Christmas Music for People Who Aren't So Sure About Christmas Music - A Playlist for You
(A playful little playlist made for you by Sarah Marshall and Carolyn Kendrick. Maybe you need some new songs to play, or a reminder of the ones you used to. Maybe you haven't heard these ones one million times in the past week. The point is, if we could send you all mix tapes, we would. Thank you so much for sharing this season with us. We can't wait to be together for whatever comes next.)
Side A:
This Christmas -- Donny Hathaway
Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring -- Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass
Christmas Wrapping -- The Waitresses
To Heck with Ole Santa Claus -- Loretta Lynn
It's Christmas! Let's Be Glad -- Sufjan Stevens
Mary's Boy Child/Oh My Lord -- Boney M
Santa Claus is Coming to Town -- Booker T. & the M.G.'s
Swingin' Them Jingle Bells -- Fats Waller
Listen, the Snow is Falling -- Harry Nilsson
Presents for Christmas -- Solomon Burke
River -- Joni Mitchell
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas -- Judy Garland
Side B:
A Marshmallow World -- Los Straitjackets
What Child Is This -- Vince Guaraldi Trio
Back Door Santa -- Clarence Carter
Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis -- Tom Waits
Fairytale of New York -- The Pogues feat. Kirsty MacColl
White Winter Hymnal -- Fleet Foxes
Ave Maria -- Stevie Wonder
Silent Night -- Stevie Nicks
Christmastime -- The Smashing Pumpkins
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas -- Carpenters
Auld Lang Syne -- Milk Carton Kids
Amazing Grace (Live at New Temple Missionary Baptist Church, 1/13/72) -- Aretha Franklin
Comments (51)
someone needs to make this into a spotify playlist for me
I love Sufjan Stevens.
This was so lovely to play in the background on Christmas morning, thank you! 💕💕
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3sCSwWjNz3N24BhoVb0Ldl?si=DNyX3PjLR52dojFqHGUc1w&pi=UwihUQ4uTKuqv here's the playlist my partner and I have been building for years ... added a bunch of the songs from YWA's playlist and the chat!
This is wonderful, thank you audio angels!
I created an Apple Music playlist of all these awesome songs. If anyone’s interested I can share it here. Merry Christmas, Sarah and Carolyn. And thank you! 🎄
🙋🏻♂️🙏🏻♥️
For Those Who Can’t Be Here (Tom Walker) is a soothing anthem for anyone dealing with the loss of a loved one I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day (Johnny Reid) is a beautiful new arrangement of an old standard See Amid The Winter’s Snow (Annie Lennox) perfection The Huron Carol (Sarah McLaughlin’s version is widely available) This is the first Christmas carol written in North American back in the 1600’s Christmas Must Be Tonight (The Band) Magical Come And I Will Sing You (Great Big Sea) another very, very old carol Joel The Lump Of Coal (The Killers) laugh along then get all up in your feels in the span of one song
In case you're a Tidal person, I've made the playlist there!: https://tidal.com/playlist/4c76098f-3f6b-4736-ad5a-7c00417d68d3
Thank you for this 💜 currently going through a pregnancy loss, and all my go-to Christmas songs just aren't doing it. This is really getting me through today! 🙏🏻
I’m so sorry, Emma. Never a good time to go through pregnancy loss, but this time of year is especially hard 💔 Set the holly jolly aside and let yourself lament.
Your inclusion of The Milk Carton Kids has me absolutely kvelling. Can’t wait to listen to it all!
The Barenaked Ladies Holiday Album is actually great and has two excellent Hanukkah songs!!
That whole album is fantastic! A family favourite since it was released lo these many years ago. The Elf’s Lament and It’s Christmastime are my two faves.
If you’re lame like me and use Pandora, hopefully you can access the playlist I created: https://pandora.app.link/6mjKHYnUzPb Fabulous collection, Sarah and Carolyn. Happy holidays to the You’re Wrong About family!
Yes to all of this! Sufjan Stevens' Christmas In The Room got me through some times for sure. For the little kid at Christmas feeling, Alien for Christmas covered by I Fight Dragons is excellent.
For some reason the existence of Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass is wildly funny
Also Sleddin' Hill by August Burns Red is an excellent instrumental Metal Xmas album
Oi To The World by The Vandals is the best Xmas album of all-time! 🤘🏻
“Fruitcake” by the Superions was my surprise delight at the onslaught of aggravating Christmas music. “It’ll kill your dad! FRUITCAKE!
This is great! Thanks! A few of my faves not already mentioned: Santa Claus Got Stuck in My Chimney - Ella Fitzgerald Must Be Santa - Bob Dylan Dear Santa (Bring Me a Man This Christmas) - The Weather Girls Jesus Christ - Big Star White Christmas - Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings Blue Xmas - Miles Davis and Bob Dorough We Three Kings - Patti Smith
Carolina Christmas by Squirrel Nut Zippers! Also, Merry Christmas Eve by Better than Ezra.
I can't wait to listen to these! I like "Christmas will break your heart" by LCD Soundsystem, just to balance out the happiness and cheer.
Thank you for a rebuttal to the folks that look concerned when they find out your spending Christmas by oneself ' aloneness and loneliness are not the same thing' xoxo
It gets played to death over here (even getting its own day on 21 Dec), but if you haven't heard Paul Kelly's How to Make Gravy you should give it at least one play.
Thank you for introducing me (a US American) to this song, it's great. I am also quite fond of White Wine in The Sun, so now I have two Australian Christmas songs to love.
Some great choices here! A lot of overlap with my personal taste, which always makes me happy. I also really like the Neko Case cover of "Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis", partly because I really like hearing a woman's voice singing those sad, beautiful words.
Created a YouTube Music playlist and added all song suggestions in the comments (as of 1240 PT): https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmwUx64qTPmlcpHB0F_DCy3qSLPIyEG44&si=AnTGjTDVtMkR37Sc
Thank you! I was hoping someone in the comments would have put in the legwork for me. May you get all the cheeses for your meeces this year
I love the baby it’s cold outside by Lydia Liza and Josiah Lemanski - aka the one that doesn’t make you feel weird. And Winter Song by The Head and the Heart
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5ks9pLq1JymXVjQm5Vt351?si=f9St0QEVTeSPw_0ilF0gkA&pi=Txqk9Gs5RauIS
Thanks so much!
🤍
This is great! My personal favorite, John Prine’s Christmas in Prison would fit in well ❤️
Winter Ahead by V and Park Hyo Shin is a great jazzy Christmas-y song!
This is awesome! Going to add some of these to our Xmas playlist
Barbra Streisand - Jingle Bells
On the YAG Discord we shared Christmas playlists, and I would like to commend you both for also appreciating the beauty of Boney M at Christmas. 🎄
Happy Xmas by John Lennon and Yoko Ono is another good one!
Adding all of these to my Christmas playlist!! My only suggestion is White Wine in the Sun. I think Kate Miller-Heidke’s version is particularly beautiful
Love it! My humble suggestion: Hard Candy Christmas by Dolly Parton would fit right in here!
🎶I'll be just fiiiiiiiii-ne and daandy!!🎶😭
There are a lot of UK Christmas classics that never made it across the pond! I recommend Shakin' Stevens "Merry Christmas Everyone", Slade "Merry Xmas Everybody", Wizzard "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday", Mud "Lonely This Christmas", Greg Lake "I Believe in Father Christmas", Jona Lewie "Stop the Cavalry".
I also love Father Christmas by the Kinks and Christmas Time by The Darkness.
I've created the playlist on Spotify under the same name for anyone who wants a listen but doesn't want to do the work of compiling!
Do you have a link? I can't seem to find the playlist by simple searching on Spotify 😔
Great list! The right wing radio station my mom is addicted to (WLW Cincinnati) is very upset with 'Happy Holidays' (the war against Merry Christmas). Bing Crosby, noted woke liberal pussy-man from 1942! Can't stop giggling.
Great choices! May I suggest the addition of Vienna Teng's "The Atheist Christmas Carol"?
Thank you! ❤️ Now I know what I will be listening to while baking and wrapping gifts🎄 Merry Christmas!
A truly well-thought gift! 🤩
Yaaas!! Just the gift I needed.