In days long past, this list would take the form of a mixtape. Collected and copied on actual recording tape. Later the songs were distributed on a CD. New medium, same idea.
These days pretty much everything is available on your favorite streaming service and many of the people who use the term “tape” as a shorthand for audio recording have never actually used the stuff.
Whatever you call it, this is my annual collection of holiday-type songs that I play to drown out the banal usual stuff that seems to be coming out of every sound system. If you have Apple Music, direct access to the mixtape is here. Enjoy.
- It’s Not Christmas Till Somebody Cries – Carly Rae Jepsen
- Winter Weather – Tatiana Eva-Marie & Avalon Jazz Band
- Christmas Dream – Terry Wogan, Aled Jones, Hayley Westenra, and BOND
- Turn On The Lights – Jamie Cullum
- Soulful Christmas – James Brown
- ’tis the damn season – Taylor Swift
- Christmastime Blues – Jonathan Edwards
- So Many Santas – Jamie Cullum
- I’d Like You for Christmas – Campbell Jazz Continuum and Emmaline
- Santa Claus Go Straight To The Ghetto – James Brown
- Send Me Your Love for Christmas – Tatiana Eva-Marie & Avalon Jazz Band
- Holiday – She & Him
- Just Another Christmas Song (This Time I’ll Sing Along) – Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings
- All I Need Is Love – CeeLo Green and The Muppets
- Christmas Calling (Jolly Jones) – Norah Jones
- Fairytale of New York – The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl
- Christmas TV – Slow Club
- If We Make It Through December – Phoebe Bridgers
- Please Daddy (Don’t Get Drunk This Christmas) – The Decemberists
- X’Mas Time (It Sure Doesn’t Feel Like It – The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
- Lonely Christmas Eve – Ben Folds
- It’s Christmas and You’re Boring Me – Slow Club
- Let’s Start the New Year Off Right – Bing Crosby
Of course, the mixtape was recently given new life by Guardians of the Galaxy. And if James Gunn doesn’t put together the ultimate Christmas mixtape for his Guardians Holiday Special next year, I will be very disappointed.