Homer and Jethro were adept, first-rate jazz musicians (See Playing It Straight and It Ain’t Necessarily Square) but that’s not the music for which they’ll be primarily remembered. Instead Henry “Homer” Haynes and Kenneth “Jethro” Burns will go down in musical history as the creators of tunes such as “The Gal From Possum Holler,” “How Much is that Doggy in the Window” and other such hilarious ditties presented in deceptively clever and well-performed musical settings. Below we present to you some choice tunes from Cool Crazy Christmas With Homer and Jethro.
Jethro wrote the lyrics. He was the humorist of the duo. Just listen to the lyrics of “Nuttin’ Fer Christmas” and some of the other tunes presented below and you’ll hear how tautly constructed these parody works are. Go to the :57 mark of “Randolph the Flat-Nosed Reindeer” for a solo which shows off Jethro’s mandolin skills, and there are other musical highlights, of course, spread throughout the album.
Homer and Jethro hit the charts ten or so times in the course of their careers, always with their comedy material. To illustrate the duo’s popularity for modern readers, one could say that Homer and Jethro were the Weird Al Yankovich of their time, but given the depth of their talent and the groundbreaking nature of their comedy, it is more accurate to say that Weird Al is still aspiring to be a modern day force like unto the great Homer and Jethro.
Many thanks to Tom Fredrickson for digitizing this Christmas gift for us, Tom is the proprietor of the unparalleled music blog, Lost Wax Method.
03 I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
04 Santa Claus, The Original Hippie
05 All I Want for Christmas Is My Upper Plate
