The Priestess and The Fool

Following marathon eggnog sessions and several aggressive battles with a Yule log, THE PRIESTESS AND THE FOOL present RIDE ON, SANTA, the free downloadable EP of Christmas cheer for all to enjoy from Exotic Recordings. A collection of re-imagined holiday music for scrooges, atheists, and all types of bah-humbuggery, RIDE ON, SANTA features old classics, cult Muppets and a drunken '80s Irish Pogue... not even Three Wise Men could have predicted this gift under the Christmas tree.
Available on Tuesday, November 25th as a free download, RIDE ON, SANTA will include:
1) “Ride on, Santa, Ride On”
(Stan Kenton Orchestra featuring June Christy)

An essentially unknown track by the Stan Kenton Orchestra - with June Christy on lead vocals - is re-imagined by TPTF with wailing trumpets, clattering cookware and a drunken, male chorus of all colors, shapes, sizes and sexual orientations.  Further proof that a bedroom can sound like a speakeasy at dawn... if you know how to live well.
2) “There Ain't No Hole in the Washtub”
(Emmet Otter's Jug-band Christmas)
This lynchpin of the much-beloved (or totally unknown) Jim Henson project, "Emmet Otter's Jugband Christmas," gets a boogie-woogie makeover to remind every dancer that life is grand if you can still wash your drawers.  If you were fortunate enough to catch this underground classic on Betamax, you'll be wondering why the Riverbottom Nightmare Band hasn't had a reunion tour and a multi-million dollar contract with Live Nation.
3) “Fairy Tale of New York”
(The Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl)
A country/western version of The Pogues' 1988 Christmas classic.  While it might be hard to envision a holiday song that uses the words "slut", "maggot" and "drunk tank" - one must remember that the Irish also gave us banshees, James Joyce and Jameson whiskey.  Happy Christmas, arsehole.
4) “Baby, It's Cold Outside”
(Frank Loesser)
A sexy, down-tempo interpretation shifts the scene from an innocent Christmas party to the balcony of an international playboy's mansion on the Riviera.
5) “Mele Kalikimaka/Waters of Babylon”
(Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters/Traditional)
Complete with the sound of a creaky canoe, a fishing reel and the haunting moan of a seagull, this Hawaiian Christmas ditty sails off into the sunset as Psalm 137 pulls into port.  Only in the alternate holiday universe of The Priestess & The Fool could a canoe carrying the harmonies of Bing Crosby and the Andrew Sisters be followed by the baby Moses in a floating basket.
She croons and he crows. She serenades and he snarls. She's the brass and he's the tarnish. THE PRIESTESS AND THE FOOL - the cover- song collaboration between MEREDITH DIMENNA and BRIAN GROSZ - proves once again that strange bedfellows can make for a beautiful love song.
After releasing separate albums in 2007 on Exotic Recordings ( Grosz's "BEDLAM NIGHTS" and DiMenna with Saint Bernadette's "IN THE BALLROOM"), this unlikely duo came together after discovering an aging vinyl copy of "One From the Heart," the soundtrack for the 1982 Francis Ford Coppola film of the same name. Upon hearing the title track, an epic duet between Tom Waits and Crystal Gayle, DiMenna and Grosz began to envision retooling the song as a vanity project to keep their hands moving and their chops up. Within a short period of time, however, the two found themselves searching for more classic duets to re-invent - and thereby their six song EP, "A Minor Work" was born.
Slated for a January 2008 release, and available as a limited-time free download on their website, "A Minor Work" spans the rough riffage that we've come to expect from Grosz and the trademark, 60's- inspired soul of DiMenna. However, we also hear the duo launch themselves into the realms of lazy country/western, a haunting beatnik dirge, "Wall Of Sound"-era pop and even a choral eulogy accompanied by a church organist.
With creative input from producer/multi-instrumentalist Keith "Touch" Saunders and a veritable arsenal of guest musicians from the Exotic Recordings roster and beyond, "A Minor Work" spans a massive stylistic arc and features daring experimentation from both singers. From start to finish, it builds on the mythic foundation of The Beauty and The Beast figures behind the microphone.
Considering that DiMenna is known for her sultry and smoldering voice and that Grosz often sounds like his throat just burned to the ground, this would seemingly be an "oil and water" combination. One listen to "A Minor Work," however, will prove that this work is anything but.
A Minor Work - Teaser

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Photoshoot - Behind the Scenes

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