Although Mr Mess is as Christmas Crazy as I am, he is usually very strict on the “No Christmas songs before December 1st” rule. Now that advent is here, however, all bets are off and I’ll be blasting out festive classics as much as possible. I have so many well-loved Christmas tunes that it was almost impossible to narrow them down. If I absolutely had to choose, these would be my top 10 Christmas songs:
Once in Royal David’s City
Has there been a law passed that I am unaware of, saying that all Christmas Concerts MUST begin with a solo rendition of this song? It certainly seems that way. Luckily it is a lovely song, with a very beautiful melody although you get many extra points if you know any more than the first two verses.
Fairytale of New York
So, song number 2 couldn’t be much further removed from song number 1 if it tried. Fairytale of New York is brilliant if you want to avoid the traditional carols. I believe there’s currently a petition to get it to number 1 in the charts. I could go for that. It’s a tune!
The Holly and the Ivy
This is one of Mr Mess’ favourite Christmas songs and so has been adopted by myself, although I seem to remember singing along to the Pinky and Perky version as a child. This version is much better than that one!
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
This is probably my favourite of all favourite Christmas songs, mainly because the message running through it has carried me through many a tough Christmas. The version by Judy Garland in “Meet me in St. Louis” is beautiful, but also quite melancholy. My preferred version is by Ella Fitzgerald and is jauntier and more up-beat. It also holds a special place in my heart as it was the first dance song at my wedding!
White Christmas
You couldn’t really have a list of great Christmas songs without including this gem, and the only version that really matters is Mr Crosby.
Santa Baby
I know it’s daft and cheesy, but Santa Baby is an awesome song. I’d love to get to perform it one day, maybe in a vintage, Mrs Santa dress. It would work really will in one of the Burlesque shows. There are many versions out there, but as far as I’m concerned no-one does it better than Eartha Kitt.
O Little Town of Bethlehem
One of the main criteria a song has to have to feature on one of my Top Tens is singability. It’s probably not going to be surprising to discover I love a good sing-a-long. I always think O Little Town has one of the most beautiful melodies ever! Let’s all take a moment to appreciate it.
All I Want for Christmas is You
If you want to get me up and dancing at the Christmas disco, you HAVE to put a bit of Mariah on – it’s just got to happen. I defy anyone to hear this song and not begin singing and dancing along.
Silent Night
Another song that I love to sing along to is Silent Night. I even still remember the harmonies from school choir. I’d never heard this version by Pentatonix before I decided to write this post but I’ll certainly be listening to more of their stuff from now on.
Baby It’s Cold Outside
And finally, I’m not really sure if this counts as a Christmas song, but it is really only appropriate for winter so I’m including it anyway. Plus it’s my list, so there. There are so many versions of this song that I love but probably my favourite is this one by Cerys Matthews and Tom Jones. Tom Jones is so devilish in this clip – he’s just brilliant.
That’s a wrap! My top 10 Christmas songs. It was surprisingly hard to write this post and I’m sure I’ll think of some songs I’ve missed in the near future. Now I’m off to get my Christmas CDs in the car and have a really good sing-song.
What would be on your top ten Christmas songs? Do you share any of my favourites or are yours completely different?
