The Music Gal's Musings...Christmas Songs that send me over the EDGE

...and this is meant in a melencholy, oh my, another year is over, what have I done with my life, why does time go so fast, what happened to my misspent youth, what is with the world/people/kids these days sort of way...

1. River - Joni Mitchell
I actually have recordings of this song by several artists, James Taylor, Sarah McLachlan, Joni herself. Still, my favorite is a recording by some Broadway dude named Michael Ball. It is actually the first version of the song I ever heard. It starts with a few piano bars of "Jingle Bells" and then goes into this great singer/songwriter vibe. The very The first time I heard it, in my car - SURPRISE - I cried. "I wish I had a river I could skate away on..."

2. Same Old Lang Syne - Dan Fogelberg
Don't even need to get more than 2 or 3 notes into this one and I am there. I remember hearing this one as a little girl, SO interested in boys and love and romance and wondering if that kind of heartache awaited me somewhere down the line. Well, I now know, that kind of heartache is just life, and feeling, and love. "Drink a toast to innocence..."

3. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - PREFERABLY The Pretender's version
Just a great tune, but the part that gets me "Through the years, we all will be together. If the fates allow." Just sends me down that path of having NO control on this ride we call life, and being the daughter of a controller - yep, not QUITE ready to claim this trait as my own - I HATE THAT!

4. Silent Night - AT Christmas Eve candlelight service
Every freakin' year, can't even sing verses 3 and 4 'cause I have tears streaming down my face. It is just one of those times, where the feelings, and the sights, and the sounds just get the better of me and I am filled with such wonder that I just burst. And you know, as much as it drives me crazy, I hope I am always well aware of the beauty and mysticism around me.

So, have a listen, and I'll be sure to have the tissues at the ready.
-Cheryl