Proving that age is just a number and that you can never have too many tricks up your sleeve, 91-year-old Lord of the Rings star Sir Christopher Lee will be releasing a Christmas single this December.
‘Jingle Hell’, a heavy metal take on ‘Jingle Bells’, will be released with a cover of Frank Sinatra’s ‘My Way’ as the B-side. In a YouTube message (see below), Lee describes ‘Jingle Hell’ as “a bit more naughty” and “certainly different” from the original version. You can hear samples of the tracks over at Amazon.com.
Classically-trained, Lee has sung on film soundtracks, first lending his vocals to the soundtrack of the 1973 version of The Wicker Man.
His first complete metal album, Charlemagne: By the Sword and the Cross was released in March 2010 and was very well-received.
In May 2012, he announced the release of his new single, ‘Let Legend Mark Me as the King’, for his second metal album, Charlemagne: The Omens of Death, working with Richie Faulkner from Judas Priest and World Guitar Idol Champion, Hedras Ramos.
But ‘Jingle Hell’ is not Lee’s first foray into the Christmas music scene. Last Christmas, he released an EP of heavy metal covers of Christmas songs called A Heavy Metal Christmas, taking on ‘Silent Night’ and ‘Little Drummer Boy’.
It’s a great single. And the contrast between Sir Christopher’s thundering voice and the angelic voice of the soprano Li Li adds to the excitement. I checked this Li Li out, she seems to be an international soprano but also a lover of metal! Brilliant single.