maycocksean
Rock n' Roll Doggie Band-aid
I love Christmas music. I only listen to it from Thanksgiving Day to New Years, but during that time I love it (the rest of the year it's a sacrilege if I hear it played!)
But Christmas music has been sorely abused in my opinion. We've got this radio station on our island that's been playing mostly Xmas tunes since Thanksgiving and I'd say 90% of what they play is horrible. Nauseatingly cheesy renditions of Christmas classics or some songwriters attempt at creating a "new" Christmas classic and failing miserably.
Which made me wonder, is there any such thing as truly GREAT Christmas music? The canon of classics is pretty limited so it's more a question of what can be done with reinterpreting a song that's been done "many times, many ways." And then there's the "new" Christmas song. Have you ever heard any that really kept the Christmas-y vibe, yet also broke new ground, lyrically and musically with new, QUALITY seasonal songs.
For me my favorite Christmas album ever is one of those CD's made just for a particular store. Best Buy's Acoustic Christmas. Just some unknowns from Minneapolis playing Christmas classics on acoustic guitars. It's gorgeous, warm, golden music and is the perfect thing to listen to late Christmas Eve actually early Christmas morning when everyone else has gone to bed and you're still up staring at the Christmas tree.
Oscar Peterson's Christmas album is quite good.
The Windham Hill label, home of new-agey soothing sounds which I can't bear for most of the year knows how to do Christmas right. "Guittars and Other Stringed Things" and "A Windham Hill Christmas" are both great.
I like all three Amy Grant Christmas albums--the last one is probably the best musically.
In terms of quality original Christmas music (i.e. the dangerous ground of "new" songs), I have yet to hear anything surpass the new tunes found on A City on A Hill Christmas.
So that's what I think. What about you?
But Christmas music has been sorely abused in my opinion. We've got this radio station on our island that's been playing mostly Xmas tunes since Thanksgiving and I'd say 90% of what they play is horrible. Nauseatingly cheesy renditions of Christmas classics or some songwriters attempt at creating a "new" Christmas classic and failing miserably.
Which made me wonder, is there any such thing as truly GREAT Christmas music? The canon of classics is pretty limited so it's more a question of what can be done with reinterpreting a song that's been done "many times, many ways." And then there's the "new" Christmas song. Have you ever heard any that really kept the Christmas-y vibe, yet also broke new ground, lyrically and musically with new, QUALITY seasonal songs.
For me my favorite Christmas album ever is one of those CD's made just for a particular store. Best Buy's Acoustic Christmas. Just some unknowns from Minneapolis playing Christmas classics on acoustic guitars. It's gorgeous, warm, golden music and is the perfect thing to listen to late Christmas Eve actually early Christmas morning when everyone else has gone to bed and you're still up staring at the Christmas tree.
Oscar Peterson's Christmas album is quite good.
The Windham Hill label, home of new-agey soothing sounds which I can't bear for most of the year knows how to do Christmas right. "Guittars and Other Stringed Things" and "A Windham Hill Christmas" are both great.
I like all three Amy Grant Christmas albums--the last one is probably the best musically.
In terms of quality original Christmas music (i.e. the dangerous ground of "new" songs), I have yet to hear anything surpass the new tunes found on A City on A Hill Christmas.
So that's what I think. What about you?