6 Great Holiday Songs NOT by Mariah Carey

Face it, it’s inevitable—that song is already here, and soon it will be stuck in your head whether you approve or not. Some of us started hearing it in the first days of November. There was no snow on the ground, no twinkling lights or decorations, but there it was.

Whenever it does find you, there will be no way you can hide from the repetitive play of Mariah Carey’s 1994 landmark holiday hit, “All I Want For Christmas Is You.”

Some people I know who are not Mariah fans—or even radio pop music fans—admit that they geek out when they hear its first notes. Such festive über-nerds are the ones you see and hear singing along with the Queen of Christmas at home, at your corporate holiday shindig, even in the middle of the detergent aisle at Target.

But millions more of us are fickle when it comes to music, especially holiday tunes. We bristle at the thought of hearing this song, or any song, 37 times a day between now and January.

As one friend of mine from back home put it, “Mariah Carey makes my ears bleed.” Sure, that might be a little bit hyperbolic.

Yet there is no shortage of holiday hits dished out by decades’[1]  worth of artists and the record companies who planned it so as to make a predictable bank every December. Thinking about this, I polled a group of friends and acquaintances—a group that includes both the most easy going people and most critical music snobs—to assemble a list of other festive songs that serve as an alternative to Mariah’s ubiquitous melody, should you need a distraction.

Instead of some of the legacy Christmas classics by Nat King Cole, Andy Willams, Bing Crosby, or Donny Hathaway, I’ve decided to serve up a helping of “modern classics” and holiday rock tunes to help those of us with picky musical tastes cope for the next few weeks.

“Christmas Was Better in the 80s” - The Futureheads, 2010

Who are the Futureheads? Well, they’re an English band who hail from the northeastern city of Sunderland, a place known for mediocre football and gadget factories. By their age—they're pushing their early 40s by now—the members of this hoppy, post-punk act are as well suited as anyone to offer us some nostalgia and belabor the point on how good things used to be. After all, vintage is in style, isn’t it?

According to The Futureheads:

The snow was deeper in the 80s

And everybody used to play

Outside on Santa's sleigh

Living dreams and holidays

Considering climate change, these boys are probably correct that the snow doesn’t fall as much these days. (Unfortunately, I couldn't get Tom Skilling on the phone to vouch for this.)  But just the idea that Christmas was “better”—as people like to say—“back in the day” is enough to get anyone’s feelings of old-school longing kicked into high gear.

“Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)” - The Ramones, 1987

The thought of drumming up a Christmas tune seems about as antithetical to the denizens of the American punk rock scene as can be. But the Ramones, one of the original punk bands from the dawn of the music landscape back in the 1970s, were never “too cool” for anything.

Long before leather-and-jeans clad foursome from New York’s Lower East Side would be considered historic, their members Johnny, Joey, Dee Dee and second drummer Marky pumped out this punk holiday classic.

Joey Ramone keeps true to the band’s previous work with a little timeless cynicism, asking, “Where is Rudolph? Where is Blitzen, baby?” while reminding listeners of the touch-and-go aspect of holiday times, with “Christmas ain't the time for breaking each other's heart.”

Everyone knows that along with holiday joy, there’s a little bit of angst, for some. Thankfully, this Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band keeps it real.

“Santa Never Brings Me a Banjo” - Kate Rusby, 2017

Written and first released by Canadian songwriter David Myles in 2014, “Santa Never Brings Me a Banjo” as performed by Kate Rusby is a pensive banjo ballad that sails thanks to the voice of this English acoustic star.

The tune harkens back to some of the more melancholic tunes from both American Bluegrass and traditional Irish music, without overdoing either subgenre. It’s the kind of song that makes you want to take a break from decorating and holiday shopping to sit down and enjoy a hot cup of tea before the rabble of holiday guests arrives. 

“The Chanukah Song” -  Adam Sandler, 2008

Most of us tapped into Saturday Night Live know of Adam Sandler’s rep as a purveyor of outlandish comedy work, invective-filled horoscopes and humorous parody songs, from his Opera Man character singing about current events to his 1994 live SNL performance of the Thanksgiving Song.

VIDEO: Adam Sandler sings his holiday 1994 classic on SNL

Perhaps his most famous vocal work is the Chanukah Song, the funny song that extols the virtues of the Jewish holiday and doubles as a shout-out to notable members of the tribe.

Such a sample lyric from this comedy classic:

We got Ann Landers and her sister, Dear Abby

Harrison Ford's a quarter Jewish—not too shabby!

“Yule Shoot Your Eye Out” - Fall Out Boy, 2003

Local lads Fall Out Boy, who hail from Wilmette, first hit the top of the charts with their 2005 single “Sugar, We're Goin Down,” which went quadruple-platinum while making the Illinois emo-punk group successful worldwide. Prior to their fame, the band released a few albums and a single called “Yule Shoot Your Eye Out,” which made the rounds on college radio and on holiday sampler discs before its re-release in 2009 and 2017.

For those who haven’t heard it, this song is a snarky but festive acoustic-driven jam, laden with a heavy helping of teen angst and indifference. Listen here.

“Fairytale of New York” - The Pogues & Kirsty MacColl, 1987

Each year, for those of us who savor a drink at the pub long before St. Patrick's Day arrives, The Pogues represent something special. The London-based Anglo-Celtic punk band is known for its hordes of tunes about the Irish experience, drinking and fighting, and teamed up with English folk-punk artist Kirsty MacColl to put out what is perhaps now both artist’s best-known song.

In this timeless duet, MacColl and a slurring, possibly sauced Shane MacGowan belt out very colorful lyrics (found here) that depict the story of an Irish couple that met and got together in America. The song first starts with optimism about America’s possibilities:

They've got cars big as bars, they've got rivers of gold

But the wind goes right through you, it's no place for the old

When you first took my hand on a cold Christmas Eve

You promised me Broadway was waiting for me

What follows is the stuff of rocky relationships: bickering, arguments, and interpersonal drama, but not without a dose of public intoxication and spending a night in jail. The song is both realistic and funny, and with the recent passing of MacGowan on Nov. 30, “Fairytale of New York” is one that you’ll probably hear even more each December.