Heaven: Christmas Songs We Don’t Like
I enjoy most of the Christmas music I hear, and will happily sing or hum along to most of the songs, but there are a few pieces I can't stand.
"Santa Claus is Coming to Town"
"Santa Baby"
I also really dislike "Away in a Manger."
(And while I think of it, is there anyone left who hasn't yet been knocked out of the Whamageddon by inadvertently hearing "Last Christmas"?)
Let's hear it for those seasonal pieces we love to hate. Have yourself a merry little Christmas, because baby, it's cold outside!
(Thread transfer from Hell with amended title, Doublethink, Admin)
"Santa Claus is Coming to Town"
"Santa Baby"
I also really dislike "Away in a Manger."
(And while I think of it, is there anyone left who hasn't yet been knocked out of the Whamageddon by inadvertently hearing "Last Christmas"?)
Let's hear it for those seasonal pieces we love to hate. Have yourself a merry little Christmas, because baby, it's cold outside!
(Thread transfer from Hell with amended title, Doublethink, Admin)
Comments
Sentimental Tosh.
🤮
I don’t mind Away in a manger - the Willcocks arrangement in Carols for Choirs is such a standard part of the Christmas repertoire that I'd probably sing it on autopilot.
My pet hates are Silent night, which I can just about tolerate, and O holy night, which I can't. I don't like the word "hate", but it comes close; if I never hear it again, it'll still be too soon.
As for the secular ones - I can very easily live without most of the American ones - especially Bing Crosby sliding about all over the place except on the right note in White Christmas.
Confession time: I do quite like Do they know it's Christmas?, Merry Christmas Everybody and Mull of Kintyre*.
Sorry about that.
* not strictly a Christmas song I know, but it was at number one in the charts at Christmas and I sort of associate it with New Year.
Once in Royal David’s City - twee crap about how he spent all his childhood honouring and obeying his mother, although the only documented part of Jesus’ childhood is the time when he disobeyed his parents, and possibly the worst line ever “When like stars his children crowned all in white shall wait around”
The First Nowell - incredibly boring tune that just repeats over and over, far too many verses and words that look as thought they were written by William McGonagal
I remember some years ago performing a “special” arrangement of O Holy Night written by a friend of mine. Basically it had a tenor soloist and a backing choir that just got louder and louder as the song went on until we had completely drowned out the soloist who eventually resorted to singing through a megaphone..
Thus far, thanks be to God, I've not heard that sick-making McCartney one - there's one line that jsu makes me want to punch him, it's so trite.
Agreed. All three should be consigned to the midden of history forthwith.
Silent Night can be quite lovely if accompanied by guitar rather than keyboard, and if it keeps moving with a slight lilt, akin to a ländler. The Vienna Boys Choir does it well.
I also strongly dislike Last Christmas, Simply Having a Wonderful Christmastime, and All I Want for Christmas Is You. Not really a fan of The Christmas Song (“Chestnuts roasting on an open fire”) or It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year, either, if I’m honest.
Why is it even considered a Christmas song? It makes no mention of Christmas whatsoever, it’s just a song about winter. The same could also be said about Winter Wonderland, Let It Snow, Sleigh Ride, Frosty The Snowman etc.
I Believe in Father Christmas by Greg Lake. Every year it’s played on every radio station as some sort of Christmas classic, but have they ever actually listened to the words? It’s got a nice tune but is one of the most cynical anti-Christmas songs that’s ever been written
That may be why I quite like it.
It's pretty much how I feel about Christmas if I'm a bit down.
I don't mind Silent night or O holy night on the right occasion and sung well, but I don't think anything can rescue Away in a manger. Once in royal David's city with its syrupy tune and what @Spike aptly describes as "twee crap" is no better.
I get that. It’s not a bad song in itself, it’s just that like Stop the Cavalry, most people completely miss the point.
Yeah, I never get that. Lyrics are pretty central to my enjoyment of a lot of music. If they're comprehensible (the aren't always) then I can't not listen to them.
And you've made mine!!!!
I had never heard this song till 22 years ago. It's very good if sung well. El Divo haved done the best version.
Not by a long way. It's an awful thing, apparently designed to tempt singers into doing Bad Things.
Ah yes, they were playing a modernized version of Hark the Herald Angels Sing in the local shopping centre at the weekend. I didn't immediately recognize it but it really was a caricature of an otherwise lovely piece of music.
Whoever mentioned Simply Havin' a Wunnerful Chrismas Time - yep. I must have blotted the awfulness of this from my memory but that is one of the limpest Christmas songs I've heard.
As for Winter Wonderland, this is one of my favourites and always cheers me up when I hear it, but music is a very individual thing.
Cliff Richard - Mistletoe and Wine
Cliff Richard - Millennium Prayer
Cliff Richard - Saviour’s Day
All of them bloody terrible.
To be fair, they were in the film.
I'm not sure they're cynical. For me it's more a recognition that the magical Christmas of childhood doesn’t continue into adulthood. Both the secular presents and Santa and excitement and lights, tinsel and glitter, and the religious Baby Jesus in the manger and angel choirs and oriental fortune tellers - the whole thing doesn’t feel the same when you're an adult. And it probably starts when you find out about Father Christmas.
Resonates with me.
But that's a topic for a different thread, so I shall only say that I love all the glitter and sparkle, the music*, the air of excitement, the food, etc. I do still sometimes glimpse the magic. And that's fine, even if for me personally, it's empty at the central core.
* Well, if it doesn't feature Lennon or McCartney or the abovementioned songs and I don't have to listen to Away in a Manger. We now return you to your regular thread.
Don't like songs that aren't truthful. "There won't be snow in Africa this winter?" Look at Mt Kilimanjaro you plonker
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YV-SpT69IZ8
Ah, would that it worked like that... the transformative power of Glam Metal.
Little town is actually quite good. Very clever use of the new melody.
De gustibus non sit disputandem.
(Roughly - There's no accounting for taste)
I've always loved this song. It always seemed melancholy and poignant to me, especially the version of the lyrics that includes; "Someday soon, we all may be together, if the fates allow; until then we'll have to muddle through somehow." Pretty much how many of my Christmases have been, one way or the other. I also loved Judy Garland's performance of it in the Movie, Meet me in St Louis. Kind of glad we didn't get the original, original lyrics though if this is anything to go by!
At the moment, I can't easily think of a Christmas song or hymn I outrightly hate that much. Though I admit I found Sir Cliff's offerings a little cringy, apart from 'O Little town of Bethlehem'. I suppose I'm so used to singing whatever's been slated for worship, and knowing that someone somewhere is loving this piece of music, I don't get that much into whether or not it bothers me. Also, as a long-time choir member I sing so much music without having to 'believe' in every sentiment expressed, that I just naturally tune out the bits that don't connect and focus on just doing the music justice. I was astonished by a friend who once, checking out my choir folder of a little secular chamber group I belonged to, said she couldn't have been in that group because we were singing some French songs about the Virgin Mary's life; and as she didn't believe those particular myths about Mary, she couldn't, in all conscience have sung them! Lord knows what she would've made of Carmina Burana!
I think, too, having grown up singing all kinds of Christmas music since a babe in arms, long before I was ever grown up enough to know why I might end up objecting to it, my sensibilities have probably been fatally impaired by personal memories of fun and family.
This has always held a special place in my heart. Over Christmas-tide it was never off the radio in County Cork, while I did my rounds, along with Joe Dolan's 'O Holy night'.
Christmas songs hold memories sometimes. They may not be great songs in themselves, but the associations can give them value (yes, sometimes it's a negative value. For that reason I really hate Marche des Rois - "De bon matin, j'ai rencontré le train..." which we had to practice until we were utterly sick of it. Luckily that's never caught on here.)
That verse is frequently omitted or changed these days as it's blatant spiritual blackmail.
From the responses above, I am beginning to think the only acceptable music for Christmas would be Handel's Messiah, even though it was intended as an Easter Oratorio.
Frosty the Snowman (released in June 1950) probably was intended as a Christmas song since the B-side was (Isn't It A Shame That) Christmas Comes But Once A Year, but Frosty doesn’t mention anything about Christmas at all - except snow. It was written by Walter Rollins & Steve Nelson.
Similarly, neither Sleigh Bells Ringing nor Sleigh Bells Ring (Walking in a Winter Wonderland) mention Christmas at all. The lyrics of the former (by Neil Diamond) suggest it might have Thanksgiving in mind. Winter Wonderland, written in 1934 by Richard B. Smith was about a couple's romance during the winter season again with no mention of Christmas. (Later ‘children’s lyrics’ made it just about playing in the snow.)
Not if you're a Cliff fan
And some people enjoy erotic asphyxiation. So what?
I don’t know. Care to enlighten us?