By Shani
Obviously, not everyone who reads this blog is Christian, and for that matter, not everyone who contributes to this blog is Christian. I'm not.
But I love Christmas music. Hard. And the second week of December is when I start playing it nonstop. So, without any further ado, I present to you: Shani's favorite Christmas songs.
Favorite traditional song: "O Holy Night" by Johnny Mathis. Mathis's voice is insanely beautiful. He doesn't oversing at all, like most performers of this song do.
Favorite jazz song: "Baby It's Cold Outside." Ray Charles/Betty Carter version, of course. But I have five different versions of it on my computer. I also dig the Leon Redbone/Zooey Deschanel version, and since the Ray Charles version isn't available on YouTube, I'll give you the latter. (But do avail yourself of Ray and Betty ASAP.)
Favorite soul song: this is a close one between The Temptations' version of "Silent Night" and Donny Hathaway's "This Christmas." The Temptations win by a nose.
Favorite pop song: Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas Is You." Perfect, perfect mix of holiday cheer and pop music. Very few pop songs become enduring holiday classics and I think this one makes the cut.
Bonus! Favorite not-Christmas song: Adam Sandler's "Chanukah Song," parts 1 & 2. (Part 3 totally jumped the shark).
There you have it. Your guest-blogger is a total cliche. Let me know what your favorite holiday music is in the comments.