Christmas! Ben Jammin' 2008...

Three weeks between posts - Unforgivable?  Despicable? Lazy? Alright, I hear your voices in my head - I'll cut myself some slack. This is my busiest time of year at work - Parade of Lights?  Hot Cocoa with Santa, anyone?  Anyway, Ben Jammin', the annual Christmas Mixtape, has been in circulation for nearly that long, so I'd better get the playlist out there:

Ben Jammin' 2008

Why Can't It Be Christmastime All Year? - Rosie Thomas (Because it makes my hips twitch. Full of Christmas excitement.)

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas - Harry Connick, Jr.  (Third holiday album.  And I love them all.)

Christmastime in Tinseltown - Big Bad Voo Doo Daddy  (I like that Santa in Tinseltown picks pockets, but he's still a likable guy.)

What Do Bad Girls Get? - Joan Osborne  (Good question.)

Home for Christmas - Hall & Oates (There can be no mix without an '80's reference. Seriously.)

Little Town - Over the Rhine (Hands down, my favorite Christmas CD from 2007, and I can't say any of the new releases have surpassed it.  My highest recommendation - and this reworking of "O Little Town of Bethlehem" is lovely.)

My Holiday - Mindy Smith (Such a sweet and pure voice, and a sweet sentiment to boot.)

O Come O Come Emmanuel - Joshua Jackson (I really like this band [see "New Love Song" on The Proof I Use To Measure What Is True - September] and I actively seek out holiday songs by people I already like.  So far, this method has not let me down.)

My Dear Acquaintence/Happy New Year - Regina Specktor (Reflective, slightly melancholoy - exactly what a New Year's anthem should be.)

I Need a Silent Night - Amy Grant (From my formative youth, Amy Grant's Christmas albums were my favorite.  So now she has a Greatest Christmas Hits recording - I have everything else already, but this one was interesting to me; the spirit of the season getting lost in the hustle and bustle and to do lists. Plus, a small child reciting a Bible verse in the style of Linus!)

Wildwood Carol - Holly Cole (I love when a song I only know as an instrumental turns out to have lyrics after all.  I love the power of her voice.)

Sleigh Ride/Marshmallow World - Kristin Chenoweth with John Pizzarelli (Two of my favorite fun carols, blended together by two shining stars of the stage.  When Kristin growls out, "I'm FREEZING!" at the end?  I laugh every time.  I am so easily amused.)

I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm - Matt Belsante (Trying to be the next Michael Buble.  I'll withhold my judgment until I hear more, but this is a very nice version.)

Underneath the Mistletoe - Blondfire (Don't know much about them, but I like!  Just enough pop to keep me happy.)

Season's Greetings - Robbers on High Street (This makes me think of British Invasion-era boy bands.  And I mean that in a good way.)

All My Bells are Ringing - Lenka (Any song that begins with the lyric, "Ooo bop ba, ooo bop ba," is a winner in my book.  From the Hotel Cafe Winter Songs CD, my favorite release this year.  Still not as good as Snow Angels from Over the Rhine, but sublime in its own way.)

Toy Packaging - Sara Groves (The sound effects alone are priceless.  If you are a parent, you'll know.)

The 12 Days of Christmas - Straight No Chaser (men's acapella group from Indiana U. Many of their performances on youtube; this one has over 8 million views, my friends and family were responsible for at least 25 this year alone.  The original group graduated 10 years ago, and recently got together and recorded an anniversary Christmas Album.  Anyhoo, found it thanks to the *%$! holiday store at iTunes, and showing remarkable restraint, only bought this song.)

Love Came Down at Christmas - Jars of Clay (My favorite part is the descant at the end with the lyrics of "Children Go Where I Send Thee.")

Christmas Night - Lenny LeBlanc (I usually find a lovely Christmas song by an 'inspirational' artist each year - this is the one for '08)

Still, Still, Still - Mary Chapin Carpenter (This album is really nice.  Mellow, no drama, just Mary's familiar voice, a little lower, a little rougher with the passage of time.  And here's another example of a song I loved as in instrumental before I knew the joy of singing along.)

Winter Song  - Sara Bareilles & Ingrid Michaelson (The Holy Grail of my holiday music search this year!  My two favorite female singer/songwriters, singing and writing together!  Who could ask for anything more?)