A Cooler Christmas - Raving Playlist

It's hard to believe but the holidays are upon us once again. This week we'll celebrate another Thanksgiving and then there's Black Friday and the Christmas music - well it's already started. It's hard to believe that we'll have to endure the same versions of the same holiday classics everywhere we go for the next six weeks or so - again. Or will we...  Perhaps we can experience a Cooler Christmas this year - one that allows us to hear the season's classic music in a way that won't cause our brains to melt. What we need is a much cooler Christmas. Now, the weather may not cooperate with all that darn Global warming going on - Penguins and Polar Bears eating each other etc, but even with our ever-warming winters we can remain cool with some better tunes to take us through the holidays. It's in that spirit that we present today's playlist.

As usual it's available on Spotify as well.

Al Green and his most excellent advice below...

A Cooler Christmas

Al Green – Put A Little Love In Your Heart
Jimmy Eat World – Last Christmas - Studio Version
The Pretenders – Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
Barenaked Ladies – Sleigh Ride
Vampire Weekend – Holiday
Diana Krall – I'll Be Home For Christmas
Bruce Springsteen – Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town - Single Version
Jack Johnson – In The Morning
Barenaked Ladies – Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
Lady Antebellum – Baby, It's Cold Outside
August Burns Red – Frosty the Snowman
Enya – The Spirit Of Christmas Past
Luke Bryan – Run Run Rudolph
The Beach Boys – Merry Christmas, Baby
Counting Crows – Holiday In Spain
B.B. King – Back Door Santa
Lady Antebellum – On This Winter's Night
Elvis Presley – Santa Claus Is Back In Town
Tom Petty – Christmas All Over Again
blink-182 – Happy Holidays, You Bastard
Barenaked Ladies – Auld Lang Syne
Blues Traveler – Christmas
Lou Ann Barton – Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree
Christmas On Piano – I Got The Jingle Bells Blues
Sex Pistols – Holidays In The Sun
Norah Jones – Peace
Denis Solee – Up On The Housetop
AgesandAges – We Need A Little Christmas
Jackson 5 – I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
Kenny G – Silent Night
The Almost – Little Drummer Boy
Lady Antebellum – Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
Piano Christmas – Ave Maria
The Walkmen – Seven Years of Holidays (for Stretch)
The Maine – Santa Stole My Girlfriend
Sister Hazel – Your Winter
Kay Kyser – Jingle Jangle Jingle
Beach House – New Year
Death Cab for Cutie – The New Year
Red Hot Chili Peppers – Snow [Hey Oh]
Craig Duncan – Frosty The Snowman
Ugly Casanova – So Long To The Holidays
Piano Christmas – Greensleeves - Piano Reprise
First Aid Kit – New Year's Eve
Mykola Leontovich – Carol Of The Bells
Straight No Chaser – The 12 Days Of Christmas
Beyoncé – Ave Maria
Barenaked Ladies – God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen / We Three Kings - feat. Sarah McLachlan
Piano Christmas – Amazing Grace
Calexico – Green Grows The Holly
Cyndi Lauper – Home for the Holidays
Harry Connick Jr. – The Happy Elf
Luther Vandross – This Is Christmas
Madonna – Holiday
Bill Monroe & His Bluegrass Boys – Christmas Time's A-Coming
Wild Nothing – Summer Holiday
Dead Kennedys – Holiday In Cambodia
August Burns Red – Carol of the Bells
10cc – Dreadlock Holiday
Lady Antebellum – Silent Night (Lord Of My Life)
Madonna – Santa Baby
Fitz and The Tantrums – Santa Stole My Lady
"Weird Al" Yankovic – The Night Santa Went Crazy
The Ronettes – I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
Bob Dylan – Here Comes Santa Claus
Mumford & Sons – Winter Winds
Lady Antebellum – Blue Christmas
August Burns Red – Winter Wonderland
Dave Matthews Band – Snow Outside
U2 – New Year's Day
Parachute – The New Year
Fall Out Boy – Yule Shoot Your Eye Out - Bonus Track
Louis Armstrong – Cool Yule
The Almost – Yule Be Sorry
Christina Perri – please come home for christmas
Luther Vandross – The Mistletoe Jam (Everybody Kiss Somebody)

The late, great Luther Vandross

Copyright 2012 - Raving Reviews - All Rights Reserved

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Harmonic Insanity - A Raving Playlist

As you might have noticed, all of our playlists have a little story associated with them. This playlist was inspired by trips to the local Ikea this Summer. The only way to describe our first experience was stunned, disoriented and overwhelmed by meatballs and lingaberries. At one point we feared for our lives, thinking we might be stuck inside forever as there didn't seem to be any exists, only winding paths of consumer decadence at affordable prices. Anyway, after we escaped with some lighting fixtures and Swedish chocolate we found out that Jonathan Coulton had actually written a song that perfectly captured our first impressions of Ikea. We then were inspired to find songs on crazy topics or just crazy songs period. As usual, you can find this playlist on Spotify.

Enter the Scandinavian Dimension...

What constitutes a crazy song? Here are some guidelines; it's crazy if...

• If William Shatner or Leonard Nimoy are in it (BTW - we heard that Nimoy's Ballad Of Bilbo Baggins is going to be used on the new Hobbit movie soundtrack) .
• It has any connection to Baywatch
• If it is wickedly funny
• If it was on SNL as a skit not a musical guest (like King Tut)
• Anything having to do with Billy Ray Cyrus
• If it includes Ricky Martin talking about women

 

Harmonic Insanity
Jonathan Coulton – Ikea
"Weird Al" Yankovic – Another One Rides The Bus
Flight Of The Conchords – Robots
Paul Storm – More Rejected Commercial Jingles: Olive Garden
William Shatner – I Can't Get Behind That
The Steep Canyon Rangers – Atheists Don't Have No Songs
The Avalanches – Frontier Psychiatrist
David Hasselhoff – Looking For Freedom 01 - Remix 2006
"Weird Al" Yankovic – Ebay (Parody of "I Want It That Way" by the Backstreet Boys)
Jonathan Coulton – Tom Cruise Crazy
Leonard Nimoy – A Visit To A Sad Planet
Warren Zevon – I Need A Truck - Previously Unissued Outtake
Tenacious D – Señorita - Explicit Version
Jonathan Coulton – The Future Soon
Flight Of The Conchords – Hiphopopotamus vs. Rhymenoceros
"Weird Al" Yankovic – Polka Face
Barenaked Ladies – Pinch Me - Radio Version
Steve Martin – King Tut
Barenaked Ladies – If I Had $1,000,000
"Weird Al" Yankovic – The Saga Begins (Lyrical Adaption of "American Pie")
Barenaked Ladies – The Ninjas
Paul Storm – Cruel, Cruel Moon
Tenacious D – The Metal
Jonathan Coulton – Code Monkey
Warren Zevon – Accidentally Like A Martyr - 2007 Remastered LP Version
Flight Of The Conchords – The Most Beautiful Girl (In The Room)
Warren Zevon – Carmelita
"Weird Al" Yankovic – Yoda
Paul Storm – The Captain's Wife's Lament
Leonard Nimoy – Spock Thoughts
Flight Of The Conchords – You Don't Have To Be A Prostitute
William Shatner – Common People
C.W. McCall – Convoy
Leonard Nimoy – Music To Watch Space Girls By
Paul Storm – If James Taylor Were On Fire
Billy Ray Cyrus – Achy Breaky Heart
Warren Zevon – Excitable Boy
DJ Ostkurve – Limbo Dance (Party Dance Radio)
Las Kala – The Ketchup Song (Hey Hah)
"Weird Al" Yankovic – White & Nerdy (Parody of "Ridin'" by Chamillionaire featuring Krayzie Bone)
Jonathan Coulton – Creepy Doll
Paul & Storm – My Fantastic Plastic Girl
John Wetton – Bohemian Rhapsody
Neil Norman & His Cosmic Orchestra – Mystery Science Theater 3000
Tenacious D – Deth Starr - Explicit Version
Barenaked Ladies – Crazy ABC's
Flight Of The Conchords – Hurt Feelings
Barenaked Ladies – Bank Job
Divinyls – I Touch Myself
Fast Food Rockers – The Fast Food Song - Deep Pan Radio Mix
Hampster Dance Masters – The Hamster Dance Song
Crazy Town – Butterfly
Warren Zevon – Mohammed's Radio
69 Boyz – Tootsee Roll
Various Artists – Supermodel (You Better Work)
Was (Not Was) – Walk The Dinosaur
Disco's Revenge – Disco Duck
Eiffel 65 – Blue (Da Ba Dee) - Radio Edit
David Hasselhoff – Keep The Jungle Alive
Pete Droge – If You Don't Love Me (I'll Kill Myself)
The Offspring – Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)
"Weird Al" Yankovic – Pretty Fly For A Rabbi (Parody of "Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)" by Offspring)
William Shatner – How Insensitive

Right Said Fred – I'm Too Sexy
Ricky Martin – She Bangs - English Version
Vanilla Ice – Ice Ice Baby
King Missile – Detachable Penis
The Timelords (The Jams) – Doctorin' The Tardis
Paul Storm – If Bob Dylan Were Hiding At the Bottom of a Well
Soundtrack/Cast Album – Dentist!
"Weird Al" Yankovic – Gump (Parody of "Lump" by The Presidents Of The United States)
Adam Sandler – Lunchlady Land
Barnes Barnes – Fish Heads (1976)
Monty Python – Lumberjack Song (Monty Python Sings)
Cracker Jack – Candy-Coated Popcorn, Peanuts and a Prize
Leonard Nimoy – Ballad Of Bilbo Baggins

Bilbo and Spock, together again...

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