Category: Parody

GURF HANKLE - REINDEER TOWN

12/22/2018

What if Bruce Springsteen wrote a working man's anthem for an elf having to cope with unemployment after Santa's factory closes down due to competition from China (etc.)? Well, it might sound something like "Reindeer Town", the third annual Christmas single from Gurf Hankle. And I'm guessing the double meaning of "Big Man's not around" was intentional.

And it's definitely from Gurf Hankle. Definitely NOT from Alex Weston.

Get "Reindeer Town" from Gurf Hankle as a free (name-your-price) download at Bandcamp.

0 Comments

THE JUGGLING POTATOS - HELTER SKELTER CHRISTMAS

12/14/2018

0 Comments

I don't know who originated "Helter Skelter Christmas", but, when I saw it on Bandcamp, I had to download it. The version, here, is by The Juggling Potatos, a conglomeration of New Jersey artists (some only identified by first names--perhaps those are the Bedrosians...or the Potatos) and is included on a 42 track collection "A Bedrosian Christmas". The "album" contains pretty much any Christmas song you can think of (including a cover of Bob Rivers' "I Am Santa Claus"). Some of its OK, some of it is meh. But, right in the middle, there's "Helter Skelter Christmas"--a Christmas parody to the classic Beatles tune.

There was a video of "Helter Skelter Christmas" posted to YouTube in 2011...same lyrics, different performance, also from New Jersey. Coincidence? You decide. Regardless, that one was uncredited and unavailable. So I'll take any "Helter Skelter Christmas" I can get. Download the whole 42-song "A Bedrosian Christmas" or just the songs you want a la carte from Bandcamp.

0 Comments

THE SIDE BURNS - SILENT NIGHT

12/9/2018

0 Comments

It says here The Side Burns are from Honk Kong. Funny, they don't sound Jewish. I keed I keed. The Side Burns, at least on "Silent Night", play an Elvis Presley style of Rock, so there's Country and Rockabilly mixed in there. And, truth be told, it almost sounds like they're poking a little fun at the Big Guy (Elvis). But whether you take "Silent Night" seriously or as a goof, it's not bad (well, once you get past the first minute where they're going a cappella--that part I could live without; we'll fix that in editing...I keed I keed). Some people like to close their holiday headtapes with "Silent Night", so here's another log for the fire. Oh, and the cover art's great (remember that kids; cover art is half the battle). It's name-your-price on Bandcamp.

0 Comments

GODDAMMIT JEREMIAH - REJOICE

12/1/2018

1 Comment

1. Good King Wenceslas (00:29)
2. Away in a Travelodge (01:30)
3. Hark! (00:15)
4. O come! O come! Emmanuel (01:18)
5. Little Donkey (00:39)
6. Boozy New Year (01:36)

GODDAMMIT JEREMIAH ON FACEBOOK
DOWNLOAD FROM BANDCAMP

We introduced you (well, those of you who needed an introduction) to Goddammit Jeremiah in our write-up of "A Very Cherry Christmas 13". They were the ones who did the Slade parody. We even told you they'd done an entire free Christmas EP. As soon as I saw the title--"Santa Baby Must Die"--I knew these were my kind of people. Well Goddammit Jeremiah has done it again with an all-new name-your-price collection of irreverent Punked up parodies of classic Christmas songs, "Rejoice!".

They must be making these things specifically for mixtapers. These tunes are the perfect drop-ins to spice up your holiday headtape. I purposely left in the run-times up top so you can see what I mean. For example, take "Hark!" It goes like this: "Hark the herald angels sing! Fake News." Is that perfect or what? And, trust me, it's not even 15 seconds, though that's what it's pegged at.

My favorite is "Away In A Travelodge" (not embedded due to a single use of the "s" word):

Away in a Travelodge, somewhere near Crewe
The only poor bastard that’s staying here is you
The staff eye you up as you enter the place
A mixture of pity and scorn on their face

Although "Rejoice!" is name-you-price, any money you do wish to contribute will go to the UK charity Crisis.org, giving help to the homeless. Your call on that, but this is good stuff, fun stuff, perfect stuff for a mixtape. Just sayin'

1 Comment

FLEMING & JOHN - BACK IN RED

8/23/2018

1 Comment

Holy Happy Holidays, Batman! Do you hear what I hear? It's a bloody miracle! Presents under the tree from the exquisite and exquisitely talented Fleming and John? No offense to the (possibly evil) NOW empire, but THIS is what I call Christmas. Yes, they're back. And they're "Back In Red".

Got a note from one of our loyal readers this morning. "I'm sure you already know about this...." You know, I get that a lot and it simply isn't true. I miss a lot. I mean a lot. And I pretty much missed everything last year. Nor did I see these particular gifties mentioned by any in our circle of Festive Friends (though I could easily have missed that as well). Anyway, our reader pointed us to the Facebook page of Fleming & John.

Fleming & John are a husband and wife team based in Nashville. John Mark Painter plays more instruments than you knew existed and his genius mind has a conception of sound that far exceeds that of mortal men (or women). Fleming McWilliams has a voice from the gods and she knows how to use it. She whispers, she purrs, she growls, and she screams...and that's just on one note. Really, she has one of the best and most versatile singing voices I've ever heard. And these talents have not gone unnoticed. The pair are highly in demand for session work with others, they run the International House of Fleming studios and the DWEEB record label. And they do their own thing, when they can, as Fleming & John (it's actually a full band with other members, but Fleming and John are the heart of it).

Back when the Internet was young...well, younger at any rate...Fleming & John created one of the best Christmas song mashups ever. I don't know the actual original release date. Some time in the aughts, I suspect (2004, perhaps). "Winter Wonderland/Misty Mountain Hop" (that's "Winter Wonderland" done to the tune of Led Zeppelin's "Misty Mountain Hop") became an annual favorite of Christmas music obsessives, it's popularity peaking out between 2010 and 2012. And then I sorta lost track of them and it seemed like other Christmas collectors did as well.

So it was a true joy to have a Stubby's fan alert me to the duo's most recent holiday wonders. "Back In Red" dates back to at least 2016 (there's a reference on their Facebook page to a new Christmas song in 2013, but no follow up post to that one). It's a delightful holiday reworking of AC/DC's "Back In Black" which truly rises above typical novelty fare thanks to inspired lyrics and Fleming's amazing vocal talents.

But, for me, the better holiday treat turned out to be the pair's recording of "Do You Hear What I Hear?" from 2017. No Metal Mashup, that one, but a true sonic wonderland. John, here, does some extraordinary things with the sound. And Fleming's vocals are truly transcendent. The track would work just as well in hard rock and soft rock formats. It's just a beautiful thing to behold and instantly became my favorite version ever of the song.

You know, when you're doing a mix that friends and family are going to listen to, you have to consider a lot of factors. The Mashups are always popular. But I think, musically, "Do You Hear What I Hear?" is the better selection. I've been going back and forth all day. Ah, the hell with it; just use them both. They're that good. While they remain available, both songs (as well as "Winter Wonderland/Misty Mountain Hop"--still a top notch performance, if you haven't already got it) are free to download via Dropbox, Yuletide presents from Fleming & John. Yeah, they're very special people like that. Pay them a visit at Facebook.

Back In Red
Do You Hear What I Hear?
Winter Wonderland/Misty Mountain Hop

1 Comment

SMASHY CLAW - SNOW & SADNESS

11/29/2016

0 Comments

As you know, I'm not a big fan of novelty Christmas tunes. I just think they wear out their welcome real quick. On the other hand, i know lots of folks are fascinated with them and other people like to fit one or two into their annual mix and there is only so many times you can dip into the Bob Rivers well.

So I don't think "Snow & Sadness" by Smashy Claw will have a long shelf life, but I liked the concepts of the tunes and I got a bit of a chuckle. So it's I report and you decide time.

So I certainly liked the title of "It's Technically Possible That I'll Be Home For Christmas" and I liked the idea of going straight after a holiday heavyweight. This one's Pop Punk-ish and, obviously the message is that our protagonist will NOT be home for Christmas, even though its technically possible he could be.

Next is the anti-Christmas wish list for Santa, "Booze, Boobs, Blood and Blow". And I started out, here, to tell a drug joke and, well....let's just not, OK?

Third up is a take-off on the Chipmunks Christmas tune. In "Christmunks", it would seem that we have a priest or a minister and, I dunno, some alter boys, maybe? The tune is basically about the theoretically devoted laughing at everyone else who will burn in hell...but done sarcastically. I gotta be honest. I thought the premise was funny, but I couldn't make it all the way through (and I think I might have heard a curse word in there, but who knows what else happened after I bailed.

Finally, we get "Santa Had A Heart Attack" which is more along the lines of your average "Santa's Dilemma" novelty.

Your call. Don't shoot the messenger. This one's available at Bandcamp.

0 Comments

The FREE List

Here we hope to direct you to some of the Christmas music on the web that can be yours absolutely free. We will not direct you to mp3 or sharity sites, here, but only to artist sites, label sites, and other authorized and unquestionably legal locations.

GURF HANKLE - REINDEER TOWN

THE JUGGLING POTATOS - HELTER SKELTER CHRISTMAS

THE SIDE BURNS - SILENT NIGHT

GODDAMMIT JEREMIAH - REJOICE

FLEMING & JOHN - BACK IN RED

SMASHY CLAW - SNOW & SADNESS

The FREE List

Archives

Categories