It’s sixty degrees out and you have a chem lab final tomorrow. The weather outside is frightfully warm and the only delightful fire is the upcoming bonfire that you’re planning to burn every paper, lab or test you ever had the displeasure of meeting this semester.
Needless to say, it is not beginning to feel a lot like Christmas.
But do you hear what I hear? That’s right: it’s finally seasonally appropriate to listen to Christmas music and it couldn’t have come at a better time.
There are a lot of new albums out this Christmas season. In particular, it seems like every country artist is putting out a holiday album. This year some of the more popular CDs released included Lady Antebellum’s On This Winter Night, Scotty McCreery’s Christmas with Scotty McCreery, and Blake Shelton’s Cheers, It’s Christmas.
Both Lady Antebellum and Scotty McCreery’s holiday albums take on Christmas classics such as “Let It Snow,” “Silver Bells,” and “Silent Night.” Though somewhat lackluster, these albums are a nice addition to any Christmas collection. They’re the types of songs that should be played in combination with other holiday classics or in the background of a Christmas party.
Blake Shelton’s Cheers, It’s Christmas, is the most interesting of the three new country holiday albums, featuring duets with a wide variety of different artists. The first album on the track, “Jingle Bell Rock,” was recorded with Shelton’s wife, Miranda Lambert. Other duets, such as “Oklahoma Christmas,” featuring Reba, possess a distinctly country feel that seems to overpower the holiday vibe. Nevertheless, the song is perfect for those that enjoy country music year round.
Besides Reba and Miranda Lambert, Shelton’s album features other artists such as Kelly Clarkson, Michael Buble, Pistol Annies, Xenia, Dorothy Shackleford and Trypta-Phunk.
If country isn’t exactly what you think of when you imagine Christmas music, there are other fun holiday albums out there. One of my personal favorites is Colbie Caillat’s “Christmas in the Sand.” The title track, “Christmas in the Sand,” is perfect for a holiday vacation in the Caribbean, or if you just want to pretend that you are swinging away on a hammock wearing a Santa hat.
Also in the pop realm, there is another addition to the Now That’s What I Call Christmas series: Now That’s What I Call Today’s Christmas. “Call Me Maybe” pop princess Carly Rae Jepsen put out a single for the album called “Mittens.” It’s nowhere near as catchy as “Call Me Maybe,” but I have to give Jepsen credit for putting out an original song at Christmas time.
In order to appeal to the pre-teen crew, Now That’s What I Call Today’s Christmas also features songs by Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato and Justin Bieber (Hint: you can’t miss J. Bieb’s song, “Mistletoe.”)
Actually though, there are real can’t-miss songs on the album: One Republic’s “Christmas Without You” and Sara Bareilles’s “Love is Christmas” are great originals. My favorite by far though, is Coldplay’s “Christmas Lights.” Some people might complain that these types of songs diverge from typical Christmas cheer, but I think in time they will become Christmas classics.
Speaking of classics: don’t forget them. Every year, I put on the original “Now That’s What I Call Christmas” and listen to John Lenon’s “Happy X-Mas (War is Over)” over and over again. And nothing sounds more like Christmas than Clarence Clemons’s Santa Claus laughter on Bruce Springsteen’s “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.”
Travelling back farther and farther into time, there are more inevitable classics like Frank Sinatra’s “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” and Bing Crosby and Ella Fitzgerald’s “Silver Bells” — the undeniable benchmarks of Christmas music. These are the tracks to listen to while you decorate the tree.
Other songs like Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” are modern favorites. The master of Christmas classics, Josh Groban, performs two of my favorite holiday songs of all time: “Oh Holy Night,” and “Believe,” from “The Polar Express”soundtrack.
When I listen to these songs, I almost feel like I am listening to the radio at home or on my way to exchange presents with family or decorating cookies; but in reality, I will probably listen to these as I prepare for a Shakespeare final. Nonetheless, they will bring me some needed Christmas cheer.
So here’s my advice: stop being a scrooge; don’t be a Grinch. Finals haven’t stolen Christmas. Listen to a few of these Christmas songs, decorate your room or apartment, bake some cookies. And if you just believe, Christmas will be here before you know it.
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