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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 2016? I'm sticking my toe in the snow, so to speak, compiling a so-far bare-bones list of what to expect this year. It's heavy on old stuff - because lots of new stuff hasn't been announced yet - but the big news includes Loretta Lynn, the Ventures, and tons of vinyl. [gimme gimme] |
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Pretty Pages. Willie Nelson has released a lot of Christmas music in the past 50 years (read more), starting with the now-standard "Pretty Paper, first recorded by Roy Orbison in 1963. This year, with help from renowned biographer David Ritz, Willie's written a whole book based on the song. [buy now] |
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A Christmas Gift For You. For a brief time, I'm offering free MP3's of a five
treasures from my voluminous collection - songs I love (or love to hate) and that I'm confident you
can't find easily at any store. This year, we celebrate criminal justice reform with five songs about Christmas in prison, including rare treats by Leroy Carr, the Youngsters, the Swallows, Dale Watson, and Willie Nelson. [download now] |
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the Christmas Jukebox. My online Christmas music player is bulging with over 350 hip tunes - and counting!
Now you can listen to the music I write about - the coolest, weirdest, and loudest holiday songs ever. All while enjoying my inimitable prose.... [press play] |
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Mailbag. Despite the fact that I all but tell them not to (no, really), artists send me CD's, MP3's, and more, asking me to trumpet their music on my website.
Simply put, I can't keep up. Rather than have them completely waste their time and money, I throw the more substantial submissions on this page and let fate take its course. Hey, it's better than a lump of coal! [open the bag] |
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Welcome to the 21st Century. Hey, I'm on the Facebook! That didn't take long.... Next, I'm going to upgrade my pager! Anyway, like me, follow me, leave angry comments about Obama, whatever - just please share my scintillating and witty click bait. [call to action] |
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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 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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Oklahoma, Well... OK. Blackwatch Studios, a barely legal studio in Norman, Oklahoma, has unleashed their fifth Christmas compilation, imaginatively titled A Blackwatch Christmas Vol. V. It, as well as all previous volumes, is free on Bandcamp. [red, red dirt] |
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Fifth Time's A Charm. Last year, New York rocker Carly Jamison released not one but four Christmas singles! This year, we'll have to make do with a paltry one - "Christmas May Have To Be Postponed," a whimsical story about missing reindeer and the pursuant mayhem. [find it] |
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A Quality Holiday. Nick Lowe and Los Straitjackets have dropped a suprise "live" album from last year's "Quality Holiday Revue" featuring songs from their collective holiday recordings. Confusingly, it's available in separate MP3 and vinyl listings at Amazon and on CD at Yep Roc. [pure pop] |
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Indie For The Holidays. Amazon's at it again (cf. last year's All Is Bright) with a whole playlist of new (or new-ish) music for download - or streaming if you're an Amazon Prime member. Highlights include tracks by the LeeVees, Robert Pollard, Lisa Loeb, and Reverend Horton Heat. [play me] |
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Run For Your Life, Rudolph. After releasing a cumulative holiday EP last year, Los Angeles pop punk duo The Dollyrots have come up with an even louder, faster Christmas single. It's available at NoiseTrade, Bandcamp, or the band's website - where much fab gear can be purchased. [go get it] |
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Hugs and Kisses For Xmas. For the eighth straight year, our friends at XO Publicity have compiled a free sampler of hip tunes - XO For The Holidays, Volume 8. What's more, you can still pick up Volume 1 , Volume 2 , Volume 3, Volume 4, Volume 5, Volume 6, and Volume 7 - gratis, as usual. [download now] |
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Festive Freebies. A lot of Christmas music is free these days, though most websites offer the chance to "name your price" or "tip" - and you should. My favorites this year include The Dollyrots, Beta Radio, and Sofia Talvik, all of whom have made a tradition out their annual Christmas singles, plus Noisetrade's annual Holiday Mixtape. |
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Oops. Do you know how it feels when they tell you that God is dead and you're adopted? I do. Recently, I discovered that most of what I thought I knew about Gene Autry's tangled Christmas catalog was wrong. So, I've re-built my discography and re-written my review. [giddy-up] |
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Still Cashing In On Christmas. After six volumes, I think we get the schtick. Nevertheless, this series of hardcore punk and oi is always amusing - and loud. Last year's volume is still available, only on "yellow snow" or "black coal" vinyl - but you get a free download upon purchase. [cash in] |
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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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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] |
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My Wish List. It
wouldn't be a record collector's website unless I published my wish list - Christmas songs
I'm still hunting down, and songs for which I'd happily barter from my relatively
vast treasure chest. If you have a copy of any of these rare goodies, let's talk! [read more] |
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Humbug Hit Parade. If the annual deluge of holiday music hokum is driving you to suicide-by-fruitcake, Spin Magazine has 25 of the weirdest, darkest, most awesome ought-a-be classics you'll never hear in a mall this season. [read more] |
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Top 40 Christmas Oldies Songs. The web is crammed with blogs and tweets, obscuring the fact that experts 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 from About.com 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 preserved it after the rag went belly up. 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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The 12 Plays Of Christmas. The Indie Rock Cafe has published an amazing set of holiday playlists ranging from a handful of classics to an endless supply of genuinely obscure bands sure to thrill the kiddies and stump obsessive collectors. [listen & download] |
