A carol from the old times, performed faithfully. And in the case of the singing, Faithfully. For their 1991 holiday album The Bells of Dublin, The Chieftains brought in some heavy vocal hitters: Jackson Browne, Rickie Lee Jones, Elvis Costello, Kate and Anna McGarrigle and Nanci Griffith. One song even has a spoken word section from Burgess Meredith!
The name of the album refers to actual bells at Christchurch Cathedral. The Chieftains wrote that Dubliners “gather in Christchurch Place to hear the bells ‘ring-in’ the new year,” and bringing all these accomplished musicians together for a set of holiday songs is right in line with that spirit.
Marianne Faithfull, who left us this year at age 78, was the perfect choice to join the group for this 17th century song. And she was festive in another way, too: she once made a hilarious appearance on the UK sitcom Absolutely Fabulous. Edina, one of the show’s main characters, has a near-death experience and “sees” God… who happens to be Marianne Faithfull. And because it’s Ab Fab, the two talk mostly about shopping. Seeing as how God and shopping come up a fair amount at this time of year, this may be the most timely performance this countdown’s seen yet.
