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Holiday Songs - Surfin' Santa
Why do all these songs about frostbite conditions sound so wonderful in sun-drenched shirtless reverb? Ever try pushing a sled through sand? I don't recommend it. But I heartily recommend each of the following experiences. Don't worry, we'll get to more Beach Boys later on, today (with the exception of track four) it's all about those chiming guitars.
THE VENTURES - Sleigh RideThis comes from their fantastic Christmas album, one of the greats of the genre and something every Californian, hell, every American should own.
MAN OR ASTROMAN? - Frosty The Snowman
Perhaps my favorite part of this track is the opening bit of Santa reading off the latest wish list from one of those bratty kids that keeps riding his bike up the side wall of my house. I'll just have to hope his request for a machine gun went unanswered.
LOS STRAITJACKETS - Christmas In Las Vegas
How can you even TELL when Las Vegas puts its Christmas lights up?
SURFARIS - Surfer's Christmas List
Yes, the Surfaris perform songs with more than one word on occasion.
X-RAY TANGO - We Three Kings
I found this on a very obscure, but amazing collection called Xmas Snerts from pioneering Indy label Gulcher Records. Indy as in, based in Bloomington, IN. Pioneering as in, formed in 1975 and the force that first brought the world the futuristic sounds of MX-80 Sound and the Gizmos, two crucial 7-inch documents of post-punk that PRE-DATE actual punk! The label's become active again, still putting records by many of the same artists. I assume X-Ray Tango are a surf band from Indiana, as landlocked a state as you could name, but in Christmas music, all apparant contradictions are turned into strengths.
Illustration courtesy of Mike "Dakinewavamon" Klineon flickr.
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