With Christmas just around the corner, classic Christmas movies are beginning to pop on television, families are putting colorful lights up around the house, and, best of all, that beloved Christmas music is playing everywhere we go.
Some snort at Christmas music, some might even put their hands over their ears and scream in agony every time they hear it, but if you’re anything like me and really tend to get into the Christmas spirit, you began listening to those songs back in November.
My favorite Christmas songs have to be those by the classic crooners. “The Christmas Song” by Nat King Cole, “White Christmas” by Bing Crosby, and “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” by Frank Sinatra all give me the warm winter chills. The soft, slow melodies remind me of Christmases from my childhood when I would listen to these songs with my family in a warm living room and drink hot cocoa around the Christmas tree, and their voices are so smooth; it’s the perfect music to listen to when you’re relaxing close to a fire place.
Little Saint Nick by the Beach Boys is high on my Christmas songs list as well. The band sang the song so well in harmony, and the catchy beat makes me want to dance in my living room with my favorite people. The same feelings are associated with the classic “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” by Brenda Lee and “A Holly Jolly Christmas” by Burl Ives that plays over and over again on the radio. Some may get sick of these songs, but since they’re so familiar and I know almost every word, how can I keep from singing along every time I hear them in my car on the radio?
Of course, I can’t leave out every song from the movie A Charlie Brown Christmas. I look forward to watching it on television every year, and nothing gets me into the Christmas spirit like the piano songs “O Tannenbaum”, “Christmas is Coming”, “The Christmas Song”, and “Hark, The Herald Angels Sing” sung by Charlie Brown and all his friends around the skimpy little Christmas tree. A Charlie Brown Christmas is definitely a childhood favorite since I’ve watched it with my dad every year since I was kid, and I hope to continue the tradition for many more Christmases to come.
On the more modern side, Sufjan Stevens’ album Songs for Christmas and She & Him’s album A Very She & Him Christmas are good to listen to if you’re sick of the ones played on the radio. Both bands did new versions of the classics, however Sufjan Stevens has a more electronic and eccentric vibe that doesn’t even sound very Christmasy at all, with very original versions of “Do You See What I See”, “Good King Wenceslas” and “Joy to the World”. She & Him do have the Christmas feel with Zooey Deschannel’s soft, smooth voice singing classics like “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas”, “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree”, and “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”.
So, even if you’re usually not into Christmas music, give it a try this year. Maybe you’ll come to find that it’s just what you need to really get you into the Christmas spirit.
