Everyone has a favorite Christmas song. If you're the traditional sort, you gravitate to the classic hymns sung (badly) at church services. If you are a baby boomer, The Beach Boys might be more to your liking. I'm a hybrid ~ I'll take one from Column A, a couple from Column B, and one or two from C.
Remakes (and they mainly are, after all) had better offer either a superb singer or a novel take. Originals are rare. It's hard to write a new Christmas song; trust me, I've tried.
A long, long time ago, I wrote this:
I been thinkin' 'bout a Christmas tree
I want one forty feet high
Is that unreasonable?
Well, so am I
I been thinkin' 'bout packages
With blue and silver bows
And I been thinkin'
A lot about mistletoe
Don't get me started
I'll drive you to tears
With my reminiscences
Through the years
About Christmas
By a roarin' fire
If you're gonna do it right
You gotta do it big
My philosophy of life
Pull all the stops out
And make a silent night
No indiscriminate songs of cheer
Nat King Cole is
Who I need to hear
Cuz it's Christmas
And it's a heady time
The folks who know
How to do it well
Always cry at the sound
Of a peelin' bell
They remember
The child inside
I been thinkin' 'bout a Christmas tree
I want one forty feet high
If that's unreasonable
Well, so am I
© Michelle Anderson
In retrospect, it's rather materialistic. No wonder our band never recorded it. I don't think it would catch on.
I would love to be able to write a classic pop Christmas song, but my brain unfortunately doesn't bend that way.
A song like this:
This is essentially a ripoff of Little Deuce Coupe, but I don't actually care:
Speaking of novel takes:
Marshmallow World (without the booze):
Marshmallow World with the booze ~ you be the judge:
I think Christmas should be about fun. The videos here are fun. There's no escaping the poignancy of missing home, but that's for another post.
Tonight let's be happy.