We have many older Thanksgiving hymns, but not as many newer Thanksgiving songs. Johnny Cash sang this song on an episode in the third season of Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. This was a television show starring Jane Seymour and Joe Lando that aired during the 1990s. However, the storyline occurred in the 19th Century. Cash Read More
Month: November 2015
The Blue Bells of Scotland
In honor of Scotland’s St. Andrews Day at the end of the month, I wanted to explore the history of one of Scotland’s popular folk songs. The 19th Century actress, Dorothea Jordan, introduced the song in the early 1800s at the Drury Lane Theatre in Edinburgh. She claimed to perform the song to an “original Read More
To Know Him is to Love Him
One of the interesting things about the history of songs, is discovering what inspired the lyrics and/or melody of the song. For To Know Him is to Love Him, that inspiration was a tombstone. Phil Spector was nine years old when his father died. His family then moved from New York to Los Angeles. As Read More
Profile of a Performer: Celtic Thunder
Celtic Thunder is an Irish singing group that is known for their theatrical shows. The show was created and is produced by Sharon Browne, who was a creator and producer for Celtic Woman in 2004. The group made their debut in August 2007 at The Helix in Dublin, Ireland. Phil Coulter, was their musical director, Read More
Showboat
The musical theater in the 1920s was comparable to Vaudeville with comedic routines and sideshow attractions. However, Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II had an idea for a revolutionary new approach. Now the daunting task of choosing their work. They decided on Edna Ferber’s novel, Showboat. This was a most unconventional topic and she was skeptical Read More