Christmas Song-a-Day Countdown {2021 Edition}

It's that time of year again! Let's count down to Christmas with a new song each day (my favorite little tradition here on the ol' blog). Thanks for listening and singing along all these many (12!) years! Merry Christmas! 

(I will keep adding to this post every day, and even when I create other posts about our family happenings, you should still be able to find this one at the top of the blog under the "featured post" heading. Let me know if it isn't showing up for you.)

1 December: The Carpenters, a true favorite around here. This one isn't one of their most popular tunes, but I heard it as I listened to an old album on youtube last year and just couldn't help smiling. (Sam can't help but dance around the kitchen right now as we're listening together!) I dare you to not smile and/or dance yourself when you hear it. It's just the perfect peppy kick off to this festive season!

2 December: When I realized about a month ago that, since we have a piano this year, I could play all kinds of Christmas songs (I don't know why it never occurred to me earlier - ha!), I jumped on the library's website and put a couple piano books on hold. One was the Reader's Digest Merry Christmas Songbook that Heather had a copy of on our piano back at home when we were growing up. I flipped through and dinked around with a few of the songs and then came across Christmas in Killarney, which just made me all kinds of happy. I first posted about this song in 2014 and way back then I wrote about doing aerobics to it with my mom at the church, led by our neighbor, Joann. It still makes me want to dance when I hear it! Before, I shared Bing Crosby's version, which is great, but apparently, this one by Dennis Day is the original. (I didn't do any fact checking on this, so take that with a grain of salt. ;) I just love his Irish accent!

3 December: Today's song was a request from Callie. She's been learning We Three Kings on the piano (so fun!) so we hunted for a rendition that she liked to share here on the countdown. After a few false starts, I spotted this one by the Piano Guys and knew it would be a winner (maybe it's because of the ice skating?). We both hope you enjoy this jazzed up, chilly tune.

4 December: I don't know about you, but this warm, dry start to December brings up some mixed feelings. On the one hand: Yay! It's 50 degrees and sunny! Let's play some disc golf and go to the park! On the other: Where is the snow?!!! Apparently a storm is on its way next week, and it's got me dreaming of a White Christmas, just like Dolly. (I grew up with this version, on that old Tupperware tape of my mom's. Classic.)

5 December: Joy to the World! (I could only find this rendition as part of a longer video, so it should start right at the beginning of the song and only lasts about a minute and a half, but if you'd like to keep listening to the whole program, it is there for your listening/viewing pleasure.) I heard this ultra trumpety version last year in the First Presidency Christmas Devotional and made a mental actual note ("so many trumpets" on my trusty spreadsheet) to include it on the list this year. It just sounds so joyful - I love it! (And I can't wait to see what gems come out of tonight's devo - stay tuned next year to see if any spark my fancy. ;)

6 December: I've always loved the catchy beat in Mary's Little Boy Child, and combined with Harry Connick Jr.'s smooth voice, you've got yourself a pretty nice, jazzy little number. (And for a little spreadsheet nerdiness: according to my records, I've never included any rendition of this song in my countdown, even though I grew up listening to it (a different version - I better find that and at it to the list!) and have loved it since childhood.)

7 December: Seems like a good day for A Charlie Brown Christmas, and it's always a good day for Vince Guaraldi. I've shared most of the songs from the album in previous years, but that doesn't mean this one is worse than the others. Just listen and decide for yourself!

8 December: For today's selection, many thanks goes to my friend Sarah (the same Sarah who has made and is making the playlists on youtube for each year's countdown). I had never heard this song or even heard of the Oak Ridge Boys until she suggested this one that she grew up loving. She says it may seem a little sacrilegious because it's so upbeat, but I LOVE the peppiness and ABBA-esque vibes of it. (My kids loved it, too, and were dancing around the kitchen once again as it played.) 

9 December: I LOVE Go Tell It On A Mountain so much that I'm including two versions for you today! The first is from Audra McDonald when she came to the Tabernacle Choir concert in 2004 - and I got to be there to see it! My mom used to get tickets every year and for some reason she couldn't go this time so she gave the tickets to my grandparents, who took Heather and me. We had a marvelous time! The second is from the 2008 concert when Richard Elliot played it as his organ solo. He is always entertaining on the organ, and this choice was no exception - check out that footwork!

10 December: Last year Heather brought this cute little song to my attention. I, of course, love all things Nat King Cole + Christmas, so I was surprised that I had never heard it before. It's delightful! It reminds me of a little book we got for Cal a long time ago called The Littlest Christmas Tree, which is basically this song in a picture book form. (But the tree is sad at first because nobody is picking it to be their Christmas tree; spoiler alert: it does get picked eventually and is happy as can be!) Ho ho ho hee hee!

11 December: I have long loved James Taylor's Christmas album, and this song is one that just makes me think: of course, we don't really know what Jesus looks like, and He is the savior for everyone, so why wouldn't Some Children See Him the same as themselves?

12 December: You know me and my love for the Tabernacle Choir. I love their new stuff, I love their old stuff, I love their calm and peaceful stuff, and I super love their big and brassy stuff. Here's an old rendition of Hark! The Herald Angels Sing that starts with some great fanfare and has a quieter moment in the middle. Then it builds again with the brass section leading into the last verse. So good!

13 December: In the last few years I've re-kindled my love of Neil Diamond and his Christmas songs. Today I present you Silver Bells, which, until this year's listen, I had never realized was so twangy! I always imagine Neil Diamond as a rock / pop sort of artist, but he's definitely got some country in his repertoire. 

14 December: Can you have a Christmas song list without something from Bing? (Never mind that I'm sure I have done it before . . . but still, he and his smooth voice are iconic!) It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas is one of my all-time faves.

15 December: It snowed last night!! And while we didn't get as much as a lot of other people in the state, it still looks like a wonderland out there. (I had this song picked out for today even before I knew it was going to snow; how's that for lucky coincidence?! Come for the snow, stay for the yodeling! Yes, really!)

16 December: I distinctly remember orchestra teachers Mrs. Law or Mrs. McAllister (or both, on different years) introducing Troika at the school-wide concert/assembly in the lunchroom/auditorium of Adams Elementary School every December. I remember they talked about what a Troika was (a sleigh pulled by three horses) and they made sure to point out that the orchestra players would be using pizzicato (aka plucking the strings instead of bowing) and to listen for that sound during the piece. And today I'm going to do the same thing with my little music class of two. While it's not an official Christmas song, it feels festive to me and always reminds me of those December days in elementary school. :D

17 December: J-I-N-G-L-E B-E-Double L-S! I love that this one includes spelling, too! ;)

18 December: We watched Elf last night for our pizza and a movie tradition, so here's a Stevie Wonder song from that movie that I've never included here before. :) Pop quiz: can you name the scene from the movie when it plays?

19 December: One of my favorite primary Christmas songs is Stars Were Gleaming, and I can only find a couple versions of it on youtube and I've already used them in years past, so I don't have a rendition of it to share here today, unfortunately. BUT, Infant Holy, Infant Lowly is the same tune! And it still has lovely lyrics. So here's a new version of that one from our MoTab friends, recorded last year as a virtual choir during the peak of covid for this year's Christmas Special, which I still haven't watched, but I plan to soon (one of these evenings when I have piles of wrapping to do!).

20 December: Earlier this month Heather told me Cooper was digging Little Drummer Boy sung by Voice Male on their car rides and she mentioned she would need to find some other versions from my past lists to introduce him to. I sent her an email that listed all the versions I've shared in my countdown (Perry Como (2020), Voice Male (2018 - the one Coop fell in love with) and Josh Groban (2013)) (and a couple that I haven't yet, including today's Mannheim Steamroller!). I haven't heard if he's latched onto a new favorite version yet, but it seems there is definitely enough "rum pum pum" to go around!

21 December: Here's a classic version of Jolly Old Saint Nicholas that just sounds Christmasy and cheery. Enjoy!

22 December: (Spreadsheet Trivia Alert!) I've included a Lower Lights number since 2012 when I discovered them without missing a year! This might be the longest streak of any artist other than the Tabernacle Choir in my countdowns. Today's choice is Far, Far Away on Judea's Plains like you've never heard it before (unless you've heard this version!). Needless to say, I'm a fan, and always will be. ;)

23 December: This one was a last minute switcheroo thanks to some inspiration from the Christmas radio station last night. We heard a different Jim Brickman song (stay tuned for next year because it might make an appearance then!) play and it made me wonder why I never thought of adding him to my lineup. I was (and still am) a big fan . . . and while I don't know if The Gift even really counts as a Christmas song (it talks about snow but never specifically Christmas), it brings back so many memories of my teenage years. (I even (sort of) learned how to play it on the piano back in the day, but Angel Eyes will always be my one true piano solo love. ;)

24 December: Merry Christmas Eve! Today's pick is Ave Maria, sung by Perry Como, a version I grew up with on the good ol' Reader's Digest Records. Until today, I never looked up what the words actually mean, and they're lovely: 

Hail Mary, full of grace,

Mary, full of grace,

Mary, full of grace,

Hail, Hail, the Lord

The Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women, and blessed,

Blessed is the fruit of thy womb,

Thy womb, Jesus.

Hail Mary!

25 December: It's finally here! Christmas Day! Merriest Christmas wishes to you, and congrats for sticking with it long enough to make it to the end of my countdown. :) Here's my traditional Christmas Day song, Angels We Have Heard on High, as heard on the old-school Reader's Digest records of my childhood. See you again next year, same time, same place!

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If you just can't wait for more, you could check out my previous countdowns here:  (I make no guarantees that the old links will still be working on these posts, but last year, my amazing friend Sarah has made youtube playlists of all the countdowns! Isn't she incredible?! You can find them all here, under created playlists. Thanks, Sarah!!)

2020

2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013 (this is for December 1st - I posted each day separately back then)
2012 (this is for December 1st - I posted each day separately back then)
2011 (this is for December 1st - I posted each day separately back then)
2010 (I did a countdown on facebook, but didn't post it on the ol' blog my first year, but thanks to Sarah, she's resurrected it on youtube!)