Twelve Days Later . . . the Honourable Mentions

This was a challenging undertaking ... narrowing down contemporary Christmas carols to a mere 12 choices. Some were obvious - Band Aid, John Lennon, Bob & Doug. Others, not so much. So, on this Christmas Day (and in no particular order), I salute those who didn't make that first chop:

This Christmas - Diana Ross ... for my Robbie ♥

Christmas Is The Time To Say I Love You - Billy Squier (1981) ... Julia totally and immediately nixed this choice. I love it. Something about a bunch of people all singing the same thing at the same time and swaying in unison, I guess.

Jingle Bell Rock - Bobby Helms (1957) ... In the movie Mean Girls, singer Janis Ian remarks, 'Everyone in the English speaking world knows that song.' Indeed!

2000 Miles - The Pretenders (1983) ... Please. Chrissie Hynde? Please! (While most people believe 2,000 miles to be the distance between two lovers missing each other over the holidays, it is actually meant for James Honeyman-Scott, the group's original guitar player, who died of heart failure induced by cocaine intolerance in 1982.)

Wonderful Christmas Time - Paul McCartney (1979) ... McCartney recorded the song entirely on his own during the sessions for his solo project McCartney II. Although the members of Wings are not on the recording, they appear in the video.

Blue Christmas - Elvis Presley (1968) ... Elvis turned this 1948 country music staple into a rock-and-roll holiday classic by recording it in his signature style in 1957.

Thank God It's Christmas - Queen (1984) ... No promotional video was ever made of this track, written by Brian May and Roger Taylor, which hampered its use on TV music channels. For this reason, it's a lesser known Christmas single but it's still my favorite Christmas message from (the) Queen. *smirk*

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree - Brenda Lee (1958) ... She was 14 when she recorded this. 14. 14!!!

Father Christmas - The Kinks (1977) ... And it failed to make the charts.   :(

Rock and Roll Christmas - George Thorogood & the Destroyers ... Try and not bop to this one. I dare you!

Run Rudolph Run - Chuck Berry (1958) ... Sometimes known as Run Run Rudolph.

White Christmas - Billy Idol (2007) ... A strangely sexy video ...

Someday at Christmas - Stevie Wonder (1967) ... A pure voice singing about a pure sentiment. It doesn't get any better than Stevie.

The Chanukah Song - Adam Sandler (1994), The Chanukah Song 2 (1999), The Chanukah Song 3 (2002) ... A series of hilarious songs written and performed by Adam Sandler. All of them center on the theme of Jewish children feeling alienated during the Christmas season and the listing of Jewish celebrities, both real and fictional.

Christmastime is Here - Vince Guardini (1965) ... Is there a person alive who doesn't remember this tune from their childhood? Released on A Charlie Brown Christmas as a soundtrack to the TV special of the same name, it's one of the most popular Christmas albums of all time.

Feliz Navidad - Jose Feliciano (1970) ... One of the most downloaded and aired Christmas songs in the US and Canada and one of the 25 most played and recorded Christmas songs around the world.

I saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus - John Mellencamp (1987) ... 13-yr old Jimmy Boyd's original 1952 version was condemned by the Roman Catholic church in Boston because the songs mixed kissing with Christmas. SHEESH!!!

Christmas is All Around - Billy Mack (2003) ... Bill Nighy' cover of The Troggs' song Love Is All Around for the movie Love Actually. Hilarious video which borrows heavily from Robert Palmer's Addicted To Love.

Merry Christmas Darling - The Carpenters (1970) ... Richard Carpenter (one of the song's two composers) himself calls the original recording one of his sister's best.

Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight) - The Ramones (1989) ... Joey Ramone composed and dedicated this one to his girlfriend.

Oh Come All Ye Faithful - Twisted Sister (2006) ... One of the bestest kick-ass rock Christmas songs of all time.

Mary's Boy Child - Boney M (1978) ... Written in 1956 and originally recorded by Harry Belafonte.