C/D: Christmas music

search: leontyne price doing "we three kings of orient are"

in fact, here it is!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WhAQ1ckQEI

oh wow, beautiful

shameless self/friends promotion, this comp is great:

http://sartorialrecords.greedbag.com/buy/all-ready-for-the-25th/

This is not as great as its writeup, but it's still fun:

Finders Keepers sister label Cache Cache and X-Ray Pop's Doc Pilot inaugurate an ongoing collaboration to plunder the hidden depths of one of the most original and productive independent groups of the French DIY domestic synth pop/pocket punk funk/homemade tape scene with this cut AND paste Christmas cartridge of well loved and unknown festive interference spanning the first 20 years of the groups self-propelled anti-career. With a consistent omnipresence on European tape co-ops through the 80s and early 90s this troupe of battery operated cabaret cosmonauts combine duel French femme vox with alternating dreamy metronomic private pop or erratic pulsating cosmic rock via their Casio-to-cassette production line. A standout track on the lauded rare alternative funk compilation and sited as a closely guarded influence for the well informed X-Ray Pop are a group who are easy to scratch the surface but almost impossible to get the bottom of, with a warren of unexplored passages they truly are a band with musical gift that keeps on giving!

Precariously bridging gaps between Fontaine, Robeiro, Sunforest, Cluster, ESG, Williams and Currie, The Plastics, Weekend, Stereolab and faithful generations of adventurous continental Walkmans, this group sends a 9v current from Elli and Jacno to Elly and Rikkert and, if at all possible, provides pop punks equivalent of Vera Chytilova’s Daisies, maybe... Joyeux Noël!

I heard this for the first time tonight and teared up...unaccompanied makes it v haunting and tender

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mjlck_QX4Z8

Mall-store muzak was playing "Now That's What I Call Today's Christmas" earlier today. I was so miserable the entire time I was there. Serious-ass "destroy."

"Are there any K-Pop Christmas songs?" I wondered. Of course there are - most of what I've found are insipid, but this is cute and nuts:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rET24WLL89Y

The National Jazz Trio of Scotland - God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

yeah this is really good! i saw them at cafe oto and as much as i like bill wells in general i wasn't 100% convinced by their takes on the christmas traditionals, but now that i have the recordings i'm coming around to them.

also as it's past uk midnight, merry christmas!

indeed merdy, backatcha, enjoy the seasonal excess !

so, am i the only person who likes the tim wheeler/emmy the great crimbo album ?

Merry Christmas, folks!

I put my mix up on Mixcloud: http://www.mixcloud.com/ialadnaes/christmas-2012/

my choir director sent us youtubes of poulenc's four christmas motets. so beautiful.

here's videntes stellam:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hy1PTnYnRMM

definitely too early to start with this, but it has happened.

I had a blast of it the other week.

i have been secretly listening to the christmas fm station

i know it's too early but :D

Happened today for me, on the radio...I actually started, secretly, three weeks ago. Here and there. No playlists.

:)

Had my first encounter with Xmas music of 2013 tonight while shopping in a bookstore that had some horrible version of "Marshmallow World" playing over their speaker.

Christmas music can kiss my ass

In a Bleak Hindquarter

just the traffic passing by for this bloke...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHFdYYIaEIc

Christmas music is hard.

Tom Lehrer not mentioned once in this thread

"Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" is more of an Easter song, really.

Does anyone know about 80s Benelux electronic/industrial/ambient comps "Oscar's X-Mas Songs"?

http://www.discogs.com/Various-Oscars-X-mas-Carols-1984/release/504675
http://www.discogs.com/Various-Santa-Claus-Comes-Oscars-X-Mas-Carols-1985/release/794802
http://www.discogs.com/Various-Is-That-You-Santa-Claus-Oscars-X-Mas-Carols-Vol-3/release/793284

yesssss minimal wave christmas
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJvU0ub2fVg

John Zorn's A Dreamers Christmas
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1Mtoqt92Ek

my current favorite christmas albums:
-Louvin Brothers Christmas
-Ser Christemas - The Elizabethan Singers (Louis Halsey conductor)
really feeling trad carols at the moment

also finally was introduced to Aimee Mann's Christmas album and I looooooooove it

the new xmas album by the polyphonic spree is just gorgeous.

Christmas merengue/bachata/cumbia

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOddkg4YhRQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trX--P5cSoA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxroevObByU

not so hot on the polyphonic spree album tbh

This year's Christmas mix:

Batman - Christmas Carol Caper
Electric Jungle - Funky Funky Christmas
Banda Jaripera - Otra Vez Navidad
The Klezmonauts - Joy To The World
Kay Martin and Her Body Guards - I Know What You Want For Christmas
Joe Gibbs - Let X-Mas Catch You In A Good Mood
The Trashmen - Dancin' With Santa Claus
Little Eva and Big Dee Erwin - I Wish You A Merry Christmas
Lord Nelson - Party For Santa Claus
Pastor TL Barrett and The Youth For Christ Choir - Jingle Bells (Part 1)
Bert Jansch - Mary and Joseph
Margo Guryan - I Don't Intend To Spend Christmas Without You
Marlene Paul - I Wanna Spend Christmas With Elvis
Coldcut - Coldcut's Christmas Break
Lynne Richards - Christmas In Ireland
The Soulful Strings - Sleigh Ride
Magic In Threes - We Three Kings
Nazir Ali, Nahid Akhtar and Mehnaz - Happy Chrismis
Margie Joseph - Christmas Gift
Chucho Avellanet - Winter Wonderland
Jimmy Smith - God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
X Ray Pop - Fuzzy Christmas
The Everly Brothers - Christmas Eve Can Kill You
Mista E - Mista E Says Merr(e) Xmas And A Happ(e) New Year

http://www.mixcloud.com/ialadnaes/christmas-2013/

ilxor mackro alerted me to wprb, playing 25 straight hours of christmas punk rock and hiphop and weirdness. in hour 6 or 7 right now

ANYBODY ELSE GETTING EXCITED ABOUT CHRISTMAS YET? JUST ME?
whereas normal people are probably thinking of how their 2014 Top 10's are looking (well, normal music nerds), I am busy beefing up my Christmas song collection. For one, I love Christmas music, and two, my local newspaper here in Texas has a Christmas playlist competition I am yet to win, despite my pandering with the odd terrible Fabulous Thunderbirds track.
Anyway, I'm kind of treating this guy's WFMU playlists like the Stranded discography or something.
http://thehoundblog.blogspot.com/2008/12/x-mas-part-one.html

This year I will win!

I am always excited about Christmas! There's a lot of good stuff in that list. What's the competition about?

Or rather, how does it work?

the local newspaper here has a best Christmas playlist contest, judged by the staff on criteria like sequencing and originality. I guess.

here's the last one, they are a bit intermittent about it: http://www.austin360.com/news/entertainment/music/holiday-playlist-contest-2012-we-have-winners/nTXJg/

went christmas music foraging at my used record store & found THIS awesome euro time-life compilation
(I'm not gonna lie, I totally bought it just for Wizzard)

http://hitparade.ch/cdimag/-time_life_the_rock_collection_-_rock_christmas_a.jpg

CD 1:
1. Band Aid - Do They Know It's Christmas?
2. Elton John - Step Into Christmas
3. The Beach Boys - I'll Be Home For Christmas
4. Kate Bush - December Will Be Magic Again
5. David Essex - A Winter's Tale
6. Darts - White Christmas
7. Wham! - Last Christmas
8. The Pretenders - Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
9. Laura Nyro - Christmas In My Soul
10. Mud - Lonely This Christmas
11. Boney M. - Mary's Boy Child / Oh My Lord
12. Gary Glitter - Another Rock 'n' Roll Christmas

CD 2:
1. The Jets [UK] - Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree
2. Chris Rea - Driving Home For Christmas
3. Squeeze - Christmas Day
4. Shakin' Stevens - Blue Christmas
5. New Kids On The Block - The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire)
6. Wizzard - I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday
7. Greg Lake - I Believe In Father Christmas
8. The Weather Girls - Dear Santa (Bring Me A Man This Christmas)
9. Chris De Burgh - A Spaceman Came Travelling
10. Greedies - A Merry Jingle
11. Elvis Presley - Santa Claus Is Back In Town
12. Slade - Merry Xmas Everybody

http://hitparade.ch/compilation/Time-Life:-The-Rock-Collection-Rock-Christmas-105894

oh and this (I have the Have a Nice Day set, had no idea this existed!)

http://www.allmusic.com/album/have-a-nice-christmas-holiday-hits-of-the-70s-mw0000626272

http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/3/JPG_400/MI0001/505/MI0001505866.jpg?partner=allrovi.com

http://www.cherryred.co.uk/shopexd.asp?id=4901

^ Saint Etienne presents: Songs for a London Winter.

I'm groaning at the effortless predictability of that compilation. Tracklist, title, cover, sleevenotes, ad copy et al. all apparently created by a St Etienne compilation app.

Yeah, I can see that. It was posted in more of a "I wonder if this is of interest?" kind of way than as an endorsement.

Greg Lake - I Believe In Father Christmas

have a pretty low tolerance for Xmas pop, but enjoy hearing this

Dinah Washington's Ole Santa.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UMwfdY_90s

I love Chet Bakers' underrated as fuck Silent Nights. It is more like an album to commit suicide to, but still a wonderfully majestic shambles of a christmas album.

^^^OTM!

From the great Dust to Digital release, Where Will You Be Christmas Day?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBcJGIwy3Ns

some incredible advice in this

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-life/11258606/Cool-party-playlist-how-to-compile-the-ultimate-one.html