'Twas The Day After Thanksgiving
And all through the house Not a Creature was stirring Not even a Mouse
Yes, Thanksgiving has come and gone. I listened to the original version of Arlo Guthrie’s “Alice’s Restaraunt Massacre” at noon and then I heard a different, later version of the same song and it was terrible. Not sure why anyone program director or Sirius XM DJ would play a clearly inferior version of a legendary song. Makes no sense.
For the next four Fridays I will be expanding my columns to include all things Christmas. Christmas Songs (today), movies, catalogs, anything I can find that will bring my traditional Bah Hum Bug spirit alive. Actually, I do love Christmas and all of the excess. I love Sanity Claus and all his little elves (Don’t trust them for obvious reasons). The terrible Christmas specials and the very good ones as well. I love them all.
However, it all starts with the music.
Keeping true to form, there will be no Maria Carey or Paul McCartney here. I like to look at the bottom of my Christmas record pile and see if there is any unique holiday cheer in there.
Let’s start with Leon Redbone. Yes, Leon Redbone. His album, Christmas Island, is a very unique take on some of the most beloved Christmas songs and it is well worth a listen. My favorite is the title track, “Christmas Island”. Very Hawaiian and simple. He is an acquired taste for sure but I just get a kick out of him, you will too.
For a good laugh, any of Bob Rivers’ Christmas Albums will do but I love “White Trash Christmas”. Rivers was Weird Al Yankovich before he was actually a thing and some of his stuff is stupid but like everything I write about, you have to have an open mind.
Getting back to more traditional Christmas tunes, Run DMC’s “Christmas in Hollis” is a staple on my playlist. Now, I still don’t think that this group should be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame but they were very talented and made some great music.
I may have brought this one up last year but it is such a unique song that I have to mention it again. “Fairytale of New York” by The Pogues is not standard Christmas fare but it paints a very honest picture of a couple in New York during Christmas. The Pogues are an unusual mix of English and Irish balladeers that to this day, I could never understand why they didn’t have more success.
If you want to knock someone off the couch with some Rock and Roll Christmas song, try Weezer’s “We Wish You a Merry Christmas”. Never thought of Weezer as hard rock, more jam band snooze but this song is straight up rock. Might be the shortest Christmas song ever however. Clocks in at 1:39 and maybe , to some, for good reason.
A more traditional song done by a non traditional sing is “Winter Wonderland” by Beedadoobee. I have never heard of the Philippino singer but she does a really beautiful version of this classic.
Oasis’s “Merry Christmas Everybody” would have to be close to the top on any of my Christmas Playlists. Just a simple song, well written, about a family’s Christmas. This is what a great Christmas song should sound like.
As you all know I do like unusual versions of traditional songs and “Christmas Time Is Here (Version Mary) by Khruangbin fits that bill nicely.
Another example of an unusual version of a traditional song is Beck’s version of “Little Drummer Boy”. Another song that is not for everyone but I always appreciate the creativity of Beck. I think he is completely misunderstood and there will be many that find this song blasphemous but it’s Beck and he approaches things from a different angle.
The blasphemous “The Christmas Song” is a completely different song than the one you are thinking of. They have a Texas twang/swing song that is short and plucky and gives you a nice taste of what the band is all about.
These are just a few of the songs in my Christmas playlist and I may throw a few more out there in the coming weeks as well.
Next week, Christmas movies.