Bennie posted a list of his top ten Christmas tunes, and asked for readers to post their favorites.
I just can't.
Two years ago, I had 36 versions of Silent Night in iTunes.
This year, I'm up to 39. It's more than two hours of Silent Night, or, too much to burn to one music CD. It's a sickness, I tell you.
The funny thing about it is that if you start playing 39 version of Silent Night in a row, it takes people a while to catch on. Because the song is so sweetly innocuous and the renditions are all so very different, they don't realize what's happening to them.
Not all songs are so insidious. Once upon a time, my husband was doing some woodworking in the cellar at my mother's house. There are speakers down there, but they're connected to the stereo in the living room. David Garland was on the radio, on WNYC, playing nothing but covers of the Hawaiian War Chant. After a while, W. came out of the cellar in an altered state. I long to recreate that but I only have seven versions of the Hawaiian War Chant. Can anyone help me out?
Sorry, can't help with the Hawaiian War Chant. But I am LOVING iTunes genius this year - helping us mix up our favorite selections a bit. Enjoy your many versions of Silent Night - I bet that's lovely.
ReplyDeletei couldn't even hum it for you.
ReplyDeleteno ideer.
ReplyDeletephd in yogurtry just made me snort
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you posted about this again. We have had your "Silent Night" mix out this season, and it has been a huge hit. My mother listened to it all the way through while baking cookies, and we have it interspersed into the holiday playlist, too, where none of us were able to identify Stevie Nicks.
ReplyDeleteHope you're well!
We discovered this weekend that we have enough holiday music to play for about 12 straight hours.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet, I haven't heard one of my favorites yet-- Crosby's Mele Kalikimaka. Total nostalgic bliss.
I wish I could help...but I haven't even got one rendition of the War Chant. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteI like to play the Trans Siberian Orchestra Christmas CDs over and over, but am often thwarted by other folk' desire to hear the more usual stuff. Oh, well.
Shade and Sweetwater,
K
WFMU (I miss listening to their Irish music radio show) has got their own version: 61 versions of "Tico Tico" @ " http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2005/11/61_versions_of_.html"
ReplyDeleteI don't use ITunes (I have an IBM computer and a Sansa MP3 player) but Amazon.com has about 150 different MP3 tracks for the "War Chant". I still like Spike Jones' version best :}
PS: Forgot to mention that WNYC has the Garland show to listen to. Not sure if you can download it.
ReplyDeleteI love Silent Night too. But my favorite couldn't go on your iPod.
ReplyDeleteMy oldest brother used to be in the NYC Gay Men's chorus. For their holiday concert they did Silent Night -- all the verses, plus one in Spanish, then the last one in American Sign Language -- it was so beautiful.
Silent Night, 36 times...love it!
ReplyDeleteI think this might just be a new form of evil genius!
ReplyDeleteIs the Hawaiian War Chant anything like throat singing? ;-)
ReplyDeleteSilent Night is one of my favorites as well.
Merry Christmas to you and yours!