Cool carols

What record-store hipsters are listening to this season. (Hint: It ain't Kenny G.)

by Michael Endelman

Photos by Flint Born

Music and holidays seem to go together -- the dinners, the decorating, even the shopping doesn't feel complete without those all-too-familiar carols, no matter how overplayed they are. But a lot of the holiday releases that the major labels trot out every December are like that leftover turkey: stale and predictable. It's a pretty safe bet that there'll be some sticky-sweet soprano sax from Kenny G (this year it's Faith on Arista), a quickly compiled collection from the teenybop group of the moment (last year it was Hanson; this year it's 98 Degrees with This Christmas on Universal), and a last-ditch attempt by a rock-and-roll has-been to cash in on holiday fever (Ringo Starr's I Wanna Be Santa Claus on Mercury).

To avoid the flat-out schlock of these releases, we opted to skip the mega-chains and head straight for the independent record stores, where oddball music and buying advice is offered in spades. Here's what some of the local record dealers are recommending, and listening to, this holiday season, and what you might think about when planning your own holiday events. After all, how many more times can we listen to those dogs barking the chorus to "Jingle Bells" or even, for that matter, to Bruce Springsteen's version of "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town"?

For cheapskates only

In between fielding calls about Cheapo's massive collection of 45s and reminiscing about ex-Fleetwood Mac guitarist Peter Green, the Cheapo Records employee known simply as "Alabama Frank" found a few minutes to fill me in on his favorite Yuletide tunes. At the top of his list is The Ventures' Christmas Album (Razor & Tie), wherein the classic surf-instrumental combo of "Walk Don't Run" fame tackle the standards. Elvis Presley and Phil Spector each had holiday releases that are still pretty popular at Cheapo, even though the albums were recorded more than 30 years ago. Elvis's Christmas Album (RCA) from 1957 features definitive versions of "White Christmas" and "I'll Be Home for Christmas." On his 1963 classic, Christmas Gift for You (ABKCO), the reclusive Spector matched his Wall of Sound recording technique with fine performances from his stable of artists (including the Ronnettes and Darlene Love) to create one of the most memorable holiday albums of all time.

Cheapo Records, 645 Mass Ave, Cambridge, (617) 354-4455.

Music for pigs

Ina Purvins, owner of the homey neighborhood shop Record Hog, admits that she delights in the awful, tacky, and terrible side of Christmas recordings. So it was fitting that the horrible skank of "Rudolph the Reggae Reindeer" (from Rhino's Natty and Nice: A Reggae Christmas) was blasting as I walked through the door. Also in the too-ridiculous-to-ignore category is her collection of
animal-themed holiday CDs, such as A Froggy Christmas, where "frogs" croak out the melodies to Yuletide classics. Fortunately, the Record Hog also carries Christmas music of a higher caliber. Happy Birthday, Baby Jesus (Sympathy for the Record Industry) is an indie-rock compilation with nuggets from Rocket from the Crypt, Man or Astro Man?, and the Muffs. And for those folks whose holiday season isn't so jolly, there's Bummed Out Christmas (Rhino), chock-a-block with such pleasant visions as "Christmas in Jail," by the Youngsters, and "Christmas in Vietnam," by Johnny and Jon.

Record Hog, 368 Beacon Street, Somerville, (617) 868-4647.

A soulful season

The Skippy White record stores have offered friendly, knowledgeable service and a wide-ranging selection of black music for more than 30 years. Though he's seen musical trends come and go, Skippy White's eponymous founder and owner finds that his customers' holiday favorites haven't changed that much through the years. "From 1961 through the 1980s, people were still buying 45s, and the most popular Christmas record for all those years was `Please Come Home for Christmas,' by Charles Brown. His other holiday track, `Merry Christmas Baby,' was also a big seller," remembers White. Near the top of White's holiday listening list are Clyde McPhatter's version of "White Christmas," "Silent Night" by the Temptations, and the Orioles' "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" Keeping with the religious roots of the holiday, Skippy White's also carries a fine selection of gospel albums, including Christmas-themed works from Shirley Caesar, pop-star-turned-preacher Al Green, and the legendary Mahalia Jackson.

Skippy White's, 315 Centre Street, Jamaica Plain, (617) 524-4500; 538 Mass Ave, Cambridge, (617) 491-3345.

Music from another planet

Mars Records co-owners Mark and Liz Barnes eagerly await the tide of frivolous and goofy holiday releases every year. Even though this year's crop isn't up to their standards, I was able to coax a few holiday favorites from their extensive selection of indie-rock, kitschy-cheese, and garage-rock barnstormers. Their top picks from this year's skimpy release schedule is the Christmas EP (Kranky) from indie-rock minimalists Low, and a pair of Christmas reissues on Sundazed from country singer and Hee-Haw regular Buck Owens. Their eclectic stash also includes older releases that appeal to Cambridge hipsters, like Esquivel's Merry Xmas from the Space-Age Bachelor Pad (Bar None) and the equally groovy compilation Ultra-Lounge: Christmas Cocktails (Capitol). And for aging punks, there's the delightfully bitter "Sonics Don't Believe in Christmas," a seven-inch from Northwest garage legends the Sonics, and Rhino's Punk Rock Xmas, which includes anti-Yuletide tracks from the Dickies, Fear, and the Ramones.

Mars Records, 842 Mass Ave, Cambridge, (617) 441-0307.

The maven

When I queried Pat McGrath, co-owner of Looney Tunes, about his taste in holiday music, he quickly referred me to "Decibel" Dennis MacDonald, who is, in McGrath's words, "the all-time holiday master, the maven, the god." MacDonald says he started to collect Christmas music mainly to make a point: "People always say how much they hate Christmas music; I just wanted to prove them wrong." Since then, MacDonald has distributed hundreds of his handmade Christmas tapes to friends and fellow holiday-music obsessives, written about holiday music for the voluminous All Music Guides (Miller Freeman Books), and become an expert in every aspect of this much-maligned music. His official Top 10 list from the All Music Guide includes James Brown's Santa's Got a Brand New Bag (Rhino), the incredible Soul Christmas (Atlantic), and the lesser-known Christmas Party with Eddie G. (Columbia), along with a grab bag of novelty tracks, comedy bits, and international Christmas greetings that imitates the style of mix tapes holiday-music mavens such as "Decibel" Dennis make for their friends. As MacDonald wrote in an eloquent note to me: "My Philosophy of Christmas Music: Christmas ain't Christmas without Christmas music, or, as Huey `Piano' Smith sang, `All I want for Christmas is a little bit of music.' "

Looney Tunes, 1106 Boylston Street, Boston, (617) 247-2238; 1001 Mass Ave, Cambridge, (617) 876-5624.