Star Time #47: Gee Whiz, It's Christmas
No, those mistletoe plants aren't just there for pest control: It's the holidays, suckers! The final Star Time episode of 2017 takes a whack at a fully digestible slate of R&B Christmas songs, and in the words of Ebenezer Scrooge's wellness coach, "Nailed it!" We got undisputed classics from Charles Brown, the Crystals, Donny Hathaway and Stevie Wonder alongside rarities from Little Jimmy Thomas, Jimmy Jules & the Nuclear Soul System and Fat Daddy. And did we mention sleigh bells? If you're a connoisseur of sleigh bells, you're going to jingle in places that will make you blush.
Enjoy this mother and then take a couple weeks off. Star Time returns with new episodes on January 10. Thank you for a good year, and have a happy holiday season, whatever that legally entails.
| Artist | Song | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Set 1 | |||
| Charles Brown | Merry Christmas Baby | 1954 | Hollywood |
| The Blue Notes | Winter Wonderland | 1960 | Val-ue |
| Jan Bradley | Christmas Time | 1962 | Hootenanny |
| Carla Thomas | Gee Whiz, It's Christmas | 1963 | Atlantic |
| The Crystals | Santa Claus is Coming to Town | 1963 | Philles |
| Jackie Wilson | I'll Be Home for Christmas | 1963 | Brunswick |
| The Miracles | Christmas Everyday | 1963 | Tamla |
| Darlene Love | (It's a) Marshmallow World | 1963 | Philles |
| Set 2 | |||
| Little Jimmy Thomas | Deck the Halls | 1964 | Official |
| Lowell Fulson | Lonesome Christmas | 1965 | Jewel |
| Aretha Franklin | The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On an Open Fire) | 1964 | Columbia |
| The Supremes | My Christmas Tree | 1965 | Motown |
| Lou Rawls | Christmas Will Really Be Christmas | 1967 | Capitol |
| Otis Redding | White Christmas | 1968 | ATCO |
| James Brown | Let's Make Christmas Mean Something This Year | 1966 | King |
| Set 3 | |||
| Clarence Carter | Back Door Santa | 1968 | Atlantic |
| Desmond Dekker & the Aces | Christmas Day | 1968 | Pyramid |
| Solomon Burke | Presents for Christmas | 1968 | Atlantic |
| Donny Hathaway | This Christmas | 1970 | ATCO |
| The Jackson 5 | Christmas Won't Be the Same This Year | 1970 | Motown |
| Joe Tex | I'll Make Every Day Christmas (For My Woman) | 1968 | Dial |
| The Eathiopians | Ding Dong Bell | 1968 | Crab |
| The Emotions | Black Christmas | 1970 | Volt |
| Set 4/Outro | |||
| Jimmy Jules & The Nuclear Soul System | Xmas Done Got Funky | 1977 | Jim Gem |
| Fat Daddy | Holiday Baby | 1963 | Johnny-A |
| The Temptations | Give Love On Christmas Day | 1980 | Gordy |
| The Whispers | Funky Christmas | 1979 | Solar |
| Binky Griptite | Stone Soul Christmas | 2007 | Daptone |
| The O'Jays | Christmas Ain't Christmas New Years Ain't New Years Without The One You Love | 1973 | Philadelphia Int'l |
| Stevie Wonder | Someday at Christmas | 1967 | Tamla |
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