# Your favorite lesser-known Christmas recordings **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [December 14, 2022, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532 "2022-12-14T20:51:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/21 "2022-12-15T13:48:22Z")
[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/a2MZyKvNMBg/maxresdefault.jpg "Bad Religion - Christmas Songs (Full Album)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2MZyKvNMBg) shockingly itS a pretty straight Xmas album ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/22 "2022-12-15T13:58:42Z")
Here’s a sort of silly one called Angelo Rosenbaum. It’s very much a Broadway show tune, but every year I like to hear about Angelo’s journey to happiness. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/GxKEKq3x7qQ/maxresdefault.jpg "Angelo Rosenbaum (feat. Thom Christopher Warren)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxKEKq3x7qQ) ---
**Author:** ![veryfrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/87869e/32.png) [@veryfrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/veryfrank)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/23 "2022-12-15T13:59:41Z")
the Kevin & Bean morning show on KROQ in Los Angeles used to release Christmas cassettes and then, starting in 1997, CDs, featuring KROQ bands interspersed with comedy bits (“And now a Christmas wish from Henry Winkler.” “Stop calling me f\*\*\*in’ Fonzie, alright?”). Some of those tracks were really terrific, like Save Ferris’ rewrite of “Christmas Wrapping” and Sugar Ray w/ The Wilson Sisters covering “Little Saint Nick.” And it may not be totally unknown, as they did make a video for it, but I’ve always liked the Ramones’ “Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want To Fight Tonight).” ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/24 "2022-12-15T14:00:47Z")
I don’t know if it’s all that lesser known, since it was featured in a holiday commercial campaign a couple years back, but I’ve always kind of liked The Waitresses’ Christmas Wrapping: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/nud2TQNahaU/hqdefault.jpg "The Waitresses - Christmas Wrapping (Music Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nud2TQNahaU) For something a little different, how about a song that celebrates the pagan origins of Christmas? [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/XJS9TjjHxx8/maxresdefault.jpg "Ring Out, Solstice Bells (2003 Remaster)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJS9TjjHxx8) ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/25 "2022-12-15T14:07:11Z")
Screw the hippopotamus, I want an elephant! This is from an album I got as a kid. [Peter Pan Caroleers I Want an Elephant for Christmas - YouTube](https://youtu.be/VbJmUGxnHA0) ---
**Author:** ![XOldiesJock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ec9cab/32.png) [@XOldiesJock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XOldiesJock)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/26 "2022-12-15T14:22:13Z")
One radio station I worked for played “The First Noel” by Karla Bonoff, a singer-songwriter from the 1980s. Though not an obscure song by any means, hers is a beautiful rendition that is rarely heard. “A-Soalin’” by Peter, Paul and Mary and “Bring a Torch, Jeannette, Isabela,” an instrumental played on piano by Liz Story, are two songs I always sneaked in, though they were not on the station’s playlist, just because I enjoyed hearing them. Interestingly, listeners not familiar with either often called asking about both songs. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/27 "2022-12-15T14:55:31Z")
I must admit that I love the song, but Steeleye Span’s version and their version of Latin pronunciation is proper “fingernails on chalkboard” horrific to me. I prefer something a little…tidier: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/2KSxg9Ij5r8/maxresdefault.jpg "The King's Singers - Gaudete") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KSxg9Ij5r8) I’ve got lots of offbeat Christmas songs I could add here but I’ll stick with one of the more beautiful ones, by The Roches: [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/XFbE9ZStums/hqdefault.jpg "The Roches - Star of Wonder") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFbE9ZStums) ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/28 "2022-12-15T16:29:28Z")
I Want An Alien For Christmas / Fountains Of Wayne [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/CyPRKsXnw2Q/maxresdefault.jpg "Alien for ChristmasVideo by Dave Pryor") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyPRKsXnw2Q) ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/29 "2022-12-15T18:21:56Z")
“December will be Magic Again”, by Kate Bush: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/sbf0bU_c2aw/hqdefault.jpg "Kate Bush -December Will Be Magic Again -(HD)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbf0bU_c2aw) ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/30 "2022-12-15T18:30:51Z")
“The Cowboy’s Christmas Ball” by The Killers is a nice little earworm. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/P9d9qd9o_lU/maxresdefault.jpg "The Killers - The Cowboy's Christmas Ball") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9d9qd9o_lU) ---
**Author:** ![Turek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/turek/32/18782_2.png) [@Turek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turek)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/31 "2022-12-15T18:54:16Z")
[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/-E1ULv6LcOk/maxresdefault.jpg "I Don't Know What Christmas Is (But Christmastime Is Here) (From "The Guardians of the ...") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E1ULv6LcOk) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/32 "2022-12-15T20:25:40Z")
Two diametrically opposed pieces 1.) _Russian Christmas Music_ by Alfred Reed. According to Wikipedia, it’s “one of the most performed pieces of concert band literature”. Nevertheless, I spent years searching for a recording of it, in vain. The only recording I knew of it was the one that my high school band made. It was actually pretty damned good, with few errors. Now I can find it in several places on YouTube. Here’s a good recording of it, below. Despite what Wikipedia says, I’ve never seen (or even heard of, outside the internet) another performance of the piece, a nd have never heard it broadcast, nor on vinyl, casette, or CD (aside from the one vinyl record we performed). It’s worth listening to, at least once. Especially if you’ve been overwhelmed by Christmas music you’ve heard a zillion times before. (For some reason, some YouTube versions – like the one made by the US Army band – are not the complete piece) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/HfOiKknS-Wc/maxresdefault.jpg "The New York Wind Symphony - Russian Christmas Music by Alfred Reed") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfOiKknS-Wc) 2.) Bob Rivers’ album _A Twisted Christmas_, in particular, the recording of _O Little Town of Bethlehem_ done to the tune of _House of the Rising Sun_. Wonderfully twisted. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/3Cbk8f7f5OI/maxresdefault.jpg "O Little Town of Bethlehem - Bob Rivers") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Cbk8f7f5OI) ---
**Author:** ![kitap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@kitap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kitap)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/33 "2022-12-15T21:44:08Z")
It’s a mash-up but I love the Barenaked Ladies/Sarah McLachlan mash-up here: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/HqgxWyJ_m40/maxresdefault.jpg "Barenaked Ladies (w/Sarah McLachlan) - God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen / We Three Kings (Official Audio)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqgxWyJ_m40) Again, heard it first at work. ---
**Author:** ![Jaycat.again](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat.again/32/11525_2.png) [@Jaycat.again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaycat.again)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/34 "2022-12-15T22:16:22Z")
The only Xmas album that ever gets played around here is “The New Possibility” by John Fahey. https://www.youtube.com/embed/dQeX6rNO0O0?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&list=PLKiEBsOXrNf4Gk_puDBafCP0RvmU06WeZ Otherwise, I agree with Tracey Thorn, who wrote: “Every day’s like Christmas day without you It’s cold and there’s nothing to do.” ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2022, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/35 "2022-12-15T23:33:46Z")
Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin’ [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/xn-UpaaJxe8/maxresdefault.jpg "Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin'") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xn-UpaaJxe8) ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2022, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/36 "2022-12-16T07:26:42Z")
This song from two years ago apparently hasn’t caught on; I learned about it in a thread on here and still like it. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/hp2c_G4ayYI/maxresdefault.jpg "WALLIS - Lonely Christmas (Official Music Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hp2c_G4ayYI) ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2022, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/37 "2022-12-16T14:35:35Z")
> [@kitap](#): > > It’s a mash-up but I love the Barenaked Ladies/Sarah McLachlan mash-up here Not surprising, but this is quite common to hear on Canadian radio stations. I remember hearing a cover of Joni Mitchell’s “River” on the radio and wondering who sang it. Turns out it was Robert Downey Jr! (Maybe not lesser-known, but I didn’t know it at the time.) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/sEsXHdhkrik/maxresdefault.jpg "River") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEsXHdhkrik) ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2022, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/38 "2022-12-19T03:31:03Z")
This is one I stood on the fence about mentioning for a bit. It starts with sleigh bells and other jingly percussion, and has a 24 member choral ensemble. But it’s pretty dang frenetic and psychedelic for Christmas music, and it’s that way for pretty much 20 minutes of it. It calms down in the second half, though. Then I realized it was recorded on Dec 24th. So, maybe it’s Christmas music for those who prefer to view their tree while loaded on mushrooms and weed? If so, I’m fine with that. It’s good, and it at least starts Christmas-y. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/V__1KLwDer8/hqdefault.jpg "Boredoms - Livwe!! (Super Roots 9)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V__1KLwDer8) 'course, I’m fine with thinking of Santa being named Annual Gift Man and him living on the moon. So YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2022, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/39 "2022-12-19T23:53:24Z")
[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/a8qE6WQmNus/maxresdefault.jpg "Bob Dylan - Must Be Santa (Official Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8qE6WQmNus) ---
**Author:** ![TRC4941](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trc4941/32/6792_2.png) [@TRC4941](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TRC4941)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532/40 "2022-12-20T15:12:36Z")
I love _A Soalin’_ by Peter, Paul & Mary. I don’t hear it very often. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-lesser-known-christmas-recordings/976532.md?page=3)