Keep the traditional or please write some new one?
What's wrong with the traditional songs? Nothing! To me the traditional Christmas songs are an important part of the holiday season. They tell us stories of how and why we celebrate such a joyous ocassion.
Now that being said, I want to also say that I like the new, more hip Christmas songs as well. I thought I had heard every Christmas song there was, and am always amazed when I hear something new or different. For a long time I only knew of the songs my parents, aunts and uncles used to play regularly when I was a kid and the songs sung in church. It wasn't until I got older I began find out about other kinds of Christmas music.
I start playing Christmas tunes the day after Thanksgiving. I consider myself to be well rounded and will listen to any kind of holiday tunes. It depends on what mood I'm in. Like when I'm enjoying a nice evening at home just lying around on the sofa, gazing at the Christmas tree and all the decorations, I usually play instrumental tunes. If I'm sipping on a glass of wine I'll spice up the music with some holiday jazz. That get's my fingers snapping.
When I'm cleaning and getting the house ready for decorating, I put on the old R&B Christmas classics: The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, The Jackson 5, Nat King Cole, etc. Those songs always remind me of when my family would all gather at my grandma's house. She lived in a little apartment and one of my uncles and his family lived directly under her in their apartment. Somehow we all fitted in there nice and snugged (counting 8 siblings, their spouses/friends and us kids). One uncle and one aunt are no longer here, and the family has grown over the years with great grandkids and great-great grandkids. And now the family gathers at my little apartment. :-)
Now when I'm sitting at the computer (like now) I tune into
Merry Christmas Radio and when I'm wrapping gifts, baking cookies or taking a drive around the neighborhood looking at the lights, I usually turn on the radio where the local station plays Christmas music nonstop til New Year's Day. The radio is where I heard 'Grandma Got Runover By A Reindeer' and Porky Pig's version of
'Blue Christmas'. That Porky Pig song always crack me up. I remember the first time I heard it. It was about 2:00 in the morning during the holidays. I was on the highway on my way home from my second job (it was parttime) when it came on the radio. I was in tears by the time the song ended. I had never heard such a crazy song before.
Then there's a couple that I tear-up a little whenever they come on the radio. One is "Christmas Shoes". The other is actually a narration, when Santa meets a soldier during a war. I don't know the name of it, but everytime I hear it, I just sigh and begin to think about all those soldiers fighting in wars, not being home with their families for the holidays.
I have quite a few favorite holiday songs: "Let It Snow," by Boys II Men; "Have a Holly Jolly Christmas," by Burl Ives; "Winter Wonderland," by The Eurythmics - to name a few. "Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas", by James Taylor, has become one of my favorite Christmas songs (I like Taylor anyway and have several of his cd's). His version of the song gives me a warm feeling inside and I especially love the video. It makes me think about my family coming altogether Christmas Eve. A new tradition I started about 7 or 8 years ago. It's the only time everyone gets to see everyone all at once. A few months ago I finally broke down and downloaded the entire
album and have been playing it ever since.
