What do you think? Has the age of "classics" come and gone?

What are your favorite "classics"?

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Have holiday classics lost their jingle?
By DRU SEFTON
Copyright 2003 Newhouse News Service









Quick, name a classic Christmas song written during the last 10 years.









How about the last 20 years?









There aren't any.









The newest melody on the 25 most-performed holiday songs list of 2003, just released by ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers), is Wonderful Christmastime, written in 1979.










Christmas songs are growing whiskers whiter than Santa's.









Sure, there are plenty of carols, the religious songs of the season; some of those date back centuries. And lots of good secular tunes and novelty songs. There are just no up-and-coming standards of tomorrow.










Experts say that's because music styles have shifted from lyrics-based ballads to upbeat dance music. Composers have a hard time getting big names to record new pieces. And publishers just aren't interested in sentimental holiday songs anymore.










Even the well-known tunes of the "golden age" of holiday music, the 1940s, "probably wouldn't make it with the flavor-of-the-day corporate mentality that exists out there today," said James Richliano, author of Angels We Have Heard: The Christmas Song Stories, which details the history of many.










Virtually all the secular holiday tunes we hear and sing today were written between 1934 and 1958, said Ron Clancy, author of American Christmas Classics, a set of three CDs, lyrics and an illustrated book.










A few of those favorites: Santa Claus Is Coming to Town, 1934. White Christmas, 1941. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, 1944. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! 1945. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, 1949. Frosty the Snowman, 1950. Silver Bells, 1951.










"One reason why these songs resonate even today is better songwriting," said Clancy, of North Cape May, N.J. "There was a sentimental swing, just a feel to them."










Many were released during World War II, when millions of today's adults were youngsters, "so they heard them as new songs, and those songs had a lot of influence in our culture," Clancy added.











Also, we don't have a common music culture in America anymore, said N. Lee Orr, coordinator of music history and literature at Georgia State University in Atlanta. "We don't have a music that binds us together the way swing or Frank Sinatra did," Orr said.










Now there's rock 'n' roll, hip-hop, rap, country, techno, Latin, funk, folk, gospel, jazz, New Age and international -- the list goes on.









But some refuse to believe there's no longer room for nostalgic, singable holiday tunes.









Curtis McKonly, a New York City composer, arranger and musician, continues to write Christmas songs. He's even designed a line of cards inspired by one of his tunes, Will Santa Come This Year?









A bit of the lyrics:









When I see the snow and mistletoe,

I know the day is near;

With my heart aglow, how can I know

Will Santa come this year?










McKonly wrote the song in 1989. He's still championing it.









"There are writers writing good Christmas songs, but having a hard time getting to the artists," McKonly said. "In the old days, writers had publishers that got songs to the artists."










And artists back then were interested in recording new Christmas songs. "We had a lot of great performers, like Nat King Cole and Gene Autrey, that would make the songs popular," McKonly said.










Those who study and enjoy Christmas music hold out hope that there are still classics being written. Author Richliano thinks that It Must Have Been the Mistletoe, recently recorded by Barbra Streisand, is one example. That was composed in 1980.










"It's a beautiful Christmas love song, and one that I think is close to becoming what I would call a postmodern holiday classic hit," said Richliano, who lives inGhent, N.Y.










Perhaps novelty songs will be the next classics. "In 30 years, Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer might be a standard," Clancy said.

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Not really a Christmas classic by any means, but whenever I hear Paul McCartney's "Pipes of Peace" I remember that incredible Christmas in 1914 where British and German soldiers met and embraced each other in 'no man's land' and the hairs on the back of my neck tingle. It says much more to me of the Christmas spirit than any of the classic songs.

More about those amazing few hours can be found here
http://lists.indymedia.org/mailman/public/imc-houston/2001-December/002605.html including an original article written by Malcolm Brown for the Observer newspaper which has been reproduced in full.
(copyright Guardian Newspapers Limited)

A few personal accounts of similar happenings can be read at http://www.fylde.demon.co.uk/xmas.htm
(copyright Tom Morgan December 1997)

Maybe radio assumes people want to hear the same holiday songs each year because it's a tradition. The only thing that changes is the artist singing the version of the song.

I like Bobby Helms' "Jingle Bell Rock", it's definately a classic. Other Christmas favorites of mine include Dave Edmunds version of "Run Rudolph Run", Bruce Springsteen's "Merry Christmas Baby" and John Lennon's "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)". There's also a reggae Christmas song that always makes me smile, though I can't recall the title or singer at this time.

The holiday record series "A Very Special Christmas" has some good new- though mostly classic or well known Christmas tunes sung by popular artists from rock, soul, country, and hip hop. It can be hit and miss, I guess, depending on what one likes but I love Chrissie Hynde's cover of "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas".

I don`t know the name of the singer but there is a great version of "The Little Drummer Boy"sung by a female.Kind of an upbeat version.

The odd Christmas song does still slip through here in the UK,
in fact there's one out this year by The Darkness, but the great songs come from the 70s and 80s.

Most Christmas songs that are played on the radio here are in English. I don't know of any Dutch Christmas classics, except for one from this cabaret performer. He sings about his missing rabbit, that in the end turns on his plate at dinner, slaughtered by his father! Now if that's a criterion for Dutch Christmas classics...

Maybe it's because of the abundance of multimedia possibilities in modern day's society. We have so many songs to choose from, anybody can promote their song through the internet, it's just harder to produce a song that will be remembered.

Leau78, What about The Smurfs, Christmas in Smurfland & Your Christmas Wish.