I want to thank all my readers this year for reading Retroflections. It is a real honor writing for the Citizen. So as I do every year, here is a little ditty I wrote and please enjoy and happy holidays…

What ever happened the old retro Christmases? You know when this time of year was happening and groovy and it was about making love and peace and not showing your love through your pocket book.  I call it a retro Christmas it appears that is all in the past anymore. But once upon a time Santa was groovy and Christmas used to be about peace and love, and it got me thinking….

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a gadget was stirring, not even a keyboard or mouse
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care
In hopes that peace on earth would soon be there

The children were tired and quiet and tame
Because they actually did something besides play a video game
And mom and dad were sitting at last
Thinking of a retro Christmas past

When out in the yard arose some noise
It was an old friend come to show off her new toys
She walked up to my door with bags in hand
And a plastic guitar and a copy of rock band

Stop I said do not bring that inside
Unless it is a lava lamp or something tie dyed
Leave that crap in your car
Come in and listen to Christmas carols on zitar

We sat and looked at our out-of-site tree
Recalling old holidays at Berkeley
The house was decorated it was certainly a site
With love beads and things that glowed with a black light.

When all of a sudden we hear this dude
Saying some names that sounded skewed
Dig it Dasher! Right on Dancer! Groovy Prancer and Vixen!
Far-out Comet! I’m hip Cupid, Donner and Blitzen!

As he landed upon our roof top he gave us a grin
And asked permission to come on in
He sat on the couch and surprisingly said
Hey man do you have any Grateful dead

He was dressed all in flannel from his head to his toe
His eyes were bright and all aglow
He pulled a box from his big red sack
And said “let’s bring peace back.”

He opened the box with a big old grin
And said we have to let peace back in
Inside there was a big golden peace sign
With a chain that looked so divine

He placed the symbol round my neck
Saying this world is such a wreck
Pass the peace and pass it fast
Or Christmas will be a thing of the past

He sprang to his sleigh and said goodbye
And left us all some cool tie dye
I heard him exclaim as he drove out of sight
“Peace on earth, and to all a far-out-night!”
Merry peace on earth to you all…

A few weeks ago I was watching a country Christmas. Mind you, I am not a country fan nor buff, yet I have to admit, I was glued to the tube with my hot cocoa in hand and listening to the Christmas music and it got me thinking…

What happened to so many of our Christmas treasures of the past? I have such wonderful memories of Christmas specials. Some of these wonderful Christmas specials just do not exist any longer or are rarely played anymore.
Variety shows were some of the best entertainment I could watch as a kid.

You could watch funny skits, listen to your favorite singer or band and watch all sorts of great entertainment. Sadly, reality shows, which are not really reality took over, and any form of real entertainment has since gone out the window. It makes me long for the past where in December, for one month, you could watch your favorite celebrity do a Christmas special.

TV was filled with celebrities during the holidays. It would not be holidays without the Bob Hope Christmas specials, or Andy Williams doing a show packed with holiday classics. How could we forget Bing Crosby and David Bowie doing the Little Drummer Boy?

Acts like the brother and sister team, the Carpenters, had their own special called Carpenters’ Christmas Specials, John Denver’s got into the act and did A Rocky Mountain Christmas, who could forget in 1967 Christmas With the Martin’s and Sinatra’s?

It continues as Johnny Cash, Donny and Marie, Julie Andrews, The Captain & Tennille, Glen Campbell, Liberace, Perry Como, Sonny & Cher, Red Skelton and even the old music show called Solid Gold had a Christmas show. There are way too many to give mention to and all of these people shared their special songs and guests bringing cheer into our homes.

These are Christmas treasures that are long gone but not all tucked away. You can catch some glimpses of them on YouTube here and there, but sadly, you do not get to catch them in your living room each year. I miss these specials but I am happy with what the network offers me, which is very little. However, sometimes, late at night in December, when I cannot sleep, you can catch me in my office looking for old clips of Christmas shows on YouTube and it certainly puts a smile in my heart.

So what was your favorite Christmas special?

Sheryl Ann & Clifton Ford

I was at my favorite restaurant recently, Viro’s Italian Bakery and Cafe. I went there because the owner Vito had asked me to listen to the live entertainment he was going to supply. I call it dinnertainment and I enjoy eating dinner with entertainment. As I walked in, there was a tall man dressed in a Tuxedo looking sharp and singing a song. Not only did he look like Nat king Cole, he sounded like him, and it got me thinking…

There are a few great torch musicians and singers in Tucson but nearly not enough. Of course Susan Artemis always comes to mind for me when I think of some of the jazz standards. However, I was taken aback when I saw Clifton Ford not only looking a tad like Nat King Cole but sounding in many ways just like him.

Nat King Cole had a velvet voice that wowed audiences world wide with such hits as Unforgettable and Mona Lisa. It was interesting to watch Cliff surprise a room full of people with his renditions of such classics. I talked to Cliff and asked him how he got started. He stated he was a product of being a foster child and found refuge in foster care singing to Nat King Cole.

Later when he moved to Tucson, he met up with the Drifters member Mel Rivers and they played music for many years. They did a variety of Motown music and Cliff was enjoying singing and entertaining. Still, he felt something was missing, and several years ago, deiced that his heart belonged to the music of Nat King Cole, so you can find Cliff around town doing many private engagements singing Cole tunes.

Along with Cliff that night, was another singer, Sheryl Ann who performed classic from Billy Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald. Sheryl is a singer who said growing up she called herself the “Diva in the living room.” She let her singing career go for many years then after a life-changing event; she knew she needed to get back into her music because she stated she feels music heals. She makes that very clear in her shows as well taking audiences on a musical healing adventure with classic jazz standards to modern jazz songs. She began to sing at Tony’s Italian Deli where she met Cliff. The two of them perform shows together as well as on their own and show a mutual respect for the classics.

What I enjoyed was that there are still people that appreciate some of these jazz standards so much that they are willing to make their living sharing their talent and having passion for these songs we all grew up with.

You can get a hold of these two talented singer by email Cliff  is at oneford2@msn.com and Sheryl can be reached at smckinley.sassy@yahoo.com. If you enjoy walking down memory lane, these two singers either on their own, or together is a wonderful way to say hello to some of the great jazz standards.

By the way, what is your favorite jazz standard?