Category: CHRISTMAS DAY!

Is it closing in around you, like a polar bear hug? Is it running over you, like a FedEx driver in a parking lot? Is it substituting every cell in your body with tinsel? Resistance is fruitcake. Christmas is HERE.

I developed researchers tunnel syndrome this year, overdeveloping categories of Christmas novelty songs that aren’t even a thing. But managed to turn up some jewels, so assume the position and let me lead you through what makes me happy.

JANUARY continued my long arc of sleep motifs from 2024, this time settling on INSOMNIA. That helpless nocturnal state: straitjacketed with sheets, unable to form a coherent thought, stuck in a loop is best audiolized by Indiana Drones‘s album Christmas, which loves a DJ skip back over the same phrase. This way, you can appreciate how unbearable your old X-faves really are. Share that.

The one song that won’t let my ears free from this month would have to be The Yule Logs’ “Up All Night“. Retro surf bebop rock, it’s an insomnia party. Perhaps you otter check out the album of the same name.

FEBRUARY furthered the wakefulness on Christmas Eve trope with tracking down St. Nicholas. Sneaking a PEEK, ambushing, and capturing were fun ways to make use of the wee hours. Kids excel at this, so let’s take some time with Professor Steve (Steve Roslonek), whose album Christmas Songs for the Young and the Young at Heart includes many songs that pick essentially the same tune out of that banjo, but soar across the imagination of children.

The song that wowed me this month was a musicalization from David Phelps’s own children’s book “Catching Santa“. Excellent tango rhythms.

MARCH finishes up our sleep cycle with songs that encourage you to WAKE UP, as children are wont to do with parents Xmas morn. Let’s call on Mighty Magic Pants, children’s entertainers with a palatable modicum of snark. Their album/show It’s Christmas! runs the gamut of childhood concerns.

The most disturbing song from this curated month was Gator and the Gator Boys attempting to “Wake Up Daddy (It’s Christmas!)“. It goes from bad to worse with nearly zydeco frenzy. You are welcome to tune out at any time. OMG

APRIL asks the big question: do you BELIEVE? In Santa, God, Christmas, Ron Popeil return policies??? Doesn’t matter which, what matters is, is your faith enough to raise you from the bottom, to lift you up? I’m overcome with belief enough to allow The Fleshtones‘ Stocking Stuffer album. Few if any of these are original to this band, but their garage no-trucks-to-give RnR put me in the mood to follow cultishly.

The impenetrable psychology of children is explored in the listen-to-believe-it number “Santa is Real” from Jugboy (Milford Willabert). Just when you think it can’t get any weirder….

MAY flips the script and serves up CYNICISM for all institutions, including disbelief. So let’s rock responsibly with Bob Wire‘s Exile on 34th St. album. (And shame on me for not endorsing his cooperative earlier effort with Chip Whitson, Off White Christmas.) It’s homegrown without studio bells and whistle, but it does in fact rock.

Too many individual songs to love just one, but existentialism to my head, i gotta feature the doo wop of Heebee-jeebees’ “Please Santa be Real“. This kid is strug-gull-ling.

JUNE was oodles of fun. I figured musical INSTRUMENTS figured in to Xmas music inherently, so i scouted songs that featured them individually. Even the guitar and drum songs were often awesome. Too much to choose from here, so give Creamed Corn‘s gamey country funk a try in the form of the album Santa Loves You. There will be drinking.

Groovy to the max is Anna Jeter’s “Synthesizer For Christmas“. This is a real rash from the past.

JULY (partially) posited how percussive BODY NOISES could be musical as well. Some mungy smelling beauties here. So allow me to once again go to the Tom Dyer trough to feed. His best holiday collection is Xmas-30 Years In The Making, a confident musical range from ska to funk to country to garage to rock. All in one.

Dawn Bosley’s “Santa’s Got the Hiccups” seems to have special needs, but it’s as cute as a three-legged puppy. That one’s been haunting me since i first heard it.

AUGUST was a scrounge for further music DELIVERY, so i cobbled together novelty tunes about records, record players, boomboxes, bands (salvation and otherwise), as well as choirs. It is from such desperation that diamonds are discovered roughly. What a find: Mr. B’s Christmas Album. Jim Burke, aka Mr.B The Gentleman Rhymer, has performed ‘chap hop’ for nearly 20 years. Larf riot, eh wot?

When a singer throws me for a lurch, i gotta relisten over and over. But i still don’t know what to make of KC Glynn‘s “Chrinese Cowboy Hats“. A trucker with import-phobia, a jukebox in a truck stop, and the perfect Xmas gift set the scene for a Johnny Cash kind of lecture.

SEPTEMBER seemed to be the conclusion of this music making merriment with a closer look at CAROLING. Longtime blog contributor, the Jacobsen Brothers has Eric and Paul making funny and cool music all on their own (no labels) collected as Jacobsen Bros Christmas Tapes, Vol. 1: 1980-1983. Envious, that’s me.

The way to show your Christmas spirit is to sing loudly and badly. Thus, Dollar Signs and the folk screed “Caroler“. Close the blinds, douse the lights, activate the lawn sprinklers. Way to make a point, buddy.

OCTOBER might not be a pivot, but Xmas SHOWS of all kinds were sung about this month. Not clear how, but download BearRon’s Completely Stupid Christmas Album any way you can. Just a guy (Rob Barron), a guitar, and an uncanny sense of humor. All i need for a happy holiday season.

The blues from Matt Braunger & Mike Phirman set off “Holiday Road Comic“, a truly epic road trip to land a stand up gig in a faraway land. That was a Christmas show to end all Christmas shows . Two laugh minimum.

NOVEMBER was MOVIES month. Plenty of overview, and of course a couple dozen songs about how ‘Die Hard’ really is a Xmas film. That old dead horse. It’s about time, then, that we made it official: Robert Lund‘s Elves Gone Wild is one of the best holiday parody albums. Period.

Not only is “It’s No Christmas” boogie woogie, not only is Larson Lee a one-man band, but nearly every movie/special you know is checked in this rafter raiser. Mercy!

DECEMBER did not stay in our lane when GAMES/SPORTS were combined for the holidays. Dreidels get to spinning. Cards are dealt. Balls are thrown (snow, foot, basket, and more). So let’s honor one more master of Xmas comedy singing, Dave Rudolf–and his marvy album Completely Cracked Christmas. It’s nuts!

Harris and Hart have a series of EPs you should really check out, that is if this Wild West gambling showdown “Dingo” does for you anywhere near what it does for me. Mixing Christmas and cards might be a death sentence, or interrogative anyways. These go goofy covers, foreign language (pig latin! Latin!), parodies, and down right hilarious oddities. And to all a meh album.

Well, this is what i have to show for my year. You’re welcome.

Why, Christmas Day!

I haven’t missed it!

No, i have not. As with other years, my reach exceeded my grasp. We had some frivolity with ideas for monthly themes; but, as per uszh, some months resulted in middle-of-the-road snoozefests. My job: find the best of the year, both tracks and complete albums.

January is the exception to so many rules. The holiday musical (produced or not, staged or screened, even just concept albums) posed a challenge. Which is the blockbuster tune amid the sawing of arms? For a cool collection, let’s go with the 1978 Matt Berry BBC presentation “AD/BC: A Rock Opera.” I came of age in the ’70s, so Andrew Lloyd Weber’s ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ was a big influence on my evolution. Today, i’m all for skewering it. This gets videotape strange. Totally worth it.

Some of my favorite songs from this category were from revues, complex collections of capable carols stuffed into tours de force for budding talents. The Canadian show ‘Naughty, But Nice’ may have premiered in 2019, but i’ve yet to see it play ‘cross this side of the border. Try “Lait de Poule” to get an idea what turns my crank. Our journey from holiday drink through French to etymology jumps the conclusion. Flippant linguistics.

February?? Eh, look it up!

March became a repository for Christmas songs about hair. Santa’s beard featured in many. Matthew Bright threw in a song about going bald in his Christmas is Another Word for Christmas album. Why he is going bald is the odd bit. As odd as his songs about tickling, Starbucks’ bathroom, and what else to do with nutmeg. Throw caution to the winds and get that album.

Needing a parody about now, i think it’s time for The Enablers and Friends to slice up on Cake with their “White Beard, Red Jacket.” It’s all in the details for one of the most recognized icons of our planet.

April celebrated that big red suited immortal big time. Funk has a way of honoring, so please check out Santa’s Funk & Soul Christmas Party which has several volumes to date. Vol. 2, 3, & 4 do also groove featuring the likes of Rev. T. L. Barrett, Pearl Bailey, Excalibur, and Sharon Jones. Do it.

Glam rock from The Rubettes (feat. Alan Williams) treats Ol’ Kringle like a Saturday morning cartoon superhero from the ’70s. “Go Go Santa” indeed.

May took That Fat Bastard to task for all the harm he causes us every Christmas. Since 2005 Health Alliance for Austin Musicians (HAAM) has raised money for its struggling artists with Holiday Haam Jam collections of donated Xmas tunes. Many standards, for those who can stand it, but outstanding originals as well. Vols. 1, 2, 3 available now. It’s a good thing.

A Jello Productions Original “The BAD Santa Song” itemizes a list of the naughty business Santa completes In Your Home. Oi. You might wanna duct tape the chimney shut.

JUNE returned us to good Santas, in fact lovable Santas. Love that Kringle! Canadians sustain us, as in the Calgary a cappella quartet Heebee-jeebees and their album X-mas Nuts. Ostensibly kids’ music, but ’tis the season, oldsters! I see a bit too many standards, so we’ll include Best Before Christmas, and Christmas Crackers. I have featured many of their novelties over the years. Respect must be paid.

Loving Santa may seem one-way, so–in order to achieve balance–let’s deal with the lecherous Gift Guy as portrayed in Darling Abbeygate’s “Santa’s Got a Crush on Me.” Cool rockabilly… until late in the song. Then darkness overwhelms! Spooky!!

July rounds out our Santa subject with songs sung BY that jolly old elf. Gastronomical Unit, as is our motif this year, hits the standards, but their Holiday Feast is also a well i’ve drunk novelty from many times on the ol’ blog. Vol. 2, too. Sounds like they’re having fun. Share the joy.

Female fronted punk from Sarasota CA, The Dollyrots bawl out “Because I’m Santa” as if they had a sack. And they do. Get ready to dance, or give out cookies.

August encouraged low concept thematization, so i demolished as many chimney/fireplace songs out of the woodwork as i could find. Helping me, was our old friend Western Star label with The Ultimate Rockin’ Christmas Collection. The Bad Detectives, The Elfish Presleys, The Epileptic Hillbillies, Little Timmy Tinsel & The Fairy Lights, and so much more brought me hopped up hijinx of talented hilarity. Friends, there’s nearly 50 entries here. Gobble it.

Currently Disconnected circles back to Scary Claus with the forbidding “Coming Down Your Chimney.” These kookies strum and sing like they’re not from around here, but they have struck a nerve with me. Oo-ee-oo.

September naturally led us to stockings. Like those hung on the chimney with care, but also fishnets, and just plain stinkin’ socks as gifts under the tree. Baltimorean Matt Aaron follows the beat of the voices only he can hear with the above average novelty album Matty Xmas 2 U. Being picked as a shepherd, repetitive Xmas songs, obituaries, naps, owls… it’s all here. For you and yours.

Earl Green’s single “My Christmas Stocking” from his Holiday Ho-Down! album flirts with obscenity, parody, and good old greed. It’s the whole package.

October veered into a whole ‘nother vector with sleep studies. Our first part delved into lullabies. They’re not just for babies, or rather we are such an infantilized nation we need mommying constantly–so, here ya go! Apropos of mediocrity, Brad Tassell and Steve Goodie combine their goy+Jew-ness to oversell their sophomoric comedy album A Kvetchmas Carol (Christmas Meets Hanukkah). Occasional wit sparkles (a non-seasonal song about Merry Thursdays!) amid parodies of ‘Grandma’ and ‘Dreidel.’ You can do a lot worse than this.

Caspar Babypants raises kidsong above the ear worm with the wit of “Alphabet Christmas Lullaby.” Strummin’ and hummin’ like it’s music and not an invitation to stomp/clap/scream, they make a meal of the letters.

November straight out said Go To Sleep to the kids who wanted Santa’s sowings. Since it was largely family songs (yawn), some classic stuff came up. Looks like 1950s Christmas Classics collected these well, Vols. 1, 2, and 3 anyways. Sure, i’ve seen most of these separately, but now there’s a convenient compendium or three. Yeah.

Wolf Blitzer (the band) sweetly serenades us with BLUE ALERT “Go the Fuck to Sleep (Christmas is Coming.” As if that weren’t bad enough, Santa and Jesus get into a knife fight because you’re still awake.

December compounds our night-night with Christmas dreams. They might be REM driven or daily revery, over gifts or girls… but they are not reality. Edgy rockabilly blues from Kerry Pastine & the Crime Scene informs It’s a Crime Scene Christmas! an all-original album of tolerating the holidays, including New Year’s. Saddle up!

Without a series of volumes for that one, allow me to recommend one more album. L’Resorts is a Wisconsin duo who relieves my nostalgia for Timbuk3, as they nasally rock-folk monotone simply the strangest subject matter. Granted Trying to Christmas is all about trees, decorating, and Santa… but those lyrics, guys!

Close call on the most remarkable song of the month as well. But, the 1970s kitsch, the German children’s chorus, the accordion, the lyrics written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice… and Perry effin’ Como! I’m in novelty heaven with “Christmas Dream.” (wish it could share the video, but you’ll have to hit the link; PC’s too big a deal for little blogs)(save for this clip from a movie)

Better luck next Xmas!

A busy year, but rewarding. At least that’s how i choose to look at it today. Don’t ask me tomorrow what i think, doesn’t matter then.

Tried some wild concepts for my monthly themes. Surfing for Christmas?! Many surf-rock versions of traditional carols roll in with the tide, but for songs ABOUT riding the waves in December… Well, i’ll recommend The Barbary Coasters’ Hark! to Parrotheads, retro rock enthusiasts, partiers, and anyone else with a pulse. I think you’ll dance.

Oddest of the lot: Surf Party, USA was a joke band that made good–well, at the college radio level. But their 2018 beginnings have resulted in THREE holiday albums (one’s for Thanksgiving, another’s for Halloween). So, get wet with Surf Party, Yule S.A And say hey to Andrew Berg for me.

The single i can’t get out of my head was a typo. “Athiest Serf Holiday” by The Yule Logs from the album You Ruined Christmas has to be heard to be believed. No oceanic adventuring. Surf rock, and existential as Moondoggie.

FEBRUARY tried more sport transpo with sledding action. Christmas songs about buttsliding on snow?! As much as ‘Jingle Bells’ is a Christmas song! That Band From Holland, known as The Non Traditionals, and their light rock insouciance is a slam for the worries of the world. Their album New Traditionals (Final Christmas Compilation) is but one of many. Try it and see.

The Light get me right in the novelty bone with their bizarre “Sledding Song.” I can barely believe the rush.

March continues with skating! Most of these interesting songs come from albums littered with standards–which i do not prefer to recommend. But Ginger Cat’s Christmas With You has just enough class to make my cut.

John McCutcheon noodles on the electric guitar in such a way that his “Fly” evokes childhood, nature, athleticism, and pure joy. Yeah i like this.

April tested boundaries with songs about skis. There’s a subculture in the music world there, so it’s easy to land on the album Ski Songs by Bob Gibson. The suffering, self-hatred, and ecstasy of being a skier lands more on the ’50s than now. but this is a must-have for the slope-sters out there.

1960s Outsider Pop is another thing imma not familiar with. If Joye Bell’s “Let’s Go Skiing” is symptomatic of this trend, sign me up. Peppy and fun.

May kept us moving, but more Christmastastically with trains. Rollicking rock from The Hot Dogs with Holy Shit, It’s Christmas kicks off the fun. Yeah, baby.

Adolescent humor takes me back to my just a few hours ago. It’s what i know. So, when i say Ben & Tucker’s “Magical Rainbow Train” is self indulgently & narrowly hilarious, i guess I know what i’m talking about.. [Which means their album Christmas Carousal (Deluxe Edition) is something to check into as well.]

June took locomotion onto the high seas–and sea bottoms–with boats for the holidays. This gave me a chance to revisit Carbon Leaf’s bluegrassy rock in their inimitable Christmas Child. That is good music.

Another tangent, ‘cuz Christmas music about ocean craft only floats my boat so high… but Brennen Leigh’s “Merry Christmas, Asshole” finally pays the tab of all those put upon women in country music singin’ about all those intolerable men. He does sink a boat, but there’s SO MUCH MORE to call him out on. Sing it!

July naturally extends boats to pirates. What a great idea for Christmas tunes! …in some other year, perhaps. I did happen across concept bands who ONLY perform pirate music where’er they play. Mostly they spoof traditional carols with an ARR! or AVAST!, but Ye Banished Privateers is deadly serious with their researched and cosplayed A Pirate Stole My Christmas. The energy! The grime! Goosebumps! Get some.

A rare live performance from Captain Bog and Salty charmed me enough to feature “Merry Christmas, Santa is Walking the Plank.” Perhaps i shouldn’t have. But it is quite the jolly blend of cruelty and danceable shanty.

August comes alive with MONSTERS for Christmas. Oh you kid, the possibilities were endless… well for ghosts and zombies, anyway. Most cryptizoologicals didn’t earn much play (Chupacabra Xmas songs, anyone??). The Glenn Crytzer Orchestra resuscitated (in 2019!!) big band sounds from mid-century flawlessly with their album Underneath the Mistletoe. On repeat, please.

“Love Xmas, Hate Vampires” care of Vom Vorton doesn’t mince feelings. But this righteous rockabilly punk has a great beat and i can die to it.

September rounded up even more monsters with demons, devils, and Satan hisself. Christmas Reminisces from the X-Misses includes at least two songs about Hell. And a helluva lot of more originality. Rock, swing, disco… who could ask for anything more!

Music Vault (Joe Heavey / Patrick Kelly / Rick McKay) amuses with their love ballad “Merry Christmas, Satan.” Whatever you think it is, you’re wrong. Sigh.

October continued all things damnable, including a major detour through Armageddon. The Doubleclicks offer solace with their unusual album Christmas Ain’t about Me. Classically trained funsters cute loose. Cool Christmas album.

Rifftones ends times with their “Apocalypse Christmas.” This joyous drinking song hits all the wrong notes in all the right ways. Great video besides.

November naturally turns to the worst Christmas ever. It’s about time to introduce you to A Very Bert Dax Christmas. Purveyor of the greatest Saint-Louis-centric holiday compilations ever compiled, and then some, this collecting apparatus has been going strong for years. Not always original works, but always cool. We’ll start you with Volume Seven.

Mark Cummings unleashes the shaggy dog story of a holiday gone terribly wrong in “Don’t Give Your Wife an Iron for Christmas.” Deadpan country humor gives me stitches.

December turns the tables with the menace and power of guns for Xmas. Which means imma feature songs id rather avoid. Including Ralphie’s Red Ryders’ album You’ll Shoot Your Eye Out. Embarrassing movie, great rocking subject.

The hypnotic power of Wall of Voodoo depicts the menace part in “Shouldn’t Have Given Him a Gun for Christmas.” And to all a good duck and cover.

This year was me hunched over Lyrics.com trying to find a Christmas song with the number 666 in it, or something like that. I wound up in genres i ordinarily wouldn’t’ve sampled (metal, rap). Some months featured less than a hundred songs! Then the weirdness started rolling in. So my retrospective here on this day of all days is not exactly in order (so tired of that). But, i will recommend albums for you to peruse (BUY!) as well as singles to celebrate the gonzo times we are in.

Did i forget to mention TV’s Kyle? Put a Santa Hat on It is a must-have holiday album full of quality comedy and decent music. You gotta trust me on this one. Get some.

Okay, Christmas cards on the table, imma Dickens fan and a musical fair-weather fan. But, Team StarKid’s electro-disco ‘A VHS Christmas Carol‘ may be better than most modernizations. Kudos to cast: Dylan Saunders, Jamie Burns, AJ Holmes, Brian Rosenthal, Ali Gordon, Brian Holden, Meredith Stepien, Joey Richter, Lauren Lopez, Clark Baxtresser. Check this out.

An amazing synth rocking family shaggy dog story, “Pink Aluminum Christmas Tree” by Leschen Sessions (feat. Kyle Suppler) begins with drunk dad in a ditch then winds up with the enterprising son cashing in on Ebay to the tune of 953$. Don’t believe it? Listen again!

Glad to listen to Krista Detor again. Noticed her my first year out (2015!). Her album, The Silver Wood: Winter Songs, covers fun and systematic societal failures. Love it.

Kookoo bananas from Welshman Liam McKenna & Friends, A Christmas Crisis (for Crisis at Christmas) is a charity grab for a Foodbank type thing in the UK. If the ideas of a dog asking for cat food for Xmas, mincemeat, and turkey bingo don’t wow you, this might be the album wherein (like Edgar Rice Burroughs) you exclaim I Can Do THAT Just As Well–and you diverge to your new career.

Nick and Gabe bring it back around to jaw-dropping novelty with “Thank God (9/11 Wasn’t on Christmas).” This pop tribute begins with how awful people make the holidays, BUT… ‘coulda been worse. Thanks for the perspective, boys.

On the older side, June Christy’s This Time of Year takes us back to 1961. Hep cats may have listened on high. This swingin’ jazz easy listening needs listening to.

Jamie Cullum’s The Pianoman at Christmas is pretty cool. Jazzy lounge big band orchestration. If you like that sort of thing. Then you might love this. Purchase?

Andy Churchill is sitting in your driveway wondering if it’s just a “Party of One” for Christmas. Alt-rock be-grunges the misinterpreted invitation: You said 8:30 But nobody’s here. Still he wishes you’d join his party (of one), i guess because it’s a time of forgiveness. Or he’s that naive.

Wikipedia news! Christmas in Stereo was a 1997 Christmas album featuring various indie rock bands. Each band had only two weeks to write their song. (But i’ve never featured that.) A follow-up compilation, Christmas Two, was released in 1999. (Dipped into that well many a time!) Not something you may have heard before. Bees’ knees and all that. Find it if you can.

The Dan Band features Dan Finnerty, and a whole lot of inappropriateness. Santa helps a hooker, elders are given the gift of a roll in the hay, terrorists are teased, and too much is had to drink. Ho: A Dan Band Xmas has even more. Parody of ‘Christmas Shoes’?? You bet! Look it up!

Un-joyous is the cost of 100 quid faced by The Bar-Steward Sons of Val Doonican in their ‘American Pie’ parody “The Gasman Cometh.” Figures it’d be Christmas Eve (the day the boiler died)…. (Yea! Parody!!)

 W.R. ‘Bud’ Thornton, J.D. Andrew and Mike Butler, the remarkable band that has in its time been called ‘the future of hillbilly rock & roll,’ ‘and one of a kind rootsy warriors,’ make up The Boxmasters. (That’s from Airplaydirect.com.) Get ready for some Christmas Cheer. It’s gotta be good, ‘cuz i’m allowing standards to get the rockabilly treatment and still insisting you check it out. [BeeTeeDubs, last year a follow-up Christmas in California came out. Yeah, also too.]

More original, A Malibu Kind of Christmas by The Malibooz run with the surf-rock sound. I mean, run. I mean golly, Moondoggie, that’s a whole lotta tunes.

The other day it dropped to 78 I’m kind of cold, brags “Florida Christmas.” To the Handel chorus Kj-52 X Jonah cleverly disputes your preconceived notions and raps in the holidays, playful-like. I guess I like rap that repeats itself.

Ivor Biggun’s Xxxmas Package is the BLUE record of Robert Doc Cox, aka Ivor Biggun. The subjects range from penises to drunkeness to sex to alcohol. This is a sound engineer from the ’60s at BBC who just had to get down and dirty, for you. Naughty list!

Amanda Shires trembles with her alt-garage, then screams with her pop punk. For Christmas is the gamut of grrl rock and you might want to ask permission before playing.

A loaded 44 is the problem in “Green and Red,” a road rock of a rollicking tragedy. See, the color that left the elves when he snapped is hidden in the title of the song. That’s Vinny the Comb for you.

Homegrown humor from Connor Ratliff & Mikey Erg results in folk strutting that borders on rap. The energy of the doublet The Spirit of Ratliff: a Holiday Soundtrack EP & Summer Is Not Xmas: Anti-Summer Anthems could have lit a whole suburb of trees. It sounds snarky, but it’s heartfelt. You’ll see.

Official Sidekick Production is also a bit amateurish fighting crime in a high concept superhero-inspired Christmas album: The Super Friends Holiday Album. Each song is from the POV of another comic character. All DC, but the fanboy must be fed. This is good stuff.

The prettiest BLUE ALERT i’ve ever posted (yeah i’m a sucker for violins), Altarviolet’s “This Christmas Can Eat a Dick” is not a hater, but a sympathizer for the lost, the put-upon, and the miserable. Still, bully for you who like it: Merry Christmas to the ones who cannot wait till the clock strikes 26. Alt-folk.

I wasn’t sure i’d get into COVID Christmas albums, but Reality Student Ministry’s A COVID Christmas is a bit too good (EP short as it is) to miss. White boy rap, but it gets me.

Saint Etienne is perky pop, but it is Christmas–a time for forgiveness. IF I ever get in a dancing mood, i could do a lot worse than A Glimpse of Stocking. Bet YOU’ll like it.

Harry and Chris from ‘The Russell Howard Hour’ (yeah, i don’t know ’em either) explain Christmas from the 25th to the placenta to a last minute, on the way to Christmas dinner, present-buying, emergency service station stop in “The Christmas Song.” Pop show tune comedy. Literally.

I’ve been missing Thrice a Chuckle to the point where this basement band has dropped SIX volumes of Christmas frivolity i only just discovered. Known simply as Volume I, Volume II, Volume III, Volume IV, Volume V, and Volume VI–wait, there’s Volume VII! Uhh, and Volume VIII!!~ There may not be a topic they haven’t skewered with their folk-rock slyness. Golly.

Now i did run into Make Like Monkeys years ago, but never LISTENED to their album(s). Perhaps i’ve grown more tender with age, but this retro rock-pop band has all the musical nonchalance of boy bands from the late ’60s (Herman’s Hermits, Paul Revere & the Raiders, and–yes–The Monkees). This was before the age of irony, kids, and the folk-surf-baroque influences create a world of sweetness, even with heavy heartbreak, dysfunctional families, and MONSTERS (their forte). Granted, foolishness and angry parody have their place, but i love music that leaves me with hope. Please, oh please, try out some of their wonderfulness from Christmas With Make Like Monkeys!, A Barrel of Christmas!, Let the Season Begin!, Joyeaux Noel!, Hand Claps for Christmas!, Make Room for Christmas!, Ahhh! Real Christmas, and Just Add Xmas. These are album starting from 2018… love ’em all! (The separate singles i’ll sneak onto the blog later.)

Now, i ardently listened to Dr. Demento in the ’70s and could recite the lyrics to Benny Bell’s “Shaving Cream” at will. So, knock me over with a feather when i discovered Joel Samberg had updated this classic into “Holiday Shaving Cream” which includes building models of nine reindeer at night and finding behind them the next morning…

Just about the strangest thing i stumbled over this year was Brendan Dalton & The 1740 Boys Choir tribute Christmas in Middle-Earth. Why, yes, each song is dedicated to a different character (or set of characters) from LOTR. I suggest you brush up on your Tolkein and read the song titles carefully. In some ways, i suppose, this is no more than filking (like they do at the comic cons), but it’s just so damn impressive. For the nerds.

A strange metal attitude fills Albert Fishing Trip’s macabre sprightly folk pop Christmas Album. Often parodic, always grisly, this should fulfill a rebellious teen’s wishlist. Or yours, you sicko.

Needing more, Keith Varney belts out Just Get Me to Drunk in his hanging-by-a-thread country pop “Christmas Spirits.” It may be morning at home, But in the town of Bethlehem It’s five o’clock in the manger… is all the excuse he needs. Salut!

It’s Going to Be an Awkward Christmas, Darling by Helen Arney is an alt-pop–at times talky–exploration of family, relationships, childhood, and all other necessary evils with curious genre mashing ups.

Sharks’ Teeth’s Christmas on Christmas album gets garage psychedelic with symbolism, metaphysics, and theology. Go with Godforsaken.

So, to Christmas morning. The Stew Boys are begging BLUE ALERT! for Christmas off, but instead they’re up at 4 A.M. to “Make the Stew.” Hope you’re happy. The plodding pop makes me quite so.

Stephen Colbert’s ’08 Christmas special won a Grammy and sold a few albums. A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All! is all over the place, showtunes to improv, parody to serious messaging. I should have recommended this long ago. All for you!

Wild Earp & The Free for Alls swing their Cynical Christmas. That way it’s fun for the whole family, no matter how upset you are. The traditional tunes (done as prison blues)! The dirty juke joint fracas (for laughs)! Ho ho, oh.

D.I.L.F USA get pretty pop with their thoughtful “Countdown to Christmas.” Then they rock. Two gifts for you. Oh, and a cool video.

…and to all a good nut!

2021 was a year of hope, hanging like a fluffy pillow that might fall on our heads at any moment. I remained restlessly tossing (cookies) and turning (tables).

January began with a salute to the AFTER Christmas sentiments, from relief to resentment to realization it’ll start again in a bit.

But, I do like to take this time of the year to recommend albums the novelty aficionado MUST HAVE from the hundreds i’ve sampled. I am but a poor mouse and have few enough discs myself, but I gotta endorse what rings odd enough to my ever-lovin’ listenin’. Let’s Start with The Beatnik Turtle Christmas Album: Santa Doesn’t Like You. Folk, rock, honkytonk, punk, swing, bluegrass, cartoon music and easy listening all come together in one messy porridge of fun. It’s what you deserve.

As for hard-working salt-of-the-earth rock musician-ing, attention must be paid to Matt Roach’s Naughty and Nice, The All Original Christmas Album. Funky, earthy, intelligent unplugged messages. Try it.

A true original, Thomas Valenti’s “I’m So Glad Christmas is Over” stars Kermit and Zimmerman as one of the oddest duets to do it to it. Bouncy family fun.

February continues this ouroboros with ANOTHER Christmas, ‘cuz these holidays repeat like ‘Groundhog Day’ without our consent.

Many standards water down Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings’ It’s a Holiday Soul Party, but ‘Silent Night’ is gospel, ‘Drummer Boy’ is funk, ‘Silent Night’ is way down Motown, ‘White Christmas’ rattles the rafters with disco big band. The original tunes make me re-visit often, if you must know. Plus the missus is a big fan. Gift it!

Compilations are most random and most successful when an independent label features efforts from their unsung stable of not-stars. The Western Star Rockabilly Christmas Party is full o’ fun including Thee Elfmen, Elfish Presley, The Bad Detectives, The Go Go Cult, and Epileptic Hillbillies. If rockabilly is not your thing, steer clear. Or, then again, purchase and edjumicate yooseff as to why it ought be.

As i do enjoy a pretty song on occasion, I was given to repeated listening of Martin Rivas’s ’70s influenced pop retro “Another Christmas 78rpm” on the Victrola. It goes round and round and then round and round, y’see?

March hangs on to this theme for dear life with Christmas AGAIN. Inescapable, man!

You’ll get fewer sneers as a geek-head and more respect as a musicologist with The Irish Rovers’ Merry Merry Time of Year. Again–i eschew albums littered with standard carols, and yet ‘Angels We Have Heard,’ ‘Three Ships,’ ‘Marvelous Little Toy,’ and ‘Must be Santa’ don’t foul up this foreign fal-de-rol (well, maybe that last one–P.U.) as they lean into the Celtic celebratory vibrato. The whole house will shake with reverential ritual if you own it and play it.

The Mavericks bring us back Stateside with cool bluesy club music in Hey! Merry Christmas! Lots of heartbreak, but–hey, man, that’s music for you. Invest!

Blast from the past (1962) with Stanley Adams and Sid Wayne and The Chicken Flickers and “Chanukah is Here Again.” This other observance also cycles around so don’t you forget it!

April is full of shouting and attention-getting with a month of interjections + Christmas = songs. Hello, goodbye, oh, hey, that sort of thing for an exclamatory Xmas.

Craig’s All Star, Rockin’ Christmas, You Guys! is the album that comes back to me around now. Kyle Dunnigan is the peripheral comedian you’ve seen before–oh, oh, which one was he!? But this agenda-leaning coo-coo constellation deserves a spot in your novelty Christmas music collection.

The exclamatory backseat of “Hey Hey It’s Christmas” narrowly beats out some strange stuff that just irritates an ear. But, while The Go Go Cult dirges their folk-rock missive… of a sudden–Frankenstein, Dracula, the Mummy, Medusa come out to play. [–wha–? Did it already mention this album?!] {Must be that good.}

For May i gave in and allowed Santa’s reindeer a spotlight. Wait, wait, it’s not ALL kiddies’ songs, and you may not have herd some of THESE. The first half of the month was about the Big Eight as recited in ‘The Night Before Christmas.’ Rudolph got a week of oddness as well. He deserves a good lampoon.

For a killer album full of solid rock covers with hilarious xmas context shoe-horned in, i haven’t mentioned Incense and Chia Pets enough from The ’60s Invasion. You need this to play for your disbelieving associates. (‘Rudolph’ sung to ‘19th Nervous Breakdown‘ is even better than when sung to ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit.’)

Love me a grand old ripping yarn, and Philly Cuzz delivers with “Blitzen Jones the Mighty Reindeer.” Pop shaggy dog love about that Xmas party when the wolves showed up to eat everyone.

Surely Santa doesn’t just have the eight/nine pullers! June began a roster of all the OTHER reindeer. There’s Dippy, and Ragnar, and Marvin, and Shadrack, and… so many more (this ran into July)!

Otis Gibbs has cornered the market on modern-day cool Depression back-o-the-barn blues. His holiday album Once I Dreamed of Christmas has to be heard to be believed. Own it to belong to the believers’ club.

Nightheart gets win, place, and show this month. Amazing retro boy rockers with surf, doo-wop, folk, cowboy and more. Not with just silliness, these professional pop artists earn a special place in my heart with their novelty newness. Get Nightheart on Ice, and–to see what i mean–zero in on “Donny the Reindeer,” that pop song rapscallion is certainly a handful!

July continued reindeer as a collective cultural note.

What about Chuck Picklesimer, though? Ever since Pete the Elf intro-ed this transcendent troubadour to moi over a dozen years ago i’ve mined the depths of Dead Ninja Christmas with unbridled Nirvikalpa Samadhi. Get it.

While we’re at it, have you got just the right holiday party album–?! If you’re cool and young and happening then you might acquire The Rusebuds’ Christmas Tree Island. Quick before it’s just old stuff. (It’s nine and counting!)

But, if you want to know about reindeer… Nick Naylor’s Animal Facts runs over all the “Reindeer” life. Not rap, not didacticism, but a rock lesson that will let you bone up for erudite cocktail banter this holiday season.

Unable to leave beating a dead source, i pivoted into flight. Christmas songs about flying tend to be reindeer-esque, though a few about planes, pigs, angels, and babies helped round out August.

Arne Hansen and The Guitarspellers have crafted a party-giving bash of an album Reindeer Can Fly. And i’d like you to consider it on its merits, not on my babbling. So, buy it. Then report back.

Been a minute since i luxuriated in pure Xmas parody (or, as it like to call pop songs appropriated for jolly times, caroldies). Try out the Elton John gone wrong of Syrpyntyne’s “Reindeer Man.” Ahh, that’s just right.

Here’s a terrible idea: find all the Christmas songs with numbers in them. There’s twelve days (or months in a couple other songs as well), three wise men–that’s all, is that not correct? Well, if you waste time on lyrics-finding search engines… there are a few others. (Gang, this led me down many white-water rabbits… and many of these songs appear on NOT-XMAS albums.) Was it worth it?

Well, it gave me a chance to reference one of my heroes, Jonathan Coulton (here with John Roderick), who can make any topic a musical marvel. Look at One Christmas at a Time to see what i mean. I ran into more than one song about My First Video Game for Xmas, but “2600” rocks. Then there’s Chanukah, romance, the aftermath, crappy relatives… and on and on. My sis got me my copy on the table outside one of his concerts. Yeah.

The Benefit have been noted already as having a great Christmas record. If you haven’t got it yet, here’s a prompt: “T-Rexmas (A Nativity Story 65 Million Years in the Making).” Now comes the story of the king of king of dinosaurs who gave his God-given time to rule. Not like that turn-the-other-cheek guy. Count it.

The big digression in my countdown of Christmas numbers began with the current year. The number of the year turns out is a milestone. 2019 Xmas was not the same as Christmas 1920. As The Futureheads like to point out, “Christmas was Better in the 80s.” So, it got competitive–which i dig.

A rockabilly punk turn by Vista Blue checked me out to the point where i had to listen more than once. Their Christmas Collection includes some covers, but mostly twists my ear in all new ways. Just check out their set list (Zombies, The Ramones, ‘Home Alone,’ Booster (the doll)…). You’ll want it then.

A brief screamer of an album, Holiday Heat, features Holiday Roger, a dramatic pop fanatic. He may be fluid, he may be on the spectrum–still, he is as entertaining as an elf orgy. Join in. But don’t follow that elf-making recipe….

Megathruster made my year with “1985 Sears Christmas Catalog.” This childhood ‘wish book’ as epic pop ballad is as serious as it wants to be. (P.S. you can view more of the actual catalog on YouTube. [As well as the one from the year you were ten.] ) What can i say but thanks.

Let’s review. Lord knows i don’t gots the time, but over the last twelve months i’ve listened to many a musical number. Here are some must-haves for your library.

JANUARY’s theme was crime.

Big Bang outta the “Payday 2: A Merry Payday Christmas” soundtrack. This is an actual musical cobbled up by those what worked on the Overkill video game sequel and robbin’ banks and whatnot with your joystick on your couch. British cracking wise and naughtiness that’s gee-dee fun. Get it.

The despicable villains who committed unlawful acts during the holidays caused songs that ranged from historical folk to deprived pop. Possibly the worst of the worst comes from Kunt and The Gang, a ne’erdowell UK set of low-class lads with songs to make you cringe. Including “Killed a Kid at Christmas.” He would’ve gotten away with it, too, if it hadn’t been–oh, he DID get away with it.

FEBRUARY’s motif was birthday. Apparently not only Jesus was born in December. And most of those others–looking at you, Shannon–are not happy about it. Sing out for empathy!

Something about the integrity AND talent of The Animal Band’s Jungle All the Way wins me over. Dad band rock’n’roll, granted. Yet, worth it.

Let’s get funereal (for the fun of it) a la Fortress of Attitude and their chorale delight: “It Sucks to be Born on Christmas.” Feel the pain.

MARCH’s idea was cowboys. That’s a thing, right? Christmas cowboys?

You could do worse than Michael Martin Murphey, or Riders in the Sky (though i like what Gene Davenport does with this TV-show golly-gee cowpuncher approach). But allow me to push Nevada Slim & Cimmaron Sue. Effortless tee hee haw. And i don’t usually recommend an album what’s got traditional carols covered on it. So, that means it’s extra good.

The Heebee-jeebees thumb their kerchief covered noses at the cowboy concept with their “Cowboy Christmas.” Dumb dad jokes or brilliant kid music?! Hilarity ensues.

APRIL’s concern was coal. What’s this mineral got to do with the holiday?Tradition, folklore, quaint old-timey stories, blah blah blah, fa la la la la.

Hot Buttered Elves are a garage band of multitudinous genre-busting mirthiness. At times they just lay down jams (you might want to use to set behind your own novelty xmas songs). Their humor comes off as collegiate and in-the-know (Firesign Theatre schtick). Regardless, check out their albums: “Coal,” “2012: Planet X-mas,” “Hypothermia,” “A Very LoFi Christmas,” “Dark Jollies,” and “Unwrapped.” I’m serious.

Haschel Cedricson dusts legitimacy with authentic bluegrass folk and mournful croaking all over the bitch session “He’ll Bring You Coal.” Spoiler alert: West Virginia was the naughtiest.

MAY’s plan was nothing for Christmas. Worse than coal?! Well, rationalizations include Santa forgetting, or running out, or being dead. So, you know, could be worse.

This allowed me to meet Nick & Gabe, a couple chucklehead smartasses who may be the only ones who get their own humor. It’s a Nick & Gabe Christmas Party! should be playing at your holiday wingding regardless. Full disclosure: i laughed (not something i’m known for).

While Pony Death Ride’s “Nothing Beats Old People at Christmas” only barely syntactically adheres to our May way, it was still fun in a sortof mean sortof reverent way. Humor manages that when aptly managed.

JUNE’s point was NO Christmas. Bleak, no? Yet a springboard for some up-MY-alley bleak humor. (Oh, yeah, pathos too. Whatevs.)

Yulenog is the creation of Nathan Kuruna, who likes dreadful music and wants the world to know it. I’d avoid his first few albums (in which the joke is lack of talent), but Yulenog 9 and Yulenog 10 are all original romps through multiple genres of music, mostly sung on key–yet very witty. Acquire at will.

WTF (‘winter-time-fun’) is represented on our countdown by Moper, whose [BLUE ALERT] “Christmas is Cancelled” kicks the family gathering in the face when grandad does something unexpected. Experimental punk.

JULY’s symbol was bells. An opportunity for traditional carols. Sorry.

But i soon realized The Benefit & Chinese Firekites had the novelty albums i was looking for. Juchristmasly and How the Chinese Firekites Stole Christmas make bourgeoise humor seem easy. All the ready targets (the Taliban, teenage rebellion) as well as the cultural twists (what’s roast beast taste like? how’s ‘Christmas shoes’ appropriate for the holidays?) rock right off their drums. Ha ha ha. Get some.

Let’s jazz up the tone with some jump blues delivered with pizzazz by The Bandana Splits. “All the Bells” is the perky party processional we want to lift all the spirits. Garshk.

AUGUST’s image was a star, or two. Again, lots of molden golden oldies. And praiseworthy paeans. But not the Christmas 500 you only hear this time of year.

Albums i’ve discovered years before haunt me around this time of year, by not getting enough play. Steve Courtney has been a kidsong performer of award-winning merit for decades. (My knee just jerked: children’s music??!) Yet, his all original album Christmasteve has gotten several shoutouts on my diurnal demented dealings. Great kidsong is just great song. And this is it.

New England based mature angels, Sweet, Hot & Sassy take the old chestnut “Star of Wonder” and a cappella the bejesus out of it. Uplifting (and non-ironic) shivers result. Meditate, pray, or just transform to it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_sMKCvCWOU

SEPTEMBER’s thing was lights.

A longtime go-to in my musical-mischief library has been The Tarquin Records All Star Holiday Extravaganza, compilation of in-house artists for a record label. Like red wine blends, these hodgepodges can surprise with a superiority to single-artist albums. And Peter Katis’s stable of never-hear-ofs (The Zambonis, The Happiest Guys in the World, Swirlies) now include Death Cab for Cutie. I highly recommend every track here (including the Hallowe’en and Groundhog Day ones).

Emma Stone fronts SNL with one of their better pop music spooferies. “The Christmas Candle” touches upon the unfortunate gift exchange spontaneity that, it would seem, everyone has gone through. Soaring deadpan lyrics helps connect this tangent to Sept.’s theme.

OCTOBER’s surprise was the mall Santa. What began as bell-ringing begging accelerated to comical photo ops. Is the man behind the fake beard to be feared or set afire?

Maxwell, Miranda, and Parsley’s Catskill Christmas is a fine folk holiday album of highs and lows and shining talent. I like all their songs. Avail yourself of patronage.

Improv Everywhere’s Musicals in Real Life flashmobs some unsuspecting mall to remind us “You’re Never Too Old to Sit on Santa.” It means more when there’s a visual aspect. Enjoy the show, four and a half minutes of worth it. (And the suspense of whether the mall Santa is in on it, or not.)

NOVEMBER’s number was the almost approach of Xmas. Starting in the fall, loads of fussing is made about Christmas Christmas don’t be late, or the like. Songs range from desperate to frantic.

Not a B’way babe, but i lean towards a faboo musical or two. (While tin of ear, this white boy still snagged an Honorable Mention for ‘King Herod’s Song’ at a regional high school Thespian convention 45 years ago.) ‘Christmas Ain’t a Drag‘ does not purport to anything but all original big band showstoppers each and every number… about Xmas. It’s all-inclusive, and recent too. Check it.

This month afforded many luscious holiday hoots, but i guess i’ll lean South of the border for Jack Terrell Clift’s soaring song of sorrow and redemption “It Being Nearly Christmas Time.” I can be serious, i can.

DECEMBER is all about waiting for Christmas. Like, that’s what you DO, man.

Since i’ve been finally peering into Bandcamp.com’s illustrious stable of independent musical artists, i’ve been able to increase my odd offerings multifold. So it swells me with pride to highly recommend Adventures 2010 from Emma and Charlie’s Radio Podcast. These eclectic eccentrics pop with creative/experimental numbers. Hard to categorize, and IT’S FREE TO DOWNLOAD THIS ALBUM. Love!

More strange, UK’s Boom Child gives the rando naughty take of “I Can’t Wait for Christmas,” a thoroughly entertaining yet Dylanesque garage childish tantrum. It’s another freakin’ FREE DOWNLOAD from Bandcamp.com.

Let’s not wait for another Christmas of such monumental merriment… let’s freeze time and forever be the now.

Every year i sift through thousands of novelty Christmas offerings and, if you’re of similar bent, i have some recommendations no yuletide oddity library should be without. I mean, these platters otter be on yer serving places posthaste.

JANUARY 2019: I featured songs about being sick at Christmas. I figured Christmas with the Crystalairs was just another doo wop collection i overlooked from the ’60s. I was wrong. These hulking white (German) guys have revived the stylings for decades and dropped this album just a couple years ago, replete with cool songs i ain’t never heard before.

Red State Update have been making politically sarcastic hay for some time. Jonathan Shockley and Travis Harmon play patriotic Tennesseans Jackie Broyles and Dunlop who harrumphed and sung about all things Tea Party and Obama. The podcast dwindled but was reborn as Travis & Jonathan, ‘cuz a good thing don’t go away easy when creativity is still to be paid. From their albums Santa is Real and Merry Twismas Part Twoo and Other Gooduns, please enjoy a Red State Update Christmas selection.

Yet, my favorite video of January is the skit/song from James Coyle about bad breakups and wishing her “A Very AIDS-y Christmas.” BLUE ALERT

FEBRUARY 2019: A month-long rant AGAINST Christmas in song. Another chance to revisit Arrogant Worms, an Ontario college radio comedy group who has spun up a dozen albums of masterful genre-switching. Funny guys. Christmas Turkey is a 1997 album you should have by now. The all original songs give every year.

Do You Hear What I Hear? may be a clearing house for cool independent artists on the Mojo Land Recordings label. The album is blithely entitled Independent Christmas Music and loads up the fun. Listen and see.

Best of the haters goes to Benjamin Stuart Steele as ‘Rusty Cage’ with his “Christmas Knife Game Song.” Sharp guy. BLUE ALERT

MARCH 2019: Uh oh. It’s the sex act (all of them actually) as celebration within Xmas music. Or maybe just sex and it happens to be Christmas. Neill Kirby McMillan Jr. championed psychopunk cowbilly way back in the ’90s, like with his quintessential 1992 Horny Holidays. Mojo Nixon says, Get some.

Dr. Duke Tumatoe was a bluesman in REO Speedwagon but has spread his wings with the 2001 It’s Christmas. Blues in the service of humor. Now that‘s Christmas.

My carnal choice from the month goes something like Matt Mullholland’s 13-year-old idea brought to fruition when he’s finally something of a New Zealand web musical sensation. Sing along to “O Holy Night”! Naughtiness!

APRIL 2019: Uh oh again. Now it’s the F-word as decoration for Christmas music. Time for some fun with Bowling for Soup, pop punkers from Texas known for cartoon theme songs. Their double EPs from 2011 were known as Merry Flippin’ Christmas Vol. 1, and Vol. 2. Colorful, chaotic, cool. Even the covers. (And here’s our euphemism for the obscenity.)

I was drawn toward the songs that swore for the Lord. Youtube’s Mr. Elevator, Crudbump, serenades us with “Fuck You If You Don’t Like Christmas.” It’s illustrated and educational. Did you know about The Hat Store? Didn’t think so. EXTRA BLUE ALERT

MAY 2019: I thought myself so clever that i could dedicate a month to rerun all previous themes one-a-day into a ReduXmas. But, make no mistake, this was largely to include monsterously cool numbers from albums i had found the year before. Like J D McPherson’s socks, my oh my that collection is solid gold from big band song to jazz swing song. I even heard a cut playing at Kohls.

Holidelic was an odd duck for me. Everett Bradley is this cool cat who has a traveling funk-disco Xmas show in NY state every year and Holidelic: Rebooty is a compilation of their best. Not enough opportunities for me to wedge this spectacular showstopping stuff into my weird wardrobe of ideas, so i thought i’d gift you with the suggestion to check it out.

Sometimes the music video enhances the song experience to the point where i don’t know why the song was enjoyable by itself. “Christmastime for the Jews” was a 2005 TV Funhouse bit on Saturday Night Live. Darlene Love is barely audible and the black and white claymation is clumsy in its comedy. But the swinging R+B and NYC injoke rompiness overloads when stitched up together. (And… is it racist?)

JUNE 2019: Themes tumbled together around now. I should have done the idea of romantic heartbreak and splitting up around the holidays (Ex-mas was the title of many of these songs) right after the sex songs. But i’m not really that organized.

Trey Stone and The Ringers are an Ohio ‘billy rocker group with a sharp EP Sing About Christmas. It’s honky tonkin’ amazing. Fun fact: i added their song about wanting a divorce for Christmas because i noticed (a month late) that i hadn’t entered a post on that day in my blog and i had to scramble for one more aspect to breaking up.

Mr. Cork’s Totally Off The Wall Whacked Out Christmas Songs! is probably some self-published backroom amateur set of all original Xmas tunes. I can find out nothing about this ‘Mr. Cork.’ But thank God for the internet, or we’d never get this level of ‘adult’ oddity.

Andy Goldenberg has a rollicking Youtube channel full of fun songs (a few on a holiday album–which includes April Fools Day). But i dig his hyper jazz swing Jewish neurotic can’t-stop-talking “I’m Breaking Up with You for Christmas.” Run, girl.

JULY 2019: Then i fooled around with this strange ‘etc.’ mix of not-Christmas other-holiday songs which should have been paired with my war-on-Christmas theme i wouldn’t get to for another three months. But, i digress. Founding drummer of Blue Öyster Cult branched out to a sweet set of original songs as Albert & The Sleigh Riders with It’s Christmas… Again. Worth it.

Matt Farley goes by at least 70 different band names and can crank out a dozen songs a day. His word salad electric piano ramblings of a minute or so make him money out of his RI home studio. Tread carefully: here are 76 offerings from The Motern Media Holiday Singers with These are Great! Holiday Songs! (including National Bird Day, Singles Awareness Day, Leap Day… and more!) (The guy lives on Wikipedia.)

Brit gamer Youtube original songwright, Dan Bull, has gone to the trouble to white-rap the other notable events of December the twenty-fifth. “Non-Christmas Song” doesn’t exactly start the fire, or try to fight it. Listing! It’s a Christmas tradition!

AUGUST 2019: A Family Christmas says it all, doesn’t it? Okay, every family has its problems. Ask Dostoyevsky, ask Faulkner, ask your mother…. Love/hate adulate/ignore hug/sneer…. exhausting. Christmas Queens albums (1, 2, 3) offer pop takes from dragsters about life, lust, and dealing with it. With panache. Or elan. Or whatever. (Mostly takes on traditional carols, but some outlandish originals to look out for.)

Holidaze in Lumania from Barnes and Barnes is that eccentric absurdist humor you seem pretty cool to larf at while no one else knows what the hell is going on. Norms beware.

Time for something sweet and sentimental. A Silent Film has a darling hand drawn bit o’ nostalgia with “Christmas at Our House.” Awww-together now.

SEPTEMBER 2019: So many novelty numbers for Mrs. Santa, our dependent Claus. Albums to get: The Quinto Sisters Holly Jolly Christmas (1964). The Bobs Too Many Santas (1996). Three Day Threshold & Summer Villains Christmas & Holiday Songs, Vol. 1 (2008). Eddie Florano Christmas Here There and Everywhere (2007). Emmy the Great (and Tim Wheeler) This is Christmas (2011). Collect and trade.

But take a moment for “Surabaya-Santa” from Soshana Bean. Just, give it a chance. Seriously. Ridiculously even.

OCTOBER 2019: Songs defending and debunking The War on Christmas, wherein somebody out there is trying to stop yuletide celebrations of all kinds. It’s not the Grinch… it’s not the Communists (although i gave them a shout out)… it’s your neighbors! Spy on ’em for me and report back, there’s a good lad.

Lauren Mayer is the liberal (Jewish) commentator Mark Russel stopped being. Her album If My Uterus was a Gun and Other Musical Rants from the News leans all over the show tune winketty-wink humor. Rimshot. (For the more discerning patron, right this way to Latkes, Shmatkes! her all-Chanukah lounge-act comedy parodies.)

Roy Zimmerman’s 2005 Peacenick Album is a must-have staple of leftist satire. This Dr. Demento regular has an occasional musical revue of his political punditry in San Jose. Artistry is folk-based, but this be professional humorism, gang.

‘Kirk Cameron’s Saving Christmas’ was an actual movie in 2014 discrediting all the ‘myths’ of pagan antecedents becoming the Christmas Holiday (the film earned the lowest score ever received on Rotten Tomatoes). Taylor Ferrera is a NYC folkster who schoolhouserocks the irony of this nonsense in “Pagans Stole Christmas from Christians.” Cry Holiday and let slip the eggnogs of war!

NOVEMBER 2019: Finally a happy theme for a month of novelty: PA-HA-AR-TAY! Party albums include Karling Abbeygate’s goth rockabilly uninhibited wildness, Christmas with Karling. It goofs, it soars, it swings.

Have you met my friend, Rudy Casoni? Our favorite Sinatra impersonator doesn’t cover the Chairman’s hits, but mocks the sexism, alcoholism, and mob connections with original lounge tunes all holiday-tinted in ‘Sno Balls, a reference that there‘s no balls like his. This rat packs more comedy into a song than a Dean Martin roast.

The NYC funny white gang of songsters Fortress of Attitude range genre and humor stylings far and wide. Something for everyone in Bigger Than Santa: 12 Christmas Songs in 12 Christmas Days, an excellent example of ha-ha-ha-ism. This is my way of introducing my fave-o party song “New Years Steve,” a 1980s soft anthem of crazy roof-raising. Not exactly Xmas, but the wonderful rhymes just keep coming. (Ha, Aleve, ha ha.)

DECEMBER 2019: Guilty pleasure, sometimes i peek at those evolution-of-dance Youtube videos where the cast segue from waltz to Charleston to sockhop, well you get the idea. I thought i’d try that with the history of technology to communicate Christmas cheer. Certes, there are more examples of such than songs about it. And many of these are amateurs (with flair).

The Mangles’ EP album of last year Mangle Bell Rock deserves a twirl. Thoughtful alt, ‘billy, and more. Novelty approved!

Sam Wineman is a director musician social justice warrior. If you donate to AIDS/LifeCycle you’ll get his album Right in My Christmas. It’ll make your apparel (& your Xmas) gayer. All original, self deprecating, tongue-in-cheek.

It’s been a dark year, so we’ll end the holy day with the nihilstic downer “Nuclear Xmas” by GOOP. Deal with it.

After a year of research and devilment, i like to take a mo and hit him with a hammer. Nyuck nyuck nyuck.

Rather than simply Top Tenning it, however, let me stack up the discoveries i’ve made over the last eighteen score posts. I can hardly believe i still stumble across novel new noisemakers everyone and their dog should hearken to. (*Hint: the word ‘album’ might link you to a Youtube playlist to listen to.)

Parodies’ Paradise: Sure there’s reliable Bob Rivers, noel Joel Kopischke, literal The ’60s Invasion and also hand-ringing The Mistletones (the last two with one powerhouse album apiece), oh–and the holy ApologetiX (for the coolest Christian retreads of the most sinful rock ‘n’ roll). But this year i bumped into Balderdash and Humbug. Their 55 Days of Christmas album has some gnarly new stuff on board. Thanks, guys.

As a gift to you, let’s revisit just about my favorite video from last year, Jason Bojangals’s “‘Blank Space’ ‘Home Alone’ Parody.” ‘Home Alone’ is a Christmas movie, right? It’s just so sociopathic! (Like Ms. Swift!)

Snow Business: While fooling around with songs about freezing cold precip, i was winded by Piedmont Songbag’s “Roger, It’s Snowing.” This Greensboro bunch a’ bubbas sound like the fun-lovininest likeable lugs to smack around a Christmas novelty song as ever blew down the flu. Tragically, their bassist died of a sudden this year. Please buy their album Try & Spread Some Cheer. Iffen you no like it, give it to me. What i’ve sampled is SO COOL, i will reference their work more and more. (Honestly, i don’t buy any of these masterpieces. Hint, hint.)

Anthropomorphic Snow Sculpture: Shark Uppercut out of nowhere broadsided me with their After the Fall (A Holiday Album). This electronic mess is hands down hilarious and offensively random. If you’re angry and think irony is stupid, go for it. (Sample 25 Days of Jesse, and also the instrumental electronica Robots Call It Christmas. Then you’ll know.)

But, i have to repeat InsideOut A cappella’s “In the Sun They Melted II.” This is their parody sequel, son. Check out the original, if you have the time. (No cool exclusively CHRISTMAS album from these kidsong singers.)

Tree-mendous Holiday Fun: A couple albums to investigate… Austin’s pretty-farout-sounding boys Watch Out for Rockets have an album, 13 Days of Xmas (Bandcamp offered it for freakin’ free). Eclectic energy.

The Hipwaders are overly talented kidsmusic men. Their album A Kindie Christmas merits more than the usual juvenile consideration. Find it. Play it. Play with it.

These overshadow the notorious Dr. BLT (Dr. Bruce L. Thiessen) and the prodigious number of odd songs he’s been rock-country-reggae-ska-folk-ing up in new volumes (Candy Cane Lanes) (album 1) (album 2) (album 3) (album 4) since 2015. Plus a kid’s album Hollotajolly, and an adult party album holottholly. Great googly, dude’s overachieving!

But, love goes to Parry Gripp, cartoon theme writer, jingle impersonator, and overall kookie genius. His Christmas songs are individual sensations, so i can’t grab ’em by the album. But look them over. Laugh, cry, covet…. Go ‘head.

Presents of Mine: Train guitarist Jerry Becker has an oddly B’way-ish album of Xmas imagining, Holidayzed. It appeals to the musical and the mayhem inside of me.

Lil Poverty Angels have one of those word jazz improv hip hop kind of nonsensical offerings, an album with 30 songs about a minute each. Christmas Cookies and Government Cheese. Don’t love it, but do respect it.

Angry Johnny and The Killbillies has an ammo-centric album Bang Bang Baby Bang Bang Merry Christmas. But i mostly dig “Christmas Shopping” on it.

As Seen on TV: Coupla bloggers caught my attention for this month, those people who relentlessly, exhaustively, OCD-ily obsess over their hobbies. Joanna Wilson’s “Tis the Season TV” channel on Facebook will describe, evaluate, and link you to oh so many holiday specials and movies and series. She has published books on it. I find her to be an easy touch for cheesebally sentimental value.

The big win here is “A Cartoon Christmas” blogsite. I don’t know the people involved, but i am in awe of how schizo cranky/besotted (t)he(y) are. This is brilliant, if microscopic, analysis of 20th C animation, from the Rambo cartoons to Rankin and Bass. And the breezy wit and casual rage make me a believer. I stole whatever i could from here.

As a chance to revisit old TV shows something caught at me… it was the ancient ‘Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol’ and the songs therein. That was a show and and a half for kids. Meanness redressed, chances seconded, and fun tunes, like “The Lord’s Bright Blessing (Razzleberry Dressing).” Aww.

Sing a Song of Singing Songs:

Canadian guitarist par excellence Wendell Ferguson is much originally funnier than i would’ve given credit to. His album Wendell Ferguson’s Cranky Christmas will get more and more play from me. Damn that’s good. To measure his level of fingering genius, resample his “Why Does Every Christmas Song Have So Many Chords?”

Take a Card: Sticky Mittens is a novelty Christmas album that just won’t quit from Rochester professionals who gather throughout the year to jam original music. This is what America’s about, people! The pity about discovering Watkins & the Rapiers so late for me is that their songs shoulda been included in my previous posts about Subordinate Clauses (overworked elves), Tree-mendous Holiday Fun (Christmas lights), and Santa Jobs (unemployed slacker). On my wavelength! Let’s remember them for “Don’t Expect a Christmas Card from Me.”

Don We Now: O, the sites i’ve seen– Arbor recordings are also NJites with a charity to help. Every year they corral local talent to pop up a musical album fundraiser. Mucho nuevo musica. My last visit to Bandcamp revealed their 18 volumes at “make offer” or “free download.” Holee molee. I just grabbed eight hours gratis. (Us limited incomers ain’t proud.)

The “Something Awful” people have a website [founded by Richard Charles Kyanka 1999] of various victorious vituperations, but they do sponsor a contest annually for nasty noeling. They’ve got seven volumes of several discs each. Gah, i can’t access where i downloaded them FOR FREE earlier. Here’s the Bandcamp collection. I did buy a volume before i got lucky on their poorly supervised website sometime in November.

Gentler, kinder, Kaleb Withers also devises an Xmas disk each year full of parodies and nutty new stuff. This Perth WA team (with wife) is exceptional and makes me smile, but Amazon and itunes don’t know them much. Spotify will play them, but it was only Christmas Albums 5 & 6 posted on Youtube that tipped me off. I guess you can buy their stuff on Reverbnation. I’ll update when i discover otherwise.

Finally, Rhett & Link have a talented Youtube channel full of novelty songs and other crazy boy pranks. Well, i fell hard for their series of Christmas self decoration songs starting with “Christmas Sweatz.” Click on the cues for the sequels “Christmas Face” and “Christmas Booty” if you dare.

So, God, if you love Xmas so much, why don’t you Mary it?!

Another year over and what have we learned? Nothing! Comedy is the antidote to learning, it reinforces tropes without adding new info. Wit on the other hand can trigger many emotions. Let’s roller coaster through last year!

A year ago December i took on listing, and wanting, and asking for Christmas. My favorite, reeking of childish torment and maudlin nostalgia comes from Heywood Banks: “Dearest Mr. Santa Claus.” (fyi-‘Uncle Wiggily’ is a board game) Heartstrings may be tugged!

Last January i took a hard look at American Christmassing in all its patriotic glory and cheap shot criticism. The most delighted i got was with a ‘Hamilton’ all-out parody spotlighting Rudolph: thusly, Eclipse 6’s a cappella “Hamildolph”!!! You may believe a B’way in-joke can impress you.

For February it was a love fest of mistletoe songs. So i’ll settle for softcore. Sure we live in dangerous times of harassment and abuse of power, but the over-bleached, over-augmented, under-dressed twerker still has a place on the internet. Courtney ‘Cane’ Stodden coos “Mistletoe Bikini.”

March heralds in the other JC holiday, so we explored songs holy and lowly about Our Savior and his b.day. Oddest of all was the e-card from JibJab featuring Five-Toes, the two-tongued cat, a centurion cat on guitar, and an under-aged kitten chorus of dancers singing about what appropriate gift there might for the Son of God. “Power Drill for Jesus.”

Now begins my enormous culinary odyssey. April was all about Eating for Christmas in song. Most diet-inducing is the gut-wrenching peripeteia in Paul and Storm’s vaudeville bluegrass “Grandma’s Christmas Dinner.” Ugh.

Next were the sweet things of Christmas. Man oh man: candy canes, cookies, mince pies, the menu was inexhaustible. If i had to pick one, i’d go with the amazing (hoax-y) collection from Asche & Spencer writing for advertising co. Borders Perrin Norrander for the Oregon Lottery pitch for their fruitcake scratchoffs. Let’s just feature “Merry Christmas Fruitcake!”

After sweets came Christmas drinks. Mostly cocktails, though some cocoa and eggnog snuck in there. Of all the alcohol, the most uninhibited song came from Kevin Kline singing as Mr. Fischoeder from the Bob’s Burgers cartoon, a bastion of novelty music in itself.

July extended the drinking Christmas song game to getting drunk for the holidays. A tremendous amount of talent goes in to singing about this. Hard to narrow it down. Guess it’ll settle for comedy by way of Axis of Awesome. “Drunk at Christmas” laughs at, with, to, and from this serious social issue.

Ditto for drugs. The next month was Stoned for Xmas, and after all the pot songs, inappropriately addictable pop tunes, & sneering strung-out melodrama, i’d like to take a moment to reflect with Gregory Page via “Crack & Christmas.” This isn’t much about drug-induced states, but it delves into the mindset of those who need to. Depressing folk, okay–but relevant and moving.

My inspiration for September was celebrity toasting, inspired by Todd McHatton’s “Christmas Song for Harry Nilsson.” I heard of this guy from a cookie song he did and i had to buy his album sight unseen. Worth it.

Afterwards i noodled around the Youtube hunting down parodies of famous songs. One i almost missed was from Moneyshot Cosmonauts spoofing on Dark Side of the Moon and soothing my Pink Floyd needs with “North Side of the Pole: Part 4” (Don’t miss Parts 5 & 6, too). Maybe indulge in Part 2 as well if you’ve got black lights. (Other parts harder to come by.)

Damn that’s good.

By my calendar it’s the twenty-fifth of December. Time to reflect on what we’ve learned over the last year.

Some Xmas songs are wonderful.

Some Xmas songs are terrible.

But i don’t give much thought to the trouble of making the videos. Here are some of my favorite music videos over the last year…

Zissou Society don’t have much of a song with “Oh Shit, It’s Christmas,” but watch their collection of holiday commercials set to their salty celebration:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZAVmm74Qao

[edit: whoops, musta got a letter from Mickey Dees to pull that video. But in retrospect, i like the song. Just imagine 1970s TV going on…

]

Jeffrey Cannon uses borrowed cartoon and reinvigorates the old “Frumpy the Christmas Frog” so that kids of all generations may wonder WTF?

Here Come the Mummies like some dress up, but for “Secret Santa” they have gone beyond the pale for an homage to the old ‘Rudolph’ TV special, but this time with a stag party. That dentist elf’s got some moves! (Better video than song, sorry.)

Bret McKenzie goes electronica for “Electronic Santa” a dance video full of dance. I can dig it.

I keep listening to Big B and K David recite their “Christmas List, Yo.” But I’ve come to realize their video is active and energetic and teaches me cool new dance moves (‘swipe the credit card!’).

Keeping it funny… something called Verbatim Lyrics (this is old, old VHS stuff) used to play with MTV  videos and replace vapid lyrics with descriptions of what the people in the mini-movies are doing. Here is George Michael’s “Last Christmas” sendup. Uh–Burn!

To balance the amusing with the angering, Poly Styrene plays pop on the punk sentiments of Christmas being the downfall of civilization with “Black Christmas.” Damn if it don’t make me want to dance to doomsday.

Do we have time for a quick science class power point? We do? Jay Livingston and Ray Evans make chemistry Christmassy with “Silver Balls.” Take notes.

While in the humor department, let’s pretend a song wallpapered with memes is a video. ‘Cuz i like “Play That Christmas Music White Boy.” I need to hear it one more time.

For a top ten finale, gotta get even dirtier (what we call a BLUE ALERT for you meddlin’ parent-types) with Jimmy Colorado and the Bronco Band (Bath Boys Comedy actually). These boys have parodied the classic country music video with their heart-warming “Christmas Shit.” I laugh every time (now you know that).