HARK! – The Holiday Music Podcast

Episode 257: Yelly Belly

harkpodcast March 25, 2020 No Comments

April Fools’ Day is on the horizon – not that anyone should be celebrating it, in this of all years. For what may be the worst of holidays, we listen to two jokes of songs – some old-fashioned parody songs, by listener request. “The 12 Gifts of Christmas” by Allan Sherman may be a so-so version of an overdone song, but it does deliver one very welcome holiday music innovation. “I Yust Go Nuts at Christmas” by Yogi Yorgesson, however, is yust a mess.

Our ranking music this episode is “A Christmas Carol” by Tom Lehrer.

Thank you to Matt and Tim for these requests!

Episode 256: Ghosts, Trolls, and Sinatras

harkpodcast March 11, 2020 No Comments

Can you believe we’ve covered 500 songs, and only one by Old Blue Eyes? In honor of St. Joseph’s Day, we’re covering two songs by an Italian-American icon. First is the slightly spooky “The Christmas Waltz” by Frank Sinatra, followed by “The 12 Days of Christmas” by the Sinatra family, which reimagines the interminable classic as a list of extremely generic Dad Gift ideas. Maybe dad likes… jelly??

Our ranking music this episode is “Christmas Memories” by Billy Gilman!

Episode 255: Me and Mrs. Claus

harkpodcast February 26, 2020 No Comments

In honour of International Women’s Day on March 8, in this episode we’re covering requests for songs about the much-neglected first lady of Christmas, Mrs. Claus. First, we revisit the Mrs. Santa Claus musical with a sweet duet titled “The Best Christmas Of All”. Then we discuss the implications of Mrs. Claus gettin’ some from a side piece in “Dear Mrs. Claus” by the Barr Brothers.

Thank you to Joe and Meghan for these requests!

Our ranking music this week is “Mrs. Santa Claus” by Nat King Cole.

Episode 254: Three Generations Doing High-Kicks All at Once

harkpodcast February 12, 2020 No Comments

This week on HARK, we’re celebrating two holidays with just one set of requests. Notable interesting person Richard submitted a decidedly non-standard version of “Baby It’s Cold Outside,” performed by Jimmy Pardo and Scott Aukerman, which we’re covering for … Valentine’s Day(?). He also submitted “3 Generations” by Hawksley Workman, which definitely fits a Family Day theme.

Thanks again, Richard, for the requests!

This week’s ranking music is “A House or Maybe a Boat” by Hawksley Workman.

Episode 253: Deconstructed Christmas with Gabber Sauce

harkpodcast January 29, 2020 No Comments

This week’s HARK is a veritable feast for the ears, though some parts of it likely go down more easily than others. We start with “Sick Christmas” by (DJ) The Prophet, a bottom-shooter apologetically requested by Alan. Then, we pair it with a high quality jam of our own choosing: “Sleigh Ride” by Astrocolor, which also serves as this week’s ranking music.

Thanks again to Alan for the request!

Episode 252: Recursive Christmas Tree Farms

harkpodcast January 15, 2020 No Comments

For our first episode recorded in 2020, we’re covering two songs from 2019! Get your HOT TAKES here! “Like It’s Christmas” by the Jonas Brothers is nothing and “Christmas Tree Farm” by Taylor Swift is something, but not much.

Thanks to Dave for these requests!

This week’s ranking music is also “Christmas Tree Farm” by Taylor Swift, but just the good part.

Episode 251: Ground Control to Santa Claus

harkpodcast January 1, 2020 No Comments

It’s 2020 and we’re looking back 20 years at some quintessentially 2000 holiday songs!”Xtina’s Xmas” by Christina Aguilera and “My Only Wish (This Year)” by Britney Spears both feature superstar performers and some strange formatting choices in their titles, but which one will fare better on our list? And which one is, you know, an actual song?

The ranking music in this episode is “Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays”.

Episode 250: Shoutable Milestones

harkpodcast December 25, 2019 No Comments

Happy Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and a very merry milestone episode! RJ tries to top our festive list with a holiday classic that almost wasn’t a Christmas song, while Ian shoots for the bottom of the list by getting back to basics. We end this episode with an announcement about the future of HARK!

The ranking music this week is “What Christmas Means to Me” by Stevie Wonder.

Episode 249: A Very Specific Number of Days

harkpodcast December 18, 2019 No Comments

The holiday equinox of 2019 is upon us, beginning with the first night of Hanukkah on December 22nd. To celebrate, we’re listening to two high-quality Hanukkah songs. “Chanukah Time” by Josh and the Jamtones is a fun song that captures a child-like excitement about the holiday, while “This Chanukiah” by Daniel Cainer takes a more heartfelt, reflective approach.

This week’s ranking music is “Christmas Wrapping” by Save Ferris.

Episode 248: Old Jim’s Christmas Podcast

harkpodcast December 11, 2019 No Comments

RJ and Ian are back from Tokyo and celebrating their jet-lag with songs from decades that have never been featured on the show before. First, 1898’s “Sleigh Ride Party/Jingle Bells” by the Edison Male Quartet becomes the oldest song we’ve every talked about on the show by several decades, while also proving that there is no such thing as a “standard” version of Jingle Bells. Then, 1904’s “Old Jim’s Christmas Hymn” by Albert C. Campbell and James F. Harrison provides a much more moving story than we expected given the goofy title.

This week’s ranking music is “Swingin’ Them Jingle Bells” by Fats Waller.