Greatest Contemporary (rock and roll) Xmas songs
50s
http://digitaldreamdoor.nutsie.com/pages/best_Contemporary-Christmas-Songs.html
gullive...@yahoo.com
I find that a very reasonable list, but it loses credibility by
omitting the Pogues/Kirsty MacColl version of Fairytale of New York.
Mr. M
>The second Xmas list is up.
>
>http://digitaldreamdoor.nutsie.com/pages/best_Contemporary-Christmas-Songs.html
I really like "Last Christmas" by Wham - I never knew it was by them,
I always thought it was Boy George.
Mr. M
Chris S.
Here, the only version of "Please Come Home for Christmas" is by the
Eagles. Glad to see others find the Charles Brown version to be
superior.
Good list, Bruce...but I'd try to find a way to fit "Hard Candy
Christmas" by Dolly Parton and Merle Haggard's "If We Make it Through
December" somewhere.
50s
It's not my list, but I'll relay those suggestions to the editor.
Paul
good list. The only one I would have included is The Emotions What Do
The Lonely Do At Christmas from 1973... nice to see both versions of
the Temptations Silent Night mentioned even though I prefer the 1980
remake over the 1968 original.
A little surprised there's no Chipmunks on there but not a biggie.
50s
The Chipmunks are on the Traditional list:
http://digitaldreamdoor.nutsie.com/pages/best_Traditional-Christmas-Songs.html
I suggested not listing the 68 version of the temps, but I gues i was
wrong. The 1980 version is what made the song huge, but I guess some
people remember both versions.
Uni
I was surprised to see how scary they initially looked - not so
cartooninish!
Uni
DianeE
"Paul" <PFree...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:9ffd567d-2157-4d6f...@g7g2000yqa.googlegroups.com...
On Dec 20, 9:51 am, 50s <Savo...@aol.com> wrote:
> The second Xmas list is up.
>
> http://digitaldreamdoor.nutsie.com/pages/best_Contemporary-Christmas-...
good list. The only one I would have included is The Emotions What Do
The Lonely Do At Christmas from 1973...
-------------
That's a killer--I'd have included it too.
DianeE
50s
> Any list with non-obvious titles like Orbison's "Pretty Paper" and Croce's
> "It Doesn't Have To Be That Way" has to have some cred!
>
> I keep forgetting that "I Believe In Father Christmas" was credited only to
> Greg Lake because it's the last track on my Best of ELP CD. According to
> the Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of R&R though, it was included in ELP's
> Works, Vol. 2 album from 1977, so I guess you could also make a case for it
> being an ELP song proper.
The single came out in 1975. It's by Greg Lake. The fact that they
stuck it on some ELP collection does not in ny way then make it an ELP
song.
Chris S.
>
> I keep forgetting that "I Believe In Father Christmas" was credited only to
> Greg Lake because it's the last track on my Best of ELP CD. According to
> the Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of R&R though, it was included in ELP's
> Works, Vol. 2 album from 1977, so I guess you could also make a case for it
> being an ELP song proper.
>
> the season of its original release.
> --
I just finished writing about that song in my weekly blog. Lake
recorded it by himself as a solo effort in 1975, then ELP re-recorded
it as a group effort for Works, Vol. 2 two years later.
Christmas songs get very little respect on the charts because radio
stations only run them for a short period. When I used to work in
radio, someone (usually me) would get the box of Holiday CDs out of
the basement a few days before Thanksgiving, the music director would
print up the playlist/rotation, the dust would be blown off the discs
and they were placed in the studio. Thanksgiving night, the songs
would start playing: once an hour for a week, twice an hour for a
couple of weeks and played more often as December 25th approached. The
station would play a full schedule of Christmas music (sometimes as
canned programming) on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Then, on
December 26, the holiday music was placed back in the box, the station
would go back to its regular format as if the past month hadn't
happened...and I would have to carry the box back down to the basement
for storage for another 10 1/2 months.
The short "shelf life" of Christmas music is why Lake's song only
charted for 3 weeks. It's also why many 1970s classics like "Merry
Christmas Darling" by the Carpenters, Wings' "Wonderful Christmastime"
and the Jackson 5's take on "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" or "I Saw
Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" never charted at all. The exceptions to the
rule seem to be songs like Merle Haggard's "If We Make it Through
December" that aren't specifically Christmas songs. That hit #1
country and even reached the pop Top 40 in the winter of '73/'74.
Steven J. Nutella
Mr. M
few people here might like it, most probably won't. I once saw it
list on Gemm for about $50.00!
Mr. M
Scarlotti
Band Aid at #5??? Better get a bucket...
And where is Brian Setzer?
50s
> This one makes the Traditional list look rational.
>
> Band Aid at #5??? Better get a bucket...
I don't like it either, but as someone who is always saying that we
should go by what the public buys, that record is one of the biggest
selling singles of all time. It may very well be the biggest selling
contemporary Xmas single ever.
It sold 2,980,000 copies in the UK alone just in the year it was out.
Scarlotti
Pah! It only sold because all the MTV fans wanted to support the
charity. The mob of singers could have sung any old piece of garbage
and achieved the same sales .. in fact, that's just what they did.
Chris S.
U2 lead singer Bono's contribution: "Well, tonight thank God it's them
instead of you!"
I'm sure it was well-meaning but it never seems to come across that
way whenever I hear it.
Selling 3 million records in the UK alone is the equivalent of selling
20 million in the US. MTV-driven or not, that's a pretty sizable
number.
50s
> In article
> <876aeec2-e1f3-4c0c-aa2f-729ebd3b3...@r14g2000vbc.googlegroups.com>, 50s
> spoke too soon.
Okay, but that version is not on the list.
Your name
news:2f8da2ea-8995-406f...@t19g2000vbc.googlegroups.com:
> The second Xmas list is up.
>
> http://digitaldreamdoor.nutsie.com/pages/best_Contemporary-Christmas-So
> ngs.html
>
>
A great contemporary (actual rock!) Christmas song is "What Child Is This"
by Black Lab. It's a dark, heavy version of the old classic. You won't hear
it on radio unless the programmer has balls . . .
It's not my site, but you can hear it here.... be patient, it may take 30
seconds to load . . .
Ken Whiton
*-* In Article
<d019f909-b44c-4ae6...@z40g2000vba.googlegroups.com>,
*-* 50s wrote
*-* About Re: Greatest Contemporary (rock and roll) Xmas songs
> On Dec 20, 11:31 am, "Chris S." <chrisstufflestr...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>> On Dec 20, 10:51 am, 50s <Savo...@aol.com> wrote:
>>> The second Xmas list is up.
>>> http://digitaldreamdoor.nutsie.com/pages/best_Contemporary-Christmas-Songs.html
>> Here, the only version of "Please Come Home for Christmas" is by
>> the Eagles. Glad to see others find the Charles Brown version to be
>> superior.
>> Good list, Bruce...but I'd try to find a way to fit "Hard Candy
>> Christmas" by Dolly Parton and Merle Haggard's "If We Make it
>> Through December" somewhere.
> It's not my list, but I'll relay those suggestions to the editor.
"Edited By: Brett Alan". Is that the Brett A. Pasternack
(bret...@erols.com, bret...@gmail.com) who used to post to these
groups?
Ken Whiton
--
FIDO: 1:132/152
InterNet: kenw...@surfglobal.net.INVAL (remove the obvious to reply)
Joe
Stepping into Christmas. Did anyone cover that song? Was Christmas
Vacation originally by Mavis Staple?
50s
> *-* On Sun, 20 Dec 2009, at 08:51:27 -0800 (PST),
> *-* In Article
> *-* 50s wrote
> *-* About Re: Greatest Contemporary (rock and roll) Xmas songs
>
> > On Dec 20, 11:31 am, "Chris S." <chrisstufflestr...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> >> On Dec 20, 10:51 am, 50s <Savo...@aol.com> wrote:
> >>> The second Xmas list is up.
> >> Here, the only version of "Please Come Home for Christmas" is by
> >> the Eagles. Glad to see others find the Charles Brown version to be
> >> superior.
> >> Good list, Bruce...but I'd try to find a way to fit "Hard Candy
> >> Christmas" by Dolly Parton and Merle Haggard's "If We Make it
> >> Through December" somewhere.
> > It's not my list, but I'll relay those suggestions to the editor.
>
> "Edited By: Brett Alan". Is that the Brett A. Pasternack
> groups?
yes
Paul
The remake seems to be 'commonly' available on reissue 45(Motown
Yesteryear) too... it is always popping up on the Classics 45 website
BUT is always listed as the 1960's version even though it is clearly a
re-recording done specifically for the 1980 'Give Love At Christmas'
LP. I have emailed the webmaster and let him know of the difference in
both versions (2:55 vs 6:00, no spoken part vs spoken part) along with
catalog numbers and the original 'B' side of each single. If I
remember right, the 1960's version was part of a Motown Christmas LP
that was released in 1968 or there abouts... Hopefully he will
remember to change the listing the next time that record turns up.
BobbyM
The "Don't Forget the Motor City" website shows the following for the 60's
recording:
rec 11-Oct-68 ; produced by Norman Whitfield
27-Nov-68; 45 (M): Gordy G 7082 B
Dec-68; LP (S): Motown MS681 Merry Christmas From Motown
30-Oct-70; LP (S): Gordy GS951 The Temptations' Christmas Card
Nov-70; LP (S): Motown MS725 Christmas Gift 'Rap
23-Nov-92; CD (S): Motown 31453 0109-2 20 Christmas Classics
24-Oct-95; CD: Motown 31453 0433-2 A Motown Christmas Carol
23-Oct-00; CD: Spectrum 544 311 2 Christmas Celebration [ UK ]
04-Oct-05; CD (S): Singing Machine G8868 Motown Classics - Merry Christmas
Classics Vol. 18
04-Oct-05; CD (S): Singing Machine G8868 Motown Classics - Merry Christmas
Classics Vol. 18 [band track]
03-Oct-07; CD (M): Motown 174 317 7 The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 8 1968