If you’ve been reading these for a minute, it may not strike you off the bat, but I am a bit of a sentimental softie. During the holiday season anyways. It’s the time of year where I take pause and find myself feeling quite thankful for those that are in my life rather than complaining about money, running out of whiskey, and some asshole who won’t turn right on a red light despite it being perfectly legal. I love this time of year. The lights, the gatherings, its all stuff that makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside.
My one complaint is the music. A lot of those old Christmas tracks are horribly depressing. Sure they may be joyous in concept, but the overall somber tones of the tracks make it pretty hard to get down with the holiday spirit. That is why every year I put together a hype up Xmas mix that really gets the party going. This week, we take a look at Christmas songs from bands that have either already been an Artist of The Week or are very worthy of the slot and will become future AOTWs. So now I present you with THE ARTIST OF THE WEEK: XMAS PLAYLIST.
1.    Merry Christmas Baby- Otis Redding
Otis Redding, a former AOTW legend pours his voice out on this track and what we end up with is a Christmas classic. Soul music sparks up any Yule log burning, so blast this and feel warm and bright during the chilly season.
2.    Christmas Treat- Julian Casablancas
Originally a classic Saturday night live bit that featured Fallon and Tracy Morgan, now turned into a killer Christmas anthem. The strokes were a great fucking band and Julian’s voice was a big part of their sound. Putting that voice on a Christmas party track is just going to be fucking dope. Eat your heart out Bing Crosby.
3.    Christmas In Hollis- Run DMC
Growing up my Mom had a Christmas CD that had a bunch of early 90’s artists doing Christmas songs. She would always skip the first track. Always. Without fail. Finally one day I spoke up. “Ma! Why you keep skipping the first song?” This was that first song. She had been holding out on me.
4.    Father Christmas- The Kinks
Deer Tick recently covered this opus on Conan. I had forgotten how great it is. It’s weird to have a punk group like The Kinks doing a Christmas track but when you break down the lyrics, it has a great message. Poor kids don’t want toys. They want cash. They will beat up a mall Santa in order to get it. This is a personal favorite of mine.
5.    Christmas Summer All Summer- Deer Tick
Who said Xmas had to take place in the snow? Considering I’ve spent the past few Christmases in St. Paul, MN I could really go for a Christmas in the sunshine. You never really get used to walking out the front door on Christmas morning and being greeted by
-10 degrees. The riffs are a throwback to some Chuck Berry style stuff and that is something I will never get enough of.
6.    Christmas Card From A Hooker- Tom Waits
This is just the best.
7.    Baby It’s Cold Outside- Zoey Deschanel & Leon Redbone
This is a classic Christmas song and Zoey’s silky smooth voice adds a new layer to it. Actually it isn’t exactly a layer, it just becomes way more rapey. Seriously…have you ever listened to this song? All this girl wants to do is go home. Meanwhile you got this douchebag trying to get her to stay by droppin a roofie into her cocktail. That’s messed up. She’s sleepy dude…just let her go home and catch some Z’s. You can see her tomorrow.
8.    Merry Muthaphuckkin Christmas- Eazy E
This song is just flat out insane. It kinda matches the insanity of my family Christmases. That is all.
9.    Santa Claus is Coming to Town- Bruce Springsteen
This is the quintessential Americana Christmas track. Ya got Little Stevie and Bruce just yelling about Santa Claus, Snow, Reindeer…the whole shebang. Anyone one who has had too much of that hard cider is sure to join in. You don’t need to know the words. It seems that Bruce barely knows them, so who cares? Just scream “Santa Claus is coming to town,” over and over again until everyone tells you that it’s time to stop and you should probably get a cab ride home.
10. Â Christmas In A Chinese Restaurant- Diamond Rugs
This is the god of all downer Christmas songs. You play this at the end of the party when it’s time to head home. I love the fact that Diamond Rugs only has one album and one of their eleven tracks is dedicated to a depressing Christmas dinner at a hole in the wall Chinese restaurant. It’s fucking great.