cook

*

My Favorite Things
Words by Oscar Hammerstein II
Music by Richard Rodgers
Illustrations by Renee Graef

*** ***

The Christmas Song: Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire
Words and music by Mel Torme and Robert Wells
Illustrated by Doris Barrette
A YouTube video with “The Christmas Song” song history, here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyfl04_TQ78

*

The Marvelous Toy
Words and Music by Tom Paxton
Illustrated by Steve Cox

*

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Words and Music by Johnny Marks
Published by World International Publishing Limited, Great Britain, 1989
ISBN #: 7235-8891-0

*

Good King Wenceslas
Traditional Tune (Tempus adest floridum)
Words by John M. Neale
Illustrated by Tim Ladwig
(This book has sheet music in the back and a page of historical information about the song)

*

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
Words and music by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane
Illustrated by Liz Murphy
(This book comes with a CD with Bernadette Peters singing this classic Christmas song)

**********************
Related Posts

HANUKKAH
A fun list of books to sing and celebrate Hanukkah!
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/11/26/singable-picture-books-for-hanukkah/

CHRISTMAS
A Collection of Singable Picture Books that celebrate CHRISTMAS!
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/11/28/singable-picture-books-for-christmas/

Tags: Illustrated Song, Singable Picture Book, Songs for Christmas, Songs for Hanukkah

Singable Picture Books for Christmas 2011

Posted by: Sing Books with Emily on: December 24, 2011

Christmas is coming!

Some selected favorites follow from this more complete (but ever-expanding) list of Singable Picture Books for Christmas,

CHRISTMAS
A Collection of Singable Picture Books that celebrate CHRISTMAS!
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/11/28/singable-picture-books-for-christmas/

**********************

A new one, just found at the bookstore

Must Be Santa
Word Adapted by Tim Moore
Words and Music by Hal Moore and Bill Fredricks
Illustrated by Pete Whitehead
Sing with Mitch Miller on YouTube :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42_vCV2_gf0

**********************

*

Here Comes Santa Claus
Words and Music by Gene Autry and Oakley Haldeman
Illustrated by Bruce Whatley

*

Silver Bells (a Musical Pop-Up Book)
Words and Music by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans
Illustrated by Robert Steele, Iain Smyth, James Diaz

*

The Twelve Days of Christmas
Traditional Words and Tune
Illustrated by Brian Wildsmith

*

We Three Kings (and other Christmas Carols)
Words and Music by Various Artists
Illustrated by H. A. Rey

**********************

Merry Christmas! God bless us, every one.

**********************
Related Articles

WINTER
Singable Picture Books for Winter
Some of these are sung at Christmastime, but this is a list of songs about Winter that you can sing all season long!
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/12/21/singable-picture-books-for-winter/

HANUKKAH
A fun list of books to sing and celebrate Hanukkah!
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2010/11/26/singable-picture-books-for-hanukkah/

Tags: Christmas, Illustrated Song, Singable Picture Book, Songs for Christmas

Silent Night, a Singable Picture Book

Posted by: Sing Books with Emily on: December 23, 2011

*

Silent Night
Words by Joseph Mohr
Music by Franz Gruber
Illustrated by Susan Jeffers

*

Silent Night
Words by Joseph Mohr
Music by Franz Gruber
Illustrated by Will Moses

*

Silent Night
Words by Joseph Mohr
Music by Franz Gruber
Illustrated by R. Pagnoni
Published by Cartwheel Books/Scholastic
ISBN 978-0-545-00067-3

**********************
An adaptation…

*

Silent Night
Traditional Words and Tune by Joseph Mohr and Franz Gruber
Words Adapted by Juliet Groom
Illustrated by Tim Warnes

This adaptation mentions “angels” but otherwise has no specific religious affiliation. Also, thanks to Tim Warnes sweet blue toned woodsy nighttime illustrations and Juliet Groom’s lyric adaptations, this book can be sung all year long…not just at Christmastime. It makes a nice lullaby and would be a good ballad to sing in a set that is heavy on upbeat songs.

**********************

You can sing this “Silent Night” adaptation with,

http://www.amazon.com/Silent-Night-Holy/dp/B000QL87M6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337365766&sr=8-1

This is an nice,simple piano arrangement of this song that plays for 4 verses, which works nicely with the Groom/Warnes “Silent Night” adaptation, which has 4 verses.

Many of the other books illustrate the 3 original verses of the song. In that case, you could still use this piano instrumental, but just turn back to the front of the book and repeat the first verse.

For books with just 3 verses of the original song, I also like the “Silent Night” instrumental in:

http://www.amazon.com/Silent-Night-Instrumental/dp/B002G6H1DK/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1337366088&s=dmusic&sr=1-3

This instrumental uses bluegrass instruments, has a perfect (not too slow) tempo and singable key.

**********************

The lovely Christmas carol, “Silent Night” has a history as sweet as its tune. In early 19th century German, a poem was written, an organ was broken and Christmas was approching so a friend asked a friend to set his poem to music for guitar.

Read the story (and see pictures and painting of the places and people), here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silent_Night

**********************

I love this version of Silent night, sung by John Denver and the Muppets, for it’s loveliness and Muppet sweetness from the TV special, but because Mr. Denver takes some time in the middle of the song to tell the history of the song and how it came to be:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGv1kK1uOl4

Here is a video of just the recording from the album,

**********************

Here’s a great site with information about the song including great historical information and documentation, plus free downloadable sheet music and sing-along midi files:

http://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/Hymns_and_Carols/Notes_On_Carols/silent_night_holy_night_notes.htm

**********************

SILENT NIGHT
Words by Joseph Mohr
Music by Franz Gruber

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon Virgin
Mother and Child
Holy Infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night, holy night

Shepherds quake at the sight
Glories stream from heaven afar
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia

Christ the Savior is born
Christ the Savior is born.

Silent night, holy night
Son of God, love’s pure light
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace
Jesus, Lord at Thy birth
Jesus, Lord at Thy birth.

**********************

A page for the Sing Books with Emily SINGABLE ADVENT CALENDAR

Silent Night:
A sweet, beautiful song for Christmas…

*

Silent Night
Words by Joseph Mohr
Music by Franz Gruber
To view or print the SBWE Singable Advent Calendar sheet for “Silent Night,” click here:
SBWE Advent Calendar Silent Night