# Christmas songs with parts that irritate me **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 11, 2017, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212 "2017-12-11T17:07:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2017, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/161 "2017-12-19T04:05:01Z")
> [@dougie\_monty](#): > > That sounded like an outtake. That’s part of the gag. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2017, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/162 "2017-12-19T04:10:39Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > That’s part of the gag. 🙂 What I’m getting at is that the dialog was very furtive and sloppy, and didn’t sound like a performance or anything meant to be conveyed to an audience as humor…as if they were doing a rehearsal or preliminary reading of a script. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2017, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/163 "2017-12-19T17:01:22Z")
> [@dougie\_monty](#): > > What I’m getting at is that the dialog was very furtive and sloppy, and didn’t sound like a performance or anything meant to be conveyed to an audience as humor…as if they were doing a rehearsal or preliminary reading of a script. No, that’s the actual track. Spinal Tap ([a parody band created in part by Rob Reiner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spinal_Tap_(band))) [recorded it](http://www.spinaltap.com/atozed/TAP00596.HTM) [for a charity CD](https://www.discogs.com/Various-The-Holiday-Collection-Volume-III/release/10489979). ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2017, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/164 "2017-12-19T18:03:06Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > The problem with “Last Christmas” is that it _has nothing to do with Christmas!!_ > You could change the line to “Last Easter” or “Last Flag Day” or “Last Tuesday” and it would be the same damn song. This covers 90% of “Christmas” music written in the last 50 years. They’re really pop love songs that happen to be set at Christmas. They’re not really Christmas carols, despite being rammed down our throats after Halloween. (Unfortunately, “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” falls into this category, despite being otherwise completely awesome.) And to the poster who loathed “Jingle Bell Rock” with the heat of a thousand suns … that also goes for its evil twin, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2017, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/165 "2017-12-19T18:43:55Z")
“It’s the Holiday Season”: A moderately obscure song (most famously sung by Andy Williams, I think). It’s mostly harmless except for one line that makes me want to throw the hardware through a window: _So whoop-de-doo And dickory dock And don’t forget To hang up your sock._ What the hell is that? Just lazy lyrics, and embued with a sense of ennui and snark that is most unbecoming to the season. ---
**Author:** ![ioioio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ioioio/32/316_2.png) [@ioioio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ioioio)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2017, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/166 "2017-12-19T23:05:31Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > . . . > that also goes for its evil twin, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”. What the hell is “the new old-fashioned way”? ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2017, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/167 "2017-12-19T23:35:46Z")
> [@ioioio](#): > > What the hell is “the new old-fashioned way”? Maybe it has something to do with The Madison. [Wikipedia says that dance incorporated a step which originated in around '33](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madison_(dance)) ([Shuffle Off to Buffalo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuffle_Off_to_Buffalo)). ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/168 "2017-12-20T15:28:26Z")
> [@ioioio](#): > > What the hell is “the new old-fashioned way”? An oxymoron ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/169 "2017-12-20T15:47:14Z")
> [@ioioio](#): > > What the hell is “the new old-fashioned way”? It’s not like I’ve thought long and hard about it, but I always assumed it just meant something that’s come back into fashion. Like recent hipsters, with their new old-fashioned facial hair styles. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/170 "2017-12-20T16:08:48Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > It’s not like I’ve thought long and hard about it, but I always assumed it just meant something that’s come back into fashion. Like recent hipsters, with their new old-fashioned facial hair styles. I _have_ thought long and hard about it (ok, not really) and believe: “old fashioned” = singing Christmas carols around the Christmas tree “new old fashioned” = rockin’ around the Christmas tree Although RAtCT doesn’t rock by anyone’s definition of the term. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/171 "2017-12-20T16:10:22Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > It’s not like I’ve thought long and hard about it, but I always assumed it just meant something that’s come back into fashion. Like recent hipsters, with their new old-fashioned facial hair styles. Or a popular dance using a step that’s about 25 years old? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/172 "2017-12-20T16:13:44Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > Although RAtCT doesn’t rock by anyone’s definition of the term. It was a top-20 hit for Brenda Lee in 1960, two years after its original release. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/173 "2017-12-20T16:23:31Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > It was a top-20 hit for Brenda Lee in 1960, two years after its original release. Also top 20 hits in 1960: “El Paso” (Marty Robbins), “The Theme from A Summer Place” (Percy Faith) and “Mr Custer” (Larry Verne). ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/174 "2017-12-20T16:25:50Z")
I was hearing Its _Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas_ last night and, with this thread in mind, noted how dated the line about wanting “a pair of Hopalong boots” is. Not only are these items no longer at the top of (almost, I suppose?) anyone’s Christmas list, the number of people who even know who Hopalong Cassidy was is likely shrinking daily. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/175 "2017-12-20T16:50:46Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > Also top 20 hits in 1960: “El Paso” (Marty Robbins), “The Theme from A Summer Place” (Percy Faith) and “Mr Custer” (Larry Verne). RAtCT was the top Christmas song at the end of 1960 and stayed in the top-20 for a week into '61. Charting higher and longer than Bing’s “White Christmas” for that period. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/176 "2017-12-20T16:54:52Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > I was hearing Its _Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas_ last night and, with this thread in mind, noted how dated the line about wanting “a pair of Hopalong boots” is. Not only are these items no longer at the top of (almost, I suppose?) anyone’s Christmas list, the number of people who even know who Hopalong Cassidy was is likely shrinking daily. In a similar vein: “Up on the Housetop” (which is probably one of the oldest secular Christmas carols–1860’s) has a line about some poor kid getting a hammer and lots of tacks. Gee, thanks, Santa… ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/177 "2017-12-20T17:30:16Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > I _have_ thought long and hard about it (ok, not really) and believe: > > “old fashioned” = singing Christmas carols around the Christmas tree > “new old fashioned” = rockin’ around the Christmas tree That works, too. A new way of celebrating old fashioned traditions. ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/178 "2017-12-20T20:52:08Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > RAtCT was the top Christmas song at the end of 1960 and stayed in the top-20 for a week into '61. Charting higher and longer than Bing’s “White Christmas” for that period. Factoid: Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas” was _not_ his top selling single. “Silent Night” was. But since it was a religious song, he gave all the royalties to charity. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/179 "2017-12-20T21:07:45Z")
> [@dougie\_monty](#): > > Factoid: Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas” was _not_ his top selling single. “Silent Night” was. “Silent Night” charted three times (once as “_Adeste Fideles_”) and peaked at #7 whereas “White Christmas” peaked at #1 in three different years. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2017, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212/180 "2017-12-20T22:25:24Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > “Silent Night” charted three times (once as “_Adeste Fideles_”) 😕 Adeste Fideles is O Come All Ye Faithful. 😕 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-songs-with-parts-that-irritate-me/804212.md?page=10)