The Best and the Worst of Christmas Music, 2007

[bluerose]

However, when it comes to extremely NON-traditional Christmas songs, I am quite saddened that I have yet to hear “Snoopy’s Christmas” by the Kingsmen (I think) this year. Love that song! .

I found it on youtube and it’s the Royal Guardsmen! I’m happy now!

But if I hear Jessica Simpson verbally maul “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” one more time… ugh!

 

[DaveBj]

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The one I hate the most: Santa Baby. Nuff said.

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I second the hate. Yuck!

 

[Lance]

Well, not all nutty songs are bad there is the beach boys “Sleigh Dear” which is quite clever, and I think its Pedro the Christmas donkey and cant forget the White Boomers.

Its just the mean ones that are no fun.

and Merry Christmas to all too!!!

It’s ‘Dominick the Christmas Donkey’, about a donkey pulling santa’s sleigh in Italy.

Best: “O Holy Night”
Worst: Any Christmas song by the Beatles
Worst of the worst: Paul McCartney’s “Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas”

 

[bluerose]

Ugh! Now Carrie Underwood is mangling “Do You Hear What I Hear?” It was bad enough having to endure Vanessa Williams’ version a dozen times a day, but now it’ll probably be six of Vanessa, six of Carrie (please God not twelve and twelve!)

Leave it alone, people! Bing Crosby sang it best!

 

[sallybranwyn]

Current least favorite (turn off the radio whenever I hear it!) is: Last Christmas. NOT a Christmas song. It is a throw-it-in your face broken romance song that happens to mention Christmas. Worst part about it: it actually has a catchy tune so it gets stuck in my head!

Tear. How could you turn this off? It’s WHAM! WHAM, I tell you!!!

 

[Auntie_A]

Ugh! Now Carrie Underwood is mangling “Do You Hear What I Hear?” It was bad enough having to endure Vanessa Williams’ version a dozen times a day, but now it’ll probably be six of Vanessa, six of Carrie (please God not twelve and twelve!)

Leave it alone, people! Bing Crosby sang it best!

Bing will always be the king of this song but Linda Eder does a very different version that justifies singing it again. She’s got a big gospel choir and a nice updated arrangement that gives me goosebumps and I don’t feel this way too easily with updated classics.

 

[Elizabeth_C]

Tear. How could you turn this off? It’s WHAM! WHAM, I tell you!!!

(regarding: Last Christmas)
As I said, it gets stuck in my head!!! And it really has nothing to do with Christmas!

However… my daughter’s Disney Christmas CD has Ashley Tisdale singing it. Somehow it’s not as obnoxious coming from a girl! Go figure!

And, on that cd, there is actually a very good version of Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree by Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus!

As for Do You Hear What I Hear, I haven’t heard Carrie singing it. I’m a big fan of hers, so who knows whether I will like it.

Also… I heard a version of Santa Baby by another Idol contestant: Kellie Pickler! It was actually kind of cute!

Elizabeth

 

[bluerose]

And, on that cd, there is actually a very good version of Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree by Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus!

As for Do You Hear What I Hear, I haven’t heard Carrie singing it. I’m a big fan of hers, so who knows whether I will like it.

Also… I heard a version of Santa Baby by another Idol contestant: Kellie Pickler! It was actually kind of cute!

Elizabeth

My 13-year-old son would probably love to hear Miley Cyrus singing “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (anyone but Jessica Simpson! Blech!)

And I HAVE heard the Kellie Pickler version of “Santa Baby”… sorry! Eartha Kitt did it best, that song will ALWAYS be hers!

 

[Elizabeth_C]

My 13-year-old son would probably love to hear Miley Cyrus singing “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (anyone but Jessica Simpson! Blech!)

And I HAVE heard the Kellie Pickler version of “Santa Baby”… sorry! Eartha Kitt did it best, that song will ALWAYS be hers!

I’m not sure who I have heard singing “Santa Baby”, so I will have to take your word on it. My husband found the Kellie Pickler version and downloaded it for me. I didn’t even recognize who was singing it.

Elizabeth

 

[DaveBj]

I heard a sad one on a country station day before yesterday. Normally I avoid country Christmas like the plague, but I left it on for a while and a u/i male (Jimmy Wayne?) was singing a song entitles “Paper Angels.” It took me half way thru the song to realize he was singing about the “Have you seen me?” pics of missing kids on mild cartons, posters, etc. Once I caught on to that, I started listening for real, and it got to me.

Lyrics are here:

azlyrics.com/lyrics/jimmywayne/paperangels.html

 

[Lapell]

My Best: Most Christmas Carols, whether original or arranged for a capella choirs or ensembles, or sometimes for choirs with orchestra–but then it depends!!! Also, works like Poulenc’s Quatre motets pour le temps de Noel, J.S. Bach’s Christmas Oratorio; Handel’s Messiah (in versions where the words are at least as important as the music and the dance tempo doesn’t seem like “the faster the better” and the vocalises are not too many so as to distract us from the text sung.

My worst: Handel’s Messiah versions where vocal virtuosity indulging in “vocalises” are distracting from the text and its meaning or the dance-like movement are taken so fast the singer has to sing the notes and the vocalises much more than the text, and when the orchestra sounds too bombastic! (I don’t know of other oratorios as freely treated by their interprets as this one, so I don’t know if there any)

 

[BradW]

12 Days parody: Twelve Pains is good, but my favorite is Alan Sherman’s Twelve Gifts of Christmas.

Parody song: Gotta love Walking Round in Womens Underwear. Not quite a parody, but carols reset to famous rock melodies, is by The Polish MuslimsYuletide Rock Opera

But my all-time favorite isn’t a song, but an album: The Virgin by Adrian Snell. Rock opera from the Annunciation through Simeon’s Nunc Dimitis.

As for worst… Nothing comes to mind immediately, and I don’t want to dredge up bad memories