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It's Dec 11th & I've not yet heard Fairytale Of New York...

Started by Dead kate moss, December 11, 2012, 10:59:28 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

Which Christmas ditty have you had the pleasure of hearing so far this year?

So Here It Is Merry Christmas Everyone etc - Slade
3 (25%)
Rudolf The Red Nosed Reindeer - fuck knows who by
1 (8.3%)
That Gary Glitter track banned from Radio 1
2 (16.7%)
Maggie you cunt.
1 (8.3%)
Oi Be Dreaming Of A White England - Jethro
0 (0%)
Rolf doing 2 little boys
2 (16.7%)
Now They Wanna Ban Christmas! (You Couldn't Make It Up) - Richard Littlecock
1 (8.3%)
The Christmas Shoes
1 (8.3%)
An tSaoi
1 (8.3%)

Total Members Voted: 12

Gulftastic

First hearing of FONY this morning!

I've heard loads of other Xmas songs, but a surprisingly late appearance Shane and Kirsty.

And the Pet Shop Boys kept Rick Astley ultra-lazy note for note copy of Nat King Cole's 'When I Fall In Love' off No.1. My teenage self was very happy.

ETA, and as I post, FONY has just popped up on Vintage TV.

Jerzy Bondov

I've heard most of the standards already this year because I've got a CD of them and I put it on.

"A spaceman came traveling in his ship from afar. 'Twas light years of time since his mission did start." *bzzzzttt* light years are a measure of distance DeBurgh, not time, go fuck off back to space and die there alright

BlodwynPig

Hate Christmas tunes....

why are there no modern classics - FTONY seems to be the most recent one - then there is Wham, then Slade and then "the classics". Awful shite.

Sherringford Hovis

New Dropkick Murphys' pretender to FTONY's plastic paddy yob-along yell-fest heavyweight title:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTx-sdR6Yzk

The ol' "sleeping-dog's-smoking-a-fag" gag? Comedy gold.

Dead kate moss

The Darkness had a go didn't they? It wasn't very good though. Apart from that, I think the reason we don't get classic xmas songs any more is because all modern music is rubbish.

Jerzy Bondov

I've got a soft spot for this bleak version of McCartney's Wonderful Christmastime by Tom McRae, in which he gloomily signs the immortal line, 'ding dong ding dong ding dong ding'.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCVi5Tn2SJc

Doomy Dwyer

Although the song was written and released in 1987, interestingly it wasn't until the turn of the new millennia, when everything turned definitively and demonstrably to shit, that it became an 'event' song, one we could all eagerly anticipate and enjoy in the strip lit aisles of Morrison's whilst cramming our trollies with mulled wine, exotic cheese and other goods we don't need. There was a time when the song was what all songs should be, something precious and beautiful and seemingly sung just for us, and not just another commodity to stuff into our heaving festive sacks. Prior to the early to mid noughties it was merely fondly remembered as the forth song on 'If I Should Fall From Grace With God', where it languished, loved but unexploited, admired yet not earning its keep, as a memory of the poetry and artistry that sometimes seeps into our lives and manages to somehow transcend and give meaning to an otherwise cynical and unholy season. It is sadly a sign o' the times, as Prince would have it, that its relatively newfound ubiquity and soul sapping familiarity have nearly robbed the song of any of the magic and wonder that it originally possessed. Nearly, but not quite. For every Keating, Maconie and Razorlite[nb]For some of our newer, younger members - Razorlite were a group of four men with one haircut who were briefly famous for singing songs roughly approximating the manner and attitude of the swaggering rock 'n' rollers of yesteryear but with any of the awkward elements of passion, creativity and lyricism that so mar the products of that ungainly genre removed, the better to ease their consumption by the unwashed and lumpen masses.[/nb] pissing on the song from ever more vertiginous vantage points and bleeding it of any meaning and significance that it once held in embarrassing abundance like the clumsy, hacking halal butchers of culture that they are, there is always the occasion when the song catches you unguarded and unburdened by cynicism. Well, it does me anyway. I wouldn't dream of speaking for any of you.

It is one of those songs that define a band against their wishes, that they must wear like an albatross necklace, like 'Come On Eileen, 'Blowing in the Wind' or 'So What' by the Anti-Nowhere League, songs that take on a life and meaning of their own, great songs that should be too good for mass popularity, yet are adopted by the masses in their glorious, sweaty, staff party inappropriate fondling, glory.

December 25th is also, and perhaps not coincidentally, Shane MacGowan's[nb]For the record, and in the interests of clarity - I am suggesting that Shane MacGowan may be the messiah. One I can believe in.[/nb] birthday, so I don't begrudge the man a payday. It's not like he's produced anything of note since about 1997. He has become the king of the obscure charity record, but that ain't going to pay the bills. It's a crime, but he's done enough by anyone's standards, certainly far more than 99% of the population. He is fortunate enough to have produced a body of work that cannot be diminished by ever more desperate whoring. Despite his best efforts -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFRWC53bgKM

What a miserable sour faced post. Hangover. And my beloved is putting up fucking shelves, the thoughtless harridan. Happy fucking Christmas.

Cerys

Christmas songs make me cry.  Nostalgia - or a conspiracy?  We may never know.

Dead kate moss

QuoteDecember 25th is also, and perhaps not coincidentally, Shane MacGowan's[2] birthday, so I don't begrudge the man a payday.

Seeing as he claimed all the writing credit for himself, nicking Kirsty McColl's arguable share, I begrudge him his payday a bit. Also he once spat on my ex-gfs sister for no reason other than he was drunk. Also another ex was married to Spider out of the Pogues and has nothing good to say about Shane, claiming he has [redacted as possibly libelous] on more than one occasion. She (the ex, and also a member here on CaB briefly) also sang all the Kirsty McColl bits of Fairytale Of NY when the Pogues played it live on tour. Which I thought I'd just mention.

Still not heard the song yet this year though. I think the Greg Lake one is my favourite. The Chris DeBurgh one definitely the worst.

rudi

Quote from: Vodka Margarine on December 12, 2012, 12:26:56 AM
All those smuggos who think they're being clever, obscure and tasteful by bleating on and on about how it's the best Xmas tune. Yeah, it probably is.

So how are they being smug then?

"All you twats banging on about Messi being a football genius. Yeah, he is, but..."

Revisionism's the dullest of all opinions.

Cerys

Quote from: Dead kate moss on December 12, 2012, 11:44:44 AMThe Chris DeBurgh one definitely the worst.

The Chris DeBurgh one should be wiped from history purely for the line 'it was light years of time'.

Spoiler alert
Other than that, I quite like it.
[close]

rudi

Quote from: Dead kate moss on December 12, 2012, 11:44:44 AM
Seeing as he claimed all the writing credit for himself, nicking Kirsty McColl's arguable share, I begrudge him his payday a bit.

Err, not really. By the time McColl had been roped in it was written (Cait O'Riordan was the original female voice) and McGowan is also the first to admit that it was Finley who kicked the whole thing off (although most of his original idea was junked by the end; it took years of re-writes and recordings before they were happy with the version released).

tookish

Quote from: Small Man Big Horse on December 12, 2012, 03:15:25 AM
I'd not heard it until now (or at least if I had I've deleted all memory of it, though that seems unlikely given how hideous it is) but it's horrific isn't it. And seemingly about an alien visiting Jesus and playing him some supposedly lovely music, before claiming he won't be back for another 2000 years, when he'll then play it again. Suggesting Chris DeBurgh is that time travelling / very old alien. Which I don't believe for a second. He's a liar that man. A fucking liar.

Yes, it is truly horrible. I also find it laughable that we're supposed to accept that Chris de Burgh singing 'La la la la, la la la, la la la,' is the 'sweetest music.'

I don't normally judge music by the musician (or I'd never be able to listen to The Smiths again!) but Chris de Burgh is the most maddeningly smug human being in existence. I hope there is a Hell, just so that he, his music, and his stupid fucking fringe can burn in it.

Dead kate moss

Quote from: rudi on December 12, 2012, 11:52:17 AM
Err, not really. By the time McColl had been roped in it was written (Cait O'Riordan was the original female voice) and McGowan is also the first to admit that it was Finley who kicked the whole thing off (although most of his original idea was junked by the end; it took years of re-writes and recordings before they were happy with the version released).

Or before McGowan made sure all royalties would be his? Kirsty claimed she added lyrics and was thus owed song-writing royalties. Not sure if this is in the public record, probably not, this is inside info and you can justifiably dismiss it as just coming from some guy on the internet by all means.

Cerys

Quote from: tookish on December 12, 2012, 11:58:45 AM
I don't normally judge music by the musician (or I'd never be able to listen to The Smiths again!) but Chris de Burgh is the most maddeningly smug human being in existence. I hope there is a Hell, just so that he, his music, and his stupid fucking fringe can burn in it.

I'm so ashamed.

tookish

Quote from: Cerys on December 12, 2012, 12:04:46 PM
I'm so ashamed.

Not strictly relevant to the thread, but here's a very funny 'dramatic reading' of a response de Burgh wrote to a negative review.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOYC3frbn-0

rudi

Quote from: Dead kate moss on December 12, 2012, 12:04:04 PM
Or before McGowan made sure all royalties would be his? Kirsty claimed she added lyrics and was thus owed song-writing royalties. Not sure if this is in the public record, probably not, this is inside info and you can justifiably dismiss it as just coming from some guy on the internet by all means.

Well seeing as there are recorded versions of the song made before Cat left the band she'd have had a hard time claiming ownership. And McGowan didn't, doesn't and hasn't claimed "all royalties" as it's written by "Jem Finer and Shane McGowan" so, y'know, inside info or not, the facts and chronology would suggest you're a bit off.

Of course I could be wrong (it wouldn't be the first time) but I've always required some kind of evidence before pointing the finger and find some, I cannae...

Doomy Dwyer

Quote from: Dead kate moss on December 12, 2012, 11:44:44 AM
Seeing as he claimed all the writing credit for himself, nicking Kirsty McColl's arguable share, I begrudge him his payday a bit. Also he once spat on my ex-gfs sister for no reason other than he was drunk. Also another ex was married to Spider out of the Pogues and has nothing good to say about Shane, claiming he has [redacted as possibly libelous] on more than one occasion. She (the ex, and also a member here on CaB briefly) also sang all the Kirsty McColl bits of Fairytale Of NY when the Pogues played it live on tour. Which I thought I'd just mention.

Still not heard the song yet this year though. I think the Greg Lake one is my favourite. The Chris DeBurgh one definitely the worst.

I've never heard any suggestion at all that Kirsty had any hand in writing the lyrics. The story goes that her husband at the time, Steve Lillywhite, got her to put down a guide vocal, the band liked it and she got the gig. And it's credited to MacGowan/Finer, so he didn't claim all the credit himself. He's always been very casual about his writing and his 'ownership' of words and off hand and self deprecating about his vast lyrical talents, as far as I'm aware. I've no doubt at all that he can be boisterous when intoxicated, but we've all spat at our ex-girlfrends sister at one time or another, I'm sure. There's some very dark rumours about MacGowan, about as murky as they get, but he's one of the few people who gets a free pass from me, no matter what. Not that its worth anything. He's done absolutely fuck all for decades now, and realistically probably never will again, but (in my opinion, obviously) he's one of the very few songwriters who are deserving of the 'genius' label. He can do whatever the fuck he likes as far as I'm concerned, up to and including murdering my mother.

Also, while I'm here, can I just say that you, dkm, are a wonderfully disreputable looking man. I was impressed by your rakishness the other day, in a manly way, not that I've got anything against unmanliness in the interests of balance and embracing diversity.

Edit - Rudi's done this already.

 

Dead kate moss

Quote from: rudi on December 12, 2012, 12:22:49 PM
Well seeing as there are recorded versions of the song made before Cat left the band she'd have had a hard time claiming ownership. And McGowan didn't, doesn't and hasn't claimed "all royalties" as it's written by "Jem Finer and Shane McGowan" so, y'know, inside info or not, the facts and chronology would suggest you're a bit off.

Of course I could be wrong (it wouldn't be the first time) but I've always required some kind of evidence before pointing the finger and find some, I cannae...

As I said, believe what you like. My understanding is MacColl felt she deserved some writing credits (for additional lyrics? For helping with the writing process? I don't know.) and that McGowan gipped her out of them. That's all I really know, and it comes from an ex who was married to a Pogue and friends with Kirsty -  if you choose to believe anything I say that is.  Believe what you want, I'll say no more about it.

Jerzy Bondov

Quote from: Cerys on December 12, 2012, 11:47:09 AM
The Chris DeBurgh one should be wiped from history purely for the line 'it was light years of time'.
Here's the real shocking theft of credit in this thread, as I already mentioned this in a previous post. Cerys you are MacGowan to my MacColl, you took my dreams from me.

Vodka Margarine

Quote from: rudi on December 12, 2012, 11:45:22 AM
So how are they being smug then?

"All you twats banging on about Messi being a football genius. Yeah, he is, but..."

Revisionism's the dullest of all opinions.

Smug in the way in which they bang on about its superiority, as if they're making some kind of hugely controversial claim over the saccharine likes of say, Mariah Carey or Elton John. FONY is now generally accepted as being a superior yuletide hit amongst the music consuming masses, it doesn't need a fresh deluge of plaudits every year without fail. 

Same with Messi... folk going on about his prodigious prowess with the foot and the ball would of course be right, but it's such an utterly redundant point to make because it's not as if anyone's going to disagree.

Jerzy Bondov

Oh yeah Elton John, right, the chorus to that one, it doesn't scan.
'Eat, drink and be merry' is the line that annoys me. It doesn't fit! He squashes the word 'merry' into a single syllable. 'Eat, drink and be meh'
Just, either get back on the phone to Taupin and have a word, or change the tune so it fits, for God's sake Elton. For God's sake...

tookish


Quote from: Jerzy Bondov on December 12, 2012, 01:05:56 PM
Oh yeah Elton John, right, the chorus to that one, it doesn't scan.
'Eat, drink and be merry' is the line that annoys me. It doesn't fit! He squashes the word 'merry' into a single syllable. 'Eat, drink and be meh'
Just, either get back on the phone to Taupin and have a word, or change the tune so it fits, for God's sake Elton. For God's sake...

I like that bit. I think you have to hear "merry come" as an enjambed anapaest. But I know what you mean because I'm not sure about the part in Millenium Prayer where Cliff abbreviates Heaven to Hev. Apart from that I think The Lord's Prayer and Auld Lang Syne is a match made in Hev.

SteveDave

Hooray! It's time to listen to Bob Dylan's Xmas LP again!

Small Man Big Horse


Subtle Mocking

Just a reminder, Sufjan Stevens has a new Christmas compilation out this year, and it's available to stream in its entirety: http://open.spotify.com/album/0AVvBrOZ4Hy3yCW8SguJLy

As is his collection from a few years ago: http://open.spotify.com/album/4sQvDEIow84vMZhYhpEnZD

BlodwynPig

Quote from: Small Man Big Horse on December 12, 2012, 02:49:20 PM
True, and I do love that film almost beyond words. But this comes a close second:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSHjLpBjxWU

Woooah, that is a winner for sure...where is that from?

Small Man Big Horse

The only info I know about it was taken from this site - http://www.glastonberrygrove.net/texts/tp12days.html - where you can also download it as an mp3.

QuoteIt was a Los Angeles rock radio station, KROQ, that first aired this Twin Peaks version of the "12 Days of Christmas". The same station put out a Christmas album and this song was included. The album was only available for sale in the Los Angeles area.

BlodwynPig