Hello kiddiewinks! Well my last day en vacation approaches and soon i will be home blogging as normal and showering you all with the enthusiasm of my festive excitement! It´s been a lovely week with my lovely darren and most importantly, I feel all rested and recooperated from my illness, so that´s a plus bonne thing, nést pas? Anyway, today´s post will be fairly short and I shall join you all again tomorrow and catch up on what all my other fave bloggers have been up to - Dan and his missus (!), XO, JÁson, PPG, Rob(o)pop, Jessica, Jessica, Kimberley et al...
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THE CHRISTMAS ANTHEM:
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Ever since I was little, I have loved the carol When A Child Is Born. I think it is such an uplifting, hopeful, joyous song that always ALWAYS gives me goosebumps whenever I hear it or play it on the piano. Most recently, artists affiliated with Simon Cowell have been recording it in a variety of different styles.
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Now, of course, everyone knows that Simon has a limited repertoire of songs that he loves and continues to recycle through his acts and Idol/XFactor winners and runner ups... Last year, Shayne Ward did a stunning live version of it close to the X Factor finals and that, combined with his absolutely spinetingling version of Over The Rainbow, probably won him the competition. Being a version on the live show meant that of course the vocal was hardly restrained (which works surprisingly well on this song) but the glory of the final verse and chorus sometimes deserves a soaring voice and Shayne gave the song the majesty it deserved.
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Similarly, Il Divo give in a naturally more harmonised version. Their voices blend well together and the crescendo at the end gives the song the power that it craves, while the instrumentation is suitably respectful yet festive all at once. Quite lovely.
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Compare and contrast that with G4 (not strictly a SC act, but from the XFactor stable nonetheless) who turn in a surprisingly restrained version of the song that gives it a humble reverence i´ve not noticed before. Faultless harmonies and clear crisp production make this a different yet equally lovely version of my very favourite tune.
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MP3: Shayne Ward - when a child is born
MP3: G4 - When a child is born
MP3: Il Divo - when a child is born
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Coming soon - all the stuff i mentioned yesterday, and some more ideas i came up with last night :)
EDIT: LINKS TEMPORARILY FIXED!