The Christmas Song-List: Part 1: A "Winter Song" for You

Hello dear readers,

It is now less than a week before Christmas, and that means lots of snow (12 inches in fact; it looks like a Norman Rockwell landscape outside of my window), a sorely needed break from school, and a myriad of other lovely things, one of which is loads of Christmas music!! Now, I know we all know about the standard fare (the classic Christmas carols), and those are all well and good. It wouldn't be Christmas without them. But, every now and then, new artists get together and actually create a Christmas song that breaks the mold--i.e. Sara Bareilles and Ingrid Michaelson's new song, "Winter Song," which I've placed right here for your viewing/listening pleasure.

This song is so beautiful that it gets a 5 out of 5 hot cocoa mug rating from this blogger. There's actually a rather cute music video that's on the Sara Bareilles YT channel, but the "embed video" feature was disabled, so I couldn't post it here. However, if you want to watch it, you can by clicking here.

It's also on the new album out called: The Hotel Cafe Presents...Winter Songs

Not only are Sara B. and Ingrid Michaelson present, but there are also few other female singer-songwriters that you might recognize, such as KT Tunstall, Katy Perry, Fiona Apple, Colbie Caillat, etc.. There are a few gems on the album, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend buying the whole thing (In my hastiness, I did anyway). If you're an singles-downloader, I'd recommend the newly written songs like "Winter Song" and "The Heartache Can Wait" by Brandi Carlile and "All My Bells Are Ringing" by Lenka. Some of the new renditions of old classics aren't too shabby, either. "Silent Night" by Priscilla Ahn, Fiona Apple's "Frosty the Snowman," Catherine Feeny's "Christmas Song," and "Auld Lang Syne" are still enjoyable listens. And my apologies to all the Katy Perry fans out there, but...the only song that made me regret my "complete my album" iTunes purchase was her version of "White Christmas." The stripped down production doesn't suit her well, and the reverb on her vocal does not cover up the fact that she sounds inebriated and bored singing this old classic, which has been done way better. She could learn a thing or two from Mr. Bing Crosby...(like how to sound classy and not like a loose woman who's had one too many rounds of egg nog. Sorry, that was a bit too mean.). Anyways, I digress. Despite a couple of flops, "The Hotel Cafe Presents...Winter Songs" still has a lot to offer listeners who are looking for something new this Christmas season, and many of its songs will prove worthy additions to any music lover's collection.

Album Rating: 3.5 hot cocoa mugs out of 5.


Any Christmas songs you think are absolute must-listens???