
Christmas is right around the corner, as I'm constantly reminded by the vast array of horrible Christmas songs and gaudy Christmas displays polluting the urban environment. I'm amazed and disgusted by the sheer amount of no-name and big-name performers cashing in on covering traditional Christmas songs, without any attempt at making a quality recording. Last year I posted a few Christmas songs that I thought were actually worthwhile, though they've since been lost in the internet ether. (If anybody wants me to share them again, just leave a comment).
It's come to my attention that one Christmas song is a bit more prurient than I had ever realized. People always mention "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" as being dirty, but "Santa Baby" is by far dirtier. (It's also despicably comsumeristic, which I thought was only a phenomenon that's come about in the last few decades.) But it's the overt sexuality that gets me on this song, with such lines as "come and trim my Christmas tree" and the constant pleading for Santa to "hurry down the chimney tonight". Dirty bird!
This is probably the most famous version, as sung by Eartha Kitt. It's funny how the coy and semi-conservative sexuality of music stars in the 50's and 60's is by far more appealing than the overtly desperate sexuality of the stars of today. All I can think of when I hear names like the Pussycat Dolls or Rihanna is a roaring case of the clap.
22 December 2009
Santa Baby
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Cole
at
9:10 PM
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Labels: Christmas, Eartha Kitt, video
24 December 2008
Christmas Jams 5
A twofer on this Christmas Eve:
The Walkmen - Christmas Party.mp3
This song is awesome, because it's a Christmas song sung by a guy and girl who sound drunk, singing about being drunk and singing a song at a Christmas party.
The Staple Singers - Who Took the Merry Out of Christmas.mp3
A classic soul track from the Staples Family.
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Cole and Emily
at
12:54 PM
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22 December 2008
Christmas Jams 4
I've always admired the Dismemberment Plan for making the music that they do, because it's pretty much unlike anything else. It's sort of punk, but not really, and it's arty, but not inaccessible. The music is a mix of weird, intelligent, funny, horribly depressing, and sometimes annoying. Here's a Christmas song of theirs that is none of the above really, but it's very catchy.
Dismemberment Plan - This Christmas.mp3
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Cole and Emily
at
2:46 PM
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Labels: Christmas, dismemberment plan
21 December 2008
Christmas Jams 3
Here's Of Montreal's take on Christmas consumerism.
Christmas Isn't Safe For Animals.mp3
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Cole and Emily
at
5:10 PM
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Labels: Christmas, indie pop, Of Montreal
19 December 2008
Christmas Jams 2
Slade gets into the Christmas spirit.
Slade - Merry Christmas Everybody.mp3
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Cole and Emily
at
9:23 AM
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17 December 2008
Christmas jams
Christmas music is a dichotomous affair. I think it's fair to say that the people who enjoy the classics/standards do so out of sentimentality, and not for quality of the music. I, for one, am sick of the classics, and I doubt I'm alone. Sentimentality and nostalgia are nice, but the quality of "We Three Kings" and "Jingle Bell Rock" far outweigh the pleasant memories I have of the songs. Then there are the newer Christmas songs. I was surprised to find out the sheer number of contemporary artists that have written songs about Christmas, whether they be funny, serious, arty, sad, or (surprise!) sentimental. Again, a lot of these songs are total garbage. From Paul McCartney's "Wonderful Christmas Time" to Bob Geldof's "Do They Know It's Christmas?" to Mariah Carey's cover of "All I Want For Christmas Is You", there's a lot of crap out there. All in all, the bulk of Christmas music is wholly terrible. There are a few gems around, and over the next week or so I'll post a few Christmas songs that I think are actually of merit for one reason or another.
-Cole
James Brown - Let's Make Christmas Mean Something This Year.mp3
Posted by
Cole and Emily
at
12:58 PM
1 comments
Labels: Christmas, James Brown, soul
