2009 Top Albums According to Me

Here’s my list. No particular order.

David Crowder*Band – Church Music – Crowder’s music is always interesting, envelope-pushing and enthralling. DC*B added a touch of ‘80s keyboard jam to make one of the year’s most engaging releases. I love the epic “God Almighty, None Compares.”

Neal More – So Many Roads: Live in Europe – How can you not like a TRIPLE LIVE CD set for $14.99 or so? Full of great progressive rock that is a virtual “greatest hits” of Morse’s work with Spock’s Beard, Transatlantic and his solo work. I love the mash of “Author of Confusion/I’m the Guy,” and the folk surprise “That Crutch.” And Morse's European band is top-notch.

Transatlantic – The Whirlwind Special Edition – Prog supergroup Transatlantic made a righteous return in 2009 after a way-too-long silence. The preferred edition is the Special Edition box ‘cause you must have the covers (Beatles! America! Santana! Gabriel-era Genesis!), the extra songs, and the DVD. Plus I took pix and vid for the project. It is the only one of the albums on my list with my name on it!

Dream Theater – Black Clouds and Silver Linings – 3 Disc Special Edition – Portnoy and company know how to please the fans…a great new CD, a bonus disc with great covers (Queen! Zebra! King Crimson!), and a third disc with instrumental versions of the new album.

Wilco – Wilco (the album) – Late entry! Thanks to John Shenberger I have now discovered Wilco. In late 2009! Great stuff!

Switchfoot – Hello Hurricane – A return to form for Switchfoot. Some great songs, especially the rocker “Mess of Me.”

Mike Farris – SHOUT! Live – A wonderful belt of Gospel from one of the best voices in music today.

Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – The Live Anthology – Amazing 4 disc live set for a CHEAP price! Picked up mine for $22.99 with another 25% off at The Great Escape Records & Comix in Bowling Green. Gotta’ support the local music emporium.

Glass Hammer – Three Cheers for the Brokenhearted – A huge surprise…Glass Hammer is always a favorite prog band for me. But who knew they had an amazing psychedelic/pop masterpiece in them? You must check out “Come On, Come On, Come On,” “A Bitter Wind,” and the classy cover of the Zombies “A Rose for Emily.”

Muse – The Resistance – I love Muse. This CD finally helped the band break big in the US. Paranoid lyrics aside (just what are these guys resisting against?), this is a great listen.

Owl City – Ocean Eyes – Big fun smooth pop made even better by some assistance by Matthew Thiessen (Relient K). Who says top 40 has to suck?

Phoenix – Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix – Another latecomer (thanks for costing me $$$ Shenberger). The first band I ever liked from France. Yummy power poppishness.

Levon Helm – Electric Dirt – I love The Band, and it is so cool that Levon Helm is able to sing and perform again. This CD is a lot of fun and hearkens back to some of the classic stuff from The Band.

Cheap Trick – Sgt. Pepper Live/The Latest (TIE) – Trick returns with their best album in YEARS with The Latest. And the fanboy in me LOVED their version of Sgt. Peppers. A highlight of 2009 was watching Cheap Trick do Sgt. Peppers live @ The Hilton in Las Vegas. An amazing show!

Rufus Huff – Self Titled – Take Free, Cream, Mountain, and healthy dose of thunderous southern fried blues rock and add a whoppin’ amount of fun and you’ll get Rufus Huff. Great stuff from my buddy Greg Martin, Dean Smith, Jarrod England, and Chris Hardesty.

Reissues/Box Sets

The Beatles – Stereo Box Set – Yes I know that the buzz was for the mono set. But for my $$$ the real thing is the stereo set. Simply a must purchase for any music fan.

Big Star – Keep and Eye on the Sky – Classic power pop from Big Star in abundance…featuring a bevy of alternate cuts, live stuff, demos and more. Some truly great music on this set.

King Crimson – In the Court of the Crimson King – The 5.1 surround remix is jaw-dropping. Remarkable stuff.

Where the Action Is: Nuggets Los Angeles – 1965-1968 – Rhino hits another one out of the park with this box set focusing on the mid-sixties music scene. Here hits and great garage band stuff; one hit-wonders and early tunes from The Byrds, The Doors, Love and more.

There you go. What was your favorite music in 2009?

Soul Frequency Radio - 12/27 Playlist - Bigelf & Yes Symphonic

Bigelf! Symphonic Yes! Celtic proggers Iona! Beatles! Stryper! Whatta' show.

Bigelf - Gravest Show On Earth (12:03)
Bigelf - Money, It's Pure Evil (7:10)
The Zombies - Care Of Cell 44 (3:56)
Iona - Trilogy (8:36)
Journey - Kohoutek (6:41)
Yes - Long Distance Runaround (5:43)
Yes - In the Presence Of (12:01)
Da - Return Of The Beat Menace - Da (2:59)
Yes - Starship Trooper (12:30)
The Beatles - I'll Be Back (2:26)
Bigelf - The Evils Of Rock & Roll (12:04)
Bigelf - The Game (9:45)
Yes - I've Seen All Good People (7:30)
Yes - Roundabout (6:04)
Stryper - Soldiers Under Command (5:04)
Stryper - Battle Hymn of the Republic (2:37)
Wyrick - Supernatural (3:26)
Stars on 45 – Beatles Medley (15:48)

Old Skool List - Top Pop Rock Songs of All Time (According to Me)

Hi folks:  Direct from October 2005 Xanga blog...some of my fave pop/rock songs of all time:

Top Pop-Rock Songs of All Time (According to Me) – Part 1 & 2

I promised this a while back. They are in no particular order. Note these are some of MY favorites songs, secular and sacred all mixed together. Kinda like our lives. Most (if not all!) of these songs actually charted somewhere. You kids should listen to these songs. Really.

The Zombies – Time of the Season – Perhaps the most perfect pop song EVER. Killer organ. Soaring harmonies. Magnetic hooks.

The Monkees – Pleasant Valley Sunday – So many Monkees songs to choose from! This is my fave though – an indictment of our shallow suburban life with an unforgettable guitar riff. My buddy Neal Morse says that is has a cool, prog-like chord change. And he would know.

Seal – Kiss from a Rose – Seal doesn’t like printed lyrics in his albums so I mostly have no idea what this song is supposed to mean. I like the la la section.

Audio Adrenaline – Ocean Floor – My favorite Biblical truth set to music. I like the guitar riff @ the bridge. AA grows up.

Supertramp – The Logical Song – Listen for the Mattel Football game sound FX. Great "I need to find my place in this world 'cause I'm kinda' lost" song.

The Beach Boys – God Only Knows – Man, this one kills me.

The Beatles – Abbey Road Side 2 – OK, I am cheating here. I can’t really pick one Beatles song. So I pick the entire album side. Hey, it’s my list. Sue me.

Keith Green – Until That Final Day – One of the few songs that can reduce me to a crying, blubbering mess. Really lays me out.

Electric Light Orchestra – Can’t Get it Out of My Head – One word: haunting. My favorite band ever so it was way hard to pick just one song.

Steely Dan – Deacon Blues - A song that tells a story-sorta' sad and depressing. But I like it. Deacon Blues is one of my nicknames, BTW.

The Imperials – Be Still My Soul - Good, mellow yummyness

Neal Morse – Cradle to Grave - OK, it did not chart. But if there were justice it WOULD have. I was in the studio while the drum track was cut by Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater)

Aretha Franklin – (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural - Woman - Don't get any ideas chump, I'm secure in my manhood. But this song is oh so cool, makes you feel like dancing around the room.

Neil Diamond – Solitary Man - One of the first 45 singles I owned. Back when Neil Diamond was cool.

George Harrison – What is Life - "Wall of Sound" single by the silent Beatle. Good stuff.

Badfinger – Day After Day - I have loved this song for years.

Phil Keaggy – Everywhere I Look - Perfect tribute to the Beatles. And more importantly, God.

Sweet – Ballroom Blitz - This manic bit of rock is still intensely cool after almost 30 years. Someday, when I have a band I am going to cover this song. And scare everyone while jumping around.

Steve Winwood – Back in the High Life - Classic. Great bridge. Features James Taylor on background vox.

The Byrds – Eight Miles High - Inspired guitar intro.

The Police – Message in a Bottle - The perfect driving song.

Spock’s Beard - June - Another "should have charted." The perfect singalong song.

Daniel Amos – Alarma!- A deceptively simple song with a wicked guitar lick. New wave wonderment.

Mercy Me – Word of God Speak - Another "reduce Barry to tears" song

I Think I Love You - The Partridge Family - I dare you to listen to this song and not sing along.

The Association – Never My Love - Whoa, sorta' cheezy, incredible harmony love song wonderment. Don't miss it.

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - From the Beginning - I *must* learn to play this on my acoustic guitar befor I die.

Billy Joel – Scenes from an Italian Restaurant - Billy Joel was way-cool before he married supermodels and started writing classical music and driving his car into people's houses.

Grass Roots – Midnight Confession - OK, I *think* this is about a guy who is in love with a married person (hence morally I would kinda' have a problem with this song). However, I prefer to think that it is written to a girl about to get married to the wrong person. Rationalization? Perhaps. This song rox though. Has ba bas that I like to sing.

Jet – Radio Song - Kids, get this. Jet rips off my fave bands. But I like 'em.

Smokie Robinson & the Miracles – The Tears of Clown - Whoa, when Smokey sings I hear violins (that is another song, BTW). This song is incredible. I always wanted to cover this and make it rock way hard.

Ray Charles – Hit the Road Jack - This song makes me laugh.

Journey – Anytime/Feelin’ That Way - Two songs in one. Journey has become sort of a forgotten band equated with hefty cheese. But the boys could sing, and rock, and write anthemic love songs that make you think about your favorite girl.

Michael Roe – The Boat Ashore - Mike Roe makes me mad, 'cause he can rock AND write perfect pop songs. This is one of the best. Haunting.

Skypark – Wait for Me - Little known band that shoulda/coulda been huge. Produced by Ed Stasium, who produced classics from the Ramones.

Jars of Clay – Crazy Times - My favorite single from my favorite JOC album. They need to stop trying to be Johnny Cash and do another classic pop-rock album. Yup.

Paul McCartney – Maybe I’m Amazed - Whoa. Killer piano. Way-classic guitar lick. Sing it to your favorite gal.

Switchfoot – New Way to Be Human - Still my fave Switchfoot album. I love this video.

Cheap Trick – I Want You to Want Me - Again, near perfect. Didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you crying/didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you crying/feeling all alone without a friend you know you feel like dying/Oh didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you crying...

Rock n Roll Worship Circus – Untitled - Dadgummit, now RRWC has gone and renamed the band to "The Listening" and they don't do worship anymore. Bummer. But this one (from their swan song as RRWC) is incredible. Fender Rhodes piano, & a simple lyric about a lost & found guy. I can play air drums to this, BTW.

The Call – I Still Believe - Great song! The original is the best IMHO, but the covers by Russ Taff and James Clay are pretty cool. Wicked, big thumping bass line that starts the song.

New Holiday Art for The Great Escape - Click for Large View

Cartoons

A few cartoons I created for The Great Escape Records & Comix in Bowling Green...the first is a music loving Octopus, click for a bigger view:

The second is a loose interpretation of Marvel's classic Avengers #4. I did this one during a lunch hour, it was a bit sketchier than I would have liked.

I Have a Pet Dragonfly

I have a pet dragonfly.

This summer I had a cool experience. After work I drive home in anticipation of planting a large kiss on my bride's lips. I pop out of the car looking forward to the wonderful greeting that will happen soon.

Then he(?) pops out. I think he is a he. Maybe he is a she. Or an it?

Somewhere near the variety of bushes in the landscaping near the front porch the dragonfly buzzes towards me, sometimes looping around my head. Sometimes he comes dangerously close. Sometimes he freaks me out.

This happens many times during the course of the summer. It happens so much that I begin to think that I *may* have a pet. I start to think of naming him.

This weekend I realized that my pet dragonfly is gone. I'm not sure the lifespan of a dragonfly and I don't want to really think about it. I prefer to think he hung out with me a while and just flew off into the sunset.

Fly on pet dragonfly!

Soul Frequency Radio - America - July 5, 2009

Hi folks: You can now hear Soul Frequency Radio on the internet! Check it out Sunday @ 11 PM HERE. 2 hours of commercial free freeform rock and roll of many genres. This week in honor of Independence Day our theme is America . Here is this weeks setlist:

1. House of Heroes - Intro (0:32)
2. House of Heroes - If (3:15)
3. House of Heroes - Dangerous (3:45)
4. House of Heroes - In the Valley of the Dying Sun (4:33)
5. Al Green - Let's Stay Together (3:19)
6. Badfinger - Day After Day (3:11)
7. Badfinger - Carry On Til Tomorrow (4:49)
8. Stryper - Peace of Mind (3:59)
9. Nice - America (2nd Amendment) - Original (6:15)
10. Five Iron Frenzy - Beautiful America (3:43)
11. Yes - America (10:33)
12. Genesis - The Cinema Show (10:41)
13. The Syn - Time And A Word (4:59)
14. House of Heroes - Baby's a Red (3:38)
15. House of Heroes - Voices (4:32)
16. House of Heroes - Field of Daggers (5:27)
17. House Of Heroes - Can't Buy Me Love (2:17)
18. The Beatles - Can't Buy Me Love (2:14)
19. Electric Light Orchestra - Calling America (5:15)
20. Alice Cooper - Lost In America (7:27)
21. The Call - Become America (3:19)
22. Jellyfish - Queen Of The USA (8:47)
23. Glenn Miller - American Patrol (5:16)
24. Rich Mullins - Here In America (6:44)

Soul Frequency Radio is brought to you by the Great Escape Records & Comix, your pop culture emporium. Located in Bowling Green, KY.

Tune in!

Ireland, Day 1

OK, I am writing this on Ireland day 2 to be specific.  But I'll cover day 1.  Flights were uneventful, but as always sleeping on a plane sux.  We flew from Nashville to Philly, then transatlantic from Philly to Dublin.  The last leg was Dublin to was on the amazing Aer Lingus airline.  But during that last leg Lyndy and I basically passed out with exhaustion and did not wake up until we landed.

We landed at the quaint Shannon airport to find that most of our luggage had not made the trip!  So we had to wait at the airport a few hours for it.  Waiting in the airport after a long night of flights is kinda' miserable, but we were glad to *finally* be in Ireland.  Then we had to pay double what we thought for the rental car...so things were off to a bit of a rocky start.  

The adventure truly began when we checked out our rental vehicle...a Skoda Octavia.  Sounds like a super-villain, not a car (I have never heard of this make/model of car).  I was terrified when I started driving: the steering wheel is on the opposite side of the car + the stick shift is on the opposite side of the card + you drive on the opposite side of the road + the roads are narrow + our internet directions were not good and we got lost several times.  

We finally made it to an amazing, quaint bed and breakfast called Carey Farmhouse.  We had a wonderful, friendly Irish hostess named Margaret. She took good care of us and gave us hospitality and good travel advice.

After a much needed nap we headed to Gus O'Connor's Pub for dinner and shared a tasty meal of authentic Fish & Chips and veggie soup.  OK, so we did not share the soup -- Lyndy ate it.  It was kind of pureed, like baby food.  Lyndy said it was "interesting."  We learned you have to go order your food at the pub.  They don't come to the table to take your order.  It is a good thing we learned this or we may have starved to death.

We then headed to Doolin pier, checked out some weird rock formations and cool signs.  And I planted a big ol' kiss on her the EXACT moment of our anniversary!  

Our day was capped off with an adventure to the Cliffs of Moher.  Our hostess Margaret told us to go in the evening to avoid the crowds (and not have to pay the entrance fee).  It was incredible.  Lyndy ran up the stairs like a giddy schoolgirl.  It was so cool to see her dream of visiting Ireland finally come true.  I got so wrapped up in watching her meet her dreams head-on that I tripped and fell on the stairs in front of God and lots of people of many nationalities.  We got some amazing pictures and had a wonderful time of exploration.  We came back to the farmhouse and crashed.  

It is now day 2 and we just had a scrumptious Irish breakfast:  scones, coffee, orange juice, eggs, ham/bacon-y stuff, sausage, etc.  Yum.  I uploaded pix on Facebook, wrote this entry, and now it is time to hit the road.

Slainte'!  

Barry

Cool Shirt/Pic

Cool pic and tag line. You can buy the lastest version of this t-shirt HERE.

New CD Review - Red

My latest CD review is posted HERE.

It's Red's Innocence & Instinct.   Good stuff, with a Duran Duran cover.  So how could it be bad?

Your pal,

Barry

Viva Las Vegas iPod Style

I travel to Las Vegas for my job.  A lot.  Last year I was there 4 times, which is about 3 times too many trips to Vegas in one year.  Here is a small playlist I put together for trips to Lost Wages, Nevada...some of the selections are obvious, some not so obvious.  Go ahead, download these tunes and check it out.  It will cost you $7 or so on Amazon or iTunes (the Stonehill song is sadly not available digitally).

• Viva Las Vegas - Elvis -  One of the obvious picks
  
• The Turn of a Friendly Card (Pt. 1) - The Alan Parsons Project
  
• The Winner (High Card) - Randy Stonehill - early classic from Stonehill produced by recently departed Larry Norman.  About a guy who thinks he has it all but really does not.  From the classic Welcome to Paradise album that you should own.
  
• Tumbling Dice - Rolling Stones - From the classic Exile on Main Street album
  
• Vegas - Mike Farris - "Give me a ride to Vegas..." Former lead singer of the Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies.  What a great band name.  His Salvation in Lights CD is a must buy.  This is from his Goodnight Sun LP.
  
• I'm Shooting High - Nat King Cole - "Got my eyes on the stars in the sky" from the Ultra Lounge Vegas Baby! CD
  
• Viva Las Vegas - ZZ Top - 12" extended remix.  Over eight minutes!
  
• The Letter - The Box Tops - Not about Vegas per say, but a must listen on the trip home to see my bride. After a few days a glitzy, kitschy, walk-a-hundred-miles Vegas overload I'm ready to see my Lil' Schweetie and get back to normalcy: "gimme a ticket for an aeroplane/ain't got time to take a fast traing/lonely days are gone/Imma going home/my baby she wrote me a letter"
  

See you soon,

Barry

President Bush Loves to Read

To all you folks who think President Bush is stupid: Bush has read 186 books that last 3 years. Read all about it HERE. I wonder how many of us have enriched our minds by reading that many books. I know I have not read that much! Bush also reads the Bible cover-to-cover in a year along with a Daily Devotional. This is challenging to me...I need to read a lot more in 2009. If I were going to make a New Year's resolution that would likely be it.

Hope you are enjoying a Christmas break. I know I am.

Your pal,

Barry

XMastime is Here!

We had a Christmas present exchange (Dirty Santa-style) at the Bluegrass Cellular annual Doe Run Inn Christmas Lunch. We were supposed to purchase a joke gift. I wanted to offer a joke gift that could actually be used, and Lyndy had the great idea to buy a GIGANTIC universal remote. Gigantic being like 1 and 1/2 ft. long. Great idea: practical yet still in the "gag" realm. We did not have any fancy/schmancy wrapping paper so I tricked it out w/some Dirty Santa-esque Christmas art:





























Hope you are enjoying the season. So far I am mellowing out nicely.

Your pal,
Barry

We Have Lost Our Collective Minds

Last night I was driving home listening to NMLPR (National Muchly Liberal Public Radio). I heard of all the wonderful new spending projects that Pres-Elect Obama is going to put into motion the second he can. New roads!! New bridges! Electronic Medical Records! Shovel-ready projects that will put millions of people to work and inject much needed $$$ into the economy. No one mentions who is going to pay for all of these projects (aren't journalists s'posed to look at an issue in-depth?). 1/2 trillion dollars in new government spending (at least) on top of the 700 billion for the bailout. And not a peep about how to pay for it all. The not-so-secret deal is we are ALL going to pay for it in additional taxes. And our kids and grandkids are going to pay for it in future generations of debt.

They I heard that the city of Chicago has privatized their parking meters in a deal that will net the city a crazy amount of money to help their budget. Billions of dollars. Parking meters will immediately cost 4 times more-rising from $0.25 to $1 immediately. The catch? The city fathers had to sign a 75(!) year contract with the company that leased the meters. 75 years for a contract is INSANE.

We have lost our collective minds.

Have you noticed in this economic tsunami that NO ONE mentions sacrifice? We don't want to give up a thing in our cushy, cozy, comfortable way of life. And we certainly don't want our leaders to request this of us (God forbid, it's not the American way). We are spending ourselves into blissful oblivion. On a national and personal level, we love our stuff, and we going to pump our fists in the air, beat our breasts, and make sure that we get our "fair share." There will be no sacrifice required by our government to get the economy rolling again so we can feed the vast consumer machine.

Actually, there are some good signs. There are people out there preaching common sense (Dave Ramsey, etc.) about personal finance and living in your means and the amazing concept that you should not buy anything unless you have the $$$ for it. As a nation we are actually consuming less gas and spending less. And if we are honest many of us could afford to skip the extra Big Mac and shed a few pounds. It seems maybe some folks have figured out how to cut back and sacrifice a little after all. Despite the message sent out by members of the government: "we are going to take care of you, just let us spend more."

Your pal,
Barry

The Accidental Playlist, Part 2

Sunday evening iPod shuffle while reading and preparing red beans & rice:

Alice Cooper - It's Me
The Beatles - Ohh! My Arms
Resurrection Band - Sacrifice of Love
Styx - I'm Okay
Roger Joseph Manning Jr. - Sandman
Matt Redman - Blessed Be Your Name
Relient K - The Thief
Warren DeMartini (Covering Jeff Beck) - New Ways Train Train
Henry Cow - Slap Happy
Tourniquet - Sola Christus
Cheap Trick - Voices
Journey - Send Her My Love
David Bowie - John, I'm Only Dancing
The Beatles - Baby You're a Rich Man
Sweet Comfort Band - Habit of Hate
Galactic Cowboys - Circles in the Fields
Chris Tomlin - Let God Arise
The Remains - Don't Look Back
Passion - You Are My King
John Davis - I Need Someone

Yuletide Zeppelin

Check out this Yultide mash-up: Led Zeppelin vs. Christmas Carols. Who will survive?

A Trip to a Mexican Bathroom or Signs Pt. 2

Hi folks: Lyndy and I decided to get all crazy and do some spur of the moment Black Friday shopping today. We picked up some decent stuff at Wallyworld and K-Mart after the crowds had settled down. No 5 AM wake up call for Lyndy and I. Then we decided to hit a mexican restaurant that shall remain nameless (locals might be able to figure it out, although every time you turn around a new south-of-the-border themed restaurant pops up in Glasgow). I'll give you a hint, the name starts with Los. While at the restaurant I found it necessary to borrow the facilities (don't worry, this is as detailed as I'll get. Promise). When I locked the stall door this is the very cool sign I saw:
Don't worry, I obeyed the sign and left the paper ON the trash can instead of ON the toilet.

After finishing said bathroom stall activities (and taking a picture of this cool sign with my cell phone) my eyes wandered to the light fixture. Lo and behold above the lights I focused on the extremely inventive storage area for the super-large rolls of toilet paper. And now, I share this with you. Perhaps this will give you ideas that will help to decorate your home in a similar spiffy fashion:

Folks, you just couldn't make up stuff this cool if you wanted to.

Happy Thanksgiving - Watch This

I hope that you and yours have a wonderful day of thanks. Here is my Thanksgiving present to you...an amazing sitcom that is essential holiday viewing. Watch it and thank me later:

A Sign

Delicious Gourmet Lunch & Green Christmas

I just finished a delicious, mouth watering lunch. This lunch was so tasty, I found it necessary to share with you (digitally of course, I can't actually *share* the meal with you since I have consumed said culinary delight). Rather than discuss it, I thought I would let you feast your eyeballs upon my lunch:

Spam sandwhich on wheat with Miracle Whip lite, Maruchan Instant Lunch cup o' soup thingie (last seen in this week's Office episode in a stunning product placement coup. Ryan the psycho temp was holding it. Did you see it?), Kaukauna (how *do* you pronounce that?) Port Wine cheese spread (now available at Walmart for the holidays), and Zesta crackers. Isn't that just an incredible lunchtime spread? The perfect hot and cold meal for a chilly November day. Rachel Ray would be proud. Come back and peruse my blog whenever you are hungry!

In other holiday news (since the season is now upon us). One of my favorite things to do this time of year, or anytime of the year for that matter, is check out Christmas blogs full of music, pictures, and holiday merriment. A Christmas Yuleblog just posted some great info on Stan Freberg's Classic "Green Christmas" holiday single. Along with A Charlie Brown Christmas, Freberg's 50 year old masterpiece points to the true meaning of Christmas, without bonking folks in the head. Check out this informative and entertaining Christmas blog HERE. Here is the cover to this scrumptious holiday treat: