Category Archives: MUSIC

Christmas, MUSIC

My Favorite Christmas Songs 2016 #2

“Where Are You, Christmas?” Taylor Momsen, 2000

While the cartoon will always be the best adaptation of Dr. Seuss’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!”, I view the 2000 Jim Carrey movie as a product of its time and enjoy it as well.  There’s something meta about the movie being the same kind of overcommericalzed hullabaloo that angered The Grinch in the first place.  Here is the song as it is performed in the movie, because hearing it performed by a child lends it a little more gravitas, in my opinion.

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Christmas, MUSIC

My Fifty Favorite Christmas Songs!

These last two years I have made lists of my favorite Christmas songs. Some classic, some modern, some just out there, but all full of Christmas cheer!

I tried to pick some of the more eclectic songs and different renditions of classics the first time around in 2014:

Please Come Home for Christmas – The Eagles
Winter Wonderland – The Eurythmics
Little St. Nick – The Beach Boys
If It Doesn’t Snow on Christmas – Gene Autry
Baby Its Cold Outside – Dean Martin
Christmas Vacation – Mavis Staples
What Child is this – Liona Boyd
White Christmas – The Drifters
Do They Know It’s Christmas? – Band Aid
Santa Claus and His Old Lady – Cheech and Chong
There’s Always Tomorrow – Janice Orenstein
Feliz Navidid – Jose Feliciano
Wonderful Christmastime – Paul McCartney
Santa Claus is Comin’ To Town – Bruce Springsteen
Last Christmas – Wham!
Happy Xmas (War is Over) – John Lennon and Yoko Ono
Run Rudolph Run – Chuck Berry
Peace On Earth/Little Drummer Boy – David Bowie and Bing Crosby
Someday at Christmas-Stevie Wonder
Merry Christmas Darling- Carpenters
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen/We Three Kings” Feat. Sarah McLachlan
We Need a Little Christmas – Percy Faith
Blue Christmas – Elvis Presley
A Charlie Brown Christmas Soundtrack – Vince Girauldi Trio
Christmas at Ground Zero – Weird Al Yankovic

2015 featured more standards but there were still plenty of oddballs to be found.

The Christmas Song, Nat King Cole
Holly Jolly Christmas, Burl Ives
Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Gene Autry
Happy Holiday, Andy Williams
It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Andy Williams
Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree, Brenda Lee
You’re a Mean One, Mister Grinch, Thurl Ravenscroft
Frosty the Snowman, Willie Nelson
Winter Wonderland, Huey Lewis and the News
Let it snow, Dean Martin
There’s No Place Like Home for the Holidays, Perry Como
I Want A Hippopotamus for Christmas, Gayla Peevy
Mannheim Steamroller
Santa Baby, Madonna
The Twelve Days of Christmas, John Denver and The Muppets
I’ll be Home for Christmas, Fats Domino
The Chipmunk Song, The Chipmunks
Sleigh Ride, Leroy Anderson
Carol of the Bells, Mykola Leontovych
Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Jingle Bells, The Singing Dogs
Give Love on Christmas Day, The Jackson 5
Chrissy the Christmas Mouse, Debbie Reyonlds and Donald O’Connor
Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer, Elmo and Patsy
Christmas Dragnet, Stan Freberg

I don’t know that I’ll have another 25 this year, I’m shooting for 12, so stay tuned!

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Christmas, MUSIC

Christmas(less) Songs!

Sorry, Grinch!

Sorry, Grinch!

Even though these songs and groups are associated with the holiday season, they all have NO mention of Christmas whatsoever!

  • Winter Wonderland
  • Baby, It’s Cold Outside
  • Happy Holiday
  • It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year
  • You’re a Mean One, Mister Grinch
  • Frosty the Snowman
  • Let it Snow
  • There’s No Place Like Home for the Holidays
  • Sleigh Ride
  • Jingle Bells
  • (It’s A) Marshmallow World
  • A Charlie Brown Christmas (except for the vocal versions of ‘Christmastime is Here’ and ‘Hark! The Herald Angels Sing)
  • Just about anything by Mannheim Steamroller or Trans-Siberian Orchestra

Of course, once Thanksgiving is over, all bets are off!

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