Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 24 - Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Originally penned for the musical "Meet Me in St. Louis" with Judy Garland, the kind of bleak "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" has long been one of my favorite holiday tunes, the cold melancholy of it all hitting me in just the right way.  Greg Dulli of The Afghan Whigs released a version about a week ago, and it is appropriately moody.  I've heard better versions (John Denver and Rowlf from The Muppets comes to mind), but this one will do just fine.  Watch the video below...and try to get some sleep tonight.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 23 - Peace on Earth / Little Drummer Boy

David Bowie's and Bing Crosby's "Peace on Earth / Little Drummer Boy" from "Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas" television special, a song and a pairing that still feels otherworldly to me.  Check out the bit from the show below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 22 - Merry Xmas Everybody

It's not quite on the same level as Wizzard's "I Wish it could Be Christmas Everyday" or T. Rex's "Christmas Bop," but i'll take my glam rock holiday songs were i can.  And so today, we've got Slade's "Merry Xmas Everybody."  Check it out below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 21 - My Favorite Things

I'm not really sure why "My Favorite Things" is considered a Christmas time song.  But it is, so we're going to listen to it.  Here's John Coltrane's version of the song from 1961.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 20 - Merry Christmas Baby

"Merry Christmas Baby" from Booker T. and The MG's, coming at you for day 20 of this ridiculous thing i do (that admittedly is getting more and more difficult to find new songs for).  Check it out below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 19 - Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis

Not actually a Christmas song per se, but the word "Christmas" is right there in the title...so we're going for it.  Listen to Tom Waits's "Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis" below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 18 - Carol of the Bells

Synth collective Retro Promenade occasionally put out Christmas themed compilations.  The one from 2015 featured synth wave artist Jaunter taking on "Carol of the Bells" with all the beeps and boops you could hope for.  Listen below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 17 - Silent Night / Lord, Can You Hear Me

Today, let's listen to The Flaming Lips melancholy version of Christmas staple, "Silent Night."  This version is particularly wonderful as the band kind of turns it into a medley, using Spiritualized's "Lord, Can You Hear Me" to play the song out.  Listen below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 16 - Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

Probably one of the weirdest pieces of pop culture ephemera to surface over the last few decades was the ascent of the California Raisins, a claymation marketing campaign that turned into something of a phenomenon, what with all the toys, and clothes, and cartoons, and useless crap, and stuff.  And i vividly remember watching the Christmas special when i was a kid.  Watch the raisins' (here voiced by The Temptations) sing a soulful "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" below...and remember how surreal the '80s were.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 15 - Blue Christmas

There was a time, almost 20 years ago, when i was a Bright Eyes devotee.  For a couple of albums and EPs and then catching them perform as an opener for Stephen Malkmus, Oberst and Co. pretty much had me hanging on every word, as pretentious and melodramatic as they could sometimes be.  And during that heyday, they recorded a Christmas album, called succinctly enough, "A Christmas Album."  Check out their (his?) version of "Blue Christmas" below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 14 - Someday at Christmas

It's kind of weird how 50+ years ago, pretty much every major artist turned out at least one Christmas album.  I guess some still do, but none of those really do it for me.  Anyway, here's Stevie Wonder's "Someday at Christmas" from the 1967 album of the same name.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 13 - The Christmas Song

Here's a little Jackson 5 for today's Sonic Advent Calendar.  I try not to go with the most obvious song a lot of the time, so let's listen to the guys' take on "The Christmas Song."

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 12 - Do You Hear What I Hear?

Much like The Flaming Lips, there is some kind of ever present, underlying joy in everything that The Polyphonic Spree does.  It's in their hearts and souls, and will forever be inescapable.  And that pretty much makes the chorale pop band a perfect fit for Christmas music.  Listen to their take on "Do You Hear What I Hear?" from their 2012 album "Holiday Dream" below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day Day 11 - Get Behind Me, Santa!

I go back and forth on Sufjan Stevens, generally from song to song, either finding him to be a brilliant pop artist or a totally insufferable drag.  At any rate, when he's on, he's on, and his Christmas set from 2006 is a lot of fun.  Listen to highlight "Get Behind Me, Santa!" below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 10 - Run Rudolph Run

In the three years i've been doing this Sonic Advent Calendar thing, i'm kind of surprised i haven't posted Chuck Berry's "Run Rudolph Run" yet.  So, i guess here we are.  Listen to the classic below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 9 - Get Down Santa

Have a funky Sunday with the holiday jam "Get Down Santa" from The Jive Turkeys.  Because i love you.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 8 - All I Want for Christmas Is You

Okay first off, i have to admit that i unironically love Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You."  It's kind of embarrassing really, but i just can't help myself.  That being said, covers of Carey's now holiday time staple are greatly appreciated.  And so we get Shannon and The Clams' 2010 jangly garage rock version of the tune for our Advent Calendar today.  Check it out below and love embarrassing things with no regret.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 7 - Santa Claus

Today we've got a crunchy little number from '60s garage rock band The Sonics.  I'm not 100% sure when "Santa Claus" was recorded, but it was featured as the B-side on a '90s issued 7" of the band's "Don't Believe in Christmas."  At any rate, it's awesome.  Listen below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 6 - Once Beyond Hopelessness

Okay, so i'm cheating a little bit with this one, the Flaming Lips' "Once Beyond Hopelessness" being more droning, experimental film score than Christmas song.  But it's from a movie they made called "Christmas on Mars," and the band has always seemed to gravitate towards the joy and sadness of the season, so i think it works.  Listen below.

Sonic Advent Calendar: Day 5 - Santa Baby

I don't ever want to hear an unkind word about Eartha Kitt.  She was hipper than any of us will ever be.  So let's listen to her 1953 hit "Santa Baby" below.