Christmas on the Radio

Every December I become inordinately excited to listen to Christmas music again. I resist it all fall, but come December 1, it is on. I used to just turn on the radio and enjoy the abundance of Christmas-ness it provided. However, with the secularization of Christmas culture in America, this has turned out to be a huge bummer during the past few years.

Gone are the songs about any spiritual or Jesus-centered aspect of Christmas. The top ten songs on the Christmas-y radio stations around here seem to be:

1. I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus (gross, if you think about it)
2. Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer (um... sure...)
3. Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree (woo hoo...)
4. Jingle Bell Rock (since when is Christmas about "rockin' the night away?" also - the movie "Mean Girls" has ruined this song for me forever)
5. White Christmas (probably the best of the bunch)
6. Santa Baby (ew. just... ew.)
7. That stupid Hawaiian Christmas song (I'm in NEW JERSEY for pete's sake!)
8. I'll be Home for Christmas (depressing)
9. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (all I can hear in my head are the little asides all youth group kids know to this song - "Like a light bulb!" "Like Pinnochio!" "Like Monopoly!")
10. Blue Christmas (what is the obsession with sexualizing Christmas? and Santa? good heavens...)

Lucky for all of us, there's Pandora. This has become the fuel for my Christmas music obsession. If you haven't heard of it, just click on this link.

Pandora lets you select a song or artist you like and plays you songs that fit within that theme. And it's free! As far as Christmas stations go, their "classical" Christmas is quite good (though heavy on the "Good King Wenceslas" for whatever reason). Lots of Silent Night and Holy Night and Joy to the World and all the  good stuff. For a better sing-a-long selection, I like Jar's of Clay's "Little Drummer Boy" station or Sufjan Stevens' Christmas.

Anyway, Merry early Christmas. And don't let your radio stations scam you out of singing to Jesus in celebration!