Guest blog: Steve Jones
Senior Lecturer in Music Production at Teesside University, Dr Steve Jones takes us on a whistle-stop tour of his Christmas playlist ahead of the big day.
You won’t find Mariah or Bublé on this playlist…
And while it wouldn’t be Christmas without them, I’m focusing specifically on those special festive songs which have struck a chord with me over the years.
Read on for the weird and wonderful picks which have reached the top ten on my Christmas playlist.
10) The Coventry Carol by ANÚNA
It’s the surprise twist to this 16th century Christmas carol that earns its spot in my top ten list.
The Coventry Carol was traditionally performed as part of the Coventry Mystery Plays. And, although there are more modern settings of the carol, this haunting version contains a well-known example of a Picardy third.
The Picardy third dates back to the Renaissance era and describes how a piece of music in a minor key raises a semitone to end with a major chord.
This unexpected chord change acts as an expressive lift, creating a feeling of happiness or optimism –things we all look for at this time of the year.
9) River by Joni Mitchell
This beautiful song comes from Joni Mitchell’s 1971 album Blue. Despite it being a break-up song set around Christmas time, it has become something of a modern Christmas standard.
River has been recorded by a wide range of artists, from Harry Styles to Ellie Goulding. However, it’s Joni’s version that remains a favourite of mine. I like how the piano accompaniment to her vocal neatly borrows from Jingle Bells.
Of course, Mitchell also gut-wrenchingly underscores the breakdown of the marriage between Emma Thompson and Alan Rickman’s characters in Love Actually.
8) The Wexford Carol by Janice Burns and Jon Doran
On the more traditional, religious side is this Irish Christmas carol from County Wexford.
While the song is thought to be medieval, it became popular during Victorian times when William Grattan Flood, the organist at St. Aidan’s Cathedral in Enniscorthy, transcribed the carol from a local singer and published it in The Oxford Book of Carols.
This version by Janice Burns and Jon Doran, an Anglo-Scottish folk duo with a shared love of traditional music and songs, offers a new slant on folk music.
Burns and Doran seem to be touring constantly, enchanting audiences with their tight vocal harmonies. They’re even playing close to home in Redcar next year.
7) That Was The Worst Christmas Ever! by Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens has become the quintessential alternative Christmas music curator, navigating the delicate terrain between festive joy and profound melancholy to challenge traditional seasonal narratives.
That Was The Worst Christmas Ever! exemplifies his distinctive approach – deconstructing holiday sentimentality through sparse instrumentation and emotional vulnerability.
With a simple progression, delicate instrumentation and Shara Worden’s ethereal vocals, the song reveals Stevens’ remarkable ability to convert personal pain into universal musical poetry.
6) God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen / Carol Of The Bells by Robert Glasper ft. Cynthia Erivo
By contrast, Grammy-winning pianist Robert Glasper transforms the traditional Christmas carol ‘God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen’.
His innovative arrangements on the album In December break down genre boundaries, blending jazz with hip-hop rhythms to give this classic seasonal hymn a contemporary twist.
The voice of Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo together with Glasper’s signature style create a tender, joyful atmosphere which encapsulates the vibe of the holiday.
5) Jack Frost by Waterson:Carthy
In this moving rendition of Mike Waterson’s song by Lisa Carthy, Jack Frost emerges as a tale of winter’s unyielding might.
The song personifies winter as a master craftsman who etches delicate frost patterns and orchestrates nature’s most brutal transformation.
Through chilly metaphors, Carthy paints winter as an elemental force of destruction and beauty, capable of defeating even the mightiest armies.
It’s a true masterclass in the power of stark musical storytelling.
4) Tar Barrel in Dale by The Unthanks
Tar Barrel takes us to the heart of Northumberland, where men dressed in elaborate costumes and masks parade flaming barrels through town streets on New Year’s Eve.
The Unthanks sisters, with their deep connection to Northumbrian musical heritage, commemorate the ancient, mysterious ritual – bridging past and present through their nu-folk interpretations.
You could say the burning barrel becomes a symbol of resilience, community, and the perpetual cycle of renewal that marks the turning of the year.
3) Father Christmas by The Kinks
The Kinks released this track in 1977, just as punk rock exploded across the UK.
The song captures the spirit of the moment with its prominent distorted guitar riffs and clattering drums while incongruous sleigh bells and a tinkling piano add to the festive theme.
It tells of a department store Father Christmas who is beaten up by a
gang of youths who tell him to give them money instead of toys.
The song influenced US bands such as Green Day, Bowling For
Soup and Smash Mouth.
2) Rappin’ Blow (AKA Christmas Rappin’) by Kurtis Blow
It’s hard to imagine now, but in 1979 hardly anyone had heard or seen an artist like Kurtis Blow before. A few months earlier, The Sugarhill Gang single Rapper’s Delight had become the first commercially successful hip-hop song.
Producer Russell Simmons decided that he wanted to create a rap record with Blow, one of the leading names in the new hip-hop scene. And Christmas Rappin’ helped propel the burgeoning rap genre into the public eye over the festive season.
From a time before drum machines and computers – the backing track is a live funk band with added party track. Its beat has since been sampled by artists like Gorillaz, Mos Def and the Beastie Boys, while Blow’s opening voiceover features on countless hip-hop tunes.
1) Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree by Brenda Lee
Despite the mature vocals, this festive gem was recorded by Brenda Lee when she was just thirteen years old. She was joined by a line-up of veteran session musicians to create a stripped-down, rockabilly sound.
Although the song has been in and out of the charts since it was first released back in 1958, it has experienced a stunning resurgence since
Lee released a TikTok music video of her lip-syncing to the original recording more than six decades later.
This viral moment launched the song to the top of the Billboard Hot 100, making Lee the oldest artist ever to achieve this feat and setting a record for the longest gap between original release and chart-topping success.
What’s your favourite Christmas song? Let us know in the comments below…