“Christmas in Prison” by John Prine.
Wow. I was just about ready to link to its lyrics.
If We Make It Through December - Merle Haggard:
I got laid off down at the factory
And their timing’s not the greatest in the world
Heaven knows I been workin’ hard
I wanted Christmas to be right for daddy’s girl
Now I don’t mean to hate December
It’s meant to be the happy time of year
And my little girl don’t understand
Why daddy can’t afford no Christmas cheer
ETA- Damn. installLSC beat me to it.
The 9/11 Silent Night song, here. Ignore the cheesyness of the page, and just listen to the words.
Pretty Paper - Willie Nelson (also performed by Roy Orbison)
Same Old Lang Syne - Dan Fogelberg (Despite the title, the song’s setting is a snowy Christmas Eve.)
2000 Miles - The Pretenders YouTube clip
No one mentioned River by Joni Mitchell yet? Is the first song I think of when I think “sad holiday music”. It’s like the anthem for Seasonal Affective Disorder.
I’ve always preferred The Night Santa Went Crazy.
The extra gory version too, where he dies.
I came in to mention this song. It’s especially nice how the singer thinks that god sent the boy to remind him what the holiday is about.
God says, “Sorry about your mom kiddo. There’s this guy that’s forgotten what Christmas is about.”
Interesting. What makes you read it like that?
I’m with the ‘depressing’ side, myself.
In the last two verses, while he changes his tune from slagging her off to going back to his protestations of loving her, she continues to the end claiming he’s a loser, who she’d have been better off without.
The first half of the last verse, specifically:
Male: I could have been someone
Female: Well so could anyone
You took my dreams from me
When I first found you
He then goes on to protest his love, but she doesn’t reply at all.
Doesn’t give me a feeling of Love Will Out, at all.
I don’t remember Easter
I do not remember Fall
So it’s possible December
Never happened after all.
Did we trim the tree together?
I can’t get the image through.
Cause I don’t remember Christmas
And I don’t remember you.
I’ll echo that song. What a sad, sad verse. I always think it’s about a soldier who’s not allowed or able to come home for the holidays.
“Father Christmas” by the Kinks is a bit of a downer. So is “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer”, though I guess that depends on how you feel about grandma.
“I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” always gets me wondering if it’s really daddy under that beard, or if there’s something darker going on.
All of them.
This album is a pretty solid collection, with one notable exception. “The Cat Carol” by Meryn Cadell makes you want to put a bullet through your head!
Lyrics here.
The original version of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas:
In a year we all will be together
If the Fates allow
Until then, we’ll just have to muddle through somehow
We Need A Little Christmas also has a very depressing second and third verse. It amazes me that people sing it upbeat.
The Broadway Christmas CD also has this lyric:
Fill up the stockins
It’s a long time since I had good memories
Slice up the fruitcake.
It’s time we hung some tinsel on that bayberry bough.
I think the one bit in Charlie Brown Christmas where everyone’s ice skating and Charlie Brown’s walking along is pretty sad. Maybe it’s just the placement of the song with the scene, but just hearing the recording it’s softening.
Christmas time is here
Happiness and cheer
Fun for all that children call
Their favorite time of the year
It’s a combination of things, not the song itself, I think. My grandmother’s favorite Christmas carold was O Holy night, and she died near Christmas 24 years ago.
My mom says that when I was a kid, I would just sob at Away in a Manger.