If King’s College Choir is my Christmas group, and Julie Andrews my Christmas female singer, then my Christmas male singer must be Harry Belafonte. And my favorite Belafonte Christmas album is the less well-known Hallmark album, Tradition of Christmas (also with Jennifer Warnes and the American Boychoir).

One of the Christmas traditions that my family had when Amy and I were kids was the Annual Ornament. Each year, both Amy and I would be given an ornament for the tree. During my high school and college years, we often would take a trip to the nearby Hallmark store and pick out our ornaments. Hallmark often released a Christmas album which they’d sell for cheap with another purchase. Julie Andrews had one of those, the excellent Sounds of Christmas. And there was also the Harry Belafonte one, which quickly became a favorite. (Well, I didn’t care much for the Jennifer Warnes songs.)

Anyway, my favorite song (one of the Christmas Songs I Love) on that album is “Mary’s Little Boy Child”, which is a faster version of Belafonte’s “Mary’s Boy Child.” And the American Boychoir sing the refrain, which is another plus (remember my love of boy’s choirs). Unfortunately, I was unable to find this version of the song to share, so I’m posting his more traditional version (which is also a lovely song).