Jasdip, the entire soundtrack of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" is wonderful.

O Holy Night

We do draw the line at Christmas tv movies. Neither of us care for them. There was one on last night so we watched 3 back-to-back episodes of Scandal. LOL

I love almost all of the 'old' standard Christmas carols, except '12 Days of Christmas', wouldn't care if I never heard that one again. 'Silent Night' almost always brings tears to my eyes, I don't know why, it just does. 'Little Drummer Boy' and 'O Holy Night' are also among my favorites. Just about any of the Christmas songs played by Manheim Steamroller! I love LOVE their version of 'Hark the Herald Angels Sing' especially. That one can lift even the most down spirits! Maye you could try listening to it, Bob_cville, get you out of Grinch mode! :^)

And can't forget Elvis' 'Blue Christmas', either!

Rusty

Bruce Springsteen's Santa Claus is coming to town.

I'm a big-time traditionalist where Christmas music is concerned! I have put together a playlist for my house and car - bought some on iTunes but had to buy actual CD's for some. I prefer my carols sung by a traditional boy's choir. Those boy soprano voices are just like hearing angels sing! Most of the choirs are in the UK, but one is at the Episcopal Cathedral in Indianapolis.

I'm an Episcopalian so I'm sure that influences my taste. One of my favorite services of the year is always the Sun before Christmas when my church does Benjamin Britten's Lessons and Carols. If that doesn't get me in the Christmas spirit, nothing will!

Lots and lots. I listen to Christmas music year round. It makes me happy. There are a dozen or so that I DETEST with a passion. But I like anything Michael buble sings,Dean Martin's "let it snow" Faith Hills "where are you Christmas " all of the classics, sung by Frank Sinatra,dean martin,Bing Crosby, Perry como,etc. With the exception of Michael buble,I really never like when a newer artist "remakes" a song sung by the "originals."

Although the title sounds more like Easter, "It's all about the Cross" by the Bell Brothers, is amazing! Listen to those meaningful words on YouTube.

I'm a sucker for minor keys, so put me down for O Come O Come Emmanuel.

I agree with Bob. I have a low tolerance for the endless music everywhere. For Christmas music and all other music, I tire of repetition. If I hear the same song, almost any version, more than about once a month, I'm bored out of my mind.

These are the Piano Guys playing Linus and Lucy and other Charlie Brown hits at a senior's home. The seniors are loving it!

O Holy Night, especially sung by John Berry.

John Berry

I've never seen the Piano Guys. Down another youtube rabbit hole I go! I really need to run it through the blu ray player, so it sounds better than these laptop speakers.

A local pizza restaurant that I often go to for lunch plays one of the nothing but Christmas music radio stations throughout December. I was there for lunch today, and their sound system kept cutting out. I'm not sure whether I was more bothered by the fact that the sound would annoyingly cut out, or by the fact that a few seconds later the Christmas music would return.

I must have missed those 8 years without Christmas music? What??? And Diane wasn't the one to bring politics into this thread.

I'm not sure I have a favorite song - maybe Hallelujah Chorus, especially sung by the Roches (theirs is my all time favorite Christmas album, We Three Kings):

They make 3 voices sound like a full chorus.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bs9ruOeeGdM

Talk about bad songs/versions......we heard a man singing Santa Baby, and he said Buddy or Pally instead of Baby. Awful.

Do You Hear What I Hear

While I was looking for a rendition to link to for your listening pleasure, I learned that it was written in 1962 as a plea for peace during the Cuban Missile Crisis

I thought this was an appropriate rendition and it's by 5 very talented youngsters. Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZpzv_IDOP8

Has anyone here ever heard the group Straight No Chaser? Their Christmas stuff is really fun.

https://youtu.be/7E-47VmFopE

If you have time,you should look through their stuff,especially any live videos from their shows. They are very entertaining.

https://youtu.be/XWfAG7Yo3mA

Here's a link (I hope) to Mannheim Steamroller's "Hark the Herald Angels". Hope y'all enjoy it as much as I do, a real mood lifter! ! !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21Ku3K298CQ

Rusty

I find most Christmas instrumentals enjoyable. I'm sick of most of the novelty tunes which have been played for decades. One of my favorites is, "Bring a Torch Jeanette Isabella." I don't hear it often but have it on a cd for the car.

Christmas Shoes really pulls the heart strings.

Christmas Shoes

I like this set of songs. After listening to the first song, be sure to wade through the ad to hear the second song. There are more songs on this album.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvRYUrdPDw0

A Hallelujah Christmas by Cloverton

On this past Friday, at 5:00 as I was leaving work, the UVA Chapel right across from the Library rung 5 times for the hour and then proceeded to play some Christmas song on the bells, I think it was "Hark the Herald Angels Sing". I liked it. Even though as I posted above I usually avoid and am annoyed by all pervasive Christmas music. I wonder though where it is an actual carillon with actual bells being rung or merely big speakers up in the "bell" tower playing bell sounds.

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies (ballet)

I wonder though where it is an actual carillon with actual bells being rung or merely big speakers up in the "bell" tower playing bell sounds.

Not to worry, bob. It's a well-known real carillon, 23 bells:

http://www.towerbells.org/data/VACHARLO.HTM

I find most Christmas songs pleasant and I enjoy a brief annual revisit of them. But after the brief revisit, overexposure results and I find them tiresome. I'm usually involved in a public performance of these songs each year. This year, I and my musical partners decided to take the year off, we all were still suffering from fatigue from the past several years' consecutive performances.

A favourite group of ours that we follow on Facebook said that they were going to putting out a Christmas song. They figure they'd give Mariah Carey a break!! LOL Her song is definitely one of the most over-played.

Holly Jolly Christmas, by Burl Ives. Is my feel good song, always happy when it plays

I like this little girl's delivery. Its fantastic.

Once the video starts, you can advance through the verbal at the beginning by moving your cursor into the bottom of the frame; a time bar will appear; click and hold on the dot and slide it forward.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDqTBlKU4CE

jemdandy, WOW. Thank you for posting her. She is incredible. What a GIFT she has been given. Even the kids jaws were dropping. Just amazing! And I encourage people to listen to the dialogue as well.

I just hope she doesn't go on to be ruined by fame as so many others do....

writersblock, your link is for a different church in Charlottesville. One that is in the downtown area of the city rather than on the university grounds. The list at that site seem to be rather comprehensive -- if so, that that means that the university chapel doesn't have an actual carillon.

I do not like the traditional Christmas music. My husband loves the Vienna Boys Choir, I can't stand it. I do like NewSong, espially "Light your World"

While I do get slightly annoyed at so much Christmas music being played for so long, I don't get exceedingly so ... perhaps because I don't spend major time in the malls.

If you'd like to hear less Christmas music during this commercially non-challenged season ...

... maybe spend less time in the malls?

To me, the Christmas spirit isn't joined at the hip with buying stuff.

ole joyfuelled

The radio stations that played it intermittently up until this week are now full force with the Christmas music.

We're listening to it, as the radio is on all the time.

Joyfulguy,

I haven't been in a mall for years. Just have been married for 25 years to a guy that would play Christmas music year round if I would let him... yesterday I was out in the yard pulling some weeds enjoying the birds. Until he started cleaning the garage. Of course he can't do that without playing Christmas music.

Iris, be thankful it's not rap, or heavy metal... ;)

Love all the old Advent and Christmas hymns. Two secular favorites that people here might enjoy, one old and one new:

Roger Miller - Old Toy Trains

Old fashioned pictures to enjoy while the lullaby plays.

Corb Lund - Just Me and the Ponies (For Christmas This Year)

This Canadian is such a story teller:

"Thank Christ for these horses or I’d be here at home
80 years old, spending Christmas alone
The blizzard is howling, the night it grows near
It’s just me and the ponies for Christmas this year."

I usually love Christmas music. I started playing some songs early as I usually do. But I grew tired of them or something. Perhaps this flu I've had, or something else. Who knows.

One song that I can certainly relate to this year is by Faith Hill- "Where are you Christmas" However, I don't listen to it if I can help it. Trying to stay positive I suppose.

"Two secular favorites that people here might enjoy, one old and one new"

With all due respect, nickel, because Christmas is a religious holiday, any song about Christmas isn't "secular".

If you want an example of what some consider a Christmas song but that has no religious content or mention of it at all, think of Winter Wonderland.

Elmer, neither song contains doctrine or calls to faith, so I consider them secular. Enjoyable by anyone who values family ties.

I have been listening to so many carols since Remembrance Day I'm so over them right now. Remember: I WORK RETAIL! It's on 24/7 in our store. Literally: it's a 24 hour store. Glad I'm only there for 8 1/2 hours a day. As a child The Little Drummer Boy was my favourite. Now I don't have a favourite. But when I'm in my vehicle and the radio station plays any carol by the Trans Siberian Orchestra, my volume gets turned right up.

nickel, the lyrics you quote are the tale. "Thank Christ for these horses" is the thing. Yes, it's a light and informal reference but one all the same. It's a Christmas song with a Christian faith reference and not a secular song at all. Secular means having no religious connection. Be as stubborn as you wish but I don't think you called this one right.

Thank you Elmer, think I'll stay stubborn on this one. Both songs read "secular" not "religious" to me.

(By the way, I do hope some of y'all have listened to them, especially the Corb Lund one. He's one of my favorite singer/songwriter/performers. One thing I love about him, when he writes a song about a horse, by golly it's about a horse. Not using a horse as a metaphor for freedom or anything. LOL. Sorry for the commercial, now back to regular programming.)

(Oh and Rob, I sincerely hope you weren't offended by the lyric and apologize to anyone who was. I understand not taking His name in vain, but some expressions just slip out. I'll give more thought in the future when sharing stuff.)

I used to throw a party every December for people who liked to sing. I still like Christmas music, some songs better than others. Here's one you might not hear on the radio. I have it on one of Kiri Te Kanawa's Christmas albums, and loved it the first time I heard it.

The Most Wonderful Birthday of All

No offense taken nickel. My point was more, I don't think the song has anything to do with a religious message. At least that's not the intent, and just using Christian words isn't enough to be a message veiled our not. Context!

It's not really from the "Christmas" section of the Messiah, but I do love "Behold the Lamb of God". I usually put the Messiah on as my final listen before bed on Christmas Eve. Before that, it is many varied recordings of traditional carols (love Mannheim Steamroller, Ferrante and Teicher, even the Klezmonauts!). Not so much pop songs.

You can trust me that you wouldn't ever hear a Muslim, a Jew, a Buddhist or a Hindu thanking Christ for having ponies on Christmas. It's not a veiled message at all but it's hardly secular. If you don't see that then fine, I promise you many, many other readers do.

"In the meadow we can built a snowman,
and pretend that he is Justice of the Peace Brown.
He'll say 'are you joined in legal union',
We'll say 'no man, but you can do the job when you're in town'..."

Or do you prefer the religious version ;-) But really, Winter Wonderland -- I agree with what I think (I might be wrong) you said earlier -- is a song unlikely to offend a person of normal religious or un-religious sensibility. It's rightly popular at holiday time for obvious reasons: how lovely to share in the happiness of a young couple in love and looking forward to sharing their life together. The Corb Lund song about growing older, outliving friends, being left out of your kid's holiday plans ... I doubt it will ever achieve even a fraction of Winter Wonderland's popularity. But as I grow older, I don't mind pondering the resilient old man and his animals. It makes me glad my own dad is still here, still close enough, to visit with.

I've clicked on many of the links to songs above and have enjoyed them all.

I don't have a link, sadly, but on our all-classical Boston radio station I just heard the loveliest piece -- "Do You Hear What I Hear?" done by the Northern Lights Orchestra, from their album "What If Mozart Wrote 'White Christmas'". It was gorgeous, and blew me away. Ordered the CD from Amazon immediately!!