Top Christmas Covers: Songs that Rule the Yuletide

I think I said before that I love Christmas music. And I like making playlists, regardless of the season. So here’s my Christmas favorites list, for the holiday standards. Some artists have covered a particular song so well that they can be considered the definitive version. You probably can think of a couple now- songs that have been covered by everyone from Bing Crosby to Christina Aguilera, but in that broad range of artists, there are one or two who just own that song, and having any version besides theirs is just superfluous.

So here’s my list. I’ve imposed order via a few simple rules: 1) the song must be definitely about Christmas, Epiphany, or Channukah, no vague songs about “it’s the time of the season where people agree…blah blah blah.” Let’s not be coy, here. Plus, this list is intended to give some love to the beautiful hymns that aren’t on most radio stations’ holiday lists. 2) It should be considered a “standard” in that more than two people have covered it. That’s the only reason that half the list isn’t Trans-Siberian Orchestra. 3) The song should be a non-recent phenomenon. I’ll do a list later of favorite original holiday songs.

10) Nat King Cole, “The Christmas Song” – Nat King Cole, the first person you think of with this song.

9) Percy Faith and His Orchestra, “Hark the Herald Angels Sing”- Beautiful instrumental arrangement.

8) Bing Crosby, “Silver Bells”- Expect a fair amount of Bing on his list. The man’s voice was made for Christmas music. “Silver Bells” is one of those nice, anticipatory songs about Christmas. And unusually for a holiday song, this one focuses on the urban decorations. It may seem commercial, but I think it celebrates the feeling of community experienced throughout the Christmas season. Ever had one of those magic moments where everyone- everyone in the town square- stopped to listen to a beautiful carol and smiled? Then you know what this song is about.

7) Reba McEntire “Silent Night” – I just like her take on this classic.

6) Josh Groban, “O Holy Night”- Josh Groban really did an amazing job, here. “O Holy Night” is a demanding song, with its simple structure and climbs, and it’s really easy to mess it up. The high point is, of course, “Fall on your knees/ Oh hear the angel voices”…and Mr. Groban’s strong voice carries it beautifully.

5) Daughters of St. Paul, “Carol of the Bells”- It’s hard to find their version, but the Daughters of St. Paul do a traditional version with the different singing parts, tricky and beautiful.

4) Bing Crosby, “Do You Hear What I Hear?”- I think this song illustrates the main problem with most Christmas music: production. Tampering with the classics is tempting because 1) the songs are well-known, so it’s difficult to get noticed 2) most artists have very little talent outside their narrow range of genre and ability. To cover the artists’ defect (and make the song more noticeable) they rely on heavy amounts of mixing. You will not catch Bing Crosby out this way. Well, except his version of “Rudolph” (the less said, the better). And this song uses a very simple woodwind and chime arrangement as a backdrop for a powerful voice.

3) Twisted Sister “O Come All Ye Faithful”- Before you decide this is a joke, listen to the link. Passion always rates high with me, so the emphatic nature of this song gets me. I know they’re being silly, but this is such an infectious cover. No, not infectious like a disease. You know what I meant.

2) Perry Como, “Home For the Holidays”- Good song, very nice for the drive to visit friends and family.

1) Adeste Fideles- Bing Crosby- Of course! No collection is complete without the greatest Christmas artist (Mr. Crosby, folks) singing this hymn. Adeste Fideles is one of the oldest Christmas songs that I don’t have time to look up the history on.  

Well, I better run. New posts later!

Comments not working, and a Review

Argh! I would love to respond to comments, but for whatever reason, Google keeps telling me I don't have permission. This mystifies me. Anyway:
1) Yes, I love TSO. They are the definition of an instant classic. I want to see them although I have no idea when.
2) The St. Philomena design isn't meant to be a literal compass, but that was my inspiration. I was going to use it for a tattoo on my right shoulder blade, before I decided not to. Anyways.
3) More posts in a few days. I wanted to do a few top tens, for original Christmas songs, for covers of standard Christmas songs, and for obscure holiday movies.


Yesterday was lovely. I went for a walk in the park with my cousin's two dogs, and we watched Donovan's Reef at the house. It's a real rule-breaker of a holiday movie: it takes place in French Polynesia, quite a few years after World War II. John Wayne and Lee Marvin star in it, although Dorothy Lamour and Cesar Romero have prominent roles. John Wayne's character, Michael "Guns" Donovan, is having a normal birthday in the weeks before Christmas. At least, until proper Bostonian Emilia Dedham arrives, intent on gathering dirt on her father, (played by Ward Bond) who has recently inherited the lion's share of her family's shipping company. Guessing her intentions, John Wayne, Cesar Romero, and Lee Marvin are determined to hide her half-sisters and half-brother, passing them off as Donovan's for the duration of her holiday visit. The charade can only last so long, and the aftermath is where the heart is.

What I like about it:
1) Although it's not a slapstick yuckfest like National Lampoon, they have some great scenes. John Wayne and Lee Marvin have a magnificent brawl at the beginning of the movie- and there's an encounter with a group of Australian sailors that makes for some of memorable lines, especially when a belligerant Lee Marvin calls them limeys. For the record, that's a very dumb thing to say to an Aussie.

2) The focus isn't so much on the young kids at Christmas, as it is on the grown daughter's relationship with her father. This movie is very unapologetic about showing realistic relationships- that a disagreeable exterior can be an outer shell for vulnerability and wounded affection.

3) For a Christmastime movie, there's something refreshing about all the gorgeous South Pacific shots. Even more refreshing, this is a movie where there's very little in the way of over-used, over-thought Christmas cliches.

4) And when they do use a standard holiday trope, they do it very well- my favorite being the Christmas pageant at the local Church, where it's clear that some Vatican II extremist decided to do a "relevant translation" for the narration. Ahem: "And three kings came from the east: The King of Polynesia...the Emperor of China...and the Emperor of the United States of America." Lee Marvin enters in his normal sailor's striped shirt, but carrying an old-fashioned victrola and wearing a gold foil crown. Cesar Romero's reaction as he reads the script makes it even better.