Kevin's Watch

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 9:18 pm**

I have two albums that I highly recommend.
(I call them albums to confuse the kids.

)

Surprisingly they are both from Country Music artists but there's nothing about any of the songs that they sing that could be labels "country".
It's just great vocals and Christmas melody.

*********************
Vince Gill "Let there be peace on Earth"

It's just soft and sweet music and his voice perfectly matches the tone of the songs.

*********************
Martina McBride "White Christmas"

I can't recommend this one enough.
Her voice is just beautiful strong and clear and there's very little instrumentation to get in the way of it.
The best part of her singing is that it's classic.
By that I mean she makes no variation on the song.

And......the best part.......she can......HOLD A NOTE!
None of that horrible Mariah Carey vocal fluctuation at the end that is sadly too common in vocals today.

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 9:35 pm**

I've found that the Christmas music that most affects you is the music you heard in your home when you were a kid.

For example, Ray Conniff's Christmas album is a true classic.

In terms of individual titles, I am very moved by several songs, regardless of the artist. (But that's because I'm getting to be an old ditz, I think.) O Holy Night. Merry Little Christmas. Carol of the Bells.

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 10:04 pm**

I really am one of the humbugs when it comes to Christmas music. I guess because I tend to get sick of the same music over and over again unless there is something really to them that keep me coming back. And Christmas music in general is pretty one note, for the most part. If I never hear another standard rendition of "Jingle Bell Rock" or any of the other classics of Christmas, my life would be that much more full.

With that said, I love original Christmas songs. This is one I'm hoping to download this year, as I haven't heard it for years.

Jill Sobule
Merry Christmas from the Family

Mom got drunk and Dad got drunk at our Christmas party
We were drinking champagne punch and homemade eggnog
Little sister brought her new boyfriend
He was a Mexican
We didn't know what to think of him until he sang
Feliz Navidad, Feliz Navidad

Brother Ken brought his kids with him
The three from his first wife Lynn
And the two identical twins from his second wife Mary Neil
Of course he brought his new wife Kay
Who talks all about AA
Chain smoking while the stereo plays Noel, Noel
The First Noel

Cook the Turkey
Turn the ball game on
Mix margaritas when the eggnog's gone
Send somebody to the Quickpak Store
We need some ice and an extension cord
A can of bean dip and some Diet Rites
A box of tampons and some Marlboro Lights
Halleluja everybody say Cheese
Merry Christmas from the family

Fred and Rita drove from Harlingen
I can't remember how I'm kin to them
But when they tried to plug their motor home in
They blew our Christmas lights
Cousin David knew just what went wrong
So we all waited out on our front lawn
He threw a breaker and the lights came on
And we sang Silent Night, Silent Night, Oh Silent Night

Cook the turkey turn the ball game on
Make Bloody Mary's
Cause We All Want One!
Send somebody to the Stop 'N Go
We need some celery and a can of fake snow
A bag of lemons and some Diet Sprites
A box of tampons and some Salem Lights
Halleluja, everybody say cheese
Merry Christmas from the Family

Feliz Navidad

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 10:04 pm**

Best. Christmas. Song. Ever.

"Bah, humbug!" No, that's too strong
'Cause it is my favorite holiday
But all this year's been a busy blur
Don't think I have the energy

To add to my already mad rush
Just 'cause it's 'tis the season.
The perfect gift for me would be
Completions and connections left from

Last year, ski shop,
Encounter, most interesting.
Had his number but never the time
Most of '81 passed along those lines.

So deck those halls, trim those trees
Raise up cups of Christmas cheer,
I just need to catch my breath,
Christmas by myself this year.

Calendar picture, frozen landscape,
Chilled this room for twenty-four days,
Evergreens, sparkling snow
Get this winter over with!

Flashback to springtime, saw him again,
Would've been good to go for lunch,
Couldn't agree when we were both free,
We tried, we said we'd keep in touch.

Didn't, of course, 'til summertime,
Out to the beach to his boat could I join him?
No, this time it was me,
Sunburn in the third degree.

Now the calendar's just one page
And, of course, I am excited
Tonight's the night, but I've set my mind
Not to do too much about it.

Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!
But I think I'll miss this one this year.
Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!
But I think I'll miss this one this year.
Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!
But I think I'll miss this one this year.
Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!
But I think I'll miss this one this year.

Hardly dashing through the snow
Cause I bundled up too tight
Last minute have-to-do's
A few cards a few calls
'Cause it's r-s-v-p
No thanks, no party lights
It's Christmas Eve, gonna relax
Turned down all of my invites.

Last fall I had a night to myself,
Same guy called, halloween party,
Waited all night for him to show,
This time his car wouldn't go,

Forget it, it's cold, it's getting late,
Trudge on home to celebrate
In a quiet way, unwind
Doing Christmas right this time.

A&P has its pride in me
With the world's smallest turkey
Already in the oven, nice and hot
Oh damn! Guess what I forgot?

So on with the boots, back out in the snow
To the only all-night grocery,
When what to my wondering eyes should appear
In the line is that guy I've been chasing all year!

"I'm spending this one alone," he said.
"Need a break; this year's been crazy."
I said, "Me too, but why are you?
You mean you forgot cranberries too?"

Then suddenly we laughed and laughed
Caught on to what was happening
That Christmas magic's brought this tale
To a very happy ending! "

Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!
Couldn't miss this one this year!
Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!
Couldn't miss this one this year!

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 10:12 pm**

I suppose I should post the lyrics to the best Christmas song ever written. This could only been written by the Irish. Oh, and it is a duet, so MV is male voice, and FV is the female voice:

Fairytale of New York - The Pogues with Kristy MacColl

MV:
It was christmas eve babe
In the drunk tank
An old man said to me, wont see another one
And then he sang a song
The rare old mountain dew
I turned my face away
And dreamed about you

Got on a lucky one
Came in eighteen to one
Ive got a feeling
This years for me and you
So happy christmas
I love you baby
I can see a better time
When all our dreams come true

FV:
They've got cars big as bars
They've got rivers of gold
But the wind goes right through you
Its no place for the old
When you first took my hand
On a cold christmas eve
You promised me
Broadway was waiting for me

You were handsome
MV: You were pretty
Queen of new york city
Both: When the band finished playing
They howled out for more
Sinatra was swinging,
All the drunks they were singing
We kissed on a corner
Then danced through the night

The boys of the nypd choir
Were singing galway bay
And the bells were ringing out
For christmas day

FV: You're a bum
You're a punk
MV: You're an old slut on junk
Lying there almost dead on a drip in that bed
FV: You scumbag, you maggot
You cheap lousy faggot
Happy christmas your arse
I pray God its our last

MV: I could have been someone
FV: Well so could anyone
You took my dreams from me
When I first found you
MV: I kept them with me babe
I put them with my own
Cant make it all alone
I built my dreams around you

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 10:15 pm**

Yeah, that's a good one. Prolly the only Pogues song I can stand.

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 10:21 pm**

[rant on]
Totally off topic but it drives me crazy when people, in this this thread and others, post lyrics to songs and expect anyone to understand why they like the song BECAUSE WE CAN"T HEAR THE MUSIC!!!!

It's like asking everyone to post their favorite photograph and then receiving a detailed written description about it with no photo.
[rant off]

Ok, ok......I'm ok now.
Merry Christmas.

Cail you bastard, you didn't even name the song!

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 10:27 pm**

I think you just love having something to complain about....

It's The Waitresses, it's called Christmas Wrapping.

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 10:32 pm**

My favorite traditional carols are also favorites no matter who the vocalist is. I tend to really like Do you hear what I hear, and like Wayfriend, O Holy Night, and The Carol of the Bells (particularly when played by The Trans-Siberian Orchestra).

But, my all time favorite is the Ocala, Florida based Royal Guardsmen secular classic...

Snoopy's Chr-stmas (youtube) or
Snoopy's Chr-stmas (1.4 MB .wav)

O Tannenbaum, o Tannenbaum, [Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree]
du kannst mir sehr gefallen! [Of all the trees most lovely]

The news had come out in the First World War
The bloody Red Baron was flying once more
The Allied command ignored all of its men
And called on Snoopy to do it again.

Twas the night before Christmas, 40 below
When Snoopy went up in search of his foe
He spied the Red Baron, fiercely they fought
With ice on his wings Snoopy knew he was caught.

Christmas bells those Christmas bells
Ring out from the land
Asking peace of all the world
And good will to man

The Baron had Snoopy dead in his sights
He reached for the trigger to pull it up tight
Why he didn't shoot, well, we'll never know
Or was it the bells from the village below.

Christmas bells those Christmas bells
Ringing through the land
Bringing peace to all the world
And good will to man

The Baron made Snoopy fly to the Rhine
And forced him to land behind the enemy lines
Snoopy was certain that this was the end
When the Baron cried out, "Merry Christmas, my friend"

The Baron then offered a holiday toast
And Snoopy, our hero, saluted his host
And then with a roar they were both on their way
Each knowing they'd meet on some other day.

Christmas bells those Christmas bells
Ringing through the land
Bringing peace to all the world
And good will to man

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 10:42 pm**

Ach, the time of year to hear Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer 1000 times.....

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 10:46 pm**

That's one thing I like about Snoopy's Chr-stmas. I don't hear it played all that often anymore.

Posted: **Wed Nov 28, 2007 11:17 pm**

Cagliostro wrote:I suppose I should post the lyrics to the best Christmas song ever written. This could only been written by the Irish. Oh, and it is a duet, so MV is male voice, and FV is the female voice:

Fairytale of New York - The Pogues with Kristy MacColl

MV:
It was christmas eve babe
In the drunk tank
An old man said to me, wont see another one
And then he sang a song
The rare old mountain dew
I turned my face away
And dreamed about you

Got on a lucky one
Came in eighteen to one
Ive got a feeling
This years for me and you
So happy christmas
I love you baby
I can see a better time
When all our dreams come true

FV:
They've got cars big as bars
They've got rivers of gold
But the wind goes right through you
Its no place for the old
When you first took my hand
On a cold christmas eve
You promised me
Broadway was waiting for me

You were handsome
MV: You were pretty
Queen of new york city
Both: When the band finished playing
They howled out for more
Sinatra was swinging,
All the drunks they were singing
We kissed on a corner
Then danced through the night

The boys of the nypd choir
Were singing galway bay
And the bells were ringing out
For christmas day

FV: You're a bum
You're a punk
MV: You're an old slut on junk
Lying there almost dead on a drip in that bed
FV: You scumbag, you maggot
You cheap lousy faggot
Happy christmas your arse
I pray God its our last

MV: I could have been someone
FV: Well so could anyone
You took my dreams from me
When I first found you
MV: I kept them with me babe
I put them with my own
Cant make it all alone
I built my dreams around you

This has to be my favourite Christmas song each year too! Great choice

Here is the video clip for anyone who wishes to listen to it:

uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ltiY-BqvOIU

Posted: **Thu Nov 29, 2007 12:43 am**

High Lord Tolkien wrote:[rant on]
Totally off topic but it drives me crazy when people, in this this thread and others, post lyrics to songs and expect anyone to understand why they like the song BECAUSE WE CAN"T HEAR THE MUSIC!!!!

It's like asking everyone to post their favorite photograph and then receiving a detailed written description about it with no photo.
[rant off]

Ok, ok......I'm ok now.
Merry Christmas.

Cail you bastard, you didn't even name the song!

I think the lyrics can still be appreciated. And actually, I did read through the lyrics of Cail's song, thinking the lyrics sounded very familiar, but couldn't figure out a tune to go along with it. Now I find out it's that Waitresses song, the tune is totally in my head now, which in this case is a good thing. But I've never been able to catch the lyrics before, so it's cool to see that it actually is well written as well. It's a song I can hear every year and not get sick of. Probably because it hasn't been covered 50 million times.

Posted: **Thu Nov 29, 2007 1:00 am**

I get sick and tired of Christmas music really fast. But, WF is right that we tend to like the stuff we listened to when we were young. I'll always love the John Denver/Muppets Christmas Special. I also like funny songs, like "Grandma" referenced by Damelon above (although I'm sick of it by the 3rd time I hear it.) The Chipmunks "Christmas don't be late" reminds me of when I was little and it seemed like Christmas would never get here. Adam Sandler isn't funny 99% of the time, but the Hanukah song is absolutely hilarious!

Posted: **Thu Nov 29, 2007 4:50 am**

i'm sure you all know MY favorite xxxmas song!!

i'm afraid i'll get banned if i post the lyrics (sorry HLT)
so i'll just post this still from the video...

Posted: **Thu Nov 29, 2007 7:28 am**

Vince Guaraldi Trio - Linus and Lucy

www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmbY-tWOIiw

Posted: **Thu Nov 29, 2007 10:40 am**

Im partial to the Trans-siberian orchestra myself, and Carol of the Bells has always been and always will be my absolute favorite Christmass song.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=qu0uDp99w5o&feature=related

Posted: **Thu Nov 29, 2007 2:24 pm**

sgt.null wrote:Vince Guaraldi Trio - Linus and Lucy

www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmbY-tWOIiw

That whole album is great.
A little slow but if you're in the mood for it it's very relaxing.

Posted: **Thu Nov 29, 2007 2:49 pm**

O Holy Night has always been my favorite christmas song, followed by U2's Baby Please Come Home, and the Pretender's 2000 Miles. The funny ones I still like are the Kink's Father Christmas and Larry Norman's Christmastime. My favorite christmas cd is Elvis' Christmas Album.

Posted: **Thu Nov 29, 2007 2:54 pm**

Oh ... I also love every song in Rudoph the Rednose Reindeer...

I don't get sick of Xmas music, but I really don't get overloaded by it. Who pays attention to the muzak in stores? And I don't overdo it myself either ... I hold off until Xmas is almost here.

BTW, every year I try to add a good new Xmas CD to the collection ... so I like this thread. There's a lot of crappy music out there you gotta stay away from...

Kevin's Watch

Your favorite Christmas Albums or Songs

Your favorite Christmas Albums or Songs