20: A Score!

Since this is Saturday and we all need a vacation once in a while, today Satan is taking a holiday!  This song was written in 1937 by bandleader Larry Clinton and has been recorded by many big band jazz greats, such as Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, and Tommy Dorsey.  For the purposes of this weekend's devilish theme, however, and to keep things especially evil, the version we're featuring today was performed by Church of Satan founder Anton LaVey.

Before inventing a religion (and arguably perfecting the art of con), LaVey learned to play the organ and worked as a roustabout at carnivals and circuses.  An album of his music was released in 1995, which takes its name from today's song: Satan Takes a Holiday.  Many of the songs on it are well-known and considered standards, and were even performed by LaVey during his days of playing the organ professionaly in various venues of ill-repute. 

His singular style is quite different from how the songs are often played, though, and today's creates a much more mischievous/sinister vibe than most big band versions.  Can't you imagine Satan jaunting through the evening countryside in Grandpa Munster's Drag-U-La hot rod with this song on the hi-fi?