Christmas Songs

We’ve got a radio playing much of the time at our house, mostly listening to the ‘oldies’ that we grew up with in school. One of our local stations is dedicated to playing those great songs so my car radio and our kitchen radio is set to that station.

Every year, starting the Friday morning after Thanksgiving, that station switches to playing Christmas music, playing it 24/7 until December 26^th. So when I flipped the radio on the Friday after Thanksgiving, there it was…Christmas song after Christmas song…to get us in the mood for the upcoming holiday.

But by that Friday night, I realized there was one major problem…I’m pretty sure there are only about 62 or 63 Christmas songs…and by that night I think I had heard almost all of them, some I even heard different versions. Frosty the Snowman, Jingle Bells, Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree, Santa Baby, I’m Gettin’ Nuttin’ for Christmas, Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer, I Saw Mommy Kissin’ Santa Clause….what artist hasn’t made some version of these?

And then I have to figure out who is that singing this time? Is that Andy Williams or Perry Como singing “Happy Holidays”? They sound a lot alike. When I ask Cindy, “Is that Andy Williams or Perry Como?” she says “no, it’s Michael Buble”. Then another one comes on, “is that Mariah, Whitney, Amy Grant or Karen Carpenter?” or “is that Nat King Cole or Johnny Mathis?”

And are you telling me Elvis wanted to record Christmas songs? I’m guessing it was the Colonel TELLING him “you ARE making a Christmas album because I said so.

And Dean Martin? Christmas songs? Here’s how I’m guessing that conversation went:  

Manager - “Dean, you need to do a Christmas album.” 

Dean - “(Hic) I’m not doing no d**m Christmas album...(hic).

Manager -“But people love ‘em, it’ll make you a million bucks, easy.

Dean -“UH…when do we start?!”

My favorite? Bing Crosby singing I’ll Be Home for Christmas. I find the words very touching. That song was written in the 40s when hundreds of thousands of men were overseas fighting in World War II, many of them gone for years before coming back home…if they got home. And those final lyrics…”I’ll be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams”. I can only imagine the moms and dads at home around the radio, listening to that song with tears in their eyes, thinking of their son far away, imagining him singing that to them, hoping he was safe and indeed coming home soon.

My least favorite? And this is hard for me to say as many of you know I’m a long-time Beatles fan…but I really dislike Paul McCartney singing “Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time”. Yuck!

Well, by that Saturday evening, I’m pretty sure I’d heard all 63 songs and the 7 versions of some of them…so I found another oldies station. 

Ahhhhh! Sometimes, too much of a good thing…isn’t a good thing.

REMEMBER:

A rich life has nothing to do with money.

Be talkin’ to ya.

Dan