I’m too old to have watched Mister Rogers but I have fond memories of Captain Kangaroo. I don’t recall hearing any of his Christmas albums, but even at that young age I was more interested in listening to the Beatles. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Frank Zappa also grew up watching Captain Kangaroo. He had a particular fondness for a supporting character, Mr. Green Jeans. He used the character’s name twice in song titles but changed the spelling of the name just in case CBS felt litigious. The son is the song I like best:
Under the name “Uncle Lumpy”, Mr Green Jeans recorded a series of children’s stories about “Little Orley”. I think they were first 78 RPM recordings that later moved to LPs
Wonderful, gentle, old-fashioned stuff.
You can get them from Red Hen
http://store.redhentoys.com/little-orley-stories-cd-p515.aspx
I’d recommend “More Little Orley” because it has my two favorites
Orley’s Adventures As A Worm
Orley And The Haunted House
although the bubblegum adventure also sticks in memory
I too prefer the son, ‘though it’s almost apples/oranges.
Bet there’s an amusing story behind the Cap’t.’s albums. Public domain music, already in someone’s vault, add $1.98’s worth of art design & some clip art. Bet they already had the pic of the Cap’t. & the youngsters, too.