This is kind of a General Question, but not really, and it’s kind of an IMHO, but also not really, and it’s kind of a Cafe Society, but, again, not really, so I’m putting it in here where nobody really cares what you post…
A lot of our “Christmas music” in the US is really “winter music” (Winter Wonderland, Let It Snow, Sleigh Ride, Jingle Bells, etc).
Given that Christmas for Australian and Kiwi Dopers happens at the height of summer, are these kind of songs still considered “Christmas music” there?
Yeah, most of our Christmas songs over here tend to be the same as the ones you’ve mentioned.
For a good Australian Christmas song, see if you can get your hands on Kevin “Bloody” Wilson’s “Hey Santa Claus”.
Wait until all your relatives are around before putting it on though, as it’s such a sweet and sentimental song you’ll want the pleasure of sharing it with your loved ones.
Doesn’t anyone get a kind of cognitive dissonance after growing up hearing about snow and cold and icicles and frosted window panes and mythical personifications of winter playing minor and entirely juvenile pranks to one’s nose in the middle of summer?
Isn’t it weird to hear people singing about wintery things in the middle of summer? Don’t people kind of think “Why are we singing about this stuff when it’s 35 degrees out and we’re going to the beach tomorrow?”?
Nah, not weird at all. Christmas IS singing silly songs about snow and strange old fellas in thick red suits then slathering on the sunscreen before you head off to the beach.
Because of the relatively short time since European colonization, (and don’t forget for generations after that most people still called Britain ‘home’) we haven’t yet developed a ‘Hot Weather Christmas Tradition’ of our very own.
So we still sing Let it Snow and wear reindeer antlers on our heads while we’re playing beach cricket or going for a splash in the surf.
Right. These songs don’t have anything to do with Christmas and could just as well be played during January or February except that by then everyone is sick of winter.
Thank you for asking this! I’d been wondering this myself recently.
Gotcha. I just wondered if there was a point in every Australian/New Zealander’s life where they actually realized what they were singing and thought, “That’s a bit off, i’n’t it?”
And just to forestall objections, no, it wouldn’t be the same thing for south Floridians or Hawaiians or San Diegans, because it’s still winter in those places. Winter just isn’t as cold as it is for most of the rest of the States.
Umm… yes…
Not to disparage TasteLikeBurning’s exquisite taste in selecting this fine traditional Australian Christmas hymn, so I’ll leave it to your own judgement before you Google up the MP3 at work. The first two lines, for example, are:
I was a confused child about Christmas. Up until I was six, I had never seen snow at any time of year, and so still expected it to occur at Christmas time because that was what everyone showed on TV/movies/in songs etc.
I am surprised that any attempt to summer-ise Christmas down here hasn’t really taken any kind of strong hold. In theory it should be relatively easy to do, but I guess the norhtern hemisphere traditions are more powerful.
I think if Santa didn’t have reindeer and a winter-warm costume, it’d be easier for his persona to adapt to different climates, but as it stands he’s always a wintery personality.
Santa can be adapted at least somewhat – locally, he is often portrayed in a boat pulled by gators. Gotta get to the kids deep in the swamp, after all!
Yup, I’ve sent out these Christmas cards:
[ul]
[li] Santa lounging on the beach (trail of boots, gloves, hat, scarf, shirt and pants leading to chair)[/li][li] Santa scuba-diving, and a manatee holding a wrapped present[/li][li] Santa water-skiing, and all the reaindeer sitting in the boat (one spotting Santa, Rudolph riding the bow)[/li][li] Santa in a sleigh, with 8 plastic yard flamingos in harness[/li][li] Santa water-skiing behind two dolphins[/li][li] Santa building a snowman made of sand[/li][li] Wreath made of sand, decorated with seashells and sea stars[/li][/ul]
Kinda weird doing ‘traditional’ Currier and Ives/Thomas Kinkaide (urp) pictures when there is no snow (of course, it’s pouring rain out right now. Grrrrrrrr.).
Yes, I know. I’ve done something similar in the past. But they haven’t really taken hold, they’re just occasional attempts to put an Australian spin on it. If you go to any Store and see Santa’s Grotto, it’s still all red suits, reindeer, and snow.
