From the MCRFB NEWS archive: 1962
Two Billboard Top LP’s Break Top 30 After 1 Week
NEW YORK — The sound of jingle bells was heard in recordland last week along with the merry sound of cash registers racking up sales of the “The First Family” (#11; 1 week, LP), “My Son, the Folk Singer” (#1; 6 weeks, LP) and the Elvis Presley “Girls, Girls, Girls” (#27; 1 week, LP) albums. With Christmas less than four weeks away, sales were starting to pick up both standards and newly issued packages.
Hottest of the Christmas albums so far this year were Mitch Miller’s “Holiday Sing Along,” Johnny Mathis’ “Merry Christmas,” Elvis Presley’s Christmas album and the Ray Conniff LP “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” All of these are re-issue sets that sold well last year.
Among the new albums getting action were “The Glorious Sound of Christmas” with the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Bing Crosby Christmas set on Warner Bros. There was also some action on the Ramsey Lewis LP “The Sound of Christmas.”
Christmas singles were also getting calls during these strong record days. Singles included old perennials such as Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas,” Harry Simone Chorale’s “Little Drummer Boy,” three by the Chipmunks, “The Chipmunk Song,” “Rudolph, the Red -Nosed Reindeer” and “Alvin’s Harmonica,” and Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Round the Christmas Tree,” and Bobby Helm’s “Jingle Bell Rock.”
New Christmas singles starting to perk in various markets include Ray Stevens’ “Santa Claus Is Watching You,” and there was some action and a good deal of radio play on the new Harry Simeone Chorale recording, “Do You Hear What I Hear?” END
___
(Information and news source: Billboard; December 8, 1962)
