Stan Freberg–Green Christmas

Fifty years old and just as fresh as ever.  For an extended discussion of Green Christmas and the story around it check out A Christmas Yuleblog.

Yellowman Rock

Yellow is a tough color to pull off in the rainbow playlist gimmick.

Yellow Snow, Yellow Snow, Yellow Snow

Yeah, I hate the synchronized Christmas lights thing as much as you do.  Sorry, Bob Rivers.

Darlene Love (White Christmas)

Darlene Love IS the goddess of Christmas.  Bing never worked an orange reference into the song.

El Vez (Christmas Medley)

Okay, it doesn’t have Oranges for Christmas, but it rocks.

Red Simpson (Truckin’ Trees for Christmas

Truckers love Christmas too.

Snoopy vs. The Red Baron (Snoopy’s Christmas)

I really wanted to include this in the playlist but I couldn’t find a copy of the track to burn on a CD.  Happily, Youtube has this version.  Smile!

Santa Claus Blues

Santa Claus Blues recorded by the Red Onion Jazz Babies in 1924.  That’s Louis Armstrong on cornet and Sidney Bechet on clarinet.

The 2008 Playlist

Maybe the cheapest trick in the playlist maker’s book is the rainbow playlist.  It’s a simple concept: find songs that have a connection to the various parts of the spectrum of visible light: red, orange, yellow, blue, indigo, and violet.  Maybe start with something in black and end by putting it all together in white.  It takes little creativity and often comes out pretty well.

Here are the ground rules for this year’s list: the color reference (with one exception, sort of) must be in the song title or the performer’s name, no red-nosed reindeer (too easy) and any Blue Christmas must be performed by somebody other than Elvis (again too easy).

Here’s the list:

Black Christmas                                          Emotions
Red Blue Yellow Green                                 Nina Mankin
Santa Claus Blues                                        Red Onion Jazz Babies
Truckin’ Trees For Christmas                      Red Simpson
Rangers’ Christmas Lullabye                       Red Dirt Rangers
Oranges for Christmas                                El Vez
White Christmas                                          Darlene Love
Yellow Snow! Yellow Snow! Yellow Snow!    Bob Rivers
Yellowman Rock (Jingle Bell Rock)               Yellowman
I’ll Be Home For Christmas                          Al Green
Green Christmas                                         Barenaked Ladies
Green Christmas                                         Stan Freberg
Winter Wonderland                                      Pat Green
Blue Christmas                                            Del Mccoury Band, The
Blue Xmas (To Whom It May Concern)         Miles Davis Bob Dorough
Blue Christmas                                            Belton Richard
Blue Christmas                                            The Mediation Singers
River                                                            Indigo Girls
A Violet in the Snow                                    Bill Upper
Rebel Jesus                                                  The Violets
Candy Cane Children                                   White Stripes

Quick Notes: Indigo and Violet were tough.  Thank goodness Indigo Girls recorded one plausibly holiday song.  “A Violet in the Snow” may be the worst song I have ever put on a holiday playlist.  The Violets’ version of “Rebel Jesus” was a late find and I had already purchased the Bill Upper track so you get it too.  Oh, Darlene Love’s “White Christmas” is the rule-breaker.  Listen to the track carefully and see if you can figure out why it’s nect to the great El Vez’s (as close to the King as we will get on this list) Oranges for Christmas.

My Finetune Christmas Playlist