I do this sort of thing when the fancy strikes me. Click on the song title to hear it and read my silliness.
12 Strange Days of Christmas (2017)
For 12 days in December 2017, I've essayed various aspects of this strange and wonderful season. Here they are, in a *deluxe* interface, collected in their entirety for your yuletide bewilderment.
12 Strange Days of Christmas, Collected
12 Unrepentantly Happy Days of Christmas (2016)
2016: What a shitty year. I unfortunately can't promise that we'll wake up and the past month (hell, year!) will have just been an entire season of Dallas, but I am here to give everyone - and myself - a little respite. This Christmas season I just couldn't bear to put together another 12 days of miserable Christmas songs (plus, my mother-in-law made me promise I wouldn't), so I'm going in the opposite direction.
Christmas Love, Billy Idol
Christmas in New Orleans, Louis Armstrong
A Charlie Brown Christmas, Vince Guaraldi
Tit for Tat (Ain't No Taking Back), James Brown
Sleigh Ride, et al.
All I Want for Christmas Is You, Mariah Carey
Mele Kalikimaka, Bing Crosby
My Favorite Things, Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass
Christmas in Hollis, Run-DMC
The Chipmunk Song, Alvin & the Chipmunks
Come On! Let's Boogey to the Elf Dance!, Sufjan Stevens
Feliz Navidad, Jose Feliciano
12 More Miserable Days of Christmas (2015)
Ok, this is no longer a whim. There are a lot of miserable Christmas songs!
Santa Can’t Stay, Dwight Yoakam
Christmas Time Again, Extreme
Last Christmas, Wham!
Chiron Beta Prime, Jonathan Coulton
Christmas Song, Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds
Santa Claus, Go Straight to the Ghetto, James Brown
Father Christmas, The Kinks
I Believe in Father Christmas, Greg Lake
Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis, Neko Case
The Saga of Jenny, Mildred Bailey
25th December, Everything but the Girl
Hang Myself from the Tree, The Vandals
12 Miserable Days of Christmas (2014)
On a whim, I decided to do "12 Days of Miserable Christmas Songs" - you know, those tunes that exult in the loneliness, heartache, and selfishness characteristic of our most maudlin American holiday. I posted one a day starting on 12/13, going through Christmas Eve.
Loser Makes Good, Everclear
Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer, Elmo & Patsy
Sister Winter, Sufjan Stevens
Do They Know It’s Christmas?, Band Aid
Spotlight on Christmas, Rufus Wainwright
Wish You Well, A Fine Frenzy
Christmas Without You, Tommy Page
Millie Pulled a Pistol on Santa, De La Soul
My Birthday Comes on Christmas, Spike Jonze
¡Happy Birthday Guadalupe!, The Killers
Merry Christmas from the Family, Robert Earl Keen
Fairytale of New York, Pogues
My Pathos-Laden Running Playlist
For the past couple of years, I've gotten back into the running habit. I used to be a competitive runner, but that was a long time ago. So long, in fact, that not only could I not arrange playlists but I couldn't run with headphones because the CD would skip. I find that much of the music I like to run to now is either depressing or disturbing, so of course I thought I'd share it.
It's All Gonna Break, Broken Social Scene
Nothing, The Fugs
Don't Stop Believin', Petra Haden
Trouble Every Day, Frank Zappa
Galuppi Baldessare, Kris Delmhorst
When Heroes Go Down, Suzanne Vega
Burnt Offering, The Budos Band
How Loud Your Heart Gets, Lucius
Man, Neko Case
Sonsick, San Fermin