The 12 Days of The Christmas Claylist, 2018 edition
I sift through all the really crappy Christmas music so you don’t have to!
Day One (Dec. 6/18) – “Sleigh Ride” by The Lost Fingers
This Quebec trio/sometimes quartet are amazing technically and loads o’ fun. Their whole thing is amazing covers done in the gypsy jazz style that nods to their namesake Django Reinhardt (who didn’t let the loss of a couple fingers in a fire slow down his guitar game). Special nod to vocalist Cyrille Aimee for her scatting chops.
Day Two (Dec 6/18) – “Christmas Time (Is Coming ‘Round Again)”
I’ve long said, “no one wants to hear your original Christmas song”. Sorry. You probably worked very hard on it. The reason so few new songs work at Christmas is precisely because they don’t feel like Christmas, a celebration built on the memory of traditions.
So I was delighted to be proven wrong with the Maverick’s new album, “Hey! Merry Christmas!”. Check it out. A whopping eight of it’s 10 tracks are new songs, and of those I’ve added five to the 3000+ tunes on my holiday playlist…a very big deal for a purist. “I Have Wanted You For Christmas” is wistful and sweet, “Santa Does” is a finger-poppin’ ode to the big man, and “Santa Wants To Take You for a Ride” is innuendo-fully dirty.
On “Christmas Time (Is Coming ‘Round Again)” Raul Malo and crew prove that all a new Christmas song needs is to do is sound and feel like a classic people already love.
John Legend’s new Christmas album is solid. First of all, props for playing with Bing Crosby’s classic album art:
Lots of couples have a song that’s “their song”. Fun fact: for my wife Anne and I, our song is ‘Baby, It’s Cold Outside”. It was even first dance at our wedding.
We started dating in late fall, and one night in early December Anne was at my condo. I said “I have to put on this song that totally reminds me of us”. When Baby, It’s Cold Outside started Anne didn’t know it (it wasn’t as well known then) but as we listened, we laughed because it was obvious the couple singing were totally into each other but both were being way too polite to say what they REALLY wanted. It was 100% exactly where our relationship was at that moment.
From then on, whenever it played, anywhere, we’d dance. When we finally decided to a Big-Band themed wedding, it was kind of perfect that our song was actually from the ’40s.
Imagine our surprise to find out that, in 2018, liking this song makes us one of the most despicable couples we, or you, know. Oh well. We’re still gonna dance to it.
BTW it’s a tough song to do well, so kudos to Darius and Sheryl one of the best versions ever.
Day 7 – (Dec 14/18) – “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” by Johnnyswim
Johnnyswim is the Nashville-based collaboration of singer-songwriters Abner Ramirez and Amanda Sudano (daughter of Donna Summer, no less!). They’re both pretty amazing singers and their 2014 Christmas EP is a smart collection of classic covers, each shifted about 10 degrees of normal. Juuuuust enough to keep them fresh and snappy 🙂
Day 8 – (Dec 17/18) – “Holly, Carol, Candy & Joy” by JD McPherson
I hadn’t heard of Mr. McPherson prior to finding his new Christmas album “Socks” this year, but I’m going to be doing some digging into his back catalogue. His whole vibe is rootsy 50’s rock’n’roll and aside from a voice that matches the genre perfectly and arrangements that snap, crackle, and pop, his songwriting is smart and funny. The wordplay in “Holly, Carol, Candy, & Joy” is on point, and the rest of the album does not disappoint. Highly recommended!
Day 9 (Dec. 18/18) – “The First Noel” by Marc Broussard
The reason some people say they hate Christmas music is a lack of variety, IMO. Keep your holiday playlist moving to different genres and moods and feelings. For me, that has to include a healthy dose of great Christmas carols. Carols are the actual hymns and although it’s great to tinker with them, I’m also a big fan when they’re played straight up with reverence and beauty (a function of my days in the church choir). Marc Broussard is a Louisiana fella who brings a touch of bayou soul to his excellent version of “The First Noel”.
Day 9 (Dec 19/18) – “My Favourite Things” – Tony Bennett
If you’ve been reading this list so far, you’ve picked up on a couple of things: variety AND tradition. There’s something about those classic artists of yesteryear that make them a must in a holiday collection: Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, Mel Torme, Andy Williams, Johnny Mathis, etc. all add the necessary ‘weight’ to Christmas listening. Today’s entry then, is Tony Bennett’s breezy, inspired version of “My Favourite Things”. On October 1, 1968, Anthony Benedetto stepped into the CBS 30th Street Studio in New York (considered by some in the music industry to have been the greatest recording studio in history) to lay down six tracks for ‘Snowfall,’ his upcoming Christmas album. This amazing big band arrangement, created and conducted by Robert Farnon, stands on top of the many, many recordings of this Sound Of Music staple. At 1:43, when Tony cries out “Music!” we get exactly what he’s excited about…