Album Review: The Movie Marriage of WHITE CHRISTMAS & HOLIDAY INN Is, Finally, Consummated With The New 2 Disc CD Set

Heigh Ho, dear lovely rainbow tribe, Bobby Patrick, your rainbow reviewer is back in CD-Land to offer another broken-down breakdown of a new music release. So, strap in and get ready, as Bobby goes on the record ABOUT the record...

And the record this week, my lambs, is actually 2 records... well, CDs in one set. For many years fans, and the entertainment community, as well as the know-it-alls of "The Business," have kept two Paramount classics, HOLIDAY INN and WHITE CHRISTMAS, side by side for the Christmas season. Those of us who are fans of old Hollywood and of Santa most likely program these two films into our seasonal queue - perhaps even for viewing as a double feature, so tied together are they, and rightly so. Both films were monster hits initially, both films boasted scores by the great Irving Berlin, both films starred Bring Crosby playing opposite a lanky song and dance man, and both films had pretty singers and/or dancers as love interests for the two male leads. Also, HOLIDAY INN won an Oscar for the classic Irving Berlin ballad WHITE CHRISTMAS, and WHITE CHRISTMAS was nominated for the classic Irving Berlin ballad COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS, for which Berlin borrowed from himself by using the melody of the bridge from HAPPY HOLIDAYS/(COME TO) HOLIDAY INN as the bridge in the later song (It's almost like that Kennedy/Lincoln coincidence thingy, ain't it, rainbow children?)

Well, finally, after all these years of living in sin, WHITE CHRISTMAS and HOLIDAY INN have gotten hitched, and it is a beautiful marriage. Not only does this collection bring together the complete scores of the films into one spot in your audio library, the producers have included additional material galore. Now, the copious liner notes give all the background on the creation of the music for these newlyweds (or should we say FINALLYweds) and their intersection at Berlin and Crosby. There are lots of historical tidbits of who recorded what, etc., and, reading them, one can track back through the variety of single and partial recordings of these works, through the years until, finally, this complete treasure trove was compiled. So Bobby is not going to launch into all that because you can read it yourself post-purchase - but it is an impressive compilation of facts and figures.

All of the recordings have been remastered, so the first benefit to all of us fans is the freshened-up sound palette of these scores. Robin Cherry is to be commended, here, for unearthing living sounds from very old recordings, but, also, attention must be paid to the choices Robin made to keep some of the additional materials' antique sound. Where radio broadcasts, commercials, and promotional trailers are concerned, this time capsule becomes a time machine. Additionally, some of the most interesting things to pick up on (at least little Bobby thinks so) are the musical similarities between these two works born 12 years apart. At times, it begs the question, "Was CHRISTMAS meant to be a remake...refresh... rehash... sequel to HOLIDAY?" Both Berlin's scores (aside from the similarities in concept and call-outs mentioned already) have an initial performance and a reprisal of the song WHITE CHRISTMAS. Both of the scores employ romantic dance numbers about dancing romantically with YOU'RE EASY TO DANCE WITH and THE BEST THINGS HAPPEN WHILE YOU'RE DANCING, as well as lovelorn love songs, BE CAREFUL IT'S MY HEART and LOVE, YOU DIDN'T DO RIGHT BY ME. Parallel lines abound in both scores. We also loved the installment in WHITE's main cuts on the album, the outtake of a number by Bing and Danny Kaye titled SANTA CLAUSE. This is a lost gem with a lot of vaudeville-style fun to it.

Now, a word must be said about both films' employment of the late 19th and early 20th-century performance style of minstrelsy. In HOLIDAY actual blackface was used for the salute to president number 16, ABRAHAM, and the tune to that song is a carry-over into CHRISTMAS, as an instrumental dance number for Vera Ellen. Additionally, CHRISTMAS has I'D RATHER SEE A MINSTREL SHOW, which did not employ blackface but used many of the tropes and stereotypes of minstrelsy throughout. It is important to call these similarities out, in order to, properly, offer context to young people or to those who might be trepidatious about buying this collection because of these historically blind moments in these films. Better than Bobby going on here about that context, actress-singer-social commentator Dara Star Tucker, on her TikkyTok, puts both of these instances from these Specific Films in a modern, progressive audience perspective:

Dara Star Tucker - Why Blackface Scenes Should Not Be Cut Out Of Classic Movies

Dara Star Tucker - Black Face Minstrelsy In Movies (White Christmas/Holiday Inn)

Bobby takes this moment to let anyone who isn't aware of these musical numbers in these films know ahead of time. After taking in Dara's cultural eye's view, and understanding that the music of the minstrel era (the heart of which Berlin was born in to and that greatly influenced his musical style), these numbers can serve as a reminder of the past and how it should be seen in the context of today without societal blindness.

Taken all in all, the new 2 Disc set of the COMPLETE scores to WHITE CHRISTMAS & HOLIDAY INN is a magical journey that all classic movie fans should take and sing along with, and, as such, we give this FAB release a full ...

4 Out Of 5 Rainbows - Put this one in your collection today.

Purchase This MUST HAVE 2 CD Collection of WHITE CHRISTMAS & HOLIDAY INN From Sepia Records: HERE

Read More Fun Facts About The Similarities Between These Two Classics: HERE

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