Vince Guaraldi’s “Linus and Lucy” is a staple of Christmas radio stations this time of year. It appears memorably in A Charlie Brown Christmas, but is it actually a Christmas song? A look at the evidence.
Tag Archives: Christmas Music
Revisiting a Beatle-Esque Christmas
About two years ago, thanks to the Things We Said Today podcast, I learned of an album of Beatle-esque Christmas music, the Abbey Road Xmas Ensemble’s A Christmas Tribute to the Beatles. (There’s also this one, The Liverpool Christmas Band’s Beatle-esque Christmas, which looks like it’s the same material, but with karaoke versions of theContinue reading “Revisiting a Beatle-Esque Christmas”
Happy Xmas (War Is Over) — An Unappreciation
I was driving into the office yesterday morning, and I heard “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” on the radio. I’m going to level here. “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” is garbage. Maybe that’s overstating it, but not by much! The lyrics are uninspired, if not outright trite, and they barely even fit the melody. (LennonContinue reading “Happy Xmas (War Is Over) — An Unappreciation”
On A Very She & Him Christmas
As many people know, in spite of my infidelic nature, I love Christmas music. I don’t confine myself to the time around the Christmas holidays, either; I’ll listen to a Christmas album in spring or summer just because I feel like it. A few days ago, the Guardian reviewed A Very She & Him Christmas,Continue reading “On A Very She & Him Christmas”
On a Coldplay Demos Album
Earlier this week, Coldplay released their newest single, “Christmas Lights.” It’s a Christmas song, though not a particularly festive one. It’s a piano-based ballad, a bit like A Rush of Blood to the Head‘s “The Scientist” by way of Viva La Vida. Much like Carbon Leaf’s Christmas album, Christmas Child, it’s a song set atContinue reading “On a Coldplay Demos Album”
On The Music That Cheers Me Up
I listen to music. I listen to music a lot. Music makes the work day go faster. Music makes the words flow. Music lets me shut out the world and just write. At the office, I put on the headphones. At home, I crank up the stereo. And I just go. It's how I roll.Continue reading “On The Music That Cheers Me Up”
On Carbon Leaf’s New Christmas Album
My musical interests, which tend to be Scottish and Anglophile, have one major exception — Carbon Leaf. I discovered the band in college; they made frequent appearances on the University of Richmond campus a decade ago, and they played other venues around the city when I was student there. 2010 has been a big yearContinue reading “On Carbon Leaf’s New Christmas Album”