quietlife.net

intervention

05 Dec 2005

This is an intervention.

Jag really wants good Christmas music, she just doesn’t know where to look. Jack Johnson? Barenaked Ladies? For fuck’s sake, here. What is this, a pop music tool convention? Her one redeeming reference is Zooey Deschanel’s rendition of Baby, It’s Cold Outside, which has the added benefit of being a potentially awesome song that she actually sang – something I didn’t know. So, we’re learning here, and that’s good. And here’s what I have to contribute to the lesson: Barenaked Ladies and Jack Johnson are both crap. Seriously. Merry Christmas!

Amanda prodded me and got me to download Vince Guaraldi’s A Charlie Brown Christmas. Now that’s christmas music. Music that adds something inherently beautiful to the banality and creepiness of traditional christmas music without being a total tool singing crappy overproduced pop renditions of Christmas songs. That’s what I’m talkin’ about.

Merry fuckin christmas.

Comments

Jackson — December 06, 2005 at 06:21 · reply

I got on a Christmas music kick last week. I downloaded the Ray Charles Christmas album and the BB King Christmas album. I also downloaded something called Merry Mixmas which is like a Verve Remix christmas album. the kind of Martini bar shit that you hear at the Gap, but that I like to listen to when I don’t want to think about the music.

The Guaraldi album is great, I might go grab that now.

jag — December 06, 2005 at 14:49 · reply

Ouch. Nobody said you had to like or listen to Jack Johnson or Barenaked Ladies.

If my post was about pedophilia or something I could understand your vehemence. But it’s about Christmas music, for fuck’s sake. Who pissed in your Cheerios? Merry fucking Christmas indeed.

Muffy Wong — December 06, 2005 at 15:13 · reply

bah humbug huh Chris ;)

I almost grabbed the Charlie Brown Christmas CD at Starbucks the other day and realized I was better off getting it on iTunes. SO I put it back down.

cwage — December 06, 2005 at 15:26 · reply

Sorry, I think the jovial ribbing tone of my post was lost in the translation..

jag — December 06, 2005 at 15:54 · reply

If that was jovial ribbing, I’d hate to get on your bad side. :)

For what it’s worth, in addition to what you consider crap, I also have plenty of Guaraldi, Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Frank, Ella, Burl, etc. recordings of Christmas music. Does that rectify anything?

cwage — December 06, 2005 at 16:20 · reply

Okay, okay, you are redeemed.

I have a weird guilty sentimental attachment with this album that Amy Grant did with Art Garfunkel.. “The Animal’s Christmas”? or something like that. I haven’t heard it since I was a kid. I wonder if it’s as weird as it sounds now. (this comment is not appropos of anything. It’s my blog and I can free-associate if I want.)

jag — December 06, 2005 at 16:34 · reply

I’m not a big fan of Amy Grant’s voice, but John Denver was phenomenal with the Muppets on their Christmas album.

Tobin — December 06, 2005 at 17:31 · reply

Vince Guaraldi is one of my favorite Christmas picks. Have your friend hunt down a copy of A Lump Of Coal or at least the Hoodo Gurus contribution ‘Little Drummer Boy, Up The Khyber’ which is the only version of that song that does not drive me nuts and it ROCKS! as well. Any of my other suggestions may be too offbeat for most people though.

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