Wednesday 30 November 2011

Tinselitis #7: My Very Own Xmas Chart

Double whammy of Tinsilitis this week due to me being completely lame and not posting anything last week. Sorry about that. Don't blame me, blame the flu!

I've decided to make Edition Seven extra special by giving you my complete Christmas song countdown. My favourite 10 songs for you to enjoy as we ring in December. So join in, listen loudly, and let me know if there's anything you disagree with.

10 - Boney M, Mary's Boy Child
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxm1FlLSfe4

Alright, they never actually sang anything. But Boney M's German-techno take on the classic Mary's Boy Child is a lasting Christmas tradition. Yes, it's cheesy and ever-so-slightly-awful, but you know you love it.

9 - Dean Martin, Winter Wonderland
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkFP0VwpPRY

Are you listening?!... Although there have been many, many, MANY versions of this song, some of which are awful (yes, you, Jessica Simpson), but Dean Martin's version is a lasting treasure.

8 - Eartha Kitt, Santa Baby
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-bid96fVUs&ob=av2n

Although Eartha Kitt will always be, as a 90s kid, Yzma from The Emperor's New Groove, she was very well known and loved for this Christmas classic from 1953.

7 - Wham, Last Christmas
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8gmARGvPlI

Back in the 80s, Yuppies were a new invention, Donny Wahlberg didn't/couldn't act, and the world pretended to think that George Michael was straight. If Wham! did anything good (other than that amazing exclamation mark) it was this. Complete with bells, a broken festive heart, and some truly dodgy hairstyles on offer in the video, this is a Christmas classic that is always murdered on the karaoke.

6 - Dean Martin, Let It Snow!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dfbSSU0gFA&feature=fvst

Another Dean Martin entry. I adore this song. Especially my sister's slightly idiotic version. For me, this is the one that makes me crave snow despite despising the grey slushy stuff (it's never white in London).

5 - Judy Garland, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5g4lY8Y3eoo

I love Judy Garland. I love Meet Me In St Louis. I love Christmas. There is no better combination than this. Enjoy and thank me later.

4 - Wizzard, I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoxQ4Ul_DME&ob=av2e

Even listening to it now, I get the giddy Christmas feeling I used to get as a kid. I feel the same way I did then - I really do wish it could be Christmas every day. Every. Single. Day. Without exception.

3 - Band Aid, Do They Know It's Christmas?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5cX_ncZLls

I get goosebumps whenever this song starts playing. An incredible song featuring some of the 80s' most important stars (hello Boy George! Simon LeBon!) it inspired the world to think that you could, indeed, save the world with music. And I don't care what anyone says, my stomach drops a bit whenever Bono sings that line. The less said about subsequent versions, the better.

2 - Mariah Carey, All I Want For Christmas Is You
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXQViqx6GMY&ob=av3n

I can't sing. At all. Does that stop me from screaming this out every December? No, it doesn't. This is probably the first Christmas song I can remember (I was only three when it came out!) and, as a result, it has featured pretty heavily in my life. I can't help but smile when I hear it. Or sing. No matter where I am.

1 - The Pogues & Kirsty McColl, Fairytale Of New York
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjEIP6otc4Y

I don't know if it's because I'm Irish and therefore know the words to the quoted Galway Bay, or if it's just the pure sadness and unChristmassy feel of it that makes me love this song so much. Whatever the reason, I love it. Even the sweary bits. Especially the sweary bits, actually. This song is too good to be kept just for Christmas but I resist the urge to play it throughout the year, just so that I can enjoy that bit more each December. And what a voice Kirsty McColl was. A delight.


I should probably mention that I originally had a list of 25 but had to cut it down due to not wanting to kill anyone with boredom. There are tons of Christmas songs still stuck on my iTunes playlist, begging to be published. Maybe I'll save them for next year..

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