J M Wetherington Sr

The holiday spirit is in the air…or at least the holiday songs are on the air. If you listen to the radio, watch TV, or walk through a store or mall, you’ve most likely heard some holiday songs. Over on radio station Magic 107.7 they’ve continued their tradition of programming nothing but holiday music from Thanksgiving Day until Christmas Day, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. I think it’s safe to say that if you were to listen to their broadcast continuously during that time period, you would hear every version of every holiday song ever performed.

I mean, I’m sure there are some exceptions. I’ve yet to hear “I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus”, “Frosty The Hitman”, “I’ll Be Homeless For Christmas” or “Santa Claus Is Gunning You Down”, but most every other song is on their rotation.

That got me to thinking about my Top Ten Favorite Holiday Songs and what they might be. My tastes are pretty eclectic because I enjoy holiday songs by some of the older artists and some newer ones, some older versions of songs and some contemporary ones. I love listening to Mannheim Steamroller perform seasonal songs, and some old traditional ones like Bing Crosby singing “White Christmas”, but I also like Rock n’ Roll holiday songs and the satirical or humorous songs like, “The 12 Pains of Christmas”. So, I decided to list my Top Ten Favorite Holiday Songs under 3 different categories: Top Ten Favorite Traditional Holiday Songs, Top Ten Favorite Rock n Roll Holiday Songs and Top Ten Favorite Humorous Holiday Songs. Some will be just the song itself, but some will include a specific artist if that artist’s version is my favorite. Here we go:

Top Ten Favorite Traditional Holiday Songs

1. “Sleigh Ride”
2. “Jingle Bells”
3. “It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas”
4. “It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year”
5. “A Holly Jolly Christmas” by Burl Ives
6. “White Christmas”
7. “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!”
8. “Winter Wonderland”
9. “The Christmas Song” (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)

And my Number One Favorite Traditional Holiday Song:

1. “Merry Christmas, Darling” by Karen Carpenter

Top Ten Favorite Rock n’ Roll Holiday Songs

1. “I Wish Every Day Could Be Like Christmas” by Bon Jovi
2. “Jingle Bell Rock”
3. “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree”
4. “Little Saint Nick” by The Beach Boys
5. “Wonderful Christmastime” by Paul McCartney
6. “Santa Baby” by Madonna
7. “Do They Know It’s Christmas Time” – Band Aid
8. “Snoopy’s Christmas” (Snoopy vs. The Red Baron) by The Royal Guardsmen
9. “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town” by Bruce Springsteen

And my Number One Favorite Rock n’ Roll Holiday Song:

1. “All I Want For Christmas Is You” by Mariah Carey

Top Ten Favorite Humorous Holiday Songs

1. “Dominick the Christmas Donkey”
2. “(I’m Gettin’) Nuttin’ for Christmas”
3. “I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas”
4. “You’re a Mean One Mr Grinch”
5. “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus”
6. “The Chipmunk Song” (Christmas Don’t be Late) by Alvin & The Chipmunks
7. “The Chanukah Song” by Adam Sandler
8. “The Twelve Gifts Of Christmas” by Bob And Doug McKenzie
9. “Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer”

And my Number One Favorite Humorous Holiday Song:

1. “The 12 Pains of Christmas”

So, there are my lists. I’m curious to know what your favorites are. Do you share any of mine? Do you have some I didn’t list?