3 Christmas Songs You May Not Know but Should

Let’s say you’re in the holiday spirit but loathe the usual songs blasting through retail shops and grocery store speakers.

Alas, all is not lost. There are plenty of worthwhile Christmas songs and carols to soften even the hardest of cynics.

Consider these three selections as starters for a holiday playlist of tracks you might have missed amidst the more popular tunes. Sprinkle alongside classics by The Jackson 5, Bing Crosby, and Elvis Presley. Mix in Darlene Love, Wham!, Run-D.M.C., and The Ronettes. Season to taste.

“Just Like Christmas” by Low from Christmas (1999)

Low released an EP of Christmas songs in 1999 that features interpretations of standards like “Silent Night” and “Little Drummer Boy.” But the album opener, “Just Like Christmas,” complete with sleigh bells, merges Phil Spector’s 1960s recordings with Low’s brooding and beautiful slowcore. Mimi Parker’s voice and drumming are highlights. She sings about a shared experience that appears inconsequential. However, something made it feel like Christmas. Parker died in 2022, and sometimes, it’s the little moments where one is most missed.

By the time we got to Oslo
Snow was gone and we got lost
The beds were small be we felt so young
It was just like Christmas

“Star of Wonder” by Sufjan Stevens from Songs for Christmas (2006)

Sufjan Stevens details the Christmas origin story and the star that guided the Magi to Jesus. “Star of Wonder” builds to a crescendo of voices and orchestration with stirring and childlike awe—a technique he’s used before on his magnificent classic “Chicago.” Though Stevens writes specifically about Christmas, his lyrics leave room for the tale to be used as a metaphor. The human experience of stumbling dumbly through life, searching for guidance, wisdom, love, and peace.

Oh, conscience
Where will you carry me?
I found you
Star of terrifying effigies
When the night falls
I carry myself to the fortress
Of your glorious cost
Oh, how I may seek your fortress

“Christmas Treat” by Julian Casablancas from Phrazes for the Young (2009)

On the deluxe edition of his solo debut, Julian Casablancas turned an SNL skit into one of the finest Christmas songs known. To be fair, Casablancas started with perfection. “I Wish It Was Christmas Today” by Jimmy Fallon, Horatio Sanz, Chris Kattan, and Tracy Morgan became a cultural touchstone of holiday cheer. But Casablancas took the comedy bit and transformed it into synthy garage rock. In the early 2000s, The Strokes changed rock culture by bringing the vintage New York cool of The Velvet Underground, Television, and Ramones into the future. “Christmas Treat” sounds like that. But you don’t need to be a hipster to want to crank this one.

I don’t care what the neighbors say
Christmas time is near
I don’t care what anyone says
Christmas is full of cheer
All I know is that Santa’s sleigh
Is making its way to the U.S.A.

Photo by Nick Pickles/WireImage