Thanksgiving is around the corner (tomorrow) which means it’s time for me to put together my Christmas Mix, which will spin on my iPod continuously through December 25th. I began this tradition a number of years ago, and it’s stuck with me since.
(Note: I may have to break my tradition for a few days this year. iTunes has Cardinals III/IV set to drop on December 10th. Ryan Adams is self-releasing these days, though, so there might be delays in that release.)
At any rate, a good Christmas mix stays small. 100 songs max. It has a fine mixture of classic and new artists. And, above all else, it HAS TO INCLUDE Christmas in Hollis.
For the classic, I usually just include the Time-Life Treasury of Christmas. It’s two discs of classic Christmas fun. Bing, Perry, Elvis, Judy, Alabama. It’s got it all.
For the new, though, you’ve got to do a bit of digging. Frankly, there’s been very few good Christmas songs recorded over the past few decades. I’d definitely recommend the first three volumes of A Very Special Christmas. Plus, this route would cover your Christmas in Hollis requirement.
I’d also include Barenaked for the Holidays. Or at least a few tracks, if you’re not a BNL fan on the whole.
You can’t have a Christmas mix without some Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Personally, I prefer Christmas Eve and Other Stories, but you do what you gotta do.
Lastly, I’d include at least one or two volumes of Happy Christmas. This series began in the late 90’s and is very similar to A Very Special Christmas. But, where the latter began to include Miley Cyrus, the former has August Burns Red. They just released a new volume as well, which I haven’t heard, but it’s definitely going into the mix.
Overall, the goal of any good Christmas mix is to get you in the mood for Christmas. My mix is going to be different from yours. And that guy’s mix is going to be different than the weird-eyed guy standing next to him. All that’s important is that it gets you ready for the greatest time of the year.
Enjoy.