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The Friday Five: December 16, 2011

The tree is up, the lights are on, the shopping is (mostly) done, and I’m finally in the mood for an all-Christmas Friday Five shuffle. Enjoy!

Bing Crosby - “Do You Hear What I Hear?” (I Wish You a Merry Christmas, 1962 rereleased in 2006 as Bing Crosby Christmas Classics)
Few others do Christmas as well as Bing. ‘Nuff said.

Sixpence None the Richer - “Angels We Have Heard On High” (The Dawn of Grace, 2008)
We go from a crooner to the sweet, wispy voice of Leigh Nash (although her vocal style can take a bit of getting used to). Sixpence reunited after a four-year hiatus to release this set of Christmas songs.

Elvis Presley - “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” (Elvis’ Christmas Album, 1957)
I almost wish this one had been “Blue Christmas,” “Here Comes Santa Claus,” or “Santa Claus Is Back in Town” from the same album. Elvis definitely injected his own style into anything he did.

Phillips, Craig & Dean - “Go Tell It on the Mountain/Amen” (Repeat the Sounding Joy, 1996)
Upbeat, blue-eyed soul version of this old gospel spiritual by a CCM trio of pastors-turned-musicians.

Frank Sinatra - “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” (A Jolly Christmas from Frank Sinatra, 1957)
Ol’ Blue Eyes’ take on this Christmas standard popularized by Bing Crosby is quite a bit different than the King’s interpretation, starting off like “Silent Night” before taking a left turn into the classic we all know and (should) love.

Here’s my list of rock stars I want to come back to life.

Here’s my list of rock stars I want to come back to life.

The Greedies (Thin Lizzy’s Phil Lynott, Scott Gorham, and Brian Downey, along with Steve Jones and Paul Cook of the Sex Pistols) perform “A Merry Jingle” on Top of the Pops in December 1979 (via Hairbangers Ball)

Click for high-res photo

Trans-Siberian Orchestra - “Christmas Eve / Sarajevo 12/24”

Disclaimer:
Yeah, I know this isn’t an original idea and that this video is probably already making the rounds on the interwebs today, but I like the song and the video, so cut me some slack.

Also, I’m sorry about the stupid ad on the front of this, but this is the only decent version of the video I could find anywhere that Atlantic would allow me to embed. Boo.