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Welcome To Hip Christmas! I think you'll enjoy my
dysfunctionally vast web archive dedicated to holiday music that rocks, rolls, swings, and twangs. If you do, please support
me by shopping at Amazon, iTunes ,
and Sheet Music Plus! Regardless, the best of
the season to you - no matter what month it is! [about me] |
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What's New In 2009? I've catalogued dozens of brand
spankin' new Christmas CD's for your convenience and pleasure - including albums by Bob Dylan, Los Straitjackets, Sting, Tori Amos, the Jackson 5, and a remastered edition of Phil Spector's classic "Christmas Gift For You." Needless to say, I found plenty to get excited about...
[read more] |
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A Christmas Gift For You! Five super cool,
ultra rare Christmas songs to download for free! Artists include alternative sweetheart Aimee Mann, Mike Mills of R.E.M., Cass Dillon (performing a rare Billy Joel song), The Fray, and rowdy Texas poet Robert Earl Keen. [listen and download] |
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the Christmas Jukebox. My online Christmas music player is bulging with over 350 songs - and counting!
Now you can listen to the music I write about - the coolest, weirdest, and loudest holiday tunes ever. All while enjoying my inimitable prose.... [press play] |
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Heart of 'mas. Lovely Debbie Harry and the boys in Blondie have recorded their first Christmas song since the obscure "Yuletide Throwdown" some 30 years ago. This one is a rockin' take on "We Three Kings" - and it's free! [download now] |
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It's a Punk Rawk Christmas. Christian band MxPx have put out a Christmas song every year for about a decade - mostly exclusive releases for their fan club. Finally, they've compiled them all on an album for the rest of us - available for download on Amazon or in two different CD versions - one through Amazon, the other through www.mxpx.com. [listen & learn] |
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Must Be Zimmy. Bob Dylan's new album Christmas In The Heart can be, to put it mildly, a difficult listen. One of the clear highlights, though, is his rollicking rendition of "Must Be Santa," and he's just released an equally rambunctious video for the song. [view & listen] |
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Hugs and Kisses For Christmas. My friends at XO Publicity slipped me the link for a free sampler of hip tunes - XO For The Holidays, Volume II - which includes a track by sultry Austin transplant Jessie Torrisi. Because I'm a sly dog (and complusive cat), I figured out how to get the first volume. Hey, free is free. [download now] |
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A Jackson 5 Christmas. Following his untimely death, a flurry of Michael Jackson-related product hit the market - not all of it exploitive, including the Jackson 5's I Want You Back! Unreleased Masters and Ultimate Christmas Collection. Read my Jackson 5 review or my Motown history at Randy's Rodeo. |
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Top 20 Christmas Albums. Actually, 40 - I
started unwrapping presents and just couldn't stop! Anyway, who said Christmas music has to be
boring? Not me! These sterling platters will put you in the Christmas spirit faster than you can
say, "Go Cat Go!" [read more] |
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Top 100 Christmas Songs. Countdown to Christmas
Day with these always wonderful, frequently crazy songs - from Phil Spector's celebrated Wall Of
Sound to obscure punk, country, and rhythm & blues. [read
more] |
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Top 40 Christmas Oldies Songs. The web is crammed with blogs and tweets, obscuring the fact that experts (like Robert Fontenot at About.com) might know more than know-it-alls armed with a quick wit and a laptop. To me, that's sad, and this rock solid list shows why. read more |
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12 Worst/Best Songs of Christmas. I enjoyed this list from Spinner Magazine so much that I had to share it. Let's hope their lawyers don't surf my beach on the world wide web.... Regardless, I am proud to say I own all 12 best songs of Christmas - and all but one of the worst! read more |
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Dreaming Of A Crosby Christmas. Bing
Crosby may not be a paragon of hip, but he made more Christmas music than anyone this side of Charles
Brown. Read my review of Der Bingle's copious Christmas catalog - from "White Christmas" to "Do
You Hear What I Hear." [read more] |
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Jews For Jesus. A surprising number of popular
Jewish entertainers have recorded Christmas albums and songs. From Irving Berlin to Beck, we've
got the shmutz on this strange phenomena. Plus, Jews we wish would record a Christmas
record - and Jews we hope do not! [read more] |
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soul Santa. Brook Benton recorded several classic Christmas singles, including one of the few "black pride" holiday tunes, "Soul Santa" (1971). But, he never recorded a Christmas album during his prime. When he finally did, it was a disappointing effort - and the story just gets worse. [read more] |
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Horny Holidays. Some people love to bask in
the warm glow of friends and family during the holiday season. Others feel like starting a
family (or something to that effect) at Christmas time. Read about the 20 naughtiest songs in the
history of the holiday. You'll never look at a candy cane quite the same. [read
more] |
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'Tis The Season For Stalkers. In the 50's
and 60's, a number of Christmas songs were recorded about the two most popular artists in rock
history - Elvis Presley and the Beatles. Read about this strange and obscure - and obsessive -
phenomenon. [read more] |
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Christmas In Vietnam. Most holiday music
is escapist. Who, after all, wants to think about death and mayhem during the season of hope? Nevertheless,
the Vietnam war intruded into this idyllic genre during the turbulent 60's, and we examine six
songs that looked at Christmas through the eyes of soldiers and their families. [read
more] |
