Thursday, December 18, 2008

Semi-Hijacked Blog Subject - Christmas Music

I kind of hijacked this blog subject from Daisy over at her "Everything Daisy" blog. (She's a fellow karate student.) Visit her blog at http://everythingdaisy.blogspot.com/. She talks about how Christmas has creeped up on her without her realizing it. Well, that's the part I am highjacking, but what I really want to talk about is Christmas music..
I was just saying this very thing to my friend yesterday...how quickly the Christmas season was this year. I love all the decorations and the music (I even forego Sammy Hagar music for Perry Como and Johnny Mathis this time of year - a true phenomenon!!!) Oh, and don't forget Brenda Lee's "Rockin Around the Christmas Tree" (Really listen to it - sounds like she has a sailor's vocab when she sings about indulging in some pumpkin pie later on...My hubby just cracks-up every time he hears that part.) And Elvis's "Blue Christmas"...(I love it even though the backup singers sound like whipper-whills when they sing the background "Blue-ooh-ooh-oohah, Blue-ooh-ooh-oohah") You just can't deny it - Elvis was cool no matter how you slice it.
A coworker turned me on to a website called "Pandora" on which you can create your own music stations and listen online. You tell them your favorite artist or song and they build a station around songs similar to your specified song/artist. Needless to say, my first "station creation" was based on Sammy. But my second one - Christmas music. And I play it all day long at work. It is fun and you can say "yes, I like that song" or "No, that song sucks" (paraphrased by MAM, of course). I get to find out who the artist is and have learned that I can just say no to Louis Armstrong songs. (Because the man is an icon, I felt guilty, but I'm telling you - listening to one of his Christmas songs was actually painful, and I had it pulled from "my" station. I found out I love the entire Burl Ives Christmas album...Who doesn't love "Holly, Jolly Christmas"...I mean really?
I thought Madonna's "Santa Baby" (one of the few Madonna songs I can stomach) was the original. Found out Eartha Kitt sang it many years before the Material Girl did. (And did a much better job of it, too.)
The bottom line is that I am not one for "mellow" type music...except when it comes to my holiday tunes. For the yuletide soundtrack of my life, I find myself seeking out Johnny Mathis, Andy Williams, Perry Como - people who, not to take away from their talent, are usually just not my cup of tea. I thinkit is the "traditional" girl in me. Not to mention, Sammy hasn't really put out any good Christmas albums lately.
What's your favorite Christmas song(s) and why?

6 comments:

Meg said...

I love "Santa Baby" by Eartha Kitt. I just love her voice. I've heard the version by Madonna but I prefer the classic. I also love listening to "Celtic Christmas", which is a compilation of music put out by Windham Hill.
Have you ever listened to Mannheim Steamroller's Christmas albums? They have interesting renditions of Deck the Halls, Good King Wenscelas (sp?) and others. It's fun to listen to.

Perpetual Beginner said...

Oh, I love "Celtic Christmas" to - the Windham Hills Winter Solstice Collections are worth listening to as well.

Mostly my husband does the Christmas music selections. I like anything I can sing along to.

This does have some drawbacks, though. Rob is a H.P. Lovecraft fan, and just found "A Scary Solstice" - a collection of Christmas music redone for Lovecraftian beasties. So the current round in this house includes such classics as "It's Beginning to Look a lot like Fishmen" and "I Saw Mommy Kissing Yug-Suggoth"

He's promised to switch to more traditional music before the parents arrive, thank goodness.

Diver Daisy said...

Oh boy. You got me laughing. I am working on a Sammy Hagar style Christmas tune. Appropriately, a mix of RED and I Can't Drive 55 and Mas Tequila :) hehe what a hoot! I think the line would be something like, "Red, Red, where is Red. Better come down the chimney and miss my bed. - And he better driiiiiiive over 55 - All right we are gonna tell you a little story about the way we like to get around the world in one night - Mas Tequila! Thhis is TOO hilarious - I am killin myself.

Seriously, everyone might say, "oh sick, too sappy" but my family LOVES LOVES LOVES the Carpenters 2CD disk set (we all have it) It just brings back so many good good memories. And I like the old ones like you. And one of my favorite sound tracks is White Christmas - I like all of those :) I too like the oldies at Christmas - must be our age??? :)

Slop -n- Goulash: Dinner of Champions! said...

Oh, yes, Manheim Steamroller...love their Christmas stuff too. And every time I hear the Carpenter's Christmas tunes, I get sad - just thinking how long Karen Carpenter has been gone already - like over 20 years I think - and her voice was so beautiful. BTW, Daisy, love your version of the Sammy yule tune. I have a computer wallpaper of Sammy performing live in sleep pants with rubber duckies with Santa hats on and he has on a Santa hat & shades. I always use it this time of year as my wallpaper. But I don't recall ever hearing him cover a Christmas tune. I'm sure he does it or at least has done it but I've never heard it and I'd love to.

Becky G said...

I finally made it over here! I thought sure I had you in my Google reader, but apparently I didn't. You're there now, though, so I'll be back for sure.

I love Christmas music. I'll have to check out that pandora site.

Slop -n- Goulash: Dinner of Champions! said...

I'm glad you found me again, Becky. I always read your blog and really enjoy it.