Top 10 Alt-Christmas Song Playlist From Brooklyn’s Dub Icon

Super Hi-Fi, Brooklyn’s finest double trombone-fueled live dub act is bringing back their Very Dubby Christmas Show at Bar Chord (Friday, December 23), but with a grungy twist.

The band just released an album of Nirvana covers done version-style and will be adding a Kurt Cobain tribute to the Yuletide mix at this year’s show. That got us thinking about other creative versions of Christmas music, especially with the same 5 songs looping on every radio station since Thanksgiving.

To get you into the holiday ‘riddim’, we asked Super Hi-Fi’s bassist Ezra Gale to rate 10 Christmas songs where an artist’s creativity meets the Christmas tradition. The results? An eclectic playlist ranging from soul to parody to rock and beyond.

Follow along on this Spotify playlist or check out the videos below, and you can rate Gale’s ratings. How meta is that?

1. “Ain’t No Chimneys in the Projects” by Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings

We sadly lost Sharon Jones to cancer this year, making this 21st-century update of James Brown’s classic “Santa Claus, Go Straight to the Ghetto” even more poignant.

Ezra says:

I still can’t believe she died. She was so good. I love songs that talk about the inequality of Christmas, too. So it’s a 10, and that’s not a sympathy 10. It would be a 10 regardless.

2. “Back Door Santa” by Clarence Carter

Released on the same 1968 Soul Christmas collection that included the Booker T and the MGs, this is a 12-bar blues that’s considerably more naughty than nice.

Ezra says:

I’m sure I don’t really want to know what a back door Santa is, but this one is gold. I have the ‘Soul Christmas’ LP compilation and this was always my favorite one. 10.

3. “And I’m Telling You I Am Still a Virgin” by Yulenog

This is release from Hot Cup Records, the label founded by Moppa Elliot of Mostly Other People Do the Killing, is actually the 10th of the Yulenog series. So if you like this one, you’ve got all 12 days of Christmas covered, musically.

Ezra says:

This is my friend and trombonist Sam Kulik, who has this series of hilarious Christmas albums that he makes with ridiculously good NY musicians. This one has Jon Irabagon on sax, and if you’re not holding your sides from laughing within like, the first couple lines then you’re just a Grinch. I give this like, 100 out of 10.

4. “A Message to Santa Claus” by The Cheetahs

There’s a lot of hits in the rock transgressive-Christmas genre, but shredding guitars, snotty lyrics (“Thanks for nothin’” Santa) and a sly nod to the Ramones’ “We’re a Happy Family” make this one a winner.

Ezra says:

This is my college band and I played guitar on this, so it might be bending the rules a little bit to pick this one. Hopefully, you’ve had enough eggnog by now that you don’t care. This is a garage punk rocker with an alternate title that’s pretty obvious when you listen to it. It’s a little rude, but I always did like the message: why does Santa give more to some people than to others? 10, of course.

5. “The Christmas Song” by the Nat King Cole Trio

Written by Bob Wells and Mel Torme, this is certified by BMI as the most-performed Christmas song ever. The original Nat King Cole performance from June 1946 wasn’t released until it was accidentally included on a 1989 compilation album.

Ezra says:

Everybody knows this song, of course, and there are four or five versions of Nat King Cole doing it and God knows how many of everyone else doing it (ahem, including Super Hi-Fi!). The later recordings with the string orchestra are more famous (and a little syrupy and mall-soundtrack to me), but this one is just sublime, stripped down so you can really hear what a great song this is. 10 for sure.

6. “Santa Claus Is Definitely Here to Stay” by James Brown

Christmas brought out the best in the Hardest Working Man in Show Business. He recorded three holiday-themed albums between 1966 and 1970. This tune, the single from his 1970 release, repeats the refrain “ain’t no use” a dozen times in its litany of holiday woes (“Ain’t no use in saying there’s ain’t no money in the bank for toys”), an evocation of Yuletide melancholy that puts “Blue Christmas” to shame.

Ezra says:

I love James Brown ballads. And I love the message here too, that Xmas is in your mind. Aw, even though it’s sappy I like it. 9 points, only because I can’t help comparing it to all the other James Brown songs, which isn’t very fair.

7. “Christmas Rappin” by Kurtis Blow

Kurtis Blow, the first-ever rapper signed to a major label, recently survived a heart attack when LAPD officers performed CPR after he suffered a cardiac arrest at a Los Angeles bus stop. This seasonal selection by the Harlem-born rapper and DJ was featured on a holiday episode of the sitcom “Martin.”

Ezra says:

I used to have a 45 with “The Breaks” on one side and this on the B-side, and I wore that out. They’re pretty much the same song, musically, but I love this one. It’s Christmas party music for sure. I’ll give it an 8 only because it’s not quite as good as “The Breaks.”

8. “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” by Joseph Spence

Proof that Christmas songs are the ultimate earworms, the Bahamas-born acoustic guitarist grunts and wheezes his way through the lyrics, warning kids: “You better look grrr! And you better get arrrf! Sandy Claw is coming!” but that’s enough to summon a host of holiday memories.

Ezra says:

Whoa. I never heard this before. Points for originality and for making up his own language or just mumbling or whatever he’s doing, but big points off for not tuning his guitar. He should have tuned his guitar. 5 points.

And the two lowest rated songs were…

9. “I Wish it Could Be Christmas Every Day” by Nick Lowe with Los Straightjackets

The aging-gracefully rocker recorded a Christmas album three years ago that included this remake of a single by glam band Wizzard that’s made the UK charts 13 times since it’s original 1973 release while remaining almost unheard in America.

Ezra says:

I don’t really like this one, it’s kind of boring. I do like the last section, I thought it was a different song. He should have just made that the song and put sleigh bells over it or something, I would have given it more points. As it is, 4 points.

10. “Jingle Bells” by Booker T and the MGs

This recording features actual jingling bells played behind Booker T. Jones’ iconic organic and that unbeatable rhythm section.

Ezra says:

This is exhibit A in why most Christmas music is terrible. Even Booker T and the MG’s can’t make it sound good. You’ve got a sweet organ, a nice soul groove, but it’s still Jingle Bells and it’s still corny as hell. It’s like lipstick on a pig. I do like the little guitar solo bridge though, so I’ll give him a couple points for that. 3 points.

See Super Hi-Fi’s Very Dubby Christmas show at 10pm on Friday, December 23 at Bar Chord. The music is always free at Bar Chord, but help make sure the band (and the bartenders) have themselves a merry little Christmas.