A side-story before this post starts proper. Meet Frederick Frog, or Freddy for short. My mother got him for me as a post-op gift; he now sits by my bedside and imparts sagely wisdom on a daily basis. I absolutely adore him! He is pictured here on the arm of our living room sofa, next to the tree. Freddy is clutching a Spangler candy cane, which Andrew got for me as a post-op gift, for re-gifting. His words at the hospital: “So that you can play Santa when your friends and family visit you over the next few weeks! You can give out candy canes.” My partner for you.
13 days to Christmas! It’s time to share Andrew’s Christmas playlist for this year (read about this five-year strong tradition, and last year’s playlist which I first shared here). The K+A Christmas Playlist for 2011 is– for me at least– a great mix of love-at-first-listen, plus slow discoveries of aural gems after a few more runs.
Apologies that quite a few of these aren’t the original videos themselves, since the songs are either too old or too obscure to have a music video– but they’re worth clicking on the links for a listen :] Also, a warning: If your idea of Christmas tunes is confined to Diana Krall + Susan Boyle et al, time to run from this motley crew:
1. Boots, The Killers (2010)
2. Christmas Day (And I Wish I Was Surfing), Emmy the Great & Tim Wheeler (2011) – 10 points down for bad grammar but 10 points up for a hilarious song. Net-net, this song is cool. :]
3. Christmas Girls, Boston Spaceships (2011)
4. It’s Christmas Time, The Standalone (2009)
5. This Christmas, Donny Hathaway (1970)
6. The Christmas Song, The Raveonettes (2008)
7. I’d Like You For Christmas, Christabel and the Jons (2010) – No video here, but well worth a listen if you like old school vocals and a rarely-covered song!
8. In The Bleak Midwinter, Sam Airey (2010)
9. O Come All Ye Faithful, The Branches (2010)
10. I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day, Caleb and the Caroling Caravan (2010) – Andrew sums it up perfectly in his line notes: “Can’t say I am a fan of the band’s name, but the song is a wonderful addition to this year’s reflective tone and yes, that is a banjo again.”
11. Christmas Must Be Tonight, Bahamas (2011)
12. The Christmas Song, Hootie and the Blowfish (1997)
13. Christmas Time With You (Featuring Acacia & Andre Miguel Mayo), David Ian (2011)
14. The Song the Season Brings, Beta Radio (2011)
15. Christmas Wrapping, The Waitresses (1981)
16. We Wish You A Merry Christmas, Weezer (2008)
17. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, Weezer (2008)
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18. Welcome Christmas, The Clumsy Lovers (2006) * – A really fun cover of a song from Dr Seuss’s The Grinch!
19. Kicked Back Christmas, B. Read (2010) *
* Bonus tracks, which are basically Andrew’s way of including ridiculous (but fun) songs.
(I still can’t believe the sneaky pants weasled not one, but TWO Weezer songs, back-to-back. But I grudgingly admit that it works for welcoming 2012 with a bang!)
Along with the tunes, Andrew sends along line notes to explain why he chose what he did for the mix. A paragraph is worth quoting; in the curator’s own words: “This is certainly one of the more quieter playlists I have put together; carrying with it a more laid back, “folksy” tone … It is full of newbies waiting to take the test of time on the K+A playlist … And so as humbly as this playlist begins, let us too humbly give thanks to all that we had in 2011! Enjoy.”
Hope you like it, and if some of these tunes make their way into your respective Christmas playlists this year, hohoho! We are happy to spread the joy.
And because I could not resist, here’s another picture of Freddy with his Christmas candy cane.
