In listening to tons of holiday jams over the last couple of weeks, I've come to the conclusion that my favorite Christmas tune is "Charlie Brown Christmas" (I even did my own version of it to express my fandom). The song captures the excitement and mood of Christmas without a lot of sappy or antiquated lyrics.
What about you?
Posted by amira tharani (Member # 182) on :
Fairytale of New York, definitely!
Posted by romanylass (Member # 6306) on :
White Christmas
Posted by Chris Bridges (Member # 1138) on :
Weird Al's "The Night Santa Went Crazy"
Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
All I Want For Christmas Is a Real Good Tan
Kenny Chesney
Posted by Artemisia Tridentata (Member # 8746) on :
Forget the pop stuff. Veni, Veni (english words Oh Come, Oh Come Emanuel)
Posted by amira tharani (Member # 182) on :
Yes - I was tempted to go for that as well, Artemisia.
Posted by Rember (Member # 8273) on :
The Hallelujah Chorus
Posted by Artemisia Tridentata (Member # 8746) on :
The Hallelujah is an Easter tune. The show was written for Easter and is in two acts. First one; Birth, Second one; Death and Resurection. Hallelujah is in the second act. Sometimes in this country folks only do the first act at Christmas time and add one or two songs from the second. However, it is still an Easter Carol.
Posted by Silent E (Member # 8840) on :
The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting), but only as sung by Nat King Cole.
Posted by theCrowsWife (Member # 8302) on :
Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel is one of my favorite songs, but it's an Advent hymn.
For Christmas, I've always been fond of It Came Upon a Midnight Clear. Also, of course, Silent Night.
--Mel
Posted by aiua (Member # 7825) on :
Wizards of Winter by Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
Posted by kmbboots (Member # 8576) on :
"O Holy Night" - especially the last verse.
quote: Truly He taught us to love one another; His law is love and His Gospel is peace. Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother And in His Name all oppression shall cease.
Something to work towards.
All the verses of "It came Upon a Midnight Clear".
Posted by Architraz Warden (Member # 4285) on :
Carol of the Bells
Posted by advice for robots (Member # 2544) on :
Silent Night.
Posted by Rember (Member # 8273) on :
From Wikipedia: "Although the text is devoted to resurrection and salvation, and the work was conceived and first performed for Easter, it has become traditional since Handel's death to perform the Messiah oratorio during Advent, the preparatory period of the Christmas season, rather than at Easter. Christmas concerts often feature only the first section of Messiah plus the "Hallelujah" Chorus, although some ensembles like the Montréal Symphony Orchestra, Boston's Handel and Haydn Society, and New York's Musica Sacra feature the entire work as a Christmas concert."
Posted by solo (Member # 3148) on :
quote:Originally posted by David Bowles: In listening to tons of holiday jams over the last couple of weeks, I've come to the conclusion that my favorite Christmas tune is "Charlie Brown Christmas" (I even did my own version of it to express my fandom). The song captures the excitement and mood of Christmas without a lot of sappy or antiquated lyrics.
What about you?
I don't know what my favorite Christmas song is but I do really like your version of the Charlie Brown tune.
Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
DB: That one is one of my favorites and I really like your version. Nicely done.
The songs that stick in my head (and LOVE to sing) are:
- The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire) - Silent Night (sung simply and straight as written) - Do You Hear What I Hear (our band did an AWESOME version of this last Sunday)
Posted by Synesthesia (Member # 4774) on :
The Christmas Song sung ONLY by Nat King Cole
Posted by advice for robots (Member # 2544) on :
I also like God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen---jazz version. That song has the best bass line.
I also like Greensleeves. That's just a cool song.
Posted by breyerchic04 (Member # 6423) on :
Silent Night is my favorite "serious one" The charlie brown one has special meaning to me (I'll listen to your's soon DB) There's also something special about Let There be Peace on Earth, performed by people you know and respect (my old orchestra and Tim Noble Distinguished Professor of Music from IU.
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
"Veni, Veni" is one of my favorites, along with "Do you hear what I hear?"
I also like the Little Drummer Boy, as long as it isn't "jazzed up" with a beat, or band, or whatever. Simple, straight singing, with one drum (the one in the song).
Posted by Krankykat (Member # 2410) on :
A Chilly Charlie Brown Christmas is my new favorite.
It kind of reminds me of a young unjaded David hanging in the hood in South Texas on a warm Christmas morn.
Happy Holidays David Posted by Rember (Member # 8273) on :
DB, listening to your music made me feel I'd just returned from a great Christmas party!
Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
Funny, I like almost every version of The Christmas Song that I've heard. Sure, Nat King Cole's is the definitive one, but there are other excellent versions out there. It's just a great song.
My own version, for instance, sung in the shower or at odd moments throughout the year, is rather fetching.
Posted by EricJamesStone (Member # 5938) on :
"I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day"
Posted by Irami Osei-Frimpong (Member # 2229) on :
"O Holy Night" is superb, and I feel a need to mention "This Christmas," by Donny Hathaway as my Mom's favorite Christmas song.
Posted by Jeni (Member # 1454) on :
I second "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day." I love the lyrics.
Posted by calaban (Member # 2516) on :
I'll second Carol of the Bells.
Posted by kmbboots (Member # 8576) on :
I'll third "I Heard The Bells" That last verse is making me cry just thinking about it - especially now.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
Adeste Fidelis/ O Come, All Ye Faithful. Close second, Silent Night (which was originally in German and has been translated into something like 35 languages.)
Posted by Leonide (Member # 4157) on :
You know, i'm pretty sure (although not positive) that your what you call The Charlie Brown Christmas song is actually called "Linus and Lucy", and is a more generic Peanuts tune, and not Christmas-centric. Although of course everyone equates it with Christmas because of the movie.
Actually, my vote would either be for "Chrismastime is Here" from A Charlie Brown Christmas or "The Christmas Song" sung by Nat King Cole.
Posted by seespot (Member # 7388) on :
Gesu Bambino
Posted by ReikoDemosthenes (Member # 6218) on :
Snoopy's Christmas, by the Royal Guardsmen
Posted by Cashew (Member # 6023) on :
The Christmas Song (Nat King Cole, but also the MoTabs) O Holy Night Silent Night
Posted by boogashaga (Member # 8881) on :
"Xmas bells, those Xmas bells Ringing through the land, Bringing peace to all the earth, And good will to man"
(chorus to Snoopy and the Red Barron's toast)
I have always enjoyed a special version of "Mary's Boy Child Jesus Christ." NOT the version by Harry Bellefonte, but a version featuring a girl singer, I believe. It has a second part--like a medley-- with another song. Both are performed a tad quicker than the hit as recorded by Harry in the late 50s (almost like a "rock" beat and tempo). I have no idea who did the recording and I haven't heard it for several years.
Another favorite would have to be the opening song in the movie "Toys," featuring Robin Williams. It is a song faeturing a "Xmas Tree" formation of singers and is supposed to be a student's Xmas program for their parents in the school auditorium. The whole idea and presentation of the number is great as the students AND the parents all get involved. Everybody should go to their local library and checkout this video and watch the opening sequence (especially before Xmas).
Sorry, I got carried away!
Posted by Tstorm (Member # 1871) on :
Trans-Siberian Orchestra -- Christmas Eve Sarajevo
It's based on Carol of the Bells, if you haven't heard it.
Posted by David Bowles (Member # 1021) on :
Carol of the Bells is awesome, too. Krank: sup, homie? Still schlepping it over with McAllen ISD?
I'd like a recording of Bob singing in the shower.
Audio only, of course.
Posted by Historian (Member # 8858) on :
quote:Originally posted by breyerchic04: Silent Night is my favorite "serious one"
Ah yes... but I don't think one can truely appreciate it until you've walked out in to cold Christamas Eve, where the sky is clear and the world gleams with moonlit sparkles off a snowy winterscape. All accented with glimmers of the aurora, crackling above. The silence becomes a presence, walking with you as your boots crunch with each step in the snow.
The trouble with growing up in the middle of Alaska...
You miss those silent nights...
quote:Originally posted by boogashaga: Another favorite would have to be the opening song in the movie "Toys," featuring Robin Williams. It is a song faeturing a "Xmas Tree" formation of singers and is supposed to be a student's Xmas program for their parents in the school auditorium. The whole idea and presentation of the number is great as the students AND the parents all get involved.
Actually it's the Toy company's Christmas Party. The song is called "The Closing of the Year(Main Theme)".
[ December 23, 2005, 12:09 PM: Message edited by: Historian ]
Posted by Zeugma (Member # 6636) on :
Judy Garland's "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas".
Posted by ReikoDemosthenes (Member # 6218) on :
Oh, I forgot about "Mary's Boy Child", by Boney M! That's another one I've always liked.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
Posted by Wendybird (Member # 84) on :
I love "Mary's Boy Child" by Boney M... one of the best Christmas songs out there.
Posted by The Pixiest (Member # 1863) on :
"Christmas Time In Hell" from South Park.
But seriously, I'd be torn between The Carol of The Bells, and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.
Posted by punwit (Member # 6388) on :
I don't know about best of all time but certainly a personal favorite.
Posted by Jonathan Howard (Member # 6934) on :
quote: The Hallelujah Chorus
Händel? Naa... I'd go with the 5th movment of the Chrismas Orotorias (sp?) by Saint John Sebastian Bach.
How about "Come all Ye Faithful"? It's got a lovely tune which we (aka: family) adapt to the Song of Ascending Ps 12...6? on Saturdays adjacent to Christmas (return to Zion, etc). Last year it was perfect.
But one of my all-time favourite Christmas tunes is "Wache Dich mein Hertze Rein" (sp?) from the St Matthew's Passion.
Posted by Bokonon (Member # 480) on :
Adeste Fideles Silent Night We thre Kings
-Bok
Posted by Tinros (Member # 8328) on :
The Chipmunk Song.
Carol of the Bells.
O Holy Night.
Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24.
Scratch that last one, anything by TSO will do.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
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