Christmas in the '06 - part 1, the music

Christmas this year was very different for me for many reasons, so much so that I wanted to write it all down...well as much as I remember anyway.

Music
Now in the past, I wasn't really a big fan of Christmas music because it is sooo...used. The Donnie Hathaway "This Christmas", The Temptations "Silent Night" and all the "classics" then Boys to Men and the now very stereotypical "Christmas in Hollis." So after the the first few days it's just boring. It's also kinda hard to relate to "Winter Wonderland" when it's 68º outisde. I heard some of the words to some songs for the first time. "My Favorite Things" for one I had only heard on Charlie Brown and Jazz guitarist Ronny Jordan. This year I heard Diana Ross singing it. I had no idea how nonsensical the lyrics were...

when the dog bites
when the bee stings
or when I'm just feeling sad
I simply think of my favorite things
and it doesn't seem soooo bad

Fill in other verses with other tragic events. Okay, so maybe I'm being a little too critical of this silly Christmas song, but bee stings and dog bites are not usually things that people just change their thoughts to get over. Uhhhh, ER maybe?!?! Maybe its an analogy of the poor state of healthcare for working class Americans, so since they have no healthcare, they think of their favorite...okay yeah, I'm trying too hard now. But it's just silly.

Another song I heard was "Happy Holidays" (Beef Wellington Remix) by Bing Crosby. This is from the 50's I think. It is totally hilarious! I can't help but think this started as a commercial for Holiday Inn that just stuck on and became a song. This one I heard a remixed version, so it was about 3 minutes long, but here's the chorus and one of the verses. Man it doesn't get any simpler than this.....

Happy Holidays
Happy Holidays
May the calendar keep bringin'
Happy Holidays to you

If the traffic noise affects you
like a squeaky vio-lin
Kick your cares
down the stairs
come to Holiday Inn!

It was a couple of others, but those 2 really stuck out. I bought some Christmas music for the first time in a long time, Christmas Remixed, Volumes 1 & 2–go check it out on iTunes music store. This stuff is phat! It actually put me in a "Christmas spirit" if such a thing exists-just happy because it's this time of year. I mean I'm loving these songs, rolling down the street blasting a remix of the "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" I made an imix, "Sadorian Christmas remixes" so you can hear them for yourself. And if you see a black dude in an acura noddin his head to Christmas music...it's me.