Holly Jolly X'masu

Welcome to episode 133 of Holly Jolly X'masu! In this episode, I talk about the 1963 album, "$100 Million Christmas In Stereophonic Sounds," featuring Hiroshi Ishimaru conducting the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra. I hope you enjoyed Hiroshi Ishimaru's "$100 Million Christmas In Stereophonic Sounds." It's really a fantastic album. I'm sorry that this episode is a little lighter on content than most episodes. I had a lot going on around Christmas and really needed to take a mental break for a couple weeks. I'm also struggling to get over a stomach bug, so that made it hard to devote a lot of time to researching and writing this episode. I'm going to try to get another episode out before the end of the month, and then start working on recording and digitizing the records I got for Christmas. Be sure to listen in next time when I talk about singer and actress Mari Henmi's 1971 album, "Mari Henmi & X'mas Evening." It's an interesting album, sort of a one-woman musical play. It has some great performances so I'm sure you'll enjoy it. As always, any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If have any suggestions, or if you'd like to recommend a song or album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know. Remember, I've added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you'd like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. I've also opened a Redbubble store. I only have a couple designs up, but keep an eye on it as I'll be trying to add more. All proceeds will be used to purchase new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And if you get a chance, leave me a review on iTunes. Thanks!

Welcome to episode 132 of Holly Jolly X'masu! In this New Year's Eve bonus episode, I talk about the 1979 album, "Christmas Carol With Go Go," by Korean guitarist Ra Eum Pa. I hope you enjoyed "Christmas Carol With Go Go." It's been a rough week so I had to rush through this episode. Given a couple more weeks, I might have been able to find that blog that talked about Ra Eum Pa, but I gave up after two to three hours of searching. I was in the middle of an allergic reaction when I recorded it, so I sound a bit off as well. Have a happy New Year, and be sure to tune in next time when I talk about the 1963 album, "$100 Million Christmas In Stereophonic Sound," featuring Hiroshi Ishimaru conducting the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra. I misidentified it as a Mood Kayo album during this episode, but it's actually a fantastic orchestral Christmas album and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. As always, any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If have any suggestions, or if you'd like to recommend a song or album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know. Remember, I've added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you'd like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. I've also opened a Redbubble store. I only have a couple designs up, but keep an eye on it as I'll be trying to add more. Half of any proceeds or donations received will be donated to support the people of Ukraine, while the rest will be used to purchase new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And if you get a chance, leave me a review on iTunes. Thanks!

Welcome to episode 131 of Holly Jolly X'masu! In this special Christmas Day episode, I talk about the truly amazing 1971 album by the Warner Beatniks, "Rock Christmas Rock." I hope you enjoyed "Rock Christmas Rock," and that you were able to make it part of your Christmas celebration. It's one of the most unbelievable albums in my collection, and I'm lucky to have a copy. Have a Merry Christmas, then be sure to listen in next week for my special New Year's Eve episode. I'll be talking about the 1979 album, "Christmas Carol With Go Go," by Korean guitarist Ra Eum Pa. It's another fantastic album you're sure to enjoy. As always, any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If have any suggestions, or if you'd like to recommend a song or album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know. Remember, I've added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you'd like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. I've also opened a Redbubble store. I only have a couple designs up, but keep an eye on it as I'll be trying to add more. Half of any proceeds or donations received will be donated to support the people of Ukraine, while the rest will be used to purchase new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And if you get a chance, leave me a review on iTunes. Thanks!

Welcome to episode 130 of Holly Jolly X'masu! In this episode, I talk about the Kodama Press sonojournal, "X'mas Dance Music," featuring Yasushi Ashida and his Mellow Notes. I hope you enjoyed listening to and learning what little I was able to uncover about Yasushi Ashida. The music here really is fantastic. Collecting these old sonojournals and flexi-discs has been an adventure unto itself. While I know what I'm getting into with some of them, others are a complete surprise. Finding gems like this really makes it worthwhile. As promised in the episode, here's the contents of the sonojournal: Join me back here on Christmas Day for another great, new episode. It's become something of a tradition for me to feature the best, most exciting albums from my collection on Christmas Day, and this year is no exception. This time I'll be covering one of the ultimate holy grails of Japanese Christmas records, "Rock Christmas Rock" by the Warner Beatniks. This is one that will truly blow you away, so make sure you listen in. As always, any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If have any suggestions, or if you'd like to recommend a song or album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know. Remember, I've added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you'd like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. I've also opened a Redbubble store. I only have a couple designs up, but keep an eye on it as I'll be trying to add more. Half of any proceeds or donations received will be donated to support the people of Ukraine, while the rest will be used to purchase new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And if you get a chance, leave me a review on iTunes. Thanks!

Welcome to episode 129 of Holly Jolly X'masu! In this episode, I talk about the Tokyo Ocean Orchestra's 1971 album, "White Christmas." I hope you enjoyed the enigmatic Tokyo Ocean Orchestra as much as I do. I really love this, not just because it's an 8-track, but because it helps show that there is still plenty of undiscovered Christmas music out there. I've been lucky enough to find several records and tapes that have no digital footprint and are truly unknown works of art. Be sure to check out my next episode where I cover another artist who is now virtually unknown, Yasushi Ashida and His Mellow Notes. They were featured in a Kodama Press sonojournal in 1960 and left behind an absolutely spectacular collection of Christmas music. It's one you don't want to miss. As always, any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If have any suggestions, or if you'd like to recommend a song or album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know. Remember, I've added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you'd like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. I've also opened a Redbubble store. I only have a couple designs up, but keep an eye on it as I'll be trying to add more. Half of any proceeds or donations received will be donated to support the people of Ukraine, while the rest will be used to purchase new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And if you get a chance, leave me a review on iTunes. Thanks!