Hot Rod Holiday Volume 6

Just a couple more Xmas compilations before we end the Xmas season! This one is from Hot Rod Magazine, although it doesn't really have a hot rod theme, it does compile a number of classics.

Here we get the Beach Boys doing "Merry Christmas Baby" (an original, not any of the others by that same name), Bobby Helms' standard "Jingle Bell Rock", Chuck Berry with his excellent "Run Run Rudolph", of course the Beach Boys return for "Little Saint Nick" and later for "Santa Claus is Coming to Town", Dion does a nice, upbeat, sax-driven "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree", there's a quiet, doo-wop ballad, "It's Christmas Time" from the Five Keys, Fats Domino brings us his gumbo-infused "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Raindeer" and "I Told Santa Claus", another doo-wop group, the Statues with their take on "White Christmas", the Ventures bring their Mosrite-cheer to "Jingle Bells" and "Frosty the Snowman", Bobby Vee gives us a string-laden ballad version of "Blue Christmas", The Marcels give us the jump-on-the-bandwagon "Merry Twist-mas", Gary U.S. Bonds is a bit out of character with a quiet "Call Me For Christmas" and it all closes with Dion and his upbeat "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus".

More fun stuff worth having to get in the holiday mood!