Head Tale

I’ve posted a lot of Christmas songs over the years, mostly as Music Monday posts, but I don’t think I’ve ever tried to make a list of my favourite Xmas songs, at least until now.

So what makes a great Christmas song in my mind?

Weirdly with how joyful the season is, my favourites mostly seem to all have a touch of melancholy or outright sadness – being alone, being down on your luck, feeling time passing you by.

Here’s my list (at least today):

1. “Fairytale of New York” – The Pogues
   – I’m not the only one.  This song was recently rated the #1 Christmas song of the 21st Century in the UK.
2. “Christmas Card From A Hooker In Minneapolis” – Tom Waits
   – People in the drunk tank and lying hookers and arguably two songs that don’t even have anything directly to do with Christmas except in passing, I may have missed the point of this list completely!
3. “White Wine in the Sun” – Tim Minchin
   A perfect song about being an atheist at Christmas – clever, funny and heartwarming all at once.
4. “I Wish It Could Be Christmas (Everyday)” – Roy Wood and Wizzard
   – I don’t think this song is as well known on this side of the pond but this is a song that will always remind me of my semester exchange to England in 1995 which ended just before Christmas.
5. “It’s Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home” – Darlene Love
   David Letterman was a curmudgeon but he still got Darlene to come on his show every year, from his earliest days until the end of his career, to perform this song.  And with good reason – what a great song!
6. “Merry Christmas From The Family” – Robert Earl Keen
   A hilarious song about the importance of family, RV parking and Marlboro Lights during the holidays.
7. “White Christmas” – Otis Redding
   I cannot listen to this song without seeing snow falling.
8. “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” – Elvis Presley
   The thought of a soldier remembering all the good things about Christmas and wishing he was home is topped by the kicker of a line “…if only in my dreams.”
9. “Merry Christmas Everybody” – Slade
   It feels like cheating to put two songs on the list that are so much a part of my semester in England but
10. “Last Christmas” – Wham!
    I know many find this song too poppy and/or formulaic but I still love it.

Anyhow, not a lot of “classics” on my list but I truly love them all.