Hip Christmas
holiday music that rocks, rolls, swings, and twangs
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Support www.hipchristmas.com! Among the rarified crowd that has actually heard A Christmas Record, most comment on James White's "Christmas With Satan." White was the provocateur behind such "no wave" icons as the Contortions, but his droll, blasphemous, nearly tuneless piece of skronk belies the LP's true intention. A Christmas Record, rather, was designed to pay tribute to such classic Christmas albums by Phil Spector and Brian Wilson, and a song like Davitt Sigerson's sweet, folky "It's A Big Country" is more representative of the spirit of proceedings - if not the prevailing sound. Most Ze Records were, by their own admission, mutant disco - twisted or tortured perhaps, but celebratory and kinetic at their core. Hence, A Christmas Record sounds like a party, albeit the strangest one ever thrown in honor of Old St. Nick. While resident Ze diva Christina and Detroit weirdos Was (Not Was) work up a propulsive head of steam, they develop a severe case holiday blues. Kid Creole & The Coconuts' leader August Darnell, however, sounds positively gleeful celebrating "Christmas On Riverside Drive," and the dense funk of Material (vocals courtesy Nona Hendryx) leaves no doubt that "It's A Holiday." Even Alan Vega (half of doleful, proto-industrial duo Suicide) manages to sound (almost) cheerful, proclaiming "No More Christmas Blues." [close]
Thus, for years adventurous collectors were forced to hunt down A Christmas Record on vinyl. Intriguingly, two intersecting versions exist - some of which were pressed on white vinyl! A year after its initial release, a "special edition" of A Christmas Record was issued, with songs by Charlélie Couture and Alan Vega replaced with new tracks by James White and the Three Courgettes. Vinyl junkies, take heed.... Happily, 2004 brought news that A Christmas Record had finally been digitally reissued, albeit in a strangely reconfigured format. Ze Records, resurrected in France, unleashed the awkwardly-titled Ze Xmas Record Reloaded 2004, comprising nearly every track from both editions of their original LP, plus three newer (largely pointless) cuts. The revised running order is a bit jarring, and one track (the Courgettes' lovely "Christmas Is Coming") is omitted without explanation - presumably because the trio were signed to Ze's distributor, Island Records, not Ze itself. But the package - featuring a booklet with the original cover art and an essay by label honcho Michel Esteban - is very nice. Mostly, though, it's thrilling to hear these songs again (without the pops and clicks) and know that younger listeners can hear them, too. [top of page]
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© 1999-2012 Randall Anthony, www.hipchristmas.com and www.randysrodeo.com
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