{"id":14948,"date":"2014-12-09T00:01:25","date_gmt":"2014-12-09T08:01:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/?p=14948"},"modified":"2021-02-11T12:42:16","modified_gmt":"2021-02-11T20:42:16","slug":"rankinbass-rudolph-on-records","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/rankinbass-rudolph-on-records\/","title":{"rendered":"Rankin\/Bass \u201cRudolph\u201d on Records"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In the wake of the 50th anniversary of the landmark stop-motion animated TV musical, here is a look at the holiday soundtrack that\u2019ll go down in history.<\/p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/rudolph_lp_600.jpg\" alt=\"rudolph_lp_600\" width=\"600\" height=\"596\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-14949\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/rudolph_lp_600.jpg 600w, https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/rudolph_lp_600-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/rudolph_lp_600-300x298.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/rudolph_lp_600-50x50.jpg 50w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong>Rankin\/Bass Present<br \/>\nRUDOLPH, THE RED-NOSED REINDEER<\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Original TV Soundtrack &#038; Music from the Videocraft Musical Spectacular<\/em><br \/>\nDecca Records DL-34327  (Simulated Stereo) (12\u201d 33 1\/3 RPM LP \/ 1964)<br \/>\nVinyl Reissues: MCA-147 (1965), MCA-15003 (1980)<br \/>\nCD Reissue: MCAD-22177 (1995)<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>Album Producer:<\/strong> Milt Gabler. TV Special Producer: Arthur Rankin, Jr. Co-Producer: Jules Bass. Director: Larry Roemer. Musical Directors: Maury Laws (Soundtrack), Herbert Rehbein (Studio Versions). Running Time: 37 minutes.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote><p><strong>Voices<\/strong>: Burl Ives (Sam the Snowman); Billie Mae Richards (Rudolph); Paul Soles (Hermie); Stan Francis (Santa Claus); Janet Orenstein (Clarice).<br \/>\n<strong>Soundtrack Songs:<\/strong> \u201cOverture\/A Holly Jolly Christmas,\u201d \u201cJingle Jingle Jingle,\u201d \u201cWe Are Santa\u2019s Elves,\u201d \u201cThere\u2019s Always Tomorrow,\u201d \u201cWe\u2019re a Couple of Misfits,\u201d \u201cSilver and Gold,\u201d \u201cThe Most Wonderful Time of the Year,\u201d \u201cA Holly Jolly Christmas,\u201d \u201cRudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer\u201d by Johnny Marks.<br \/>\n<strong>Studio Instrumentals:<\/strong> \u201cRudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer,\u201d \u201cThere\u2019s Always Tomorrow,\u201d \u201cJingle Jingle Jingle,\u201d \u201cWe\u2019re a Couple of Misfits,\u201d \u201cSilver and Gold,\u201d \u201cWe Are Santa\u2019s Elves,\u201d \u201cThe Most Wonderful Day of the Year,\u201d A Holly Jolly Christmas,\u201d \u2018I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day,\u201d \u201cChristmas Medley (\u201cThe Night Before Christmas Song,\u201d \u201cA Merry, Merry Christmas,\u201d \u201cWhen Santa Claus Gets Your Letter,\u201d \u201cRockin\u2019 Around the Christmas Tree\u201d by Johnny Marks.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The longest-running holiday TV special ever created just turned 50 a few days ago and is still racking up the ratings (just as \u201c<em>The I Love Lucy Christmas Special<\/em>\u201d <a TARGET=\"blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.tvweek.com\/tvbizwire\/2014\/12\/wow-cbs-scores-close-to-9-million-viewers-for-a-sitcom-thats-more-than-50-years-old\/\">just did<\/a> to the surprise of none of its fans). No amount of high-end technology or budget could improve on the charm of the original \u201cspectacular,\u201d first seen on the NBC Fantasy Hour in 1964.<\/p>\n<p>The details of the animated hour and its rich history is better told by Rankin\/Bass historian Rick Goldschmidt, author of several books including a <a TARGET=\"blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/MAKING-RANKIN-BASS-HOLIDAY-CLASSIC-ebook\/dp\/B00520KL84\/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&#038;qid=1418076519&#038;sr=8-2&#038;keywords=rick+Goldschmidt\">Rudolph \u201cmaking of\u201d tome<\/a>. The only non-audio comment to be made here is that the lettering font of this special, attributable to Production Designer Tony Peters, has become the go-to lettering almost everywhere you look during the holidays.<\/p>\n<p><center><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/RVOkBrfKADs?list=PL50MoGshK0ey2omWYTGuOckW_j0bJ4MIb\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/center><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>As a one-hour TV musical, Rudolph offers as many songs as most animated features, but being a compact 52 minutes or so, the bulk of its songs are short. So Decca only presents 16 minutes of soundtrack material on Side One, with 21 minutes of Herbert Rehbein\u2019s  instrumental versions (recorded in Hamburg, Germany) filling out the album.<\/p>\n<p>Most Rankin\/Bass soundtracks were released in their entirety on vinyl records, including <em>The Hobbit, Santa Claus is Comin\u2019 To Town<\/em> and <em>Frosty the Snowman<\/em>. However, RCA Victor released an album of music from Cricket on the Hearth rather than the complete soundtrack\u2014but the music was not only recorded so that it could stand alone, there were also selections created just for the album to lengthen its playing time. It would have been nice (and would still be nice) to have the whole soundtrack on one disc or download).<\/p>\n<p>The original vinyl album was released in mono and stereo, but the stereo was not always genuine. You can hear full separation in the overture and other sections, but there are moments, such as in \u201cJingle Jingle Jingle\u201d and \u201cWe\u2019re a Couple of Misfits\u201d in which the stereo cuts out when the characters sing. Having never heard the mono edition of the Decca album, I cannot say whether the music on that disc is free of any processing.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/Rudolph_cd-275.jpg\" alt=\"Rudolph_cd-275\" width=\"275\" height=\"276\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-14952\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/Rudolph_cd-275.jpg 275w, https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/Rudolph_cd-275-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/Rudolph_cd-275-50x50.jpg 50w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 275px) 100vw, 275px\" \/>My guess is that, aside from the stereo parts (including Burl Ives\u2019 vocals), most of the Side One was originally in mono. It was made to sound like stereo using a simple technique by which a single mono recording is duplicated, one mono track is placed on the left channel and another mono track is placed\u2014slightly out of sync\u2014on the right channel. It\u2019s like 3-D. The two recordings are out of sync just enough so that your ears put them together and they sound stereophonic. This was the way the sound effects tracks were done on the Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory soundtrack album. On the Rudolph album, you can tell the vocals for \u201cThe Most Wonderful Day of the Year\u201d are quickly bounding from one channel to the other if you listen carefully.<\/p>\n<p>One of the most renowned names on the Rudolph soundtrack album is that of the record producer: Rock and Roll Hall of Famer <a href=\"http:\/\/rockhall.com\/inductees\/milt-gabler\/bio\/\">Milt Gabler<\/a>. Billy Crystal has written and spoken extensively about visiting jazz recording sessions helmed by his Uncle Milt, and watching legends at the microphone. Among Gabler\u2019s many milestones was signing Bill Haley and the Comets to Decca, producing records for Peggy Lee, The Ink Spots, The Andrews Sisters and many others. Gabler\u2019s involvement with the Rudolph album is likely connected to Side Two, because he also produced Bert Kaempfert records in Hamburg for Decca.<\/p>\n<p>This is an easy-to-find album that is sold everywhere at holiday time, but I prefer the original cover to the less special\u2013looking CD. The CD also programmed the \u201cChristmas Medley\u201d in a different place, probably so that two Rudolph tracks would not follow each other. The CD notes also omit Gabler\u2019s name.<\/p>\n<p><strong>GIVE A LITTLE LISTEN<\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Overture &#038; Christmas Medley from \u201cRudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer\u201d<\/em><br \/>\nThe main title begins this selection, blending five songs from the TV special\u2019s score. It\u2019s followed by a medley from Side Two of the Decca album, featuring four previous Marks songs worked into the background music. You have to really listen for some of them, so I won\u2019t spoil the fun, except to reveal the easiest one: \u201cA Merry, Merry Christmas\u201d is heard over the \u201cRankin\/Bass Present\u201d credit at the beginning. This song was also sung in an NBC animated special with Janet Waldo called \u201cThe Tiny Tree.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/L68ho48Ni9o\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/center><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the wake of the 50th anniversary of the landmark stop-motion animated TV musical, here is a look at the holiday soundtrack that\u2019ll go down in history. Rankin\/Bass Present RUDOLPH,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":14950,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[469],"tags":[1074,532,1073],"class_list":["post-14948","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-animation-spin","tag-burl-ives","tag-rankin-bass","tag-rudolf-the-red-nosed-reindeer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14948","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14948"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14948\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63384,"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14948\/revisions\/63384"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14950"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14948"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14948"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cartoonresearch.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14948"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}