Christmas In Malibu Comes Of Age!

December 5th, 2009 | Author: New Media Creative

By Joe Klein

XMAS IN MALIBU CD JEWEL FRONT

About a month ago, my “baby” became an adult! It was 21 years ago last month that CHRISTMAS IN MALIBU, the yuletide novelty I wrote on the beach in Malibu in the summer of 1988, was recorded by THE RAD DUDES and first released.

How the song, and then the record, came to be is one of the many interesting escapades and adventures I found myself in the middle of during the three decades I spent in the music business (from the early seventies until the mid nineties).

Wouldn’t you know it, my old friend RUSS TERRANA is a vital part of this story as well, as he recorded and mixed the record at Motown’s Hitsville Studio in Hollywood in October of 1988 (the record was finished and mastered in early November). CHRISTMAS IN MALIBU would be the last record to be completed at the legendary Hollywood studio on Romaine Avenue, where a large percentage of Motown’s product from the seventies and eighties was recorded.

Last year, former MTV VEEJAY MARTHA QUINN located KARMA AUGER, the lead singer of THE RAD DUDES and did a short interview with him on a special holiday episode of her XM SATELLITE radio show MARTHA QUINN PRESENTS. This lead to me getting in touch with Karma and reconnecting with him for the first time in over nineteen years! I had a great conversation with Karma on SKYPE and posted it online.

Unfortunately, I didn’t make it to Malibu for Christmas last year, but did travel to Southern California a few days after Christmas. i was happy to spend part of New Year’s eve with Karma and Martha, in Malibu! There was no shortage of “good karma” on that trip, as I reconnected with several other long, lost friends. The 2008 holiday season ended up being a very memorable one in many ways!

JOE KLEIN AND KARMA AUGER (2008)

All the buzz last year generated a bunch of radio and podcast play and, from what I am told, the video was popping up in all sorts of crazy places! This year I’ve already received numerous GOOGLE ALERTS about the song and the video. One alert was for an ITUNES PREVIEW of the song. I also just learned that CHRISTMAS IN MALIBU made the front page of the MEVIO Network and is right at the top of MEVO’S MUSIC CHANNEL as well, thanks to my longtime friend and fan, MICHAEL BUTLER, director and host of the Mevio Music Network.

Who knows what holiday surprises this year will bring for the little holiday tune that’s finally matured! They say some things do get better with age…

You can listen to CHRISTMAS IN MALIBU in high quality MP3 audio on the player below.

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