Christmas Mix 2009

I've been making  Christmas mixes for my family the last couple years.  It's not your typical Bing Crosby stuff, and requires some digging on my part.  I finally started blogging about it last year and think I'm going to make it a tradition.  So here goes... Christmas with an indie slant.  And I did a better job checking on the lyrics this year for family appropriateness.

The links this year are coming at you from Lala by way of Google.  Message me if things stop working.  (This blog post has turned out much like my Christmas shopping: it gets sloppy towards the end.)

1.  "Holiday Road" by Matt Pond PA.  This is the only repeat from last years list.  I love this song because the vacation movies still connect with me at a level I am entirely uncomfortable with. 

2.  "Blue Christmas" by Dread Zeppelin.  Believe it or not, there is a nice smattering of Christmas to choose from with these guys. Where else can you get Elvis, Led Zeppelin, Reggae and Christmas in one track?

3.  "Christmas is Going to the Dogs" by Eels.  Hard choice between this and "Everything's Gonna Be Cool This Christmas".

4.  "I Wish It Was Christmas Today"  by Julian Casablancas.  This one is for the kids.  I wish that I could still feel the way I did when I was a young boy after Thanksgiving.  Christmas, although only four weeks away, seemed like it sat on the other side of eternity.  As an adult, it comes and goes so fast I barely have time to enjoy it.  Message to kids: enjoy it while you can.  Responsibility steals the fun from Christmas!

5.  "Christmas Time is Here Again (Bring Out the Joy!)" by My Morning Jacket.  Peaceful.  I'll let you google for this one.  It's a live take from a radio broadcast.

6.  "Listening to Otis Redding at Home During Christmas" by Okkervil River.  Not a traditional Christmas tune, but a good one to follow MMJ, if only for the indie vibe.  This song reminds me of "New Slang" by The Shins, but with less jade and desperation.  Slightly more hopeful. :)

7.  "X-Mas Card" by MU330.  Not my normal thing, but the instrumental intro with the horns is fun.

8.  "Yule Shoot Your Eye Out" by Fall Out Boy.  If you haven't checked out "Can You See Santa From the Southside," now is the time to skedaddle over to Amazon and do so.

9.  "Baby, It's Cold Outside (Mulato Beat Remix)" by Louis Armstrong and Velma Middleton.  Shopko gave away a Christmas sampler in 2004 and this was on it.  This is, by far, the Christmas album that gets play in our house (not the one this song links to).  It comes on while we're preparing meals and we find ourselves breaking frequently to get our grooves on.  No kidding.  Six people from 2 to 35 shaking a leg in the kitchen.

10. "O Come All Ye Faithful" by Weezer.  Traditional Christmas tune done right by a modern band.

And some bonus songs from last years mix:

Bonus 1:  "Fairytale of New York" by the Pogues.  This one is definitely not for the kids and is a guilty pleasure of mine.  Who can resist: "You're a bum, you're a punk / You're an old slut on junk."  Ahh, the holidays.

Bonus 2:  "Frosty the Snowman" by the Cocteau Twins.  Year after year, my favorite Frosty rendition.