10 Criminally Underappreciated Christmas Songs

Garfield Xmas It's the holiday season again, when radio stations flood the airwaves with Christmas carols non-stop, so I thought it might be a good time to review some of the lesser appreciated Christmas songs out there (and, in some cases, lesser appreciated versions of the classic tunes). Everyone loves Elvis "The King" Presley's "Blue Christmas" and Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)," and for good reason, but there is a stocking full of little loved holiday gems out there that still brighten my Christmas spirit. In all honesty, some of these choices will sound oddball (the Muppets and Boyz II Men?), but I will at least attempt to describe why I fell in love with these particular Christmas chestnuts over the years€”and decades. There are even a few selections on this list that I'm embarrassed to admit I like (I'm looking in your direction, New Kids), but that's what happens when the rose-coloured glasses of Christmas nostalgia warp your mind. Nostalgia doesn't always make sense, especially if you grew up in the '80s like me. So, without further ado, here in no order are 10 under-appreciated Christmas songs.
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Michael Perone has written for The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore City Paper, The Island Ear (now titled Long Island Press), and The Long Island Voice, a short-lived spinoff of The Village Voice. He currently works as an Editor in Manhattan. And he still thinks Michael Keaton was the best Batman.