Every Christmas season brings the joyous delight of listening to special Christmas songs that most people tuck away until the day after Thanksgiving. While making hot chocolate, friends and families get out their Christmas decorations to transform their living rooms into a festive winter land, turning their devices to their favorite Christmas songs to enhance their mood.
Some Christmas songs allow us to worship the birth of King Jesus and give us an opportunity to join in with others as we sing hymns with angelic lyrics like “Gloria in excelsis Deo,” or in other words, “Glory to God in the highest,” from the song “Angels We Have Heard On High.”
Other Christmas songs remind us of our childhood Christmases like Amy Grant’s popular “Tennessee Christmas” or Sandi Patty’s “The Gift Goes On.”
The popular song “Mary Did You Know” celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, despite some theological controversy throughout its history. The lyrics of the song were written by Christian comedian and Gaither vocalist Mark Lowry in 1984 and put to music by Buddy Green in 1991. It was then originally recorded by Christian musician Michael English for his debut solo album that same year.
Since then, the song has been recorded by the Gaither Vocal Band, Kenny Rogers and Wynonna Judd, Pentatonix, Carrie Underwood, Dolly Parton, and others.
“Mary Did You Know” shows just how Christmas music can be timeless, because it talks about the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.
But just because most Christmas music centers around Christ or focuses on a time of joy doesn’t mean all Christmas music should have been made, written, rewritten, covered, or released.
I scoured the internet to find a few of those songs that make us think, “We could have done without that one.” The one thing all these songs have in common is they are performed by Christian artists or artists that profess to be Christian.
*These selections have been made at random for the purpose of a good laugh [and they made me cringe a little while listening to them].
1. “The Christmas Shoes” by NewSong
“The Christmas Shoes” was released in 2000 by NewSong and appeared on their album “Sheltering Tree.” The song tells a story about a young boy who doesn’t have enough money to purchase shoes for his dying mother. The song also inspired a book and a made-for-TV movie that starred Rob Lowe.
