Christmas traditions on Boston radio

[Bob Nelson]

I have thrown Christmas cuts into the blues (and other music) at WMWM
this time of year. Does anybody remember a group called Rash of
Stabbings? The name was kind of interesting--"Rash of Stabbings In
Providence!"--but they did "A Christmas Song", a 12" single: "It's
commercial time, it's Christmas time again, right from the start." It
goes on to say that the holiday has gotten too commercial and points
out the story of Jesus' birth is really what the holiday is about.

I also have played cuts from the Boston Rock Christmas EP which had stuff like
"Do You Hear What I Hear" by Native Tongue. We still do have some
Christmas vinyl at WMWM but in all honesty people have wrecked the
needles of the turntables, making such things tough to play. But we
still do have some interesting  stuff on CD.

I also used to play a 45 by the (Irish) Rovers of "the Unicorn" and
"Wasn't That A Party" fame. It was on the Attic label out of Toronto.
Side A was their version of Elmo and Patsy's "Grandma Got Run Over By
A Reindeer" and I think I liked their version better. On the flip,
"Merry Bloody Xmas", a jaunty country tune. "Merry X-mas, to me/ My
dog threw up all over the X-mas tree/They repossessed me color TV/ Oh,
merry bloody X-mas to me" etc. Sadly I couldn't find that 45 in the
box of Christmas stuff at WMWM
as of last year...

We used to also have stuff like Bob and the Dylantones, which was a
guy singing "White Christmas" imitating Dylan's voice, and Tommy and
the Greyhounds' novelty hit "It's A Technicolor Christmas when you're
Jewish (Because the Moviehouses Never close)". "While other people
carol in an open sleigh/We've got a date with Yentl on this special
day"