Canadian Musician - January/February 2019 | Page 9

FIRST
TAKE
In Defense of
Holiday Music
By Andrew King
Happy New Year!
I hope 2018 was great to you and yours
and ended in a merry and bright fashion.
I realize the holidays have come and
gone (for many of us, anyways), and that
some are at last enjoying their respite
from the holiday music staples we’ve been
bombarded with for weeks, if not months;
however, I found myself advocating for the
merits of Christmas- and holiday-themed
music a few times over the break with some
temporarily Grinch-y friends and relatives
and thought that now, when we’re not sub-
jected to six versions of “Sleigh Ride” each
day, would be a good time to make some
arguments in its favour.
I think it’s fair to say the most common
gripe with holiday music is that, for six to
eight weeks of the year in many places
across Canada, it’s just everywhere. The
radio, the mall, restaurants, your great
aunt’s house… I get it. Even your favourite
band’s catalog would get tiring with such
a constant onslaught.
But I think there’s some value to that
ubiquity and familiarity. I enjoy Christmas
music because it levels the playing field
and, within an established set of parameters,
challenges the artists and bands taking on
the traditional staples to do something fresh
and unique. It offers a true opportunity to
“stand out from the pack,” which is some-
thing we’re constantly told is key to success
in the music business.
I suppose I should clarify here that my
Christmas playlists are light on the more
popular versions of these songs. Though I
don’t find them off-putting, I hear enough
of Bing Crosby and Boney M and U2 while out
and about, and instead try to find fresh, fun,
or impactful takes on these known favourites.
W W W. C A N A D I A N M U S I C I A N . CO M
Artists stepping up to the plate to cover
“Silent Night” are like golfers playing a fa-
mous course or climbers scaling a well-
known summit. It’s something that many,
from the absolute best to total amateurs,
have done before to varying degrees of suc-
cess and all in their own unique ways.
For artists, it’s a chance to take a kick at a
well-established can and see how they fare,
or where they rank, albeit much more sub-
jectively than the athletic example.
As listeners and amateur party DJs, that
in turn challenges us to find these special
versions of tunes that people know and
cherish but don’t get to hear all of the time.
Really, it’s a reminder of how great many of
these songs are at their very core.
I challenge even the most hardened of
Christmas music curmudgeons to take in
Walk Off the Earth’s version of “Sleigh Ride”
or Lake Side Dive’s “I Want a Hippopotamus
for Christmas” or John Legend and Esper-
anza Spalding’s “Have Yourself a Merry Little
Christmas” – even Bieber’s Jackson 5-inspired
take on “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” –
and deny their creativity and invention.
But if you simply can’t find the value or
merit in these time-honoured classics, then
maybe sticking to more contemporary of-
ferings is the cure.
I realize every holiday song is an origi-
nal composition, though here, let’s focus on
new entries to the Christmas canon from
the past 50 years – Run DMC’s “Christmas
in Hollis,” Lennon’s “Happy Xmas,” John Den-
ver’s “Christmas for Cowboys,” Joni Mitchell’s
iconic “The River.”
Writing an original Christmas song of-
fers a similar challenge to covering one.
You’re still working within a set framework
of convention – settings, images, tropes,
etc. – and still seeking to offer something
of substance, of relevance. I can’t imagine
a better challenge for a songwriter looking
to hone their craft with something outside
of their comfort zone.
And from the listener’s perspective,
these types of tracks come in so many
shapes and sizes that there’s really no way
one can write off the whole lot of them as
worthless. If that’s the case, maybe their
problem is simply with the holidays in
general, and to that I’d say, just maybe,
their heart is a few sizes too small…
If you’re simply sick of hearing Eartha
Kitt sing “Santa Baby” while in line at the
supermarket, that’s fair, though in that
case, I’d challenge you to dig deeper
and find some appealing versions of
these classics and extract every bit of
cheer out of them you can.
Again, I think the familiarity of these
songs is a huge part of their charm. Their
ubiquity (at least in this part of the world)
offers something of a common denomi-
nator – an opportunity for people from
different backgrounds to come together
with a shared experience. Even if that ex-
perience is trashing one take on a tune,
that opens the door to finding a mutually-
agreeable one.
If you’re an artist, consider the chal-
lenge of covering or composing a Christ-
mas tune as a great exercise in composi-
tion, arrangement, and/or performance.
See if you’ve got what it takes to rise above
the heap of other artists – from the world-
famous to bedroom YouTubers – who’ve
taken the same initiative.
And if you’re just a casual listener
(which I suppose is all of us at one point
or another) and think you’re tired of the
holiday tunes, dig a bit deeper and I’m
sure you’ll find something that tickles
your fancy. That, in turn, gives you some-
thing to share with others, and regardless
of your faith or how you celebrate at this
time of year, that’s really what the season
is all about.
CANADIAN MUSICIAN • 9