Traditional Christmas Songs, Celtic Style

Christmas songs are classics!  However, if you play a song too much, even a classic, it becomes old and tired. A good solution is to listen to new versions of your favorite classics.  Below you will find 50 traditional Christmas songs played in a Celtic style.


The Napster playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.

1. "Air A Chiad Latha Den Nollaig (12 Days of Christmas)" by Fiona Mackenzie
2. "The Angel Gabriel" by Crimson Ensemble
3. "Angels We Have Heard on High" by Irish Rovers
4. "Auld Lang Syne" by The Columba Minstrels
5. "Away in a Manger" by Holiday Favorites
6. "Bring A Torch Jeanette, Isabella/Hewlitt's" by Rose and Thistle Band
7. "Carol of the Bells" by Celtic Woman
8. "Christmas in Killarney" by Irish Rovers
9. "Christmas in the Old Man's Hat" by Noel McLoughlin
10. "The Christmas Song" by Celtic Woman
11. "Coventry Carol" by David Huntsinger (Not on Youtube Playlist)
12 "Deck the Halls" by Dan Gibson's Solitudes
13. "Ding Dong! Merrily on High" by Boann's Clan
14.  "Do You Hear What I Hear?" by Orla Fallon
15. "The First Noel" by Bandari
16. "Frosty the Irish Snowman" by Marc Gunn
17. "Fum, Fum, Fum" by Michelle Amato
18. "Go Tell It On the Mountain" by Jonna Fahey
19. "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" by The Chieftains
20. "Good Christian Men Rejoice" by David Huntsinger (Not on Youtube Playlist)
21. "Good King Wenceslas" by Our Lady of Perpetual Help Chant Choir
22. "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing/ Angels We Have Heard on High" by Nightnoise
23. "Have Yourself a Merry Christmas" by Celtic Woman
24. "Here We Come A-Wassailing" by Magpie Lane
25. "The Holly and the Ivy" by Kim Robertson
26. "I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day" by Cherish the Ladies
27. "I Saw Three Ships" by The Barra MacNeils
28. "In the Bleak Mid-Winter" by The Columba Minstrels
29. "Infant Holy" by Sarah Moore
30. "It Came Upon the Midnight Clear" by Matt & Shannon Heaton
31. "Jingle Bells" by G. Phillips
32. "Jolly Old St. Nicholas" by Michelle Amata
33. "Joy to the World" by Holiday Favorites
34. "Let It Snow" by G. Phillips
35. "Little Drummer Boy" by G. Phillips
36. "Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming" by Kim Robertson
37. "Lully Lullay" by Nightnoise
38. "O Christmas Tree" by John St. John
39. "O Come Emmanuel" by The Celtic Ensemble
40. "Oh Come, All Ye Faithful" by Cherish the Ladies
41. "A Oiche Bheannaithe (Oh Holy Night)" by Mary McLaughlin
42. "O Little Town of Bethlehem" by Matt &Shannon Heaton
43. "O the Holly She Bears a Berry" by The Chieftains
44. "Pat-A-Pan" by John St. John.
45. "Silent Night" by The Gothard Sisters
46. "Silver Bells" by Holiday Favorites
47. "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" by The Columba Minstrels
48. "We Three Kings" by The Columba Minstrels
49. "What Child Is This?/ Greensleeves Jig/The Tongs By The Fire/ The Frost Is All Over" by Cherish the Ladies
50. "White Christmas" by The Munros

Unknown Christmas Songs A-Z

While the same Christmas songs seems to be played on repeat every year, there are some truly lovely songs that are just overlooked and never heard.  Here is an A-Z list of some beautiful (or at least unknown) Christmas songs that are worth a listen.

The Napster playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.

1. "Ain't That a Rockin'" by Sally Jones
2. "Beautiful Star of Bethlehem" by Jasmine Commerce
3. "Christmas Mornings" by Richard Marx
4. "Dear Joseph" by Golden Bough
5. "Emmanuel" by Carolyn Cavanagh
6. "For Mary for Joseph" by The Barra MacNeils
7. "The Greatest Gift" by The Celts
8. "His Favorite Christmas Story" by Capital Lights
9. "It Must Have Been the Mistletoe" by Jana Petersen
10. "Joseph's Song" by Michael Card
11. "Kris Kringle" by Kate Rusby (Not on Spotify Playlist)
12. "Little Road To Bethlehem" by Shawn Colvin
13. "Merry Christmas Ho, Ho, Ho" by Ronnie Bowman, Sharon Skaggs (Not on Spotify Playlist)
14. "New York Christmas" by Amanda Droste
15. "One Bright Star" by Sarah Jarosz
16. "A Prayer for Christmas" by Jay Pothier
17. "A Quiet Christmas With You" by Snow Business (Not on Youtube  or Spotify playlist)
18. "Remember Me" by Daniel O'Donnell
19. "Santa Will Find You" by Mindy Smith
20. "The Three Great Ships" by Winter Harp Ensemble
21. "Underneath the Christmas Tree" by Ann Chaplin (Not on Spotify Playlist)
22. "Very Merry Christmas" by Zoe Bentley
23. "What Would Christmas Be?" by Na Leo Pilimehana (Not on Youtube playlist)
24. "Xmas Eve" by Penny Reign
25. "Your Present to Me" by Paul Scott (Not on Youtube or Spotify playlist)
26. "'Zat You, Santa Claus?" by Abney Park

Christmas in America

Christmas time is upon us which means that every mall, grocery store, and radio station from Alaska to Florida is playing Christmas music.  I like Christmas music just fine personally, but I know a lot of people who hate it simply because they hear the same old tired songs year after year after year.  However, I feel pretty confident that there will be many songs in this playlist you have never heard before (there were at least 2 in which I was the first person to ever watch the Youtube video).

In this playlist you will find a Christmas song for every state in the U.S.A. though I had to cheat with a few states and use popular cities.  Also, nobody celebrates Christmas in Utah or something, because I could not find a single Utah Christmas song (unless you count Utah Carol by Marty Robbins, which has a title that sounds like a Christmas song, but in reality has nothing to do with Christmas).  I just had to supplement Utah with the more generic "Desert" Christmas song.  If anybody knows of a Christmas song about Utah, please let me know.

The Napster playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.


1. "Christmas in America" by Kenny Rogers
2. "An Alabama Moon for Christmas" by Scat Springs
3. "It's Christmas Every Day in Alaska" by Hank Thompson
4. "An Arizona Christmas" by Teri
5. "Arkansas Angel" by Dan Schafer
6. "California Christmas" by Leah Felder
7. "Colorado Christmas" by Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
8. "Christmas in Connecticut" by Allison Demers
9. "Crossing the Delaware" by Danny O'Flaherty
10. "Another Florida Christmas" by Joe Rucker
11. "Georgia Christmas" by Diane Durrett
12. "Christmas in Hawaii" by Dunebilly
13. "Christmas in These Idaho Hills" by Braun Family
14. "Illinois Central Line" by Cody Wilder
15. "Christmas in Indiana" by Ernie Haase
16.  "Christmas in Iowa" by Mulberry Lane (Not in Napster playlist)
17. "December in Kansas" by Matt Crumpton (Not in Spotify  or Youtube playlist)
18. "Christmas in Kentucky" by Patricia Tarentino
19. "Louisiana Christmas" by Bill Niemi
20. "The Maine Christmas Song" by Laura Darrell
21. "Christmas in Baltimore" by Milkshake
22. "Boston Winter" by Greasy Grapes
23. "Michigan Christmas" by Brian d'Arcy James
24. "Minnesota Snow" by Mudlow
25. "Mississippi Christmas Eve" by Charlie Daniels
26. "Missouri Christmas Card" by Dierdre Jenkins
27. "Montana Winter" by Michelle Rivers
28. "Nebraska Snow" by The Hummingbirds
29. "Christmas in Nevada" by Willard Grant Conspiracy (Not in Spotify Playlist)
30. "Snowbound in New Hampshire" by Tony Smith
31. "Xmas in New Jersey" by Santa Sleigh Ride Shredders
32. "Christmas New Mexico" by Jerry Dean
33. "Christmas in New York" by Shilelagh Law
34. "It's a Carolina Christmas" by Michael Anthony Milton
35. "Dance of the Northern Lights (North Dakota Christmas)" by Deborah Keily Hanson
36. "Christmas in Ohio" by Chuck Wooke
37. "Christmas in Oklahoma" by Carter Sampson
38. "Oregon Snow" by Ky Burt
39. "Christmastime in Bethlehem, Pa" by Chris Bergson
40. "Holiday in Rhode Island" by The Softies
41. "Christmas in Carolina" by The Marshall Tucker Band
42. "Merry Christmas South Dakota" by The Rockford Mules
43. "Tennessee Christmas" by Alabama
44. "Christmas in Texas" by Asleep at the Wheel
45. "Christmas in the Desert" by Jazzrabbit (Not on Youtube playlist)
46. "Christmas in Vermont" by Dave Hall
47. "When It's Christmas In Virginia" by Michelle Nixon & Drive
48. "It's Christmas Eve in Washington" by Dana Spencer
49. "Christmas Time in West Virginia" by The Weber Brothers
50. "Christmas in Wisconsin" by The Mears Brothers
51. "Wyoming Christmas Time" by Saggy Bottom Boys
52. "Merry Christmas, U.S.A." by Austin Rudy

Celtic Folksongs A-Z

There are some great treasures in the realm of Celtic folk songs.  Well, most of them are about drinking, oppression, and murder, but they're still pretty great songs all the same.  Here is an A-Z list of some of the best traditional Celtic songs by 26 great folk groups out there.

The Napster playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.

1. "As I Roved Out" by Celticana
2. "Back Home in Derry" by Blackthorn
3. "Caledonia" by No Frontiers
4. "Dirty Old Town" by Sligo Rags
5. "Early in the Morning" by The Henry Girls (Not on Spotify or Youtube playlists)
6. "Finnegan's Wake" by The Malarkey Brothers
7. "Galway Bay" by Noel McLoughlin
8. "The Hills of Connemara" by Cu Chulainn
9. "Irish Rover" by T. Duggins
10. "Johnny Jump Up" by The Stone Soup Band
11. "Keg of Brandy" by Christa Burch
12. "Lannigan's Ball" by Waxies Dargle
13. "Marie's Wedding" by The High Kings
14. "Nancy Whiskey" by Gaelic Storm (The Spotify song is by Shane McGowan)
15. "Only Our Rivers Run Free" by Patsy Watchorn
16. "Poor Paddy Works on the Railways" by The Blarney Lads
17. "The Queen of Connemara" by Sonas
18. "Raggle Taggle Gypsy" by The Chieftains
19. "Star of the County Down" by Nantathren
20. "The Town I Loved So Well" by The Dubliners
21. "Unquiet Grave" by Karen Mal
22. "The Verdant Braes of Skreen" by Briege Murphy(Spotify and Youtube song is by Wild Geese)
23. "The Water is Wide" by Niamh Parsons
24. "X-Prep Set" by Smoky Finish
25. "Ye Jacobites By Name" by Beth Patterson
26. "Zeto" by Wolfstone (Not on Spotify Playlist)


If you are looking for more great Celtic music, you can't go wrong with the High Kings.  Anything they do is excellent.

Forever Country

"Forever Country" is song that came out in September, 2016.  It is a combination of "Take Me Home, Country Roads," "On the Road Again," and "I Will Always Love You" performed by a collection of 30 country artists from classic Willie Nelson to modern Luke Bryan.   This song shot right to #1 of the Billboard Hot Country charts in it's first week, which is only the third song in history to accomplish this behind "More Than a Memory" by Garth Brooks (2007), and "My Baby's Got a Smile on Her Face" by Craig Wayne Boyd (2015).

The following playlist kicks off with "Forever Country," but continues on with one of the biggest hits from each of the 30 performers, in order of appearance in the music video.

For this list, I highly recommend the Youtube version since most of the songs have official music videos (or at least a live performance).

The Youtube version is here.
The Spotify version is here.
The Napster version is here.


1. "Forever Country" by Artists of Then, Now, and Forever
2. "He Didn't Have to Be" by Brad Paisley
3. "Days Go By" by Keith Urban
4. "Shotgun Rider" by Tim McGraw
5. "Breathe" by Faith Hill
6. "Pontoon" by Little Big Town
7. "I Don't Want This Night to End" by Luke Bryan
8. "Over You" by Miranda Lambert
9. "Forever and Ever, Amen" by Randy Travis
10. "Austin" by Blake Shelton
11. "The Chair" by George Strait
12. "Follow Your Arrow" by Kacey Musgraves
13. "Drink in My Hand" by Eric Church
14. "Smoky Mountain Rain" By Ronnie Milsap
15. "Kiss and Angel Good Morning" by Charley Pride
16. "Every Mile a Memory" by Dierks Bentley
17. "XXX's and OOO's (An American Girl)" by Trisha Yearwood
18. "American Honey" by Lady Antebellum
19. "It Won't Be Like This For Long" by Darius Rucker
20. "Independence Day" by Martina McBride
21. "Amarillo Sky" by Jason Aldean
22. "Bless the Broken Road" by Rascal Flatts
23. "Always on My Mind" by Willie Nelson
24. "Boot Scootin' Boogie" by Brooks & Dunn
25. "Song of the South" by Alabama
26. "Lose My Mind" by Brett Eldredge
27. "Fancy" by Reba McEntire
28. "Remember When" by Alan Jackson
29. "One More Last Chance" by Vince Gill
30. "Before He Cheats" by Carrie Underwood
31. "Coat of Many Colors" by Dolly Parton

Composers A-Z 2

With this list we return to the roots of Western music with another A-Z list of classical composers similar to the list in my first entry (Composers A-Z).  Feel free to list to the lists back to back if you have time--there are no repeated composers between the two.

The Napster playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.



1. Antheil, George "Allegro"
2. Beethoven, Ludwig van "Moonlight Sonata"
3. Copland, Aaron, "Hoe-Down"
4. Dvorak, Antonin "New World Symhony--Largo"
5. Enesco, Georges "Legend"
6. Faure, Gabriel "Sicilienne"
7. Gershwin, George "Rhapsody in Blue"
8. Handel, George Frideric Handel, "Water Music--Air"
9. Ives, Charles "Symphony No. 2--Andante Moderato"
10. Jarnefelt, Armas "Berceuse"
11. Kabalevsky, Dmitry Borisovich "Comedian's Galop"
12. Lully, Jean-Baptiste "Symphonie"
13. Mussorgsky, Modest "Pictures at and Exhibition--Great Gate of Kiev"
14. Nazareth, Ernesto "Brejeiro"
15. Obrecht, Jacob "Stat in Meskin"
16. Paganini, Nicolo "Caprice No. 9"
17. Quiroga, Manuel "Larghetto" (not on Spotify playlist)
18. Rodrigo, Joaquin "Allegro Gentile"
19. Schumann, Robert "Adagio and Allegro, Op. 70: II. Allegro" (The Youtube and Spotify versions has the full song instead of just the 2nd movement)
20. Telemann, Georg Philipp "Concerto for Viola: Andante"
21. Uematsu, Nobuo "Aerith's Theme (Final Fantasy VII)
22. Verdi, Giuseppe "Triumphal March"
23. Weber, Carl Maria von "La Tarantella-Prestissimo: Finale"
24. Xueyan, Liu "Flowing Waters of a Little River" (Not on Youtube playlist)
25. Young, Victor "Black"
26. Zamboni, Giovanni "Sonata in C minor: III. Giga"

Colors of Country

As autumn marches forward and the leaves begin to change colors, I began to think about the color songs of country music.  Most colors are pretty common in song titles, but for some reason country singers just don't like to sing about purple or violet; those songs are nearly impossible to find.

In the list below, there are 3 songs for each color coming from different eras of country.  The songs in green are for any songs performed before 1979. The songs in blue are from 1980-1999.  The songs in yellow are for songs from 2000-present.  Additionally, no artist has more than one song on this list (which is why there so many songs, like "Orange Blossom Special" or "Brown Eyed Handsome Man," being performed by artists other than the ones who made them famous).

The Napster playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.


1. "Red Headed Stranger" by Willie Nelson
2. "Red River" by Alabama
3. "Red" by Taylor Swift (Not on Spotify Playlist)
4. "Orange Blossom Special" by Bill Monroe
5. "Down in the Orange Grove" by John Anderson (Not on Spotify Playlist)
6. "Orange Moon" by Keith Harkin
7. "Yellow Roses" by Hank Snow
8. "Yellow River Road" by Suzy Bogguss
9. "Yellow Brick Road" by Morgan Frazier
10. "The New Green Light" by Hank Thompson
11. "John Deere Green" by Joe Diffie
12. "Big Green Tractor" by Jason Aldean
13. "Blue, Blue Day" by Don Gibson
14. "Baby Blue" by George Strait
15. "Barefoot Blue Jean Night" by Jake Owen
16. "The Violet and the Rose" by Wanda Jackson
17. "She Picks the Violets" by The Jayhawks
18. "Violet Eyes" by Sandra McCracken
19. "The Long Black Veil" by Lefty Frizzell
20. "Black Water Bayou" by Tanya Tucker
21. "Long Black Train" by Josh Turner
22. "White Lightnin'" by George Jones
23. "Long White Cadillac" by Dwight Yoakam
24. "White Liar" by Miranda Lambert
25. "Silver Wings" by Merle Haggard
26. "Silver Thunderbird" by Jo Dee Messina (Not on Spotify Playlist)
27. "Silver Lining" by Kacey Musgraves
28. "All the Gold in California" by Larry Gatlin
29. "Gibbonsville Gold" by Hank Williams Jr. 
30. "Golden" by Lady Antebellum
31. "Pretty Little Pink" by Doc Watson
32. "Pink Flamingos" by Tracy Byrd
33. "Two Pink Lines" by Eric Church
34. "When I'm Gray" by Johnny Cash
35. "Cold Gray Kentucky Morning" by Aaron Tippin
36. "Shades of Gray" by Robert Earl Keen
37. "Brown Eyes Handsome Man" by Waylon Jennings
38. "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue" by Crystal Gayle
39. "Cecil Brown" by Hank Williams III