The keys to Christmas
In the past, I have focused on the piano as a lead musical instrument. It’s an appropriate way to begin this year’s offering of holiday music, as both the piano and Christmas are markers of the rise of...
View Article“Light me up, put me on top…”
A running theme in my Christmas music coverage is that the notion of The One True Meaning of Christmas is thin-sliced beef baloney. No such thing. Christmas contains multitudes of meaning. Including...
View ArticleThe Gospel of Christmas
From the profane to the sacred, we now go the exact opposite direction. It is entirely valid to mark Christmas as a celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ (even though that meaning came long after...
View ArticleA Consideration: “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”
In the last five years, people have very cleverly written think pieces (and diatribes) about how the holiday tune “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” is about date rape. I find these attacks so silly and...
View Article“Meli Keuliseumaseu” is the thing to say…
So, a few years ago, I heard that Christmas was pretty popular in Korea. I mean South Korea. It’s pretty aggressively discouraged in North Korea, on pain of torture. This is not hyperbole. But South...
View ArticleTwo slices of fruitcake, aged with wine
Two selections today, connected in various ways. Both artists were one-hit wonders. Both performed in the West Coast blues style. Both were crooners (at least some of the time). Both songs have similar...
View Article“Oh, what fun.”
“Jingle Bells” is surely the single most famous Christmas song. It’s first few notes are certainly the lick that musicians will throw into a song to identify it with Christmas. it was composed by James...
View Article“Seasons greetings, from our house to yours…”
Christmas is many, many things. But among those many things, it is a festival. If you have family, and you get along with them, you can gather and celebrate your bonds. If you don’t, you can get...
View ArticleSounds of the Season 2013
This holiday season, everybody decided we needed to discuss the merits of Love Actually. Are we done now? Can we put that away and agree not to discuss it ever again? Here is the annual round-up of...
View ArticleDark Considerations and Bright Prospects
When you’re young, New Year’s Eve is probably a lot of fun. You go out with your friends and drink and ring in the New Year. When you get older, it’s a pain in the neck. Staying up to midnight can be a...
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