The seventh day of Christmas: Sincerely

This is one of my mum's very favourite songs, but few other people seem to know it. However, people I've introduced it to have invariably loved it - Rachel even got me to do an SATB a cappella version to be performed at her wedding!

The McGuire Sisters - Sincerely

Sincerely is from 1955, and was at number one for almost three months in the USA. It was only a minor hit in the UK. It's one of a large number of songs from those days which were originally written and recorded by black vocal groups (in this case The Moonglows) but covered almost immediately by white groups, who then went on to have far greater success with almost identical versions of the songs because there were so many places that wouldn't play music by black groups. Thank goodness things have changed since then. I felt a bit guilty when I found out about this part of the history of doo wop, because I'd never heard (or even heard of) the Moonglows version, and by the time I did hear it, I'd loved the McGuire Sisters version for too long for it to be superseded!

So what's so great about it? Mainly the luscious vocal harmonies. The parts are all really close together, and the fact that the tune is so low in the voice - and that's the TOP part - makes the harmony seem even more dense and wonderful. (The bottom part - which I sing - goes down to the E below middle C. I can usually get this no problem, but I have to plan set lists quite carefully when we're performing Sincerely, because I can't get the low notes if the previous song was at all high...)

There's also a proper big band AND some male backing vocalists accompanying them. The best bit of the backing is undoubtedly the trumpet flourishes (I can't think of a better way to describe them - but listen and you'll know which bit I mean!) but I do also love the bit when the men sing "ba ba ba ba ba ba"... Oh, and I nearly forgot the unsubtle key change! And it all ends on a major seventh chord... what more can you ask for?