So, I've pulled 13 different versions of the same song for your holiday listening pleasure. Now it's up to you to decide which one you like best. I have my favorites among these – and ultimately, my single favorite – as I've noted here. But I'd love to hear your take on it too. Get used to this idea, by the way. I'm likely to do a couple more of these posts – all Christmas songs, of course! Enjoy! ~ JH
1) Rod Stewart (Nice traditional take on a classic – isn't that David Foster on piano?)
2) Michael Bublé & Kellie Pickler (Classy cool with a dash of raucous redneck – not bad at all!)
3) Cee-Lo Green (Somehow Cee-Lo seems to make this song his own – well-done!)
4) Lady Gaga (Surprisingly subdued – plus, she wrote a new verse to it…and it's actually NOT nasty!)
5) Tony Bennett (Crooners and Christmas just seem to go together for some reason – a masterful jazz rendition.)
6) Garth Brooks (Hey, I found Garth Brooks on YouTube! I thought that was impossible! Nice version, too!)
7) Michael Bolton (I'm not a huge fan of Bolton – I think he tries too hard at that blue-eyed soul thing – but I suppose this one isn't too bad.)
8) Martina McBride (I've always loved Martina's voice/music, and she doesn't disappoint here either – surprise, surprise!)
9) Il Divo (A little too slow for my tastes, but there's no denying that these guys are mega-talented.)
10) Kelly Clarkson (I wish this were an actual video, but whatevs… Kelly is, as always, fantastic on this song.)
11) Glee Cast (Not surprisingly, Darren Criss and Chris Colfer knock this one out of the park!)
12) The Drifters (Often-copied, never-duplicated – this is the group that originally recorded the doo-wop, Motown-style version of the song made über-famous on the Home Alone soundtrack.)
13) Bing Crosby (For my money, Crosby's is the quintessential version of what is truly a quintessential Christmas song. Many have performed it well, but no one does it better than Bing!)
If, when you saw the title of this post, you thought this would be a post about songs that are safe to listen to with your kids in the room, and conversely, songs that are dangerous for your kids or anyone in general to listen to, you would be wrong. These are just a bunch of songs with the words "Safe" and "Dangerous" in their titles. Didn't mean to confuse you there. Enjoy? ~ JH
1) Taylor Swift ft. The Civil Wars ~ "Safe & Sound"
2) Roxette ~ "Dangerous"
3) Capital Cities ~ "Safe And Sound"
4) KJ-52 ~ "Dangerous"
5) Martina McBride ~ "Safe In The Arms Of Love"
6) James Blunt ~ "Dangerous"
7) Rivermaya ~ "You'll Be Safe Here"
8) Bruce Cockburn ~ "Lovers In A Dangerous Time"
9) Anthrax ~ "Safe Home"
10) Doobie Brothers ~ "Dangerous"
11) Sheryl Crow ~ "Safe And Sound"
12) The Who ~ "Dangerous"
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For the grammatically unenlightened, the word "alliterative" derives from the word alliteration, which is defined as "the repetition of the same sounds or of the same kinds of sounds at the beginning of words or in stressed syllables." All the songs in this collection are performed by artists with alliterative names. You'll find several golden oldies here, as well as a few newer tunes. Enjoy! ~ JH
1) Foo Fighters ~ "I'll Stick Around"
2) Jessie J ft. B.o.B. ~ "Price Tag"
3) Tommy Tutone ~ "867-3509/Jenny"
4) Colbie Caillat ~ "I Never Told You"
5) Rusted Root ~ "Send Me On My Way"
6) Leona Lewis ~ "Bleeding Love"
7) Counting Crows ~ "Hanginaround"
8) Martina McBride ~ "Whatever You Say"
9) Herman's Hermits ~ "I'm Into Something Good"
10) Lisa Loeb ~ "Stay (I Missed You)"
11) Culture Club ~ "Karma Chameleon"
12) Tanya Tucker ~ "Love Me Like You Used To"
13) Tiny Tim ~ "Tiptoe Through The Tulips" (Talk about your alliteration! – both the artist's name and every word of the song's title start with the letter "T")
14) Tina Turner ~ "What's Love Got To Do With It?"
For most of my life, I have gone back and forth between being a die-hard country music fan to a casual country fan to a country music hater. I'm wishy-washy by nature anyway, but on this matter I have wavered more than usual. Here lately, I've been listening to some of the newer popular country music, but still only occasionally. Which got me thinking, what are some of my... A) favorite country music songs all-time? B) favorite country music artists/bands of all time? and C) which do I like better, classic old-school country music or the country/pop hybrid that's so prevalent today? In predictable wishy-washy fashion, my answer to that last question is "a little of both." In answer to the first two questions, I present this list. Some of the songs below are among my favorite all-time country songs. Some of the artists/bands are my favorites, but the songs I've picked are not. I'll leave it to you to figure out which is which. It doesn't really matter either way. Here goes...
1) Keith Whitley ~ "When You Say Nothing At All" Keith's was a voice that country music lost too soon. This song is his legacy, and it's still amazing twenty-some years later.
2) Sara Evans ~ "Born To Fly" You can't help but admire the plucky optimism of Sara Evans. Well, at least I can't.
3) Willie Nelson ~ "Always On My Mind" Politics and weird behavior aside, Willie's one of the best there ever was.
4) Sherrié Austin ~ "Lucky In Love" I think I'm the only person who had this girl's album, but I still remember most of the songs off it after a decade and a half.
5) Johnny Cash ~ "Rusty Cage" Who can take a hard-rock song (originally written and recorded by Soundgarden) and make it his own? Johnny Cash, that's who.
6) Taylor Swift ~ "Speak Now" I know, I know...I'm not a teenage girl, so I shouldn't like this poppy drivel. But I do. I can't help it. The kid cracks me up, and she can carry a tune to boot.
7) Kenny Rogers ~ "The Gambler" The movie's better than the video, but the song's still a classic. You gotta know when...
8) Lady Antebellum ~ "Just A Kiss" Play. Repeat. Play. Repeat. I've got this group on loop on my iTunes as we speak.
9) Ronnie Milsap ~ "Any Day Now" This guy was a favorite of mine and my parents growing up. We even saw him in concert a few times. These days, nobody seems to even remember who he is, though he was quite popular in his day. This video's really lame, but the song's good.
10) Martina McBride ~ "A Broken Wing" Man, can she sing! Get it, girl! (Okay, that wasn't very manly of me. Um...go, Pirates! Or something...)
11) Shania Twain ~ "From This Moment On" Overly commercial? Yeah. Overly poppy? Yeah. Good music? Yeah.
12) George Strait ~ "Amarillo By Morning" This guy has had so many good songs, it's hard to pick just one.
13) Alison Krauss ~ "When You Say Nothing At All" Yes, I know this is a repeat. There's a reason for that, though. Nobody can sing this song like Keith Whitley. No man at least. Alison, on the other hand – well, she's in a league of her own. It's got a completely different vibe than Whitley's original, but Krauss's version is equally as beautiful.
14) Edens Edge ~ "Too Good To Be True" New-wave country pop at its finest. You can keep your Sugarland. I'll take this group any day.
15) Alabama ~ "Song Of The South" Sweet potato pie, and a-shut my mouth! 'Nuff said.
16) Little Big Town ~ "Little White Church" I absolutely love a group that can harmonize really well. This group absolutely can. Really well.
17) Charley Pride ~ "Kiss An Angel Good Morning" One of the few African Americans to achieve great success in country music, Charley Pride has always been one of my favorites.
18) The Judds ~ "Love Can Build A Bridge" Remember what I said before about a group that can harmonize really well? Yeah? Well, it still applies. I loved, loved, loved The Judds back in the day! (P.S. I don't really think you need "cute little 3-D glasses" to enjoy this video/mini-movie.)
19) Lindi Ortega ~ "Little Lie" A little bit country, a little bit alternative, a lot of awesome. Mix well and enjoy!
20) George Jones ~ "He Stopped Loving Her Today" One of the saddest yet most hauntingly beautiful songs you'll ever hear. (Or hear again, if you already know it.)
