Year-round Yuletide oddities
Faith Hill’s first single from her album, Faith became a crossover single… #1 on the U.S. and Canadian country charts… reaching Top 10 on the US pop and Adult Contemporary charts, as well as Top Ten in Australia and Top 20 in the United Kingdom… nominated for two Grammy Awards… became the soundtrack for the 1998 movie ‘Practical Magic.’
Cledus T. Judd takes on this fairy number with “Christmas” showing his hillbilly wit.
This became Dion’s biggest hit…the world’s best-selling single of 1998… one of the best-selling singles of all time… considered to be Dion’s signature song… included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts… worldwide sales estimated at 18 million copies… became the second best selling single by a female artist in history and the eighth overall.
Christine Aziz does the impersonation hotel comedy gig to great effect with the Santa ballad “Christmas Spoof of ‘My Heart will Go on’.”
Blackstreet’s hot hit reached number one on the BillboardHot 100… also in New Zealand… number nine in the United Kingdom… ended ‘Macarena”s 14-week reign atop the Billboard Hot 100… ranked at number 91 on Rolling Stone and MTV: 100 Greatest Pop Songs… ranked at #32 on VH1’s 100 Greatest Songs of the ’90s… sold 1.6 million copies in 1996… won the 1998 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals… nominated for Grammy Award for Best R&B Song.
The positivism lifted up Axiom to one of these rare Christmas parodies that preaches gospel rather than sasses secular. “So Christmassy” is classy and talented. Testify to the ‘eve.
Coolio (featuring singer L.V.) released this wonder on his eponymous album sampling the chorus and instrumentation of Stevie Wonder’s 1976 song “Pastime Paradise”… was listed at number 85 on Billboard’s Greatest Songs of All-Time… number one biggest selling single of 1995 on U.S. Billboard… In 2008, it was ranked number 38 on VH1’s 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop… was awarded a Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance… two MTV Video Music Award’s for Best Rap Video and for Best Video from a Film and a Billboard Music Award for the song/album… was voted as the best single of the year in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics poll… sold over 5 million copies in the United States, United Kingdom and Germany alone, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time.
Justin Snodgrass goes the road less creative with “Christmas Paradise.” Elf life, chipmunk voice.
Kate Devin honors the wounded bird sad clown with “Christmas Single Life.” Poor her, heh heh.
The Swedish Ace of Base’s international hit… reached number two in the United Kingdom… and six non-consecutive weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States… became the top song on Billboard’s 1994 Year End Chart… the No. 1 song of 1994 according to Billboard magazine’s year-end charts… ranked at number 60 on The Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Songs for the first 50 years of the Hot 100 chart… received a nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance By a Group or Duo at the 1995 Grammy Awards.
N. Fla. comedy sketch troupe Awkward Silence Jax fill the void of the necessary Christmas parody with a smidge of ability in their “Spend.” This is all about the epiphany of angry holiday shopping–it gets pushy.
Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dogg from Dre’s debut solo album kicked out this first single from the album… reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100… also reached #1 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart… in the UK it reached #31… selected by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the 500 songs that shaped rock and roll… XXL magazine named it the top hip-hop song of the decade.
Pretty Funny Girl TV rocks the boat with “Nuthin’ But a Black Santa Thang.” Political powder keg humor!
Seattle’s grunge inventors Nirvana dropped this opening track and lead single from their second album… it propelled Nevermind to the top of the charts… marked as the point where alternative rock entered the mainstream… their biggest hit… reached number six on the Billboard Hot 100… high on music industry charts all around the world in 1991 and 1992… topped the Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics’ poll… won two MTV Video Music Awards for its music video… dubbed an “anthem for apathetic kids” of Generation X… one of the greatest songs in the history of rock music.
Chris Townsend does his annual bit with “Christmas Parody of ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit.'” Spirited.
Selahattin Yilmaz has posted a fragment of a nice parody, “Smells Like Christmas Spirit.” More would be better.
Jars of Clay makes the TD with “Smells Like Rudolph.” I’m here to introduce previously unmentioned pariodies, yet i’ve mentioned this one before. It’s so good i have to break rules and mention it again. Bangin’ cool.
Sir Mix-a-Lot caused controversy with his outspoken and blatantly sexual lyrics about women… debuted at number 75 on the Billboard Hot 100… hit number one twelve weeks later… spent five weeks at the top of the chart… the video was briefly banned by MTV… the second best-selling song in the US in 1992… sales of 2,392,000 physical copies that year… 2008, it was ranked number 17 on VH1’s 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop.
Christopher ‘The Notorious’ Barnes (Southern California’s Greatest Kids’ Magician) has a little “Santa Got Back” to get you in the giving mood.
Duncan G w/Brian get funky with “Santa Got Gifts.” Look at that package!
Vanilla Ices’ best know song was the B-side to his cover of “Play That Funky Music” (not initially successful). Disc jockey David Morales played it to success: the first hip hop single to top the Billboard Hot 100… topped the charts in Australia, Belgium, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom… came in fifth in VH1 and Blender‘s 2004 list of the ’50 Most Awesomely Bad Songs Ever.’
ApologetiX goes secular with a under-weatherized stranded car during a shopping spree (prayers resulting) in “Nice Iced Pavement.” Where’s the Christ, y’all?
MC Hammer’s signature song was the winner of the Best R&B Song and a Best Rap Solo Performance and the first rap song to be nominated for Record of the Year at the 33rd Annual Grammy Awards in 1991… and won the Best Rap Video and Best Dance Video at the 1990 MTV Video Music Awards… peaked at number one in the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and on the charts in several countries… hit no. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100… In 1999, MTV’s 100 Greatest Videos Ever Made ranked it at No. 71… October 2000, VH1’s “100 Greatest Dance Songs” rated it at No. 88… May 2001, VH1’s 100 Greatest Videos included it at No. 59… certified gold by 2008.
The Mistletones cover this comically with “Can’t Wrap This.” Pretty. Perhaps too pretty.
Leight Press has gotten most of the mileage from a masterful parody video by someone else. “Can’t Wrap This!” This one’s a keeper.