@formerfratboy TEF had arguably the finest voice of any popular entertainer of his era. I'd venture to say that his talent in bass-baritone singing was very near the equivalent of Mario Lanza's in the tenor range. Superb vocal tone. Unfortunately, like Lanza, he didn't take care of himself though he did make it to 72 compared to Lanza's 39 (I think).
Two wonderful talents, both of whom had problems with alcohol unfortunately, but, boy, could they sing! I wish that Ford, whose voice took a back seat to no on, had recorded a wider range of songs . . especially Great American Songbook material.
@buckskipper I came across this last night, have listened to it 6 or 7 times, with tears streaming down my face every time! I wish that my dad & I had done this together...it would have just WRECKED Mom & my 3 sisters.
This song gives me chills, especially when I hear Gordon's voice but yeah they sound so heavenly together! I wish Christmas time would hurry up now :)
Awsome! But Jussi Bjorling has this tune chiseld to the bones of my spine... (he sings it in Swedish, and a real loss for you who don't understand it. It's called O helga natt) That was the reason i started singing, to be able to sing O helga natt as Jussi before i died...
this is wonderful entertainment -- heavyweight voices with the guts to sing live and get it right the first time. This calibre of talent is sorely mossed today
amazing this is the way this song should be sung. always loved tennessee ernie ford's voice. he had one of those voices that made (still do) the little hairs on the back of your neck stand up.
I agree with Learn To Turn 7...the days of real talent seems to have disappeared. This song came out when I was about 4 or 5 and while I don't remember if it was ever played in our home..similar Christmas music was..and this kinda brought me back for awhile to a simpler time in my life.
What happened to talent, I mean true talent, like this. back then, they did it the right way. I'm only 16, but i have a great appreciation for this beautiful music, and no respect for some of the trash that tries to pass off as entertainment these days. nothing will ever live up to that golden era in music
@LearnToTurn7 I'm glad to hear that a few younger people reach back for those better days. The 50's and early 60's was America's Golden Age.
As America marches into the Abyss, it will be harder and harder to reach back and feel the last beautiful rays of the past. Soon, the darkness will be so dense and awful that even to view such videos as this will no longer give comfort. Not even the remnant people of those times will be around to share it with. America's light will finally flicker and die.
@InfiniteMushroom I wish our country had the moral fiber that it once had... That, in my opinion, has been the reason in the great decline in quality in the entertainment industry. There are still people out there who can sing like this, but we never hear them because of all the other garbage that's hiding those gems. when america gave up its morals, she gave up her freedoms... But I still have faith in the Lord that this nation can be saved
@LearnToTurn7 Me too. I am in my late 20s and i really wish the US had the morals and the backbone it had in the 50s. Liberals who lived then say that what they did to change the world was good because it got rid of racism. Well we are suffering because of their false change. i noticed when the liberals got rid of God and also morals, the US went downhill. Too bad that a lot of cleaning up is needed. I wish everyone had common sense and took time to hold morals and God on a pedestal.
Don't despair. Your country's sound. You can see how much good it does and the faith it was founded on is still central to your beliefs. I have worked with people of different creeds and colours from all over the world. Some of them have become dear friends and no matter what their religion or creed, they all are decent and kind. The more we get to learn about and meet people the more we will realise how little differences matter; in the end our basic principles are the same.
@InfiniteMushroom There are many of us who love the classics, and I am teaching my nieces and nephews to love it too. I worry about that reactionary thinking. It will be just fine. There are many of us who are smart.
I was raised in Burbank, Ca. My mother took me to see the Ernie Ford Show a number of times. Show tickets were free. I wish I'd appreciated it then as much as I do now.
Really, really beautiful! I'd seen Tennessee Ernie Ford on "I Love Lucy", and he was hilarious; I didn't know he had a voice like this! I have always loved Gordon MacRae's voice, what a talent! Wish I could get an album of this beautiful, old fashioned Christmas music.
Two amazing voices that still capture me as a grown up. (Well I try to be). If life begins at 40 then I am 2! I love this stage... tantrums in the supermarket etc.... Hang on, my kids do that still. Is there nothing sacred!
One day, I'll find a hymn page where there are no fights; all the Atheists will know to say "it's very nice" not "I'm an atheist; it's very nice." Civility is a virtue. Is it necessary to announce on a hymn page that you are not Christian, knowing that the automatic response will lead to an argument from both sides? Part of civility is appropriateness. It is appropriate to argue on an "Atheists vs Christians" page. It is inappropriate for either party on a page called "O holy night". Good day.
This goes for the Christians too. Can we simply allow things to slide rather than soil an otherwise beautiful page with an argument that will almost certainly turn nasty? I grow so tired of the ugliness that comes between Christians and Atheists on these pages. It's quite disheartening.
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Thank you! I completely agree, I've told people that I did NOT want to argue countless times. They just keep replying to my posts to tell me that my poor soul won't be happy until I'm saved and that I'm evil, going to hell...
Which doesn't mean anything to an atheist anyway, so why tell them that? It's just rude, condescending, and frankly IRRITATING.
You've constantly restarted arguments here. For once I'm with a repub. about something-civility. A fast way to hush x-tians is to thank them for prayers; even faster is to not provoke them on a x-tian page. Of course, I was an angst-y, rebellious, freshly-minted "no-longer-a-teenager" once too. You'll soon learn that it's ok to not have the last word. I know it's hard right now, but don't worry; it'll get easier as you get older, and then you can laugh at the ones who can't. Bet you can't yet ;)
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Uh no I haven't in the slightest, I'm simply defending myself.
I'm not a "rebellious teen..." I'm a functional adult thank you and would appreciate you not talking to me in such a condescending manner..
I'm simply defending myself from a bunch of nasty, intolerant people.
I wouldn't care if we were talking about what flavor cheesecake we enjoy, there is no reason to treat someone who doesn't share your opinion like they've treated me.
Why did you put quote marks around "rebellious teen"? If you'll reread my post, you'll notice that I made it a point to not call you such as it's quite offensive to youth. I just wanted you to see that if you don't announce atheism on a christian page, you need not defend yourself, and that the mature find it far more satisfying to laugh privately at the foolish than to destroy a lovely page with nasty comments like "douchebag". I hope you understand there's no need to reply; this is no attack.
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I never did, some irritating religious conservative whined about how our country doesn't practice religious fascism anymore. To which I responded good because it was wrong anyway. Then a whole crap load of religious people kept bullying me.
Well, if you're discussing religion. The fact is that human arrogance and wanting to know what and where we came from lead to the "discovery" of religion. The time we find something that disproves religion will be the end of the world.
If I may be so gauche and secular as to ask if someone could post Gordie's version of 'A Lonely Town.' I've tried to imagine it since his first wife Sheila mentioned it in her book Hollywood Mother Of The Year. I've only heard Sinatra's version of 'A Lonely Town.' She described Gordon's voice as 'a force of nature' as opposed to Sinatra's which was always more sexual.
I met Gordon a few times in his "hey days" , once in NYC at the Strand theater, where he was gracious enough to sign my scrapebook, which he signed "To Joanne, the little girl with a lot of patience and consideration..good luck always." Another time in Toronto and he was nice enough to have his picture taken with me. How many "stars" of today would take the time to do this? I was one of his biggest fans..what a voice..what a man!
Read some of the earlier posts -- can't say that I can get into ALL that. All I know is that when Gordon MacRae drops his jaw and sends out the most glorious sound - that the experience lets me know that God "has His hand in" here and there....and I am most grateful!
Reminds me of Salieri describing how God spoke through Mozart even though he wasn't a particularly devout man. Gordie was a Christian Scientist but lived in denial about his alcoholism and the pain and suffering it caused others. Ernie had his problems with the bottle as well. I guess I'll leave to Frank when he said. 'Whatever is written about me is unimportant. When I sing, I believe.'
The ol' pea-picker took a LOT of flack from the networks for insisting on singing a hymn each show. God bless him! Thanks to him, we have memories like this.
My God, what an incredible presentation. It's nice to know there was a time when the major TV networks were not afraid to do anything that smacked of religion.
Actually, when the show first started, Ernie Ford wanted to close his show with a hymn each time. The network declined his request until Ford said he'd walk and not do the show at all if he didn't get to do the hymns. You have to respect that kind of conviction.
Guys like me and Christopher Hitchens can appreciate art and music inspired by faith and a little commerce and not even be too condescending and superior about it!
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Excuse me, you just said the youth in this country has sucky taste. It's not the youth, it's teenagers and when have they ever had good taste. They're too immature to understand what something of great quality is.
Btw I see you tried to squander my credibility by giving me a thumbs down. Real mature, I'd expect that in someone of 12.
Your rant IS condescending! As I am 20 and a youth and know plenty of people my age who would greatly appreciate Ford.
i wish i had a voice like those guys,coming from England, i'm very envious of you Americans,who up until now ,have produced some awesome singers,,check out Ken Curtis for instance and you'll see what i mean!
The Welsh have produced some great singers like Thomas L. Thomas and Bryn Terfel in the last 80 years. Tom Jones is great but he's a different kind of singer.The ENGLISH OPERA SINGERS offer opportunities to young singers in grand opera. Just enter that in your search window. They're at St.James church on Picadilly. You can order tickets for their productions.
I am reposting my comment on Matt Monro because it ended up too far above stevevandien's consideration of him and I want to be certain readers understand to whom I am referring. As I stated up there, he was perhaps the only one of so many who took Sinatra's inspiration and developed a sound of his own. He died tragically at such a young age. People should know him for the fine singer he was.
This is actually an unusual performance for Ernie Ford in that it's fully sung the whole way through, where his usual style was more a "half-spoken, half-sung" approach.
This is a great recording for both singers, with excellent blend to the point where at many points it sounds like one incredibly rich line instead of two voices.
Is it possible that only one of them is actually voicing the final consonants?
Gordie seems to build to a gradual climax. He's bigger at 1:44 on the first 'O night divine' but they're both about the same at the second one. As I posted above, they're both voicing at the end, though Gordie goes a few seconds longer.
Tennesee Ernie Ford you may notice sings the bass line. He was just about the best pop bass this side of Crosby. He didn't show off his low notes much but he's clearly a bass. His 16 Tons is seldom done well by other because it only really works with a substantial dark voice.
Absolutely true. Originally baritone, Crosby's range descended over the years to bass, but he still retained somewhat of a baritone timbre. Ford was a true bass from the get-go, and he sit on some impressive low notes without sounding in the cellar:).
I'm old enough to remember hearing that it was nodules on his vocal chords due to pushing his voice that gave Crosby his trade-mark rain-barrel sound. He even had them insured -the nodules. Recently I read somewhere that he had had them removed. In any case he definitely sang in higher keys in his early career as was the fashion.
i found this by accident and what a fortunate chance...such a voice gordon had...not a very nice person but an undeniably beautiful instrument he carried in his throat....every time i listen to it it makes the hair on my arms stand up
Yes. His voice combined different qualities in an unusual way and of course, he had a tremendous range. In his prime, he had a brilliant tone in his top notes.
Women have purity to their voice, but men have richness. Both were great performers and Ford studied music in college. Interestingly, both men were navigators in the army air force in WWII
Thanks so much, TEFSHOW, for posting. My favorite Christmas song, and yes, MacRae, " the kind of guy a girl can fall for."
Words elude me as to how stunningly beautiful this rendition was! I usually listen to the French version, but this performance ranks right up there for me.
Wow... Even without today's advances in recording technology, the power of their performance still comes through. That's just plain old talent, unlike most of today's performers.
Why? Why? Why was I born too late & not be around these gorgeous men with voices that could melt ANY girls heart better than Sinatra or Elvis any day of the week. I probably just admire and love Ernie and Gordon's character more than anything.
That is absolutely mesmerizing. Probably the most beautiful Christmas song sung the best I've ever heard. I just wish they had sung a second verse - but I guess great talent leaves you wanting for more!
Others here have well stated how great this video is. Gordon MacRae blended in so well with Mr. T.E. Ford, as he did with Jo Stafford. And Mr. Ford showed great range and power as Mr. MacRae.
Hearing this helps one to believe that a weary world will rejoice, and have a new and glorious morn. The hymn, combination of the two great voices, and powerful words and melody are a blessing. Posting it I think it is proper to say was a blessed thing to, Merry Christmas to all.
Thank you. I was crying while listening to this beautiful Christmas hymn. It brought joy and hope to my soul today. If you have more like it, please post!
This world would be a much poorer place if it wasn't for YouTube. We would never have the chance to hear about life as it was and how it could be. No-one makes songs like this any longer and if they did no-one would have the time to listen.
Such a shame that todays kids don't really know what life is about.
Yeah, you claim to be an athiest. Ya know what's funny? Ya can't stop us from praying for you. If you're get smart later on a do a little repenting, we just might meet one day...in Heaven.
Sitting here watching this and the chills are just rapid fire up and my down spine,what a sound.R.I.P "Tennessee" Ernie Ford & Gordon MacRae.
banner74 3 weeks ago
Good Job excellent clip
his4evr2c 1 month ago in playlist More videos from TEFSHOW
DEFSHOW, my hat is off to you for posting this outstanding clip!
LRMc60 1 month ago
I have to clamp my mouth to hold it back!
carolwoody2 1 month ago
Still the best.
cclayporter 1 month ago
Just beautiful.
rhapsodyinblah 1 month ago
fabulous!
Now look up "Sixteen Tons"
PTCello 1 month ago
i never knew TEFord had such a good voice. I tended to think of him as that country guy on I Love Lucy and other shows from the 60s
formerfratboy 1 month ago
@formerfratboy TEF had arguably the finest voice of any popular entertainer of his era. I'd venture to say that his talent in bass-baritone singing was very near the equivalent of Mario Lanza's in the tenor range. Superb vocal tone. Unfortunately, like Lanza, he didn't take care of himself though he did make it to 72 compared to Lanza's 39 (I think).
larrydonguy 3 weeks ago
Wow just Wow.
MsNitefox 1 month ago
Two wonderful talents, both of whom had problems with alcohol unfortunately, but, boy, could they sing! I wish that Ford, whose voice took a back seat to no on, had recorded a wider range of songs . . especially Great American Songbook material.
larrydonguy 1 month ago 3
So beautiful!!
AlabamaBelle1990 2 months ago
I can't listen to this without getting choked up.
buckskipper 2 months ago
@buckskipper I came across this last night, have listened to it 6 or 7 times, with tears streaming down my face every time! I wish that my dad & I had done this together...it would have just WRECKED Mom & my 3 sisters.
LRMc60 1 month ago
Six dislikes??? Must be the kind that likes that awful noise called, "Christian rock."
InfiniteMushroom 2 months ago
The Glory of G-d has shown his grace through these mens voices.
KCSteak 2 months ago
Puts one in the Christmas mood.With all the sham commercialism around christmas now THIS is what Christmas is all about!!
Boy did they sing it so well.That song always brings a tear to my eye.
Gordon MacRae what a voice.
peevee1234 2 months ago
Incredibly good. I wonder who the bass was who practically rattled the windows at the very end.
jocwalk 5 months ago
This song gives me chills, especially when I hear Gordon's voice but yeah they sound so heavenly together! I wish Christmas time would hurry up now :)
bubbbb0 5 months ago
This is just perfect!!
ShallCatsAdore 6 months ago 3
Magnificent! Thank you so much for posting! =)
rhapsodyenbleuclair 6 months ago
Two magnificent voices
bluegibby7 7 months ago 3
Such talent, such class. Nobody to compare in these culturally sad times.
HotVoodooWitch 7 months ago 6
and they managed to do this without lip syncing or auto-tune ...
maddymud 9 months ago 6
My favorite, favorite hymn of all time...all time. This is my new favorite version!
schuhgrass 10 months ago 4
Awsome! But Jussi Bjorling has this tune chiseld to the bones of my spine... (he sings it in Swedish, and a real loss for you who don't understand it. It's called O helga natt) That was the reason i started singing, to be able to sing O helga natt as Jussi before i died...
Onionbaron 11 months ago
How did we go from men who sing like men to that Justin Bieber kid?
sirhcskoorb 11 months ago 9
If this doesn't put a lump in your throat, your're not human.
buckskipper 1 year ago 22
That's it...that's what I like to ear...those smooooothe, loooowww tones~ That's the way that song was meant to be sung!
jammindoris 1 year ago 2
I feel so blessed to have grown up with such admirable men to look up to.
Who in today's entertainment world can even hold a candle to either of these men?
These are the times when I am very happy to have YouTube as part of our culture...thanks for making it available for everyone to enjoy.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
298fmr 1 year ago 2
I thank you for posting this gem! It is so good to hear and read that there are still folks out there who remember what christmas is really about.
VanessaRavencroft 1 year ago 4
Well bro, I have to admit I was skeptical. Tennessee Ernie Ford?? However, as usual, you were right! It's a great duet. Really, lovely.
barbeannchick 1 year ago 2
The sweetness of the Scottish man always rugged.
mothermarymary 1 year ago
this is wonderful entertainment -- heavyweight voices with the guts to sing live and get it right the first time. This calibre of talent is sorely mossed today
BillsCultureHour 1 year ago 3
Bravo
1babcoda 1 year ago
God bless you all, from Sweden :)
JoeCamelCigg 1 year ago 2
Wow! Ernie Ford really can to sing opera!
MrAudioProducer 1 year ago
amazing this is the way this song should be sung. always loved tennessee ernie ford's voice. he had one of those voices that made (still do) the little hairs on the back of your neck stand up.
TheSandsie13 1 year ago 4
Forget the candle--The majority of today's singers don't hold candle wax to people like these two.
Juliaflo 1 year ago 5
wow
kilo2801 1 year ago 2
Lord...to have gifted singers like this again. Thanks for this beautiful video.
jojosullivan1024 1 year ago 5
This recording is truly awesome. I hadn't heard it before but I burst into tears
on listening for the first time. What a wonderful christmas song and what a brilliant
performance by two of the greatest talents. JD
TheJohnduggan 1 year ago 3
What words could I use to describe this sound like two angels singing. I wouldn't even know how to begin. RN
Angryrnmedic 1 year ago
Comment removed
TheSandsie13 1 year ago
So So very beautiful, i am blown away.
gypsykings 1 year ago
Lost for words, this has really blew me away, so so very beautiful.
gypsykings 1 year ago
I agree with Learn To Turn 7...the days of real talent seems to have disappeared. This song came out when I was about 4 or 5 and while I don't remember if it was ever played in our home..similar Christmas music was..and this kinda brought me back for awhile to a simpler time in my life.
Scabbers1957 1 year ago
What happened to talent, I mean true talent, like this. back then, they did it the right way. I'm only 16, but i have a great appreciation for this beautiful music, and no respect for some of the trash that tries to pass off as entertainment these days. nothing will ever live up to that golden era in music
LearnToTurn7 1 year ago 3
@LearnToTurn7 I'm glad to hear that a few younger people reach back for those better days. The 50's and early 60's was America's Golden Age.
As America marches into the Abyss, it will be harder and harder to reach back and feel the last beautiful rays of the past. Soon, the darkness will be so dense and awful that even to view such videos as this will no longer give comfort. Not even the remnant people of those times will be around to share it with. America's light will finally flicker and die.
InfiniteMushroom 1 year ago 3
@InfiniteMushroom I wish our country had the moral fiber that it once had... That, in my opinion, has been the reason in the great decline in quality in the entertainment industry. There are still people out there who can sing like this, but we never hear them because of all the other garbage that's hiding those gems. when america gave up its morals, she gave up her freedoms... But I still have faith in the Lord that this nation can be saved
LearnToTurn7 1 year ago 5
@LearnToTurn7 Me too. I am in my late 20s and i really wish the US had the morals and the backbone it had in the 50s. Liberals who lived then say that what they did to change the world was good because it got rid of racism. Well we are suffering because of their false change. i noticed when the liberals got rid of God and also morals, the US went downhill. Too bad that a lot of cleaning up is needed. I wish everyone had common sense and took time to hold morals and God on a pedestal.
calihartley2010 5 months ago 2
@calihartley2010
Don't despair. Your country's sound. You can see how much good it does and the faith it was founded on is still central to your beliefs. I have worked with people of different creeds and colours from all over the world. Some of them have become dear friends and no matter what their religion or creed, they all are decent and kind. The more we get to learn about and meet people the more we will realise how little differences matter; in the end our basic principles are the same.
MsMaynes 4 months ago 2
@MsMaynes Yes principles are the same, but people nowadays want to change that and make sin look like it is cool. That is what I am trying to say.
calihartley2010 4 months ago
@InfiniteMushroom There are many of us who love the classics, and I am teaching my nieces and nephews to love it too. I worry about that reactionary thinking. It will be just fine. There are many of us who are smart.
skekso1 1 year ago
AWSOME!
candy7600can 1 year ago
this sets the hair on the back of my neck to standing on end. beautiful
TheSandsie13 1 year ago 2
Wow, so beautiful!
mellowdeigh 1 year ago
This is beautiful!!
mamalac 1 year ago
Absolutely stabberglasting!
The Dragon
Tempeldragen 1 year ago
Simply beautiful!!! WOW! Two amazing angelic voices! What year was this?
cscheuerman 1 year ago
@cscheuerman This was from around 1962 or 1963, I figure. Ernie Ford had his show on the air from 1962-1965.
frank47hammer 1 year ago
@frank47hammer ;
This show is from 1958.
Lorraine
Gemini730 1 year ago
@Gemini730 yep, you are right....
frank47hammer 1 year ago
@frank47hammer =
Actually, the clip was from '58 and so states in the header !
tigerlilly66 1 year ago
WOW! JUST WONDERFUL 5 STARS
tradeboy007 1 year ago 2
I could listen to this rendition a zillion times and still not be tired of hearing these two men sing. The goosebumps are all over me!
MorganJServices 1 year ago 4
Beautiful, just beautiful
Jill8854 2 years ago 5
Merry Christmas that was lovely
terracontessa 2 years ago 6
Merry Cristmas everyone! God Bless.
colinfirth4bfast 2 years ago 6
Merry Christmas All......got my present today.....my daughter wont have to have her foot amputated.....god bless everone....Tkank you Lord.........
wtman1122 2 years ago 31
I was raised in Burbank, Ca. My mother took me to see the Ernie Ford Show a number of times. Show tickets were free. I wish I'd appreciated it then as much as I do now.
JackSVL 2 years ago 3
there is something so special about this song ... it captures a little piece of heaven ... and this is a truly magical interpretation
merry christmas everyone -- may your days be bright!
FlamingJune5dwj 2 years ago 6
sends chills up and down every time i hear this ..... truly awesome
customflht 2 years ago 8
Holy oh my gosh! This is incredible! I'd have been thrilled to know either of them sang this song, but a duet? Dang!
uptoolate1896 2 years ago 9
Really, really beautiful! I'd seen Tennessee Ernie Ford on "I Love Lucy", and he was hilarious; I didn't know he had a voice like this! I have always loved Gordon MacRae's voice, what a talent! Wish I could get an album of this beautiful, old fashioned Christmas music.
blappin23 2 years ago 4
Whatever happened to great shows like this?
Here's hoping YOU have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Juliaflo 2 years ago 7
Two amazing voices that still capture me as a grown up. (Well I try to be). If life begins at 40 then I am 2! I love this stage... tantrums in the supermarket etc.... Hang on, my kids do that still. Is there nothing sacred!
colinfirth4bfast 2 years ago 5
Class will always prevail and bo0y did these 2 have it in bundles.
englishsandy 2 years ago 9
haha they looked genuinely touched...love this song
littlebuggermate 2 years ago 2
i was 1 year old when this was made, as a full grown human being now, it brings tears to my eyes
MsSouthernpatriot 2 years ago 6
This ROCKS! they just don't make em like this anymore do they?
CrownedWithLaurels 2 years ago 7
Find someplace else to argue whether there is a God or not.
Enjoy the song for what it is or leave.
LoveThemGators90 2 years ago 5
Beautiful song - thanks for posting.
crs0221 2 years ago
This is quite a beautiful song, full of meaning, telling an awesome story of our God's birth, sang by two of our finest singers. Thanks.
republican1988 2 years ago 17
Thank you for saying this. Ernie always said that gospel
music was some of the most beautiful love songs ever written.
I must agree.
TEFSHOW 2 years ago 7
A lovely video and I think the voices go so well together. I especially love Gordon Macrae! Thanks for putting this on Youtube.
zoebasil 1 year ago
One day, I'll find a hymn page where there are no fights; all the Atheists will know to say "it's very nice" not "I'm an atheist; it's very nice." Civility is a virtue. Is it necessary to announce on a hymn page that you are not Christian, knowing that the automatic response will lead to an argument from both sides? Part of civility is appropriateness. It is appropriate to argue on an "Atheists vs Christians" page. It is inappropriate for either party on a page called "O holy night". Good day.
republican1988 2 years ago
This goes for the Christians too. Can we simply allow things to slide rather than soil an otherwise beautiful page with an argument that will almost certainly turn nasty? I grow so tired of the ugliness that comes between Christians and Atheists on these pages. It's quite disheartening.
republican1988 2 years ago
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Thank you! I completely agree, I've told people that I did NOT want to argue countless times. They just keep replying to my posts to tell me that my poor soul won't be happy until I'm saved and that I'm evil, going to hell...
Which doesn't mean anything to an atheist anyway, so why tell them that? It's just rude, condescending, and frankly IRRITATING.
Sshelly34213 2 years ago
You've constantly restarted arguments here. For once I'm with a repub. about something-civility. A fast way to hush x-tians is to thank them for prayers; even faster is to not provoke them on a x-tian page. Of course, I was an angst-y, rebellious, freshly-minted "no-longer-a-teenager" once too. You'll soon learn that it's ok to not have the last word. I know it's hard right now, but don't worry; it'll get easier as you get older, and then you can laugh at the ones who can't. Bet you can't yet ;)
bloodandgoldpirate 2 years ago
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Uh no I haven't in the slightest, I'm simply defending myself.
I'm not a "rebellious teen..." I'm a functional adult thank you and would appreciate you not talking to me in such a condescending manner..
I'm simply defending myself from a bunch of nasty, intolerant people.
I wouldn't care if we were talking about what flavor cheesecake we enjoy, there is no reason to treat someone who doesn't share your opinion like they've treated me.
Sshelly34213 2 years ago
Why did you put quote marks around "rebellious teen"? If you'll reread my post, you'll notice that I made it a point to not call you such as it's quite offensive to youth. I just wanted you to see that if you don't announce atheism on a christian page, you need not defend yourself, and that the mature find it far more satisfying to laugh privately at the foolish than to destroy a lovely page with nasty comments like "douchebag". I hope you understand there's no need to reply; this is no attack.
bloodandgoldpirate 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
I never did, some irritating religious conservative whined about how our country doesn't practice religious fascism anymore. To which I responded good because it was wrong anyway. Then a whole crap load of religious people kept bullying me.
Sshelly34213 2 years ago
two beautiful voices
hcaliforniagirl 2 years ago 2
Well, if you're discussing religion. The fact is that human arrogance and wanting to know what and where we came from lead to the "discovery" of religion. The time we find something that disproves religion will be the end of the world.
the13itchslayer 2 years ago
Pardon?
rafhenlow 2 years ago
ooo this gives me goosebumps!!! this is lovely!!!
pipsicalpopsical 2 years ago 4
If I may be so gauche and secular as to ask if someone could post Gordie's version of 'A Lonely Town.' I've tried to imagine it since his first wife Sheila mentioned it in her book Hollywood Mother Of The Year. I've only heard Sinatra's version of 'A Lonely Town.' She described Gordon's voice as 'a force of nature' as opposed to Sinatra's which was always more sexual.
1915fas 2 years ago 2
Just a revisit to this clip....and the "Oh, hear the angel voices" part....well, with this duo, I think we done heard them! None finer!
macraeman 2 years ago 6
There are no gods, but there sure was a magnificent Gordon McRae.
purbrookian 2 years ago 4
I met Gordon a few times in his "hey days" , once in NYC at the Strand theater, where he was gracious enough to sign my scrapebook, which he signed "To Joanne, the little girl with a lot of patience and consideration..good luck always." Another time in Toronto and he was nice enough to have his picture taken with me. How many "stars" of today would take the time to do this? I was one of his biggest fans..what a voice..what a man!
jomilee88 2 years ago 4
Great Hymn but two great singers...Bravo!
boanerges144 2 years ago 4
Gordon Macrae has one of the most beautiful and spectacular baritone voices the world has ever known.
misstinsley 2 years ago 22
Read some of the earlier posts -- can't say that I can get into ALL that. All I know is that when Gordon MacRae drops his jaw and sends out the most glorious sound - that the experience lets me know that God "has His hand in" here and there....and I am most grateful!
macraeman 2 years ago 8
Reminds me of Salieri describing how God spoke through Mozart even though he wasn't a particularly devout man. Gordie was a Christian Scientist but lived in denial about his alcoholism and the pain and suffering it caused others. Ernie had his problems with the bottle as well. I guess I'll leave to Frank when he said. 'Whatever is written about me is unimportant. When I sing, I believe.'
1915fas 2 years ago 3
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If anyone else replies to me about religion I'm going to ignore you because I came here to watch a great singer, not talk about religion.
Give me a break, don't you people have lives outside of religion?
Sshelly34213 2 years ago
The ol' pea-picker took a LOT of flack from the networks for insisting on singing a hymn each show. God bless him! Thanks to him, we have memories like this.
songspiritUSA 2 years ago 7
magnificent!!
Bulldogblacksmith 2 years ago 4
and to think now-a-days lady fucking gaga and katy perry are top of the charts.
aah.
GlasgowCelticPat1888 2 years ago 2
Absolute classic!
sisterspure 2 years ago 4
My God, what an incredible presentation. It's nice to know there was a time when the major TV networks were not afraid to do anything that smacked of religion.
hourlynewscaster 2 years ago 5
Actually, when the show first started, Ernie Ford wanted to close his show with a hymn each time. The network declined his request until Ford said he'd walk and not do the show at all if he didn't get to do the hymns. You have to respect that kind of conviction.
jocwalk 2 years ago 4
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smacked of religion??
It's like taboo to even mention you may not be religious in this country.
Let's think of it as a change for the better.
People can be different now.
Sshelly34213 2 years ago
Guys like me and Christopher Hitchens can appreciate art and music inspired by faith and a little commerce and not even be too condescending and superior about it!
1915fas 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Excuse me, you just said the youth in this country has sucky taste. It's not the youth, it's teenagers and when have they ever had good taste. They're too immature to understand what something of great quality is.
Btw I see you tried to squander my credibility by giving me a thumbs down. Real mature, I'd expect that in someone of 12.
Your rant IS condescending! As I am 20 and a youth and know plenty of people my age who would greatly appreciate Ford.
Sshelly34213 2 years ago
i wish i had a voice like those guys,coming from England, i'm very envious of you Americans,who up until now ,have produced some awesome singers,,check out Ken Curtis for instance and you'll see what i mean!
pascanal 2 years ago
The Welsh have produced some great singers like Thomas L. Thomas and Bryn Terfel in the last 80 years. Tom Jones is great but he's a different kind of singer.The ENGLISH OPERA SINGERS offer opportunities to young singers in grand opera. Just enter that in your search window. They're at St.James church on Picadilly. You can order tickets for their productions.
1915fas 2 years ago
Hey, you guys have produced some very fine singers as well -- how about Matt Monro, for example?
stevevandien 2 years ago
Yes, a fine singer. Perhaps the only one who could take Sinatra's inspiration and develop a sound of his own.
1915fas 2 years ago
I am reposting my comment on Matt Monro because it ended up too far above stevevandien's consideration of him and I want to be certain readers understand to whom I am referring. As I stated up there, he was perhaps the only one of so many who took Sinatra's inspiration and developed a sound of his own. He died tragically at such a young age. People should know him for the fine singer he was.
1915fas 2 years ago
This is actually an unusual performance for Ernie Ford in that it's fully sung the whole way through, where his usual style was more a "half-spoken, half-sung" approach.
This is a great recording for both singers, with excellent blend to the point where at many points it sounds like one incredibly rich line instead of two voices.
Is it possible that only one of them is actually voicing the final consonants?
SomeDumbYankee 2 years ago
No. There both voicing.
1915fas 2 years ago
Gordie seems to build to a gradual climax. He's bigger at 1:44 on the first 'O night divine' but they're both about the same at the second one. As I posted above, they're both voicing at the end, though Gordie goes a few seconds longer.
1915fas 2 years ago
That hamony gave me goosebumps on my arms and down my spine.
ssmbookworm 2 years ago 2
Tennesee Ernie Ford you may notice sings the bass line. He was just about the best pop bass this side of Crosby. He didn't show off his low notes much but he's clearly a bass. His 16 Tons is seldom done well by other because it only really works with a substantial dark voice.
Agorante 2 years ago 2
Absolutely true. Originally baritone, Crosby's range descended over the years to bass, but he still retained somewhat of a baritone timbre. Ford was a true bass from the get-go, and he sit on some impressive low notes without sounding in the cellar:).
stevevandien 2 years ago
I'm old enough to remember hearing that it was nodules on his vocal chords due to pushing his voice that gave Crosby his trade-mark rain-barrel sound. He even had them insured -the nodules. Recently I read somewhere that he had had them removed. In any case he definitely sang in higher keys in his early career as was the fashion.
1915fas 2 years ago
i found this by accident and what a fortunate chance...such a voice gordon had...not a very nice person but an undeniably beautiful instrument he carried in his throat....every time i listen to it it makes the hair on my arms stand up
potatoegirls101 2 years ago
yes mam
albruce1949 2 years ago
Yes. His voice combined different qualities in an unusual way and of course, he had a tremendous range. In his prime, he had a brilliant tone in his top notes.
1915fas 2 years ago
Women have purity to their voice, but men have richness. Both were great performers and Ford studied music in college. Interestingly, both men were navigators in the army air force in WWII
EatTheWeeds 2 years ago 6
great singer Tennessee ernie ford
radioactivesludge23 2 years ago 5
Thanks so much, TEFSHOW, for posting. My favorite Christmas song, and yes, MacRae, " the kind of guy a girl can fall for."
Words elude me as to how stunningly beautiful this rendition was! I usually listen to the French version, but this performance ranks right up there for me.
gayschloffen 2 years ago 3
and ditto the lament for lack of TEF-calibre talent on today's broadcasts
gayschloffen 2 years ago 2
Wow... Even without today's advances in recording technology, the power of their performance still comes through. That's just plain old talent, unlike most of today's performers.
thomasdr28 2 years ago 3
Brilliant, just brilliant!!
musicalscrolls 2 years ago 4
This is when people knew what a great voice really was. They both were amazing.
DebDo54 2 years ago 6
they let the song sing thru them, unlike american idol which promotes the singer
kenredwings8 2 years ago 3
Gotta hand it to Gordon MacRae, not many singers would have the nerve to duet with Tennessee Ernie--and pull his own weight to boot.
rawcer 2 years ago 2
Love Ernie! Love Gordon! Together is so incredible! And the song is awesome!
smokeyh89 2 years ago 2
Excellent!
StuartGalore 2 years ago
Just magnificent!!
soundslikefrank 2 years ago
Absolutely
voice1 2 years ago
THe best version of that song i have ever heard ! And i think thats not my subjective opinion. It's a fact.
CossacksChampion 2 years ago 5
This is AMAZING! They blend so well. It just sends chills up my spine!
Elvisgirl17 2 years ago 2
Devine!
leonieemilyaldcroft 3 years ago 3
Why? Why? Why was I born too late & not be around these gorgeous men with voices that could melt ANY girls heart better than Sinatra or Elvis any day of the week. I probably just admire and love Ernie and Gordon's character more than anything.
MorganJServices 3 years ago 3
Swell hymn, and superb singers.
joeasmythe 3 years ago 2
That is absolutely mesmerizing. Probably the most beautiful Christmas song sung the best I've ever heard. I just wish they had sung a second verse - but I guess great talent leaves you wanting for more!
BriR2 3 years ago 6
I really love there version ,touching
9005067 3 years ago 3
This is a beautiful song sung by two of the greatest! But the clip? stops all during the song. Anyone know how to remedy this?
waltztherock 3 years ago
stunning!!
benwicked19 3 years ago 4
Two of the greatest singers of the 20th century.
jmen4ever 3 years ago 5
OMG!!! I grew up loving Gordon MacRae. This just made me so emotional. Thanks for posting. A beautiful duet.
dwtslvr 3 years ago 5
Two great voices. Two great men.
So tragic that Gordon MacRae was to die from cancer of the mouth and jaw.
RubyWraith 3 years ago 2
Others here have well stated how great this video is. Gordon MacRae blended in so well with Mr. T.E. Ford, as he did with Jo Stafford. And Mr. Ford showed great range and power as Mr. MacRae.
Hearing this helps one to believe that a weary world will rejoice, and have a new and glorious morn. The hymn, combination of the two great voices, and powerful words and melody are a blessing. Posting it I think it is proper to say was a blessed thing to, Merry Christmas to all.
Micaiah03 3 years ago
Two fine voices, and they blend so well -- those were the days, when good music and fine singing were easy to find on TV --
stevevandien 3 years ago 5
Thank you. I was crying while listening to this beautiful Christmas hymn. It brought joy and hope to my soul today. If you have more like it, please post!
KentuckyCrimson 3 years ago 3
Breath-taking. Thank you so much for sharing this.
JoanandAlan 3 years ago 2
What is there to say about class like this? Thank you for sharing it.
surrealistgeek 3 years ago 4
Glorious! Just sheer "glorious"!... God bless these men!
Jill8854 3 years ago 2
This my favourite hymn and sounds like an operatic aria. If only they had done the duet from "The Pearl Fishers" by Bizet!
yarwood1935 3 years ago
I honestly can't find the words...Thank you so much for posting this. =)
224clb22 3 years ago
Real men of real faith in God. Charming & so delightful. That's the kind of guy a girl can fall for.
MorganJServices 3 years ago 2
Tennesse Ernie Ford and Gordon Macrae...the kind of men a girl can fall for...YOU SAID IT SISTER! =)
224clb22 3 years ago
My two favorite singing men on the same stage! Woooooo hoooooooo! Yeehaaaw!
MorganJServices 3 years ago
Absolutely stunning. Thank you.
FrankiesMom 3 years ago
Not a critisism against this on here, for good reason! EXCELLENT, back from my 4th x- mas on earth
jmen4ever 3 years ago
This world would be a much poorer place if it wasn't for YouTube. We would never have the chance to hear about life as it was and how it could be. No-one makes songs like this any longer and if they did no-one would have the time to listen.
Such a shame that todays kids don't really know what life is about.
conniff44 3 years ago 5
My feelings exactly
yarwood1935 3 years ago 2
This comment has received too many negative votes show
What condescending bullsht.
Sshelly34213 2 years ago
Yeah, you claim to be an athiest. Ya know what's funny? Ya can't stop us from praying for you. If you're get smart later on a do a little repenting, we just might meet one day...in Heaven.
cabritorsss 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Claim?
Uh no...I am an atheist please deal with that reality.
You're a condescending douche bag. What makes you think your specific religion is the correct one? Someone old you when you were five....
Maybe if you were smart you'd realize that God is a lie people tell themselves to feel better about death.
Sshelly34213 2 years ago