More music channels switch over to Christmas programming

42 days to go, and VH1, MTV Classic, and Smash Hits now feature rather a lot of Christmas videos, joining Bliss which had a two-week head-start on them. With Remembrance Day out of the way, the Christmas run-up is now switching to top gear. Of course, that means that the music videos are a bit obscure at times, with plenty of awful novelty tracks - "Is This The Way To Santa's Grotto?" is just the start of it, so bad that the music video isn't on any of the online video sites. So, I'll just leave this one with you to cringe over...

Dear me...

Bliss music channel goes all-Christmas tomorrow!

Bliss music video station (Sky channel 372) is due to switch over to wall-to-wall Christmas music tomorrow from 6am if you believe the Sky EPG. Yikes. Surely one for the channel hoppers out there and for those who want a quick shot of festive music to put them in the mood for Christmas shopping.

Or something.

Still, there are a few festive songs out there which lean towards being more season-neutral. Flying Pickets' "Only You", for instance, plus Paul Young's "Love Of The Common People" - I didn't realise that was a Christmas track until I caught the music video a few years ago, which made me appreciate it even more due to the brass instrumental bit in the middle. But I'm struggling to come up with other low-festive Christmas tracks.

Although it does give me an excuse to indulge in a guilty pleasure - I love this track, and I really shouldn't: Bo Selecta's "Proper Chrimbo". Enjoy...

Looking for different Christmas music?

If you're bored of the Christmas music you usually listen to, there's plenty more available, if you know where to look. Christmas Music 24/7 is a collection of no fewer than six different Christmas online radio stations, each with a different genre: general, jazz, kids, country, Christian, and a mixture of all five. Hearing different arrangements of traditional songs is quite fun, plus there's original festive music a-plenty too.

Bearing in mind that these stations are USA-based (so expect varying levels of sacharrine thrown in), it's quite nice to listen to. Here are some sample playlists:

• Christmas Music 24/7 (Traditional Christmas)
  • Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas/Bryan Duncan and the NehoSoul Band
  • Frosty The Snowman/Mannheim Steamroller (what a name!)
  • Medley/The Kingdom Heirs
• Christmas 24/7 Jazz (Instrumental and Jazz)
  • Thanksgiving/Michael Allen Harrison
  • We Three Kings Of Orient Are/Segio Salvatore
  • The First Noel/Don Caroll
• Christmas 24/7 Country
  • White Christmas/Lari White
  • The Christmas Spirit/Alabama
  • A Big Red Christmas Bow/Janis Gott
• Christmas 24/7 And More (Eclectic)
  • On This Christmas Night/James House
  • Christmas Time/Mike Surratt
  • Oh Christmas Tree/Dick Pyatt

Bet you don't recognise most of those names and titles - and that's a good thing. It's refreshing after year upon year of Slade, John and Yoko, Band Aid and Shakin Stevens. The audio player tells you what's playing, and has a handy link showing you album details so that you can order a copy of whatever takes your fancy.

Christmas Music 24/7 is hosted on Live365.com, and it looks like there are more Christmas stations on there to have a browse through. There seems to be a two-tier system where most stations are free, but subscribers get additional stations and no adverts between tracks. Nice in small doses, even in October, although I think I personally will give the Country music station a miss!

All I Want For Christmas Is... a great music playlist

Let's face it, the number of good Christmas songs is a fairly low number. Whilst quality is not an issue, some of them are highly overplayed to the point of infuriation. Yes, "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" isn't by definition a bad song, it just ages really badly on the several-hundredth listen.

The music video channels go wall-to-wall Christmas by the end of November(!), and so it soon become apparent which tunes age well, and which ones to steer clear of. Slade and Mariah Carey should be listened to in very small doses - ditto Wizzard and Elton John. Words defy me when it comes to Chris de Burgh, and the wonderful "Rock and Roll Christmas" now has the worst stigma attached to it thanks to the antics of the singer.

But there are some gems to watch out for on the music channels. Bo Selecta's "Proper Chrimbo" is incredibly catchy, and is at its best when heard alongside the "celebrity"-filled music video - in quotes because these were D-list celebrities back in 2003, so you'd have to take some time to think back and place some names to faces. The Flying Pickets' "Only You" is a simply wonderful accapella track, and Chris Rea's "Driving Home For Christmas" has become the soundtrack to many a long journey to various Christmas destinations.

But my favourite Christmas song was from 1981, back when music videos weren't considered obligatory for chart songs, and so is always overlooked by the music video channels. It's sad because so many people are missing out on the catchy anthem that is The Waitresses' "Christmas Wrapping" - anthemic for those times when the whole year has been full-on and that Christmas week is the first break away from everything for a very long time. Spending Christmas by yourself isn't necessarily a bad thing if you just want to flop.

There are a few fan-made videos for the song on YouTube, but here's the one which I fell for immediately - probably due to my animation hobby. I grew up in the '80s with a Sinclair Spectrum - I'm astounded that you can build this sort of thing in a computer game these days. Enjoy...