MFD Random Five #5 (Christmas Edition)

In which I click the shuffle icon on the increasingly frustrating iTunes app and listen to the first five holiday songs that pop up from the years 1976-85.

1. "Do They Know It's Christmas" by Band Aid (1984, Columbia)
   Great idea, groundbreaking even.  I dig Midge Ure's percolating New Wave backing tracks, but Bob Geldof's depressing lyrics aren't what I'm looking for this time of year.  Still, I don't flip the station when this comes on the radio.


2. "Jesus, Jesus Rest Your Head" by George Winston (1981, Windham Hill)
   A gorgeous, reflective piano solo based on an Appalachian carol from the late nineteenth century.  From one of my favorite quiet, late-night, hot cocoa by the fire Christmas releases, December.


3. "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town" by Bruce Springsteen (1981, Columbia)
   Recorded in December '75, promo released in '81, and commercially released in '85 - this thing's got My Favorite Decade covered!  It's Springsteen, so it's got that going for it as well as a nice solo from Clarence Clemons, but it's really just a cover of The Crystals' take from the epic A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector.


4. "Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On an Open Fire)" by The Carpenters (1978, A&M)
   With a voice as flawless as Karen Carpenter's, this is easily my favorite version of this Christmas standard.  From one of the best Christmas CDs ever put together.


5. "A Mighty Fortress/Angels We Have Heard on High" by Amy Grant (1983, A&M)
   A great way to end this shuffle.  A majestic instrumental intro gives way to Grant singing this beautiful carol.  The arrangement builds as the orchestra re-enters and when it's over, you should really take a few minutes before listening to something else.

For more Christmas music from 1976-85, don't forget about this beauty: