Electric Six covers “You’re A Mean One, Mr. Grinch”
“This song really sums up where we’re coming from as a band.”
GAAHHHHHHH. Sean sent me the Dawes link earlier, via the AV Club’s holiday music video collection. They’ve got four up so far, and Dawes, I love you, but ELECTRIC SIX SINGING THE GRINCH SONG!!
Dawes, “Christmastime is Here.”
Maybe starting this collection in early November was bound to lead to some burnout, or maybe I was just taking a few weeks off before I could deliver the ultimate video: Dawes, covering “Christmastime is Here.” Thanks for the link, Sean.
Less a musical entry and more of an “oh my god it’s my entire childhood right there” collection, the Henson Company has put together this youtube playlist of pretty much everything I watched as a kid at Christmas.
Devotchka, “Overture” from “Nightmare Before Christmas”
From a covers album called “Nightmare Revisited,” which is widely hit or miss (Korn. Ugh. For real?). But Devotchka! Full. On. HIT.
Rhett Miller redux: “Here it is Christmastime” AND “Holly Jolly Christmas”
Is it too soon to revisit this one? Whatever, it’s my site. Having seen him a few times, I’m reasonably certain that Rhett practices that hair/hip/flip thing in the mirror, for hours each day. That doesn’t mean it’s not pretty.
Springsteen, “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.”
I went on a couple a dates with a guy once who hated—hated, hated, HATED—Springsteen. And you know, honestly, I get it. The guy is so…well…Springsteeny, that sometimes it’s hard to take seriously. He’s an easy caricature, but goddamn the man wrote The River (which is regularly covered by Josh Ritter, because damn if I can’t tie any rant ever back to a Ritter song). If you can’t respect that songwriting, then I don’t want to know you, and I certainly don’t want to give you a second date if you can’t articulate your hate beyond “He’s just too much.”
ANYWAY. Dude and I got into a fight over Springsteen, and this song was one of the defenses in my arsenal. It’s clear Springsteen doesn’t take HIMSELF half as seriously as Detractor Boy took him, because no man who wears a red fur-trimmed Santa cowboy hat in front of 20,000 screaming fans (as Bruce does in this video) can be accused of being too earnest.
When I was looking for suggestions for this project, Sharon reminded me of this one. “I’d be sick of Springsteen’s ‘Santa Claus’ if he wasn’t cracking up during it,” she said. “That saves the whole thing.”
This isn’t actually the best, most jolly-filled version of this song, but I saw the hat and couldn’t pass it up. That saves the whole things.
Zooey Deschanel, “Baby It’s Cold Outside”
Look, just give me this one.
Rhett Miller, “Have a Holly Jolly Christmas”
I’m actually unsure if this is a Rhett Miller song or an Old 97s song. It’s in my iPod as the former, but all over the internet as the latter and…well, seriously, is there a huge difference here? Not really.
I’d like Rhett or the Old 97s to just flat-out do a Christmas album. But what I’d REALLY like to find is a clip, somewhere, anywhere, of Josh Ritter singing a holiday tune.
… but there apparently exists a version of Korn singing “Kidnap Mr. Sandy Claws” from “Nightmare Before Christmas.”
Look, I love a good cover song as much as the next girl—probably more—but some shit is just best left in the Hot Topic conference room where it was dreamed up.
The Waitresses, Christmas Wrapping
“Most of ‘81 passed along those lines.” This song is 30 years old.
I think my first exposure to it was a “Gilmore Girls” episode. Lorelai was dancing around in sweatpants, and… well, that’s all I really remember because that’s every “Gilmore Girls” episode ever.
Still, it might be my favorite Christmas song. It’s the one I listen to when I NEED to feel Christmasy. Or when it’s dark and late and I’m walking home from the subway and no one is around to see me dance shut up you do it too admit it.
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