BB Chronicles Echlectic Christmas Chollection 2010 (repost)
A unique mix of live and rare versions of Christmas, Winter, and Holiday Season songs from various artists.
Various recordings (FM, SBD, audience) of varying quality (mostly good to excellent)
mp3 @ 128 to 320 kbps
Here,
once again, is my compilation of some lesser-known holiday songs that I
put together a couple years ago. I'm reposting it again for the Holiday season for those that may not have already gotten it. I do have another somewhat different collection that I am also putting together, and I hope to have that ready to post later this week. But for now, here is my previous (but still very good) collection. Here are a few notes about the collection (also posted previously).
I put this together from various
versions and tracks I have compiled over the last several years. All of
the versions here are live, otherwise unreleased, or available as free
downloads, thus some of the versions are not the best quality (compared
to the commercial releases). But, I think it is a fun and entertaining
collection. I know there are many who are not that fond of Christmas
songs in general, and modern versions of the same traditional songs in
particular. But I happen to love the seasonal Christmas songs, and love
to hear new and different versions of old classics, as well as original
new Christmas-related songs. Thus, this collection features a mixture of
old and new songs, heartfelt and jovial, serious and silly, but most
probably by artists and versions you may not have heard before. Some of
these tracks have been included in various other well-dispersed
Christmas boots (Like Santa's Boots & Upon This Night), but
there are several others that are unique to this compilation. I have
purposely not included some of the more famous tracks & artists,
but have gone with lesser-known versions and other stuff that I really
like.
I start things
off with a couple by the wonderful Aimee Mann (from a radio broadcast
promoting her 2006 unconventional Christmas album, One More Drifter in
the Snow, and as you might expect from her, it's not the most cheery
Holiday album, but still very good), first a rather somber, but spirited
'God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman', followed by one of her own powerful
originals, 'Calling Mary'. Next up is one I consider a Christmas
Classic, but is not very well-known. It is the very beautiful, but
melancholy 'Christmas Face' by Fisher. I first heard this over 10 years
ago on the old mp3.com site, and it is just a gorgeous song. Fisher has
survived their entire career solely on internet sales of their music,
and they regularly offer their Christmas songs, including this one, for
free download at their website. This is a seasonal favorite at my house.
As good a start as those songs are, however, it was really time to
lighten things up, so who better to bring some fun to the Holidays but
The Barenaked Ladies, and their 'Jingle Bells' is a riot, perhaps the
best version of this song ever (It starts all slow, overly serious, and
pretentious, but then bursts into all out childish fun and glory, even
including the perennial grade school variation verse [you know, 'Batman
smells...' etc.]). Then things get even more ridiculous as Horatio Sanz
and his SNL buddies take the stage with their ultra-cheesy, yet somehow
cool, 'I Wish It was Christmas Today' taken from the original SNL
broadcast (This may have been Horatio Sanz' finest moment on SNL). Then
the 'Ladies are back with a clever and original ditty,'Elf's Lament'
(from their excellent 2004 Barenaked for the Holidays album), a twisted
take on a labor dispute at Santa's Workshop. Next, we return to somewhat
more traditional holiday fair with Marti Jones' version of 'Rockin
Around the Christmas Tree'. For those not familar with Marti, she was a
wonderful female vocalist who had a string of fine albums in the '90's
(Again, this is one of the best versions of this song I've heard). Then
there is Bruce Cockburn with a gritty 'Early on one Christmas Morn',
followed by Jackson Browne actually doing a cover of the little-known
Timbuk3 satirical holiday protest song 'All I Want For Christmas is
World Peace'. Next, is Steven Page (from BNL) in a fun duet with Rita
MacNeil (Canadian TV hostess?) from her TV show. Next is another
internet oldie, a song I discovered from the old mp3.com site over 10
years ago, a vocalist that went by the name C. Basinet doing 'Santa
Baby' (I don't know anything about her, or what happened to her after
this, but again, this is one of the best versions I have heard of this
song). Then we have slightly different versions of some traditional
songs done by Dave Alvin and Brian Setzer's Swing Orchestra, and a Greg
Lake solo version of ELP's 'I Believe in Father Christmas', followed by a
hilarious rebuttal by The Kinks, who have quite a different take on
'Father Christmas' (Unfortunately, the quality of this live version is
sub-par, but it was the only decent unofficial recording of this classic
I could find. If you have the original studio version, by all means
substitute it in place here). Next is a short Christmas ditty from Yo La
Tengo, a moving rendition of 'Please Come Home for Christmas' by Fiona
Apple, and Rick Danko's 'Christmas Must Be Tonight'. Another underrated
vocalist, Shawn Colvin, contributes a touching 'Merry Little Christmas',
followed by a beautiful, stirring version of Joni Mitchell's classic
'River'. The Christmas portion of the collection comes to a rousing
finish with Darlene Love's yearly revisit of 'Christmas (Please Come
Home)' for the David Letterman Show (this was the 2006 version) of what
has become a twenty-something-year TV holiday tradition. Then we move on
to New Year's as Dave Edmunds rings it in with Chuck Berry's 'Run
Rudolph Run' from an MTV NYE Bash (I think Edmunds studio version of
this song is THE definitive version, even better than Chuck's own). Then
Graham Parker gets serious and enlightens us about the 'New Year's
Revolution', a great and compelling song. And finally, we close the
whole thing out with a suitably austere and touching 'Auld Lang Syne' by
Fisher. Anyway, so there it is, hope you like it. Let me know what you
think of this compilation relative to other offbeat Christmas
collections out there.
Hope you all have a Very Merry Christmas and Holiday Season.
Tracklist
01. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - Aimee Mann (2006-12-11 - KCRW Santa Monica)
02. Calling Mary - Aimee Mann (2006-12-11 - KCRW Santa Monica)
03. Christmas Face - Fisher (free download - www.fishertheband.com)
04. Jingle Bells - Barenaked Ladies (2004-12-14 - WTMX Chicago)
05. I Wish It Was Christmas Today - SNL (H.Sanz, J.Fallon, C.Kattan, T.Morgan - TV)
06. Elf's Lament - Barenaked Ladies (2004-12-14 - WTMX Chicago)
07. Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree - Marti Jones (1995-12 - Birchmere FM)
08. Early On One Christmas Morn - Bruce Cockburn (1992-12-20 - NY FM)
09. All I Want For Christmas Is World Peace - Jackson Browne (1993-12-12 - NY FM)
10. Baby It's Cold Outside - Steven Page & Rita MacNeil (1993 Canada TV)
11. Santa Baby - C. Basinet (2000? - from old mp3.com site)
12. I'll Be Home For Christmas - Dave Alvin (1992-12-25 - Hollywood FM)
13. Sleigh Ride - Brian Setzer Orchestra - 2009-12-12 - Thackerville)
14. I Believe in Father Christmas - Greg Lake (1994-12 NY TV)
15. Father Christmas - The Kinks (1977-12-13 - Pawtucket)
16. It's Christmas Time - Yo La Tengo
17. Please Come Home For Christmas - Fiona Apple (live)
18. Christmas Must Be Tonight - Rick Danko (1997-12-08 - Wash. DC)
19. Merry Little Christmas - Shawn Colvin (1998-12-24 KGSR Austin FM)
20. River - Shawn Colvin (1998-12-24 KGSR Austin FM)
21. Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) - Darlene Love (2006-12-22 - Letterman Show TV)
22. Run Rudolph Run - Dave Edmunds (1986-12-31 - MTV RocknRoll Ball)
23. New Year's Revolution - Graham Parker (1994-12-18 FM)
24. Auld Lang Syne - Fisher - (free download - www.fishertheband.com)
New Link! Updated 09/29/23
BBChronicles_Christmas_2010.rar.
Some other Christmas-themed offerings still available here on the blog are:
A couple of Bruce Springsteen Live Holiday Collections available Here
Chicago's Live Christmas Show from 1998 available Here
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