My thoughts, rants, raves on all things music. I will be looking at lyrics of songs and providing my insight, thoughts, opinions and other diatribes as I see fit.
Okay, so I've been listening to Christmas songs for over a month now, and while I still enjoy listening to them, I do have a few questions that have been plaguing me. In no particular order, here they are...
- Exactly what is figgy pudding, and do people really eat this concoction? - Where is Dixie's Sunny Shore, and why do people from Pennsylvania head there during the holidays? - Am I the only one who finds the video for Hall and Oate's "Jingle Bell Rock" just a little creepy? - Why is Celine Dion allowed to sing Christmas songs...well, any song for that matter? - What record exec though it would be a good idea to team up Frank Sinatra and Cyndi Lauper for a duet of "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town?" - What record exec felt the song "I'll Be home With Bells On" (Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton) was actually a good idea? - Whatever happened to the kid when he finally got his two front teeth? He never wished me a Merry Christmas. - What sort of person tells ghost stories at Christmastime? - How exactly does one rock around the Christmas Tree? - Why is silver and gold the only tree decorations worth singing about? Surely the Hallmark folks can come up with something to combat this. - Isn't "Jolly Old Saint Nicholas" just a little bit threatening, when you stop and listen to the lyrics? - Where exactly did the three ships come sailing into on Christmas Day, and who really saw them? - Why does the male part in "Baby It's Cold Outside" always come off as a person who's probably looking to slip a mickey into the female's drink?
There are plenty more, but this is perhaps the most vexing of questions. I'd love to hear if any of you have answers to any of these. Perhaps there are some obvious ones I've missed?
I mentioned the Muppets version of this song in my Top 10 favorite Christmas songs (#4 for those of you keeping score at home), but there is a new version that is quickly gaining in terms of my favorite version of this song. Check out the group Straight No Chaser doing their version of the 12 Days of Christmas...
Truth be told, I would give anything to be able to sing in a group like this sometime!
I figured, since I highlighted my second favorite Christmas song already, I should probably break down my favorite Christmas song for you, my faithful reader (I'd make that plural, but I'm not sure I have more than one reader yet).
Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Jack Frost nipping at your nose. Yuletide carols being sung by the fire, and folks dressed up like Eskimos.
Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe helps to make the season bright. Tiny tots, with their eyes all aglow will find it hard to sleep tonight.
They know that Santa’s on his way. He’s loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh. And every mother’s child is gonna spy to see if reindeer really know how to fly.
And so, I’m offering this simple phrase to kids from one to ninety-two. Although it’s been said many time, many ways, Merry Christmas to you.
This song is my all-time favorite Christmas Song. It’s a song that emphasizes to me the simple joy of the season. It brings to mind images and memories of a time before Black Friday, Cyber-Monday, Hallmark ornaments, Hess Trucks, and all the other commercial trappings that are commonplace in today’s society.
The song captures the innocence of Christmas that most of us have lost over the years. Let’s be honest, most of us have never roasted chestnuts on an open fire. I dare say most of us have never had chestnuts, roasted or otherwise. I haven’t. I wouldn’t know a chestnut if one fell out of a tree and popped me on the head. Yet, the image that this phrase conjures is one of warmth and a feeling of home. I imagine sitting in front of a fireplace, snow falling outside, candles burning on the mantle, the scent of pine, cinnamon, and chestnuts (though I have no idea what they smell like) wafting through the room. It is the type of image you see in the movies or a Kinkade painting (if he did interior scenes).
And how many of us struggled as kids to fall asleep? How many of us reluctantly went to bed, only to sneak downstairs an hour later to see if Santa had come? I remember many Christmas mornings where I would peek into my sister’s room only to find she’s already snuck downstairs and was sorting the bounty that Santa had dropped off. I even rememebr a few where I was the first one downstairs doing the sorting.
I miss that innocence. I miss the days where going Christmas Shopping was an event for the whole family, not something that begins the day after Christmas. And I really miss being able to say "Merry Christmas" without fear of the PC-police breathing down my neck. I find it ironic that we sing of "peace on earth" at this time of the year, yet few things get us more worked up at this time of the year than the potential offense we might cause another by wishing them "Merry Christmas." And with each passing year, as the meaning of Christmas becomes more and more overwhelmed by commercialism and political correctness, I fear we will soon find ourselves celebrating a "winter festival" rather than celebrating the birth of our King.
Let’s re-capture the innocence lost and join our voices in unison with this song as we wish everyone "Merry Christmas to you!"
And if that heartfelt appeal doesn't get you in the mood, perhaps this will...
This song is one of those songs that comes out of nowhere and completely catches you by surprise. The first time I heard even part of the song, I only heard the last chorus and the last verse. Yet that was enough to completely captivate me. I went home that night, looked it up on iTunes, and purchased the single for my Christmas playlist.
I've interjected my comments within the lyrics of the song. To hear this song, I encourage you to find it on iTunes, or to purchase Faith's new Christmas album "Joy to the World". Teenage girl, much too young. Unprepared for what’s to come. A baby changes everything.
Not a ring on her hand. All her dreams and all her plans. A baby changes everything.
At this point in the song, you might be thinking that perhaps this young girl deserves her fate. Children should not have children. I’ll even admit that if I had heard this song from the beginning the first time, I would probably have been somewhat cynical towards this girl’s plight. I do not condone the glamorization of teenage pregnancy, and many songs in rotation today approach this subject as if the girl involved either had no choice or can’t be held accountable for her actions. This song dangles perilously close to that edge.
The man she loves she’s never touched. How will she keep his trust? A baby changes everything.
She has to leave, go far away. Heaven knows she can’t stay. A baby changes everything.
She can feel it’s coming soon. There’s no place, there’s no room. A baby changes everything.
At this point in the song, even if you are a cynic, you’re probably finding yourself at the very least a little emotionally invested. Even the hardest hearts among us can empathize with the fears and confusion she must be going through at this time.
Shepherds all gather ‘round. Up above, the star shines down. A baby changes everything.
Choir of angels sing Glory to the newborn King. A baby changes everything.
Finally, we now know that this young girl is Mary, the mother of Jesus. And once we excuse ourselves for our previous reactions, we can take a look back at the song, and realize that these lyrics are probably quite close to what Mary must have gone through. The Bible tells us that Mary showed no confusion, offering her praises to God for choosing her for this honor (Luke 1:46-55), and I have no doubt that Mary did see this as a glorious honor. But I suspect that she also had the fear and the worry that is captured in this song. We know that Joseph did (Matthew 1:18-25).
But the song doesn’t end there. The final verse is, perhaps, the most important.
My whole life has turned around. I was lost but now I’m found. A baby changes everything.
I’m not going to judge whether or not I believe the singer is or isn’t a Christian. That’s not my place. However, these three phrases perfectly capture the purpose of Christ on Earth. He came to be the sacrifice for our sins. He came to offer us salvation through his sacrifice. When we accept Him, our lives will be turned upside around. We will no longer be in the dark, no longer be among the lost. For those of us who have accepted Christ as our savior, a baby has changed everything!
So as not to be thought of as a complete Scrooge, I've also compiled a list of my favorite Christmas songs of all time. Admittedly, some of these are probably a bit less known by the masses, and that's fine. Perhaps if more people were to take my recommendations, they would get the airplay they deserve (Yes, Virginia, in my dreams I am that influential).
10) “In The First Light” (Glad) – I’m not sure who actually wrote the song, but Glad’s arrangement was the first one that I remember listening to. It’s a great song, simple, poignant, and filled with the joyous hope of the season. It also serves as a reminder that we can often get caught up in the business of the season, but Christ is here, quietly with us, and anxious for us to come to Him if we’ll only slow down a little and pay attention. 9) “Heirlooms”(Amy Grant) – going a bit ‘old school’ here. This is one of those songs that always hits home with me. I am a traditionalist when it comes to Christmas. I refuse to listen to Christmas music until Black Friday. I always listen to the same CD when putting up our tree. And this song always reminds me that the memories of Christmas are, perhaps, the most cherished Christmas present we can give each other year after year. 8) “Little Drummer Boy” (White Heart) – Perhaps not the most popular arrangement of this song, it is still my favorite arrangement of this song. Ric Florian’s soaring vocals over the perfect blend of guitar and drums makes this song worth listening to over and over again. 7) “Christmastime Is Here” (Mercy Me) – classic song from “Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown” redone in a contemporary style, yet maintains the perfect jazz feel of the original. The trumpet solo in the middle sets the tone for the whole song. 6) “The New Twelve Days of Christmas” (First Call) – Here’s a more relevant list… 12 Diets Slimming……11 Trees For Trimming……10 Stockings Brimming…… 9 Cash Dispersals (ouch)……8 Choir Rehearsals……7 Plates With Dressing…… 6 Cards With Blessing……5 Shopping Malls……4 Manger Scenes…… 3 Fruit Cakes…… 2 Evergreens…… And a Child born to set the world free!
Here are my top five most annoying Christmas songs of all time...
5) "Celebrate Me Home" (Kenny Loggins) – Kenny should stick to movie soundtracks. This song is sappy, whiny, and the incessant repetition of the final phrase, which accounts for nearly half the running time of the song, makes this song excruciating to listen to. 4) "Dominick The Donkey" (does it matter?) – A ridiculous song with no business being part of the Christmas season, yet it seems like it’s on the radio every time I turn it on. 3) "Another Old Lang Syne" (Dan Folgerberg) – perhaps the most depressing seasonal song (is it even a Christmas Song?) ever recorded. Two old acquaintances happen upon each other, booze it up in a car, complain about their lives, and then leave each other to their own continued loneliness. This song makes Debbie Downer seem like a cheery, hopeful person. 2) "Last Christmas" (Wham) – This is, perhaps, one of the most absurd Christmas songs ever conceived. “Last Christmas, I gave you my heart. But the very next day you gave it away. This year, to save me from tears, I’ll give it to someone special.” So are we to assume that the giver did not consider the original recipient special, but was so desperate to give their heart away that they just picked someone at random to give their heart away to? Annoying on so many different levels.
And, without further ado...
1) "The Christmas Shoes" (NewSong) - When this song was first released, I remember sitting in the car, thanking God for the reminder of His blessings in my life. I remember being emotionally affected by the lyrics. Since then, after a contemptible amount of airplay, and intrusion into all forms of mass media (including a book and TV movie staring Rob Lowe?!?!), the song serves as a reminder of how a good song can be destroyed by pop culture. I hate including this song here, because I really like NewSong, but this song has just been beaten to death and needs to be retired.
Obviously, there are a number of other songs that could have easily made this list ("I Wanna Hippopotamus For Christmas" or anything by Celine Dion immediately comes to mind), but I had to draw the line somewhere
Well, I figured since it's that time of year, and I'm in a rotten mood because of work, I'd start off this blog with my 10 most annoying songs of the season. Here are songs 10-6...
10) "Blue Christmas"(Elvis Presley) – schmaltzy song, stupid lyrics, obnoxious spoken part in the middle, and the goofy ‘whoo-ooh-ooh-ohh’ repeating over and over again make this one of the more annoying songs of the season. 9) "Do They Know It’s Christmastime?" (Band-Aid) – the “We Are the World” of Christmas songs. While I’m all for feeding the world, do we need to be reminded through this less than appealing song every December? Shouldn’t we be doing this all the time? Christmas songs should not be political in nature. 8) "My Favorite Things" (from Sound of Music) – I have yet to understand how this song has been classified a Christmas Song. So the song talks about snowflakes and presents. In the context of the musical, it has nothing to do with Christmas. 7) "Happy X-Mas (War Is Over)"(John Lennon) – Another example of good artists doing bad songs. Politics and Christmas songs do not mix. 6) "Wonderful Christmastime" (Paul McCartney) – A perfect example of what happens when good artists do bad songs. Maybe the former Beatles should have stayed out of the Holiday song genre.
I’ve been pondering this for some time now, and I’ve decided that my day-to-day life just isn’t interesting enough to blog about on a daily/weekly/monthly basis. Yet, I still feel the need to share my opinions on certain topics that may not necessarily be related to my life…at least directly. So, I contemplated starting a sports-based blog, but my good friends over at the Peanut Vendors kind of ran with that idea. So, I thought about focusing on a specific sport, and that may still play out. But most sports are seasonal, and hard to keep going during the off-season. The exception may be football, and there are just way too many football blogs available for me to get noticed. I might try a bowling blog. And maybe a softball blog over the summer, but the jury’s still out on those.
So, after much thought, I decided that I could try to keep a regular appointment with my computer on the subject of music. So that’s what I’m going to do. I’ll be blogging about songs that affect me at any given point in time. No genre is off-limits, though I don’t see me blogging much about rap, death metal, emo, techno, classical, and folk music as those genres aren’t found on my iPod playlist at the moment. More likely, you’re going to see a lot of posts on CCM, Praise & Worship, Country, Rock and Pop music. Basically, I’ll be ranting about all things lyrical and musical. I’ll be digging into lyrics, pointing out the absurd and the annoying. I’ll also point out the thought-provoking and the poignant. I tend to be a lyrical philosopher, sometimes seeing deeper meaning in song lyrics that may or may not be present, but often have an affect on me. I’ll try to provide my opinion and insight into some songs where applicable. And, ultimately, I will give my yea or nay on the song. I’m thinking a “Makes the Playlist” to represent a thumbs up, and “Recycle It” for a thumbs down. So here it is...The Lyric Philosopher!
So, hopefully you will find something of interest here and perhaps I will find some satisfaction in knowing that my thoughts and opinions might make a difference to someone out there!
I'm best described as a jack-of-all-trades, master of none. I've been married for over 11 years to my best friend and beautiful wife, Anita. No kids yet, but we're in the process of adopting. Together, we serve as Music/Worship Directors for Immanuel Church here in Mechanicsburg. I also coach our church's Men's Softball team, and I do enjoy bowling regularly.
