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Top 10 Underappreciated Christmas Songs
99 Plays2 months ago
Happy Holidays, everybody! With the Christmas season upon us, I thought it would be fun to compile a list of top 10 under-appreciated Christmas songs that everyone needs to know and love. We all know the classics like "All I Want For Christmas Is You," "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree," and "It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year" ... but there are so many others that deserve to shine! Join me in my first ever solo episode where I cover songs from our favorite pop girlies including Christina Aguilera, Willa Ford, Céline Dion, Sarah McLachlan, Britney Spears and the queen of Christmas herself, Mariah Carey.
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Transcript
Introduction: Impromptu Solo Episode
00:00:00
Speaker
Hello, everybody. Welcome back to homophonic. This is a very special episode. I've never done this before. Real talk. I was kind of bored today and got all my Christmas shopping done early and got home. I've got like five hours to kill before I go to my friend Joey and Jacob's Christmas party.
00:00:18
Speaker
So I was like, I want to do a little episode by myself. We'll see how this goes.
Personal Christmas Memories
00:00:24
Speaker
But something that I thought would be really fun to do would unveil what I think are 10 extremely underappreciated Christmas songs. um I absolutely love the holidays. I love Christmas. It's something that's always been really important to me.
00:00:40
Speaker
um My mom and dad made Christmas just really special when I was young for my brother and I. um Especially my dad, he just was everything that he did was always very big and celebratory. So he always had like all the decorations. In fact, my dad made a lot of Christmas decorations. um He had this like whole like woodworking shop in our basement and so he made all of these like wooden ah sculptures and things like that that he would then hand paint and you know I have no idea where those Christmas decorations are now but as a child like they were just the most magical thing in the entire world.
The Role of Christmas Music
00:01:21
Speaker
And being that I am a product of my father, he was the one that really got me into music the way that I am today, being the collector and really getting to know about all the artists and and really you know diving deep into the discographies and things like that. And so Christmas music was always a huge part of my childhood. um And I know one of the ah this is not part of the list, but there a song that seems to be somewhat controversial as far as like, you know, whether or not people love it or hate it. But one song that I absolutely love is Paul McCartney's Wonderful Christmas Time. I very much associate that with my childhood. That was a song that my dad would constantly play around the house. um So yeah, so I personally love Christmas music. I'm definitely a person that likes to listen to Christmas music.
00:02:14
Speaker
i I like it to have its season. I'm not someone that likes to listen to it year-round. I don't like to listen to it before Thanksgiving. I will say if it snows, because I live in Michigan, if it snows after Halloween before Thanksgiving, I'll give it a pass because that that will put me in the mood.
Underappreciated Christmas Songs
00:02:33
Speaker
But if it doesn't snow prior to Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving week is when I will like give myself the the allowance to listen to Christmas music. i just make I just feel like it makes it that much more special, that much more magical. um But yeah, I was thinking about several songs that I love to listen to over the holidays that I just feel like do not get appreciated enough. Obviously, every year,
00:03:03
Speaker
In the digital era, we see huge influx in Christmas songs that take over the Billboard Hot 100 here in America, obviously on streaming. There are a lot of songs that just, you know, kind of take over to the Spotify charts and things like that.
00:03:19
Speaker
ah you know One of the more ah obvious ones is Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas Is You, which is an absolute banger. It's definitely a personal favorite of mine. But we see other Christmas classics like Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree. It's the most wonderful time of the year. We see Wham's Last Christmas. um But there's a bunch of songs that I just don't feel get the love that I think that they should get.
00:03:46
Speaker
ah And so I wanted to make this little list because I thought it would just be fun to just kind of unveil some of those Christmas songs that I listened to during the holidays. um Some I think might shock you. Others I think that you're going to be like, what do you mean it's
Top 10 Countdown Introduction
#10: Willa Ford's "Santa Baby Gimme"
00:04:00
Speaker
underappreciated? And I'll explain why. um So without further ado, let's get into my top 10 most underappreciated Christmas songs. So at number 10, I put the iconic Miss Willa Ford ah with Santa Baby Gimme Gimme Gimme. Now this is not a cover of Santa Baby by Eartha Kitt. This is an original Christmas song. It was part of a TRL Christmas compilation, I want to say like in the year 2000. And it's definitely of the time. It is your quintessential Y2K
00:04:38
Speaker
dance pop girly creating what we thought at the time was a very quote unquote edgy Christmas song. It had like this very ah will afford beat, if you will. I mean, it's basically a Christmas version of I want to be bad, which we all know and love.
00:04:56
Speaker
um And it goes something like, gimme, gimme, gimme, a diamond ring, gimme, gimme, gimme, Tiffany, gimme, gimme, gimme, Santa, baby. Like, that's how it goes. um You're welcome for the singing, by the way.
00:05:10
Speaker
but um I absolutely love it. I know people are probably rolling their eyes right now. They're like, Who is this little faggot just being like telling us that it's a great song. I think it's a great song. I think it's fun. It is camp all the way. um She talks about five of her boyfriends and speedos, you know, and just it's just, it's so over the top. And it's absolutely everything that I need at Christmas time. So that's why I think at number 10,
00:05:38
Speaker
Willa Ford's original Santa Baby Gimme Gimme Gimme.
#9: George Michael's "Jingle, a Musical Interlude"
00:05:42
Speaker
um At number nine, we have a song that I don't think many people know. It is a song by George Michael called Jingle, a musical interlude. And I like the way he spelled interlude. it It's inter-L-E-W-D. um Now, this is a completely instrumental song. The song was released as a b-side to his single ah December song, which I believe was released somewhere around 2008-2009. I have to be honest, December song wasn't one of my favorite George Michael songs, but for whatever reason, this instrumental track that he created for the single absolutely captured me. It is a synth pop, just ambient. I don't really like to use the word vibe. i In fact, I just said to one of my followers, I hope the word vibe gets axed in 2025. I just feel like it's completely overused. um But I fucking love this song. i i I'm trying to think of how to even liken it. It's just like this like chill out
00:06:48
Speaker
synth pop track that just really, it makes me feel like I'm in the Polar Express. It makes me feel like I'm listening to a like a, I don't know, like a cooler hipster version of like the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. I don't know, like there there's, I don't even remember how I even came across this single or this song, but I just remember when I heard it for the first time, I was like, I remember, first of all, like kind of waiting for him to like his vocals to come in. I was like, OK, like, you know, he's going to start singing in any second now. And it's not. It is a completely instrumental track, which I think is just also a really cool um testament to George Michael and his musicianship. Like, obviously we all know George Michael for his, you know, his songs with Wham, obviously his solo career.
00:07:40
Speaker
ah he's he's, I think, a bit underappreciated as a songwriter and a producer. And this ah just goes to show like, the fact that he created an instrumental track for this like B side to a single, I just think is absolutely incredible. I just don't know any other artists that have really done that, at least in the pop work realm. Um,
00:08:07
Speaker
other than like you know releasing instrumental versions of their songs. But like this was just a completely instrumental track created for this that I just absolutely love. um It is on streaming. I highly
#8: Glee Cast's "Deck the Rooftop"
00:08:18
Speaker
recommend it. is Again, it's on the December song.
00:08:21
Speaker
ah single. So I highly recommend, I think it is, I always put it on my Christmas playlist. In fact, there's a Christmas playlist that I sometimes make if I'm ah going to, if we're just trying to like have a moment and we're trying to just lounge and chill, I'll do like a Christmas chill out playlist. um There is a compilation called Merry Mixmas, where it's like all these like lo-fi remixes of Christmas classics that I absolutely love that I usually put on that playlist.
00:08:50
Speaker
um And then I also put this song on that playlist as well, amongst like other songs. But um it's perfect for like, if you're just trying to have a chill night, you're trying to be feel festive, but you're, you know, don't necessarily want to listen to the Christmas classics. I think this is the perfect song to do that, um especially to like, especially like this is it gives cocktail party vibes, it gives like, classy. um You know, it's funny, too. like I mentioned like the interlude led like I feel like you know, that kind of alludes to it being like maybe sexy, maybe you're trying to have a little sexy moment. um Yeah, I think that George Michael Jingle, a musical interlude, just an absolute solid Christmas track that is very much overlooked. I don't think many people know it at all. So definitely check it out.
00:09:39
Speaker
Number eight, we have um one of my personal favorite Christmas songs that I love to listen to every year. It makes me want to dance. It makes me want to sing. It makes me want to perform. um It is Glee Cast's mashup of Deck the Halls and Up on the Rooftop. They titled it Deck the Rooftop.
00:10:00
Speaker
And it is set to the beat of single ladies, which I'm not gonna even lie, I did not clock that until years later. um I don't know how that I completely overlooked that, but I did. And then um it was like maybe four or five years ago, I was like, wait a minute, this is to the beat of single ladies. that It was 100% like ah they recreated the instrumental to single ladies. They added a couple um extra elements here and there, but it is very much ah Yeah, modeled after single ladies. But I think that this song is an absolute banger. It is so festive. It is so fun. It's perfect for any sort of Christmas party if you're trying to dance and have a good time. um I was a huge Gleek, love Gleek, shout out to the Gleek cast, that cursed show. um This was part of their Christmas compilation album they they had put out. Again, I want to say this is probably around
00:10:56
Speaker
twenty ten I remember my sister had got me this Christmas album for Christmas. um So shout out to my sister, Tracy. um And yeah, this ah and it was a Christmas album that was, I think that you know like with every Glee episode, they usually released EPs ah of the songs that were featured in the show. This album contained several songs that were not actually featured in the show. So they were just like recorded for this special Christmas album.
00:11:24
Speaker
um But yeah, it's an absolute smash. I highly recommend it and it's perfect too because like I think it's perfect for kids. I think it's perfect for again, like I said, it's perfect for dancing. It's perfect for I i would like like if I was DJing a party, I would absolutely put this on. I think that this song is just it so festive, it's so fun. I feel like anyone that loves to feel you know just good at a Christmas party, like this is a song
#7: Mariah Carey's "Joy to the World"
00:11:54
Speaker
for you. So Glee cast, excuse me, Glee cast number eight with Deck the Rooftop. At number seven, we have the queen of Christmas herself, Mariah Carey. um I chose Joy to the World, specifically the celebration mix. I do feel like her version of Joy to the World
00:12:13
Speaker
often gets overshadowed as well. I mean, you know, when people think of Mariah Carey, they often think of Christmas now when it comes to her and they often think of all I want for Christmas is you and rightfully so. I mean, all I want for Christmas is you is just an absolute pop Christmas masterpiece. I mean, she really nailed it. Her and Walter, a fantasy. Gosh, I'm going to I completely butchered that name and I'm so sorry to this man. um But ah they I mean, they completely hit the nail on the head with All I Want For Christmas Is You. i mean they They really captured that like nostalgic moment in that song and created a song that is truly timeless. i mean We only see it get bigger and bigger every single year. But because of the success of that particular song,
00:13:03
Speaker
Obviously, a lot of people know her Christmas album, Merry Christmas. um She also released a sequel in 2010, Merry Christmas to You. We'll touch on that in a little bit. um But I feel like, you know, All I Want for Christmas is You is just one of those songs that just takes on a life of its own that all the other stuff gets overshadowed, like overshadowed.
00:13:22
Speaker
And so her original version of Joy to the World I think is so fun, so festive. It's very much produced in the 90s house pop style back in the day. um That is absolutely magical and wonderful. And I love that it interpolates through Dog Night's ah version of Joy to the World. I just think that that was the perfect cherry on top of such an incredible festive take on that this classic song.
00:13:47
Speaker
And then I just love the Joy to the World celebration mix, though, because this wasn't even really released wide stream until she finally put it on streaming ah when she was kind of doing the um Mariah Carey 30th anniversary releases where she was kind of reissuing all of her singles and put she put out the rarities collection and she did all these fun things to kind of celebrate.
00:14:08
Speaker
30 years of her being in the music industry. And um yeah, I think that this celebration mix is produced by longtime collaborator David Morales. It is just so fun, the eight minute version. I have i have to say I listened to this while I work out a lot this time of year. um In fact, the other day I was like mental illness is coming through. um I was at the gym and I think I listened to the full eight minute version I think on repeat like four or five times in a row, like I was like, again, again, again, I just love again, I i i love that I'm starting to say the word vibe a lot now, but um,
00:14:48
Speaker
after I'm like telling my friend, I'm like, we're gonna cancel that word next year. But ah it is a true like house vibe. And I just love like the, everybody gonna get on up. Like it's just so soulful. It's so fun and bouncy. And again, it's like one of those Christmas songs too that like, I know that sometimes people don't like Christmas music and I completely respect that, especially if you work in retail or you work in an industry where you're just around music a lot, obviously, you know, if any sort of like maybe entertainment or hospitality in your and you're working at this type of year, I can imagine that listening to Christmas music 24-7, especially if you're listening to the classics over and over again, can get really tiresome. I know that I get that way just in general with music every single day. I mean, that's why I like to kind of dive into the deep cuts and bonus tracks and things that
00:15:39
Speaker
often don't get a time to shine. um But again, I think that this particular version Joy to the World celebration mix, I think, would really ah appease a lot of appetites for someone who wants to maybe listen to Christmas music.
00:15:56
Speaker
and just have a just a different take on something. And I think that's what's so wonderful about remixes to a lot of people shit on remixes. And I kind of don't blame them. I mean, in this day and age, it is really hard to find a really good, well produced remix. um But you know, in true Mariah Carey fashion, she completely re sings the vocals.
00:16:19
Speaker
um in this track and it doesn't really contain the Three Dog Night interpolation in this mix, but it is everything. Like she re-sings the melodies. she Everything is completely rearranged and it is just a true momentous club moment that I just think is perfect for any sort of dance party. It's perfect for any sort of a holiday party and you're trying to get people to dance. um I think it'd be really fun if she released like a hybrid version of like her original Joy to the World with this mix. kind of She does that in her Christmas show right now.
#6: Mariah Carey's "Old Lang Syne"
00:16:57
Speaker
I think that ah she she performs like the the original arrangement and then it segues into the celebration mix towards the end, which I think is really cool. I love when artists do that. I think that's so fun.
00:17:09
Speaker
um So, yeah, number seven, we've got Mariah Carey's Joy to the World celebration mix. Again, shout out to her, shout out to David Morales. I mean, it wouldn't be a Christmas mix, a Christmas playlist, a Christmas, what am I trying to say here? A Christmas ah list of songs without her, right? So, um and then at number six, we've got her again. We, I mean, again,
00:17:36
Speaker
It's Mariah Carey. She invented Christmas. She gave birth to Jesus, obviously. um But this song, you know, this song is more of a New Year's song, if you will. It was on her Merry Christmas to you sequel album that she released in 2010.
00:17:53
Speaker
um And i've if you've followed me for a while, I have made memes about this. I will i will post memes about this again this year. At number six, we have Mariah Carey's Old Lang Syne, the New Year's Anthem, which is her dance version of the song that is always played at New Year's. um And I just have to say this song is an absolute banger. She when Mariah Carey does dance music, she does it so well. She understands that it has to feel festive. It has to feel celebratory. I love her willingness to give us all sorts of vocal ah stacking. And I love that she keep I feel like she keeps
00:18:37
Speaker
her dance songs in mind too, like four dance remixes. Obviously, you know, the older she's gotten, she hasn't she doesn't re-sing her vocals as much anymore as she did back in the day. But I think that when she created this song, I mean, ah remixes were commissioned for it. She did not re-sing the vocals for them, but they were created by Johnny Vicious and Ralphie Rosario.
00:19:00
Speaker
um and And they're excellent club mixes excellent excellent remixes, but I think that when she recorded the song she had That in mind that she was going to commission remixes for the clubs I mean this this song was created for people to dance and party at and I have a gripe I have a gripe and you know, I've been doing a new segment on the show called that's homophobic and you know maybe ah Maybe I should save this for the end. Or maybe I'll do something else for the end. But I will say, it I get so frustrated when I'm at a New Year's party and at midnight, Mariah Carey's version has not... I've never been to a holiday a holiday party in the last 14 years since this song was released where Mariah Carey's version has played at midnight. I request it every single time. It doesn't happen. It makes me so angry.
00:19:53
Speaker
And especially when I go to like gay gay New Year's parties. Gays get it together. Let's go. like We need Mariah Carey's version of Old Lang Syne playing at midnight.
00:20:09
Speaker
from moving forward. If you are not doing this at your New Year's Eve parties, you are doing a disservice to the country. You're doing a disservice to the gays. You're doing a disservice to Mariah Carey herself. How does she supposed support support her children the rest of the year?
00:20:27
Speaker
um But in all seriousness, I fucking love this song. I love this version so much. Again, it's very dancy. Also, I have to say it's it's reported that Red One, um who is a producer, ah well obviously well known for producing a lot of early work for Lady Gaga.
00:20:45
Speaker
ah Producing Cat Duluna's Wine Up. He produced ah more by ah Usher and and a slew of other like bangers throughout you know like 2008 through 2011-12.
00:21:01
Speaker
um but i have to say when i look at the production credits i don't see him on there some people refer to johnny severan as red one but that's not red one's real name so i'm not really sure what's going on there i haven't done further like deeper investigation about that but The song is often credited to a red one like producing it or co-producing it, and I don't actually see that on the actual credits of the song. So more to come there. But I just wanted to clear that up because I know that everyone has been shaking in their boots the entire time I've mentioned this song.
#5: Christina Aguilera's "Oh Holy Night"
00:21:36
Speaker
So that's number six. We've got Mariah Carey, Old Lang Syne, the New Year's anthem.
00:21:41
Speaker
Number five for underappreciated Christmas songs. This is, I have to say, one of my favorite Christmas songs of all time. Just the song in general. There's several versions that I love. This is one of my favorite versions. I don't know if it's my ultimate favorite version, but I do love this version. It's a little chaotic, but I love that about it. And ah so number five, we have Christina Aguilera's version of Oh Holy Night. Now,
00:22:11
Speaker
I have to say this version, it starts out like the traditional. I mean, Oh, Holy Night is like the like if you're going to do this song, you have to prepare to sing it down. Right. Like this is a diva vocal powerhouse song.
00:22:28
Speaker
And obviously, Christina Aguilera is no stranger to belting out a tune, right? So um Oh, Holy Night by k Christina Aguilera starts out in like the traditional arrangement. And it's absolutely stunning. The the song itself is very beautiful. And I absolutely love it.
00:22:46
Speaker
And I love that, you know, it it starts out, ah again, like I said, traditionally, and it goes into the first chorus of A Holy Night. And then after the first chorus, she's like, you know what, we gotta, we gotta, we gotta pray. And she goes into the Lord's Prayer.
00:23:03
Speaker
Like, out of nowhere, which I remember like listening to it the first time, I was, let's see, this album, her Christmas album came out in 2000, so I was a freshman in high school, and I went to a Lutheran school at the time. So I just remember like when I heard this, I was like, oh yeah, she is definitely a child of the Lord. like um And I remember but probably like being really excited because I was like, a lot of people would always accuse my singers of like not being Christians, and they were too slutty and whatnot, and I could use this as proof to be like,
00:23:33
Speaker
she's literally praying to the Lord in the middle of this song. She was like she she knew the importance. She knew it was a holy night and which she needed to make it holier by putting in the Lord's Prayer in the middle of O Holy Night. And then after the Lord's Prayer is finished, we go right back into, fall on your knees. I'm not going to even attempt singing O Holy Night because my voice is not that great.
00:23:57
Speaker
And so she we we she kind of finishes out Oh holy night she does the huge belt but then she like goes into this bluesy gospel rendition at the end and just takes us all to fucking church and it is incredible and shout out to my friend Sophie Christian because we both love this part not once but twice she goes Jesus Christ at the end and it's we would say that to each other all the time when we lived in our hometown of Saint Joe we would just like look at each other and just go
00:24:33
Speaker
Jesus Christ. And I just have to say that and I know this is an audio show, I like always put my finger to my ear whenever I'm doing like a very like belty note of anything. um As one does, as as a diva does, you put your finger to your ear. And um yeah, Kristen Aguilera's Oh Holy Night, I just think it it takes you, I always tell this to people, I'm like, if you've never heard it, I was like, it takes you on a journey. It takes you on a journey. And sometimes that's what you need with a Christmas song. You, we travel, right? There's lots of traveling.
00:25:03
Speaker
And what better way to travel sonically than by listening to Christina Aguilera's
#4: Sarah McLaughlin's Medley
00:25:08
Speaker
Oh Holy Night. So that's why it's at number five on my list of underrated, underappreciated Christmas songs. Number four, we have another song that I absolutely love and adore.
00:25:23
Speaker
Um, this song, I heard for the first time this version, excuse me. So first of all, this is not an original Christmas song. It is another cover. It is a medley mashup, if you will, again, um it is not Glee cast, I heard this version of this song for the first time. So For those listening, and if you don't know me personally, in another life, um I was a hairstylist. and In 2007, I went to cosmetology school. It's actually why I moved to Grand Rapids. I moved to Grand Rapids to attend the Douglas J. Aveda Institute um for cosmetology. I was in my
00:26:04
Speaker
And I was in the night class. So that month that I got, I think I got to school at 4.30, class started at 5 and we would be in school till 10pm. And I remember when we first went out and I think that was like the first month or so of school, um we did all like classroom work and we kind of built our way up to getting out onto the floor that we called it the clinic floor.
00:26:28
Speaker
And um I want to say I heard this song the first night that I took clients. And I just remember like, he I was, i I don't know why I remember it so vivid like vividly, but like I was washing someone's hair and I heard this come on. And I just heard this, Noel, Noel.
00:26:51
Speaker
And I was like, um, what the fuck is this? I was like, this is like, i it felt so ethereal. It like really truly like, did something internally. Like I was just like, I need to know like who this is. And again, this is in 2007. So I, we didn't have Shazam.
00:27:09
Speaker
um I didn't have a smartphone back then. So I was like, who is this? Who is this? And and no one knew. And I think I went several weeks, maybe even several months, like not knowing who did this. And then I remember like hearing it again. And I was like, I have to figure out who this is probably the following year and learned that it was Sarah McLaughlin. So I am talking about Sarah McLaughlin's version of Mary Mary slash the first Noelle. So it's like a medley of the two songs.
00:27:37
Speaker
And so it starts with Mary Mary, and then it goes into, um actually, no, let me start this over. It actually starts with the traditional version that we all kind of know of the first Noel. And then it goes into Mary Mary. And then after Mary Mary, it goes into this I don't know if it's a new version that she arranged for the first Noel or if it's like maybe like an older traditional styling that she brought back. I'm not really sure but it's like this beautiful rendition of the first Noel. It gives me like
00:28:15
Speaker
Celtic warrior. Like I don't even know but it just it really it's very cinematic. I would say that this song is extremely cinematic. It takes you to places that I just love to go and during Christmas.
00:28:31
Speaker
And um yeah, I just love it. I love that there's like a beat that kicks in towards the end. It is just it's an epic, epic, epic song um that just does not get a lot of love. um And actually, I'm saving my true that's homophobic moment for I'm going to return to this song. We are going to return to this song at the end of this episode. But number four, again, is Sarah McLaughlin's version of Mary, Mary, the first Noel and If you have not heard it, it is on her album, Winter Song. Check it out. It is really, truly magical and I just feel like, I don't know, like everyone just needs to listen to it. Cinematic is like the best way that I can describe
#3: Celine Dion's "The Magic of Christmas Day"
00:29:14
Speaker
it. It's it's just, it's really, really cool.
00:29:17
Speaker
um So then that brings us to number three. Oh my gosh, we're like already almost done with this list. And I have to say, I've been cruising through this and I'm really enjoying this. I'm like, i'm like wow, look at me doing my podcast by myself. So proud. um Okay, so number three, we have Another Christmas Queen. I personally i personally love Celine Dion's Christmas album. um i I just feel like growing up, again I think it came out in 1998,
00:29:45
Speaker
I remember the single that was released from this album was a duet with R. Kelly. I know we've canceled R. Kelly, but it was a song called I'm Your Angel. It's not the song that I'm mentioning here, but um that was a huge hit. That was a huge moment for ah me as a child. um And I remember like buying the CD single at one of the CD stores in my hometown. It came in like this.
00:30:07
Speaker
like ah cardboard case with like, it was like it's the strangest single cover it was like it it was like a screenshot of a hologram like it wasn't even a hologram it was like a, it was like a still of a hologram of like angel wings, and then it was like, then a black background.
00:30:25
Speaker
ah And then it just had like R. Kelly and Celine Dion's name, like the text, and said, I'm your angel. Anyway, but that's like a complete side note. But I just i guess what I'm saying is that that like this came out, kind of um I famously say that 1997 and 1998 were like the years that I really got into music. so this release and her Christmas album was like a very formative release for me. um So I always associate Celine Dion with Christmas, but just like Mariah Carey and and other artists. But the song that I'm mentioning here for number three is Celine Dion's The Magic of Christmas Day in parentheses. God bless us, everyone. We love a long song title.
00:31:03
Speaker
But this song really does, for me, sonically encapsulate Christmas for me. You've got like those like church bells. You've got jingle bells in the background. You've just, melodically, it's one of those songs, similar to like, All I Want For Christmas Is You, is that just really captures a nostalgic feel to Christmas. So like even though the song, I believe, was new for 1998,
00:31:32
Speaker
I, it makes me feel like the song has been around for forever since before then. um And fun fact about this song, this song was written by Dee Snyder, who was part of Twisted Sister, the people who sang like, we're not gonna take it. Like, and you would never know that, like this song is not that vibe at all. um I just absolutely love this song. I do hear it out once in a while.
00:32:00
Speaker
um In fact, I went to this like uptown shop hop here in East Grand Rapids um with my friends Joey and Jacob, who I'm going to their Christmas party later to this evening. um And I think I did hear it out then. i I'll hear it here and there, but it's just never in the conversation of Christmas
#2: Britney Spears' "My Only Wish This Year"
00:32:21
Speaker
songs. Like it's not in the canon that I always hear people talking about, um which is why I wanted to really highlight it, because I just feel like it really is
00:32:31
Speaker
one of those songs at least to me that like it's I'm like this should be on like every Christmas playlist everywhere I don't know maybe maybe I'm living in a bubble and maybe everyone else feels that it is but um yeah I love it it just it takes me it makes me think of being like yeah I don't know, i it just makes me feel like when I listen to it, it's like nighttime, it's cozy, I'm having a nice meal, um walking through the streets, I don't know, like I just, Christmas lights are everywhere, snow, it really gives me all the Christmas vibes, I absolutely love this song. So number three is, again, Celine Dion's, The Magic of Christmas Day, in parentheses, God bless us everyone. um Number two, so this one's going to probably be really controversial for people.
00:33:16
Speaker
ah But i i'm bringing I put this in here because I feel like this showcases the gay bubble that us gays live in. right Us gays love certain songs and in our little brains and in our world,
00:33:31
Speaker
They are absolute smashes. They are canon. They are just part of our zeitgeist. And this song I would even argue is part of other people's zeitgeist ah as well. But I put it on this list because, again, when we talk about the influx of Christmas songs,
00:33:49
Speaker
every single year and the songs that kind of skyrocket up the charts. This song is not skyrocketing up the charts the way that the other ones are. And I just feel like that's really strange considering how much we as a society love this woman. Number two, I put Britney Spears, my only wish this year. This song was part of the platinum Christmas compilation that came out. I want to say it was put out by Jive Records back in like the again, I think this is like the year 2000.
00:34:20
Speaker
Britney Spears is a co-writer on this song. So shout out to Britney for really knowing how to nail a Christmas song. um And I have to say, much like Celine Dion's The Magic of Christmas Day, and much like Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas Is You, they really nailed on the head that nostalgic Christmas feeling like literally when I when I listen to the song it is ah like it's a snowy Christmas night with Christmas lights everywhere we've got earmuffs on we've got our jackets and our gloves and we're just like dancing around in the snow like I fucking love this song and in fact I would liken this song to being the little sister to all I want for Christmas is you
00:35:00
Speaker
This song is so fucking good. And I do not understand why this song does not challenge for a top 10 entry every Christmas season. I need someone to explain to me why. I mean, her label reissued the single a couple years ago, giving it like new single artwork for like Spotify and Apple Music and whatnot.
00:35:21
Speaker
you'd think that it this song would be a Christmas smash. And I'm not saying that you don't hear it, you definitely hear it out and and people love it. But like, you don't hear it in the way that you hear Again, all I want for Christmas is you. You don't hear it in the way that you hear rockin' around the Christmas tree. You don't hear it in the way that you hear it's the most wonderful time of the year. You don't hear it in the way of, I mean, like this year, Santa Tell Me by Ariana Grande and Underneath the Tree by Kelly Clarkson are challenging for top 10 entries. And then the last few years, they've always been like in the top 20. I don't think that this song has ever reached the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100. And I don't know if it really dominates like any sort of Spotify or streaming charts either.
00:36:05
Speaker
So I that's why I put it on this list because I'm like this song to me is like one of the ultimate like contemporary Christmas songs. And I just don't hear other people necessarily talking about it that way. So justice to this song,
#1: Christina Aguilera's "Christmas Time"
00:36:22
Speaker
justice for Ms. Britney Spears and justice for Britney because not only again, not only is this song such an incredible Christmas song and in such an incredible like it it's so festive and so fun.
00:36:36
Speaker
But Britney Spears does not get her credit for being a songwriter. She has co-written so many wonderful songs and this one included and I just feel like it sucks that her legacy ended up the way that it is in a way because she's not known for songwriting.
00:37:00
Speaker
And she absolutely should be known for songwriting. And in fact, like and an unrelated project, like I've heard producers and songwriters that have worked with her always sing her praises about songwriting. They talk about how efficient she is in the studio. They talk about her ability for ah writing quickly and having good melodies and just being really present and knowing what she wants.
00:37:26
Speaker
And I wish that other people kind of like knew that I wish that people I wish that that would be a part of the conversation and I feel like I don't know I don't know why she I think that well I say I don't know why I know why because you know misogyny but you know it sucks like Britney Spears is a great songwriter obviously like her career she blew up in the teen pop craze and so She was a product of record labels you know feeding her songs and telling her that she had to sing certain songs and giving her an image. um you know And that's been kind of the huge part of her struggle for the majority of her career is that she was trying to appease her record labels. but
00:38:09
Speaker
You know, I love that she co-wrote this song. I love my only wish this year. I think that it's absolutely incredible. we i And I also have to mention that does that it is a moment and in one of my personal favorite Christmas and movies of recent years. It's cheesy, it's silly, and it's not I don't want anyone to be like taking it so seriously when I say this, but like I fucking love Single All The Way on Netflix. I think it's um amazing. It makes me feel so cozy and warm inside.
00:38:38
Speaker
It is absolutely cheesy. I'm not saying that, well, you know what, I will say, where's this Oscar? Where is where is its Oscar nomination? You know, but in all seriousness, I love that movie. And um and there is a and ah fun, silly dance moment um in that movie with Britney Spears, my only wish this year. So I did love that that movie gave it some some justice because it deserves it.
00:39:03
Speaker
So that was number two, Britney Spears, my only wish this year for my top 10 underappreciated Christmas songs. Now, let's just recap really quick because we're about to hit number one. So number 10, we have Willa Ford, Santa Baby, Gimme Gimme Gimme. Number nine, we have George Michael Jingle, a musical interlude. Number eight, we have Glee Cast, Dacked the Rooftop. Number seven, we have Mariah Carey, Joy to the World Celebration Mix.
00:39:29
Speaker
Number six, we've got Mariah Carey again with Old Lang Syne, the New Year's anthem. Number five, we have Christina Aguilera's version of Oh Holy Night. Number four, we have Sarah McLaughlin's medley slash mashup, if you will, of Merry, Merry and the First Noel. Number three, we have Celine Dion's The Magic of Christmas Day. God bless us, everyone.
00:39:51
Speaker
And then number two, ah as we just talked about, we have Britney Spears, my only wish this year. Now, number one comes from one of my personal favorite Christmas albums of all time. If not, dare I say maybe my actual favorite Christmas album of all time. She was already on this list once. I'm mentioning her again.
00:40:13
Speaker
And people might think that I'm trying to be shady by putting here here above the previous person. I'm not trying to be shady. I truly feel like this is such a great Christmas song. It is a contemporary Christmas song that I was in love with instantly the moment I heard it. And it brings me all the festive feels. I'm talking about Christina Aguilera's Christmas time.
00:40:41
Speaker
This song was the opening track on her Christmas album that came out in the year, I want to say 2000. And I remember the moment I heard that.
00:40:54
Speaker
like I ah instantly in a Christmas musical the song the way that this song was produced it for some reason makes me think of Christmas at night and I don't know I can't I feel like I'm it's like I feel like maybe I'm in a nutcracker maybe I'm at a Christmas party at night I don't know but like it takes me to a place where I feel like this song is best listened to in the evening. um But again, we've got all of the incredible elements that makes Christmas songs really fun. We've got like kind of like those like church bells, and we've got like the jingle bells, but it's also produced in a very like contemporary Y2K dance pop moment of the time. um She performed this song at her ah like holiday special, it was called ah My Reflection. um And
00:41:46
Speaker
In the live version, she had little Bow Wow come out and do a little rap. And in the live version too, I wish she did this in the album version. In the live version, she wails at the very end. She's like, it's Christmas time. Sorry, that hurt everyone's ears.
00:42:07
Speaker
Um, but I just love this song so much. I just feel like it often gets overlooked. But I will say again, when I when I was at this Christmas shop hop, I did hear this we were at shout out to modest moth.
00:42:23
Speaker
Um, they just opened up down the street from me here in Grand Rapids and we were in their store. My friend Joey was looking for a Christmas gift for I believe his niece and I was like looking at their like hot cocoa and candles and things like that. And then all of a sudden I heard this song and I was like, I was like, I love when people appreciate this song because it it's so, so good. And I just have to say this entire Christmas album, I think is so well done. I love, love this song. I love there was another new song called this year. That's really, really great, which I actually heard in target today, which I was like, wow, people are really giving it starting to give this album some, some props because it's
00:43:04
Speaker
I think it's well deserved. I love, again, her version of Oh Holy Night is on here on this list. um I loved her versions of Angels We Have Heard on high and Merry Christmas Baby and her version of this Christmas. And I love the Thunderpuss remix of the Christmas song. Like it is so, so fun. It's so festive. It's so good.
00:43:29
Speaker
um And the album is called My Kind of Christmas. I don't know if I mentioned that or not, but i that's it is it is truly My Kind of Christmas. I love, I love Christina Aguilera. And again, this was no shade to to anyone on this list. I just, I truly feel like Christina Aguilera's Christmas music often gets overlooked. And it's just, again, it's not part of the conversation. It's not part of the influx of Christmas songs that we see soaring up the charts, you know,
00:43:59
Speaker
trying to enter the top 10 every year and I think it should be.
Conclusion: Reflections and Holiday Wishes
00:44:02
Speaker
So that is my list, my top 10 list of i what I feel are some of the most underappreciated Christmas songs of our time. And i you know I want to end every episode either with a song we don't talk about enough or a homophobic moment. I know I already kind of talked, had one homophobic moment, but moment excuse me but I would like to end the episode with a that's homophobic moment. F-A-U-X, homophobic.
00:44:28
Speaker
be And this is, we're we're kind of getting back to Sarah McLaughlin's Mary, Mary the First Noel. Her label or her team did a really cool contest one year. I want to say it was either the year the song came out or maybe it was the year after where they had they did a remix contest where they had fans submit their remixes of the song and then they actually put out a remix EP, a digital remix EP of all of like the top, like think seven or eight remixes that they chose.
00:44:58
Speaker
And there were some incredible remixes on there. One in particular that I absolutely love was a remix by Mike Ogletree. where it turns the song into an incredible kind of mid-tempo tribal ah remix. And yeah i I remember back in the day, well, on like you know what wasn't streaming back then, but like you know digital file sharing services, it was often labeled as the African remix, which I was like, but know I don't know if that's, I mean, I guess I could see how people could say that. but um
00:45:37
Speaker
It's it's a really, really cool remix that just really puts you in a really cool mood. I always feel really powerful when I listen to it. And I'm so grateful for my like Apple like cloud because I didn't purchase the entire EP, but because like back in the day, it was like, you know, ten dollars. And and back then that ten dollars was like everything to me. So I was like, I'm not going to buy the whole EP, but I did buy three mit remixes. And one of the remixes was this track. And I just have to say, I'm so glad that I did that, because now that it's in my Apple Cloud, I'm able to play it on my Apple Music, thank God, but this is not on streaming. And that's why I'm saying this is homophobic, quote unquote, because
00:46:23
Speaker
I feel like this remix EP, not only for the people who won that contest, but like people are missing out on some really incredible remixes. I know that I sound like a broken record at this point, but there are some really incredible remixes in this world and I'm such a huge advocate for songs, you know, being able to be reimagined and and repurposed for dance clubs and and things of that nature.
00:46:49
Speaker
And it's an art that we are losing in this ah like era of streaming because you know I'm not saying that every song and every remix needs to be like seven, eight minutes long, but I do think the beauty about really good remixes is that it does take you on a journey and you need that length of time.
00:47:07
Speaker
to let some build ups happen and to and to let it kind of breathe and have some life. And that's what a lot of these remixes do. There's a lot of a lot of like traditional club mixes on there as well. um So I say it's homophobic because, hey, Team Sarah McLaughlin, her record label, whoever's in charge of this, put the remixes for Mary Mary and the first Noel back on two digital platforms. I do think it's on Beatport, but I mean, like, who's buying things from Beatport these days?
00:47:35
Speaker
um It would be really, really cool if people could experience these remixes on Spotify, on Apple Music, you know, wherever people stream their music. I think that that would be really, really cool. So until then, it's homophobic that they're not available.
00:47:51
Speaker
Well, everyone, thank you so much for listening to this special episode. This was a lot of fun. Now that I've done this once, I'm no longer scared of it. And I'm probably going to do this a lot more often. um But thanks for tuning in. I hope that everyone has a very, very, very Merry Christmas. Happy holidays, everybody. um And this will be be the last episode of the year. I know if there's only like one more week in the year, but um There will be some more episodes to come in the new year. So stay tuned. I'm so excited. um Thanks for listening to Homophonic. I'm Zach Rickel. And until next time, peace out and happy new year.