Our first Christmas single of the year comes from Vinnie Paolizzi, who so marvelously entertained #TEAMw21 in Nashville and who as you'll see below suffered from a strange twist of fate that left the review of one of his singles unfinished and therefore unpublished.
"The North Pole" manages to be country sounding, funny and still invokes the spirit of Christmas.
"They've got a factory working round the clock
You get January and Summers off
Take care of the little guys
Make their lists and check 'em twice
Johnny wants a brand new sled
And a Mr Potato Head!" are just a few of the many quotable lines delivered with a straight face by Vinnie.
It comes with an equally addictive chorus with a final line that pays off tying it to one of Country musics great traits - The Small town!
"It never really changes like its frozen in time
You've only got one reason to cross that Arctic County Line
The place might be magic but what's holding it down
Is the North Pole ain't nothing but another small town!"
The second verse lets Vinnie have free reign to describe what goes on at the North which he does to great comic effect. The closing section with Vinnie meeting Santa is also a hoot with Vinnie naturally asking for a
"Brand new bright red tour bus with all the trimmings!"
Closing out with a guitar nod to "Jingle Bells" - It may not be the song that makes him rich but this certainly tickled us.
In possibly on of our most belated reviews ever and in response to seeing Vinnie Paolizzi play live in Nashville, the urge to finish off a review started four years ago swept over us.
With all the co writes that happen in Nashville it's a wonder we don't come across situations like this more often - where both writers release versions of the same song. It was November last year that we reviewed Joe Martin;s version of the song and now we have Vinnie Paolizzi's own recording of the song he co wrote.
Vinnies version starts to a slightly quieter guitar, but then it's time to really compare and contrast. Joe's version seems to come from a place of knowing that things are going to go wrong but not wishing to interfere, whereas Vinnie seems to originate from a point of acceptance, there's nothing he can do, so let it play out.
It is a strange game to play as these are obviously the same words, just slightly different intonations perhaps altering how they are perceived
There is as ever lots to admire lyrically, the opening couplets set the scene perfectly
"She's a flower not quite ready to bloom
She needs water to lay down her roots
It's not my place to say
It doesn't rain in LA"
In just four lines and without directly even mentioning it we have a young girl seeking to find fame and fortune and someone about to be left behind , who can foresee troubles ahead yet is unable to stand in their way. You can almost feel the mental cogs turning in Vinnie's delivery as he delivers the last two lines.
The chorus gives Vinnie the chance to further outline the perils ahead
"She's on fire but she'll burn out
There's too many stars as it is and they litter the town
If you need another reason to stay
I've heard that It doesn't rain in LA"
Joe's version possible spits out his disdain for LA more on the word "litter" while maybe Vinnie seems just that little bit more plaintive yet without conviction, hovering over the words "stay" and "I've heard".
Both versions kick on from the second verse instrumentally, Joe's version more rowdy, Vinnie's generates it's volume more from its percussion and form a prominent piano line after the second chorus.
Each time Vinnie revisits the chorus he seems to become more impassioned until on the final time he seems to be really pleading those final lines.
Fascinating as it is to play spot the difference the ultimate winner is the song - with each of its writers having slightly different visions of how it should sound. It remains a strong song no matter who is performing it.