worst

those gaddam barking dogs doing Jingle Bells


best

KEEF - run run

As far as pop songs go...Darlene Love singing Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) from the Phil Spector album justs tears me up...the combination of the soulful vocal and feeling of nostalgia evoked by the sound wrapped around it...a couple Christmases ago it came on the radio while I was driving and it brought me to tears...big tears...it was overwhelming....the beauty of it and the emotions it provoked...for me it's the king of them all.

On the other hand...Run Rudolph Run by Chuck, Keef, Dave Edmunds, and whoever else...just doesn't do it for me. It's really not very Christmas-y, and as far as Chuck rockers go, well to me it's just average. As a song, it goes.... nowhere. If you're looking for a Christmas rave-up, you are much better served by George Thorogood's Rock n Roll Christmas.

A great best/worst face off is the Lennon/McCartney Christmas songs. As mentioned earlier, John's is a classic (with a lot of credit due to Mr. Phil Spector) whereas Paul's Wonderful Christmastime is one of the worst pieces of crap ever made. It is a cloying, annoying, unpleasant, and painful summation of Paul at his worst. I always turn it off when it comes on the radio, and if it happens to come on the speakers while I'm shopping...I've actually fled stores to get away from it.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-12-24 21:52 by loog droog.

FrankM Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The worst imo (don't beat me up all you Bruce
> fans) is the Springsteen version of Santa Claus Is
> Coming To Town. Makes me want to puke.


YeahI feel the same way every time I read one of your posts.

"It's just some friends of mine and they're busting down the door"

My favourite is White Christmas by Bing Crosby followed by Nat King Cole & The Christmas Song.

I personally LOATHE Mistletoe & Wine by Cliff Richard.

With a smile on your face and a tear right in your eye

Clyde McPhatter, "White Christmas", hilarious and brilliant.

I second Cliff Mistletoe and Wine and also that F*CKING monstrosity "Millenium Prayer"!!

Call me pretentious or whatever but i actually find i prefer original Christmas Carols to pop/rock songs that have some reference to or cash in on Christmas

Aside from the distinctly dark song mentioned earlier, I have some fave xmas albums:
The Beach Boys Christmas, 1964 - Brian's style and sensibilities are a perfect match for the classics and a few originals. Exquisite harmonies, naturally. The reissue from a couple years back removed the great cover of The Boys and their cousin Mike decorating a treee, smiling like they were posing for another surf cover.
James Brown, there are 2 0r 3 w/ some variations in material, but I dig the title "Santas Got A Brand New Bag" ("Let's Bring Christmas to the Ghetto," etc).
O think the later one's called "Funky Christmas"
And the Spector xmas gift to You! (mine came in the "back to mono box)
Did Yoko record a special xmas number for the b-side to John's Happy Xmas?
Finally (maybe...) Canned Heat produced a christmas song (Xmas Boogie?) in collaboration with Alvin & The Chipmunks featuring Dave Saville...Worth checking out! (And, there's a Trasmen - Surfin Bird auteurs - xmas single too)

The #1 most annoying song

Royal Guardsmen - Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron ( Snoopy's Christmas )

It hurts my ears and eyes

casinoboogie Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I second Cliff Mistletoe and Wine and also that
> F*CKING monstrosity "Millenium Prayer"!!
>
> Call me pretentious or whatever but i actually
> find i prefer original Christmas Carols to
> pop/rock songs that have some reference to or cash
> in on Christmas


I was starting to get worried somebody might forget this hell on earth...
thanks, Casinoboogie...!

sweetcharmedlife Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> FrankM Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > The worst imo (don't beat me up all you Bruce
> > fans) is the Springsteen version of Santa Claus
> Is
> > Coming To Town. Makes me want to puke.
>
>
> YeahI feel the same way every time I read one of
> your posts.

Jesus man didn't know you were so sensitive that you would get upset because I hate a Bruce Christmas song. Perhaps your New Years resolution should be some counseling? And while you are at it perhaps you can wipe the brown stuff off your nose since you apparently live as a siamese twin to Bruce- with you constantly kissing his ass. But Merry Christmas anyway buddy.

And if you want to puke everytime you read one of my posts then what the hek are you reading them for dummy?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-12-24 16:07 by FrankM.

Best - Run Run Rudolph
Worst - Last Christmas

JumpingKentFlash

custom55 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The #1 most annoying song
>
> Royal Guardsmen - Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron (
> Snoopy's Christmas )
>
> It hurts my ears and eyes
>
>


> =related


It's thirty-three years since I last heard this...
I still like it.

You might have to scrape me off the floor at the end of the tour, but it'll be really good scrapings. - Mick Jagger

john r Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Aside from the distinctly dark song mentioned
> earlier, I have some fave xmas albums:
> The Beach Boys Christmas, 1964 - Brian's style and
> sensibilities are a perfect match for the classics
> and a few originals. Exquisite harmonies,
> naturally. The reissue from a couple years back
> removed the great cover of The Boys and their
> cousin Mike decorating a treee, smiling like they
> were posing for another surf cover.
> James Brown, there are 2 0r 3 w/ some variations
> in material, but I dig the title "Santas Got A
> Brand New Bag" ("Let's Bring Christmas to the
> Ghetto," etc).
> O think the later one's called "Funky Christmas"
> And the Spector xmas gift to You! (mine came in
> the "back to mono box)
> Did Yoko record a special xmas number for the
> b-side to John's Happy Xmas?
> Finally (maybe...) Canned Heat produced a
> christmas song (Xmas Boogie?) in collaboration
> with Alvin & The Chipmunks featuring Dave
> Saville...Worth checking out! (And, there's a
> Trasmen - Surfin Bird auteurs - xmas single too)


The Beach Boys Christmas album to get is "Ultimate Christmas" from 1998 that has the entire original Christmas albums, plus an ultra-rare Christmas single from the early '70's and tracks recorded for a never released late-70's Christmas album, etc. (A great track is "Christmas Time Is Here Again"--not the Beatles song but "Peggy Sue" with new lyrics!) It has three takes of "Little Saint Nick"--album, single, and alternate versions--so it's more for the obsessive fan than casual listener.

Similar is If Every Day Was Like Christmas, by Elvis, which includes ALL of the King's Christmas songs, and some alternate versions as well.

James Brown's "Funky Christmas" is so hot it melts all the falling snow! My fave track on that set is "Christmas Is Love."

The B-side of "Happy Xmas (War is Over)" is Yoko's "Listen The Snow Is Falling" which is actually a REALLY GREAT song! Great production and atmosphere, none of the annoying vocal excess she would often indulge in. Even the Yoko-haters would have concede that they like that one.

I recommend the Staple Singers "25th Day of December" album--finally released on CD for the first time this year.

Thanks loogd roog. Is that Yoko track on her CD reissues? (I have them, but due to space here a third of my collection is in storage). She's done quite a few snow (Don't Worry Kyoko Mummy's Got A Hand In The Snow" just rocks!) and winter songs, one of which (from 1973's "Approximately Infinate Universe") features Mick Jagger on guitar.
Thank Allah I've never been tied up, hooded, and tortured by a sadistic interrogator who played "Millenium Prayer"; the very title makes me want to vomit. If memory serves (or was it imagined during a psychotic break?), there's an Eagles xmas song I heard once that's as smarmy as most of their crap
Problem with Bruce's "Santa" is it's overdone, overlong, and the hearty laugh especially would have been effective maybe once. That's why I like "Nebraska" "Tom Joad", the best of "Darkness On the Edge Of Town" better than the 5 LP live set, "Born In The USA", or the long songs on "Born To Run"

john r:

I don't know if the Yoko track is on CD--I've got the 45. But it is worth seeking out.

I agree with you 100% about the Eagles song--AWFUL--and yet when released it got a lot more airplay than Lennon's song did or even Elton John's "Step Into Christmas" (not a bad song, but it suffers from an overlong finish that goes on and on...and on. In recent years when I've heard it played, dj's will just fade it out early) Even though both of those songs were written during both of those guy's commercial peaks, they were not huge hits. During the early '70's rock radio didn't have as much room for Christmas songs as they do now.

Bruce's song was kind of a breakthrough when it came out in that it got more airplay...but it started out as sort of a rarity...maybe a radio station promo-only...wasn't released properly for the public for a couple of years as I recall.

I should point out that the Staples album I mentioned was recorded during their early folkie days--much more raw, and certainly not as funky as their later Stax stuff. They did record a Christmas single for Stax, "Who took the Merry Out of Christmas?" which Darlene Love took a stab at on her new Christmas album released this year. Love also covers NRBQ's "Christmas Wish"--although one is better off seeking out the original.

Last week I heard Marvin Gaye's "I Want to Come Home for Christmas" at an airport, originally unreleased but included on the 1999 "A Motown Christmas" album. Not a great song...yet still there is a compelling sense of longing about it, even it meanders along.

Lou Rawls' "Christmas Will Be Christmas" album is very very good...every year I play it all month...this year I've also been listening a lot to Stan Kenton's "A Merry Christmas!" too.

And the great Bobby Womack's "Holidays" album features a great version of Donny Hathaways' "This Christmas" as well as his own "Dear Santa Claus." But buried in there is "Dear Santa Claus (Childrens Version)" with (painful) vocal by Cheyenne Womack, that is a top (bottom?) ten contender for Worst Christmas song ever.

Sometimes fathers just love their kids too much...



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2007-12-26 17:21 by loog droog.

Heard the "Snoopy vs Red Baron" Christmas song yesterday - it still blows!

Pretty much all of Yoko blows.

Bruce's SCICTT is a lot of fun (especially live), but much overplayed on the radio.

"No Anchovies, Please"

Elmo Lewis Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Pretty much all of Yoko blows.
>

I wouldn't argue with you on that, but her song "Listen, the Snow is Falling" is the exception.

Give it a listen, and then decide.

>Is that Yoko track on her CD reissues?

It's included as a bonus track on THE WEDDING ALBUM. Lovely song.

The James Brown FUNKY CHRISTMAS collection is the one I most look forward to hearing every Xmas. It was in my car stereo a year ago when I heard he has passed away.

Thanks Glam
And Gram Parsons recorded a xmas single around '67 or '68...Anybody have it? Only seen it in discograpies.

This one may be the best and the worst -

Thanks, Lukester!

[fknblazed.com]

"No Anchovies, Please"

john r Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thanks Glam
> And Gram Parsons recorded a xmas single around '67
> or '68...Anybody have it? Only seen it in
> discograpies.

Hey John, I think the single 'Christmas is My Time of Year/Will You Still Believe In Me?' is pretty rare, but the two songs are included on a comp called 'Out of Nowhere - The Story of White Whale', which you should be able to pick up at Amazon or something similar. Probably not listed as Gram Parsons, but as Christmas Spirit.

BTW the recording is from '68.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-12-25 03:31 by Sohoe.

Worst--Anything Mariah Carey with that wailing voice sings like that overplayed "All I want for Christmas"

Best---White Christmas(Bing Crosby)-- A Holly Jolly Christmas(Burl Ives)

I just heard for the first time , Dennis Leary - Merry F*ckin Christmas . Unbelievable !! And to think he and were born in the same city and educated by the same nuns .. He makes me so proud !!

It's available to download on Limewire

Blinded by rainbows..RS..hey Jude...Wilson Picket

wish you a merry X mas Thin Lizzy

Best Xmas song ever imo simply has to be the Pogues classic "Fairytale of New York"

A masterpiece, the Pogues & Kirsty McColl, the bittersweet sentiment, the beautiful melodies, the McColl / McGowan duet, a classic

"Christmas Must Be Tonight"....By The Band.

Bar none best Christmas song of all time. No surprise as it's coming from The Band.

please come home for christmas - Johnny & Edgar Winter



I like it.