Percy Faith - Music of Christmas (1959)

Christmas just would not be Christmas without listening to one of my mom's Christmas albums. My mother was an elementary school teacher for 48 years (she retired in 1985) and was either in charge of or helped with her school's annual Christmas pageant. (Are public schools even allowed to have Christmas pageants anymore???) So, she had a nice collection of Christmas albums which she would use for the pageants. I only have one memory - and it's pretty vague - of one of the pageants and it is of a little girl lip-syncing to "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus". I was probably only 5 or 6 years old at the time, and I thought she was really singing and was very impressed. The only other thing I remember is that it was cold (December in South Texas can be 70 degrees or 50 degrees), and that my father and I had to stand at the back of the auditorium because there were no available chairs. Oh, and my mom also played the piano for some of the Christmas carols. Anyway, this is one of the few Christmas albums that I have that belonged to my mom because some were destroyed in Hurricane Beulah (1967) and some others were stolen from her classroom. I'm glad this one has survived all these years because it's by Percy Faith and his orchestra, which is probably the orchestra that most reminds me of my mom. Enjoy!

Track listing for Percy Faith - Music of Christmas:

Side 1:
1. Joy to the World
2. Silent Night, Holy Night
3. Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly
4. It Came Upon the Midnight Clear
5. Good King Wenceslas
6. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

Side 2:
1. The First Noel
2. Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming; O Little Town of Bethlehem
3. O Holy Night
4. The Holly and The Ivy; Here We Go A-Caroling
5. God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
6. O Come, All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles)

Percy Faith - Mucho Gusto! (1961)

Yesterday (April 7) would have been Percy Faith's birthday. And today would have been my mother's birthday. So, because my mother loved Percy Faith so much (I don't think she knew his birthday was the day before hers), I decided to post this Percy Faith album to honor them both (but mostly for my mom). As I listen to this album, I am once again transported back to my childhood and memories of my mom listening to her records. This album also reminds me of the annual Charro Days, which are celebrated in my hometown of Brownsville, Texas, and the parades that I went to as a child. My mother was a school teacher and she often marched in the parades with her school (each school presents a dance to a traditional Mexican song, and the school bands would play, too). Those were good times, and I cherish the memories.

Track listing for Percy Faith - Mucho Gusto!:

Side 1:
1. Mucho Gusto
2. Besame Mucho
3. La Negra
4. Maria Elena
5. Huapango
6. Las Mananitas

Side 2:
1. Las Altenitas
2. Perfidia
3. Cielito Lindo
4. Adios Mariquita Linda
5. Cocula
6. La Chaparrita

Here's a picture of my mom marching in one of the Charro Days parades circa 1958 (before my time). So, now y'all have a face to put to my beloved mother that I often mention:

Percy Faith - Malaguena:Music of Cuba (1959)

Here's another of my mother's albums - one of her favorites - and today would have been her 94th birthday, so today's post is in her honor. I definitely remember hearing this one as I grew up. The album cover was in pretty bad shape - once again my mother wrote her name all across it, and the edges are all held together with masking tape - so the picture I posted is one I found on the internet. Anyway, my mother belonged to the Columbia House record club (raise your hand if you belonged to it at one time or another!) so a lot of her albums are Columbia albums. And this is a great album, as one would expect, from Percy Faith. Love the Latin rhythms of Cuban music! Enjoy!

Track listing for Percy Faith - Malaguena:Music of Cuba:

Side 1:
1. Malaguena
2. Quiereme Mucho
3. El Manisero
4. Danza Negra
5. Andalucia
6. El Bodeguero
7. Damisela Encantadora

Side 2:
1. Siboney
2. La Cumparsa
3. Tumbando Cana
4. Marta
5. Mama Inez
6. Para Vigo Me Voy
7. Tabu

Percy Faith - The Columbia Album of George Gershwin, Vol. 1 (1957)

This is another of my mom's albums that I grew up listening to. As I've mentioned before, my mom really liked Percy Faith, so I like his music a lot, too. I posted another album of Gershwin tunes a couple of weeks ago, as played by Frank Chacksfield and his orchestra, but I much prefer Percy Faith's version, probably because of the memories it brings. This album is a mono version, but I would love to have a stereo version, if anyone out there has one to share! Even in mono, the orchestrations and sound are absolutely wonderful. Enjoy!

Track listing for Percy Faith - The Columbia Album of George Gershwin, Vol. 1:

Side 1:
1. Fascinatin' Rhythm
2. A Foggy Day
3. Soon
4. Clap Yo' Hands
5. Embraceable You
6. Mine
7. Somebody Loves Me

Side 2:
1. I Got Plenty o' Nuttin'
2. Summertime
3. Bess, You Is My Woman Now
4. My Man's Gone Now
5. Nice Work If You Can Get It
6. For You, For Me, For Evermore
7. Liza

Percy Faith - Percy Faith Plays Romantic Music (1953)

Time for another of my several Percy Faith albums. Most of the ones I have belonged to my mother, but I picked this one up from the HPB bargain bin just the other day. And, once again, it was the album cover that first caught my eye - makes me yearn for the days of yesteryear. Sigh... Well, this is another great album by Percy Faith and his orchestra - wonderful songs, great orchestrations. If you haven't got this in your Percy Faith collection, then you need to download it right now!

Track listing for Percy Faith Plays Romantic Music:

Side 1:
1. While We're Young
2. I'll Take Romance
3. Invitation
4. The Girl That I Marry
5. Valse Huguette
6. If I Loved You

Side 2:
1. Carousel Waltz
2. Easy to Love
3. One Night of Love
4. When I'm Not Near the Girl I Love
5. Caress
6. Beautiful Love

Percy Faith - Viva! (1957)

Hola, amigos! (Yes, I am fluent in Spanish, but I'll continue the rest in English.) Today's offering is another album of my mother's that I grew up listening to. My mom belonged to the Columbia House record club (I later belonged to it - the apple doesn't fall far from the tree), and she bought lots of cool records, most of which I have now. My mom loved Percy Faith, so I have several of his records. Although this album was released in 1957, I don't think my mom bought it until 1959 because on the back of the album cover she wrote her name and '1959' (my mom liked to scribble notes on the backs of her record albums). So, take another trip down memory lane and give a listen to this "Music from Mexico" album from Percy Faith and his orchestra!

Track listing for Percy Faith - Viva!:

Side 1:
1. Granada
2. La Golondrina (The Swallow)
3. La Cucaracha (The Mexican Cockroach Song)
4. Chiapanecas (The Mexican Hand-Clapping Song)
5. Estrellita (My Little Star)
6. El Rancho Grande (My Ranch)
7. La Paloma (The Dove)

Side 2:
1. Be Mine Tonight (Noche de Ronda)
2. Mexican Hat Dance (Jarabe Tapatio)
3. Guadalajara
4. Zandunga; Jesusita en Chihuahua (The Dancing Donkey)
5. Cuanto Le Gusta
6. Solamente Una Vez (You Belong to My Heart)