Christmas Music & The Speed Listening Approach

Christmas Music Mash-up.mp3
I often find myself wanting to listen to multiple pieces of music at the same time, so I have found a solution to the problem! What you are listening to (yes you should be listening to it at this point) is the entire collection of 44 songs from the "Greatest Christmas Album... Ever" played together, all at once. I think you will agree, it is indeed a fine festive concoction of auditory cacophony. The track-listing can be found at the end of this post.

I like Christmas music, actually no I don't. Actually it depends. It depends on how close to committing suicide I am. If anything was going to drive me over the edge into auto-erotic asphyxiation it's Cliff Richard's Mistletoe & Wine. But let us not joke about suicide, for it's guaranteed that we will hear of at least one festive murder-suicide this year again. "Christmas: It's such a fucking happy time of year."

Back to the mashup above:  If you listen closely you will be amazed at just how many songs that you'll manage to recognise. It gets a little easier near the end when things thin out. Wizzard, Chris De Burgh, The Waitresses.... The whole thing finishes out with Frankie Goes To Hollywood's "The Power of Love".  "I'll protect you from the hooded claw; keep the vampires from the door", what an apt. way to finish the piece [it is?]

Christmas was invented between the late 1970's to mid 1980's, at least in musical terms. Song's outside that era just don't last (except for the Bing's, the Dean's and the Nat's efforts). The most overlooked "modern" Christmas song is The Darkness's Don't Let the Bells-End. This is a perfect Christmas song, much better than some of the shite  pumped out over the holidays. It has the added bonus of being a song that organised a group of children to sing "Bells End" on a pop song. Credit to Dave Fanning for highlighting that, the fecking paedo!

Here are some more albums that, to me personally, are classed as Christmas albums. It has to do with when I bought and listened to them over the years (around Christmas time strangely enough). There's nothing particularly "yule tide" about them but ELP's Black Moon does feel a bit winter'y and of  course Mussorgsky's The Great Gate of Kiev is quite celebratory and festive. Jethro Tull's "A" album has a song entitled Batteries Not Included which is a common concern when buying shite for children at Christmas. People should buy children batteries instead of toys this Christmas, just to mix things up a little. Click each album cover for more info if you feel so inclined.

Disc: 1
01. Happy Xmas (War Is Over) – John & Yoko
02. Wonderful Christmastime – Paul McCartney
03. I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday – Wizzard
04. Merry Christmas Everybody – Slade
05. Do They Know It’s Christmas – Band Aid
06. I Believe In Father Christmas – Greg Lake
07. A Spaceman Came Travelling – Chris De Burgh
08. The Power Of Love – Frankie Goes To Hollywood
09. Angels – Robbie Williams
10. Baby, It’s Cold Outside – Tom Jones with Cerys from Catatonia
11. Saviour’s Day – Cliff Richard
12. Step Into Christmas – Elton John
13. Sleigh Ride – Spice Girls
14. Little Saint Nick – Beach Boys
15. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town – Jackson 5
16. In Dulci Jubilo – Mike Oldfield
17. Stop The Cavalry – Jona Lewie
18. Christmas Wrapping – Waitresses
19. Ring Out, Solstice Bells – Jethro Tull
20. The Millennium Prayer – Cliff Richard

Disc: 2
01. White Christmas – Bing Crosby
02. The Christmas Song – Nat ‘King’ Cole
03. Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow – Dean Martin
04. Mary’s Boy Child – Matt Monro
05. Mistletoe and Wine – Cliff Richard
06. Walking In The Air – Aled Jones
07. Winter Wonderland – Peggy Lee
08. Lonely Pup (In A Christmas Shop) – Adam Faith
09. Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree – Mel & Kim
10. Last Christmas – State Of The Heart
11. Little Town – Cliff Richard
12. Frosty The Snowman – Nat ‘King’ Cole
13. Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer – Dean Martin
14. Lonely This Christmas – Mud
15. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen – Ella Fitzgerald
16. Deck The Halls – Treorchy, Morriston Orpheus & Pontarddulais Male Choirs With The Band Of The Welsh Guards
17. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas – Jane McDonald
18. We Wish You A Merry Christmas – The Weavers
19. The Twelve Days Of Christmas – The Spinners
20. Gaudete – Steeleye Span
21. Silent Night, Holy Night – Sinead O’Connor
22. In The Bleak Midwinter – Bert Jansch
23. Peace On Earth/Little Drummer Boy – David Bowie/Bing Crosby
24. What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve – Mary Margaret O’Hara (Frank Loesser)