Listen to David Byrne’s alternative Christmas playlist
When David Byrne decided to curate a three-hour alternative Christmas playlist, he gave us more than a selection of eclectic and wayward musical gems; he offered us an antidote. As we enter December, so begins the relentless churn of ‘Christmas Classics’, a strange sort of euphemism for songs that, no matter how hard we try, refuse to disappear. Well, fear not, because Byrne is here to take us away from the pearly white jaws of Mariah Carey and George Micheal and inject some much-needed musical exploration into the festive season.
Released through his official website in 2018, the 41-track musical odyssey formed part of Bryne’s monthly playlist series, which saw the one-time Talking Heads frontman open up our ears to new and unfamiliar sounds. It really is an incredibly diverse selection, weaving the joyful madness of Hobo Johnson with the poetry of Algeria’s folk poet Laureate, Rachid Taha. Describing the musician’s impact on the landscape of Algerian music, Bryne wrote: “He was ubiquitous for a while there—flavours and songs from the Maghreb and the immigrant experience with a rock and roll attitude”.
In the mix, Bryne takes us to all four quarters of the globe. There’s a lovely slice of Turkish psych from Erkin Koray, who Bryne recalls he first listened to after being introduced to another of Turkey’s greatest songwriter’s, Barış Manço, by some friends in Istanbul. “When I was there years ago,” he writes, “Turkey had a serious psychedelic period”. Then there are the Afro-Latin sounds of Juan Luis Guerra, whose track ‘Loma de Cayenas’ brings some of the warmth of the Dominican Republic to the cold winter months. The mix also contains a number of recognisable names, including The Beatles, Jorja Smith (who, in 2018, was already one of the brightest lights of the explosion of artists emerging from the South London nu-jazz scene), and Mitski.
Bryne’s wonderful selection of tracks may not include much talk about snow, Christmas cheer, or bioluminescent reindeer, but it does provide welcome relief from the onslaught of Christmas classics that seem to fill every shopping centre, supermarket, and pub at this time of year. I’m by no means dismissing the likes of Wham and Mariah Carey, a bit of cheese does everyone good, but if you’re on the hunt for something new, David Bryne’s playlist is the place to start.
David Byrne’s alternative Christmas playlist:
- ‘Not Today’ – Alessia Cara
- ‘I’m a Suspect’ – Lonnie Holley
- ‘There Was Always Water’ – Lonnie Holley
- ‘Sex in the City’ – Hobo Johnson
- ‘Romeo & Juliet’ – Hobo Johnson
- ‘Namesake’ – Tunde Olaniran
- ‘Young Lover (piano version’ – St. Vincent
- ‘Ngarrpiya (Octopus)’ – Gurrumul
- ‘Supernova’ – My Brightest Diamond
- ‘White Noise’ – My Brightest Diamond
- ‘Dolphin’ – Panda Bear
- ‘Washing Machine Heart’ – Mitski
- ‘Welcome To Earth (Pollywog)’ – Sturgill Simpson
- ‘Make Me Lovely’ – Laura Mvula
- ‘Stretch Your Eyes’ – Agnes Obel
- ‘Settle Down’ – Kimbra
- ‘Twinkle’ – Sorry
- ‘The One’ – Jorja Smith
- ‘Howlin’ to the Moon’ – Topaz Jones
- ‘Wanderer’ – Cat Power
- ‘Woman’ – Cat Power
- ‘Hay Yam Yam’ – Erkin Koray
- ‘Quebra Cabeça’ – Bixiga 70
- ‘Grito de Paz’ – Bixiga 70
- ‘Ni de Mano Ni de Beso’ – Gran Sur
- ‘Tu Dios’ – Gran Sur
- ‘Loma de Cayenas’ – Vicente García & Juan Luis Guerra 4.40
- ‘Qué Mal Que Estoy’ – iLe
- ‘Soledad y el Mar’ – Natalia Lafourcade ft. Los Macorinos
- ‘Mi Tierra Veracruzana’ – Natalia Lafourcade ft. Los Macorinos
- ‘Party For One’ – Carly Rae Jepsen
- ‘Ya Rayah’ – Rachid Taha
- ‘Barra Barra’ – Rachid Taha
- ‘Revolution (Esher Demo)’ – The Beatles
- ‘Malamente (Cap.1: Augurio)’ – Rosalía
- ‘Pienso En Tu Mirá (Cap.3: Celos)’ – Rosalía
- ‘Sodade’ – Bonga
- ‘Mona Ki Ngi Xica’ – Bonga
- ‘Â çimma’ – Fabrizio De André
- ‘Madre Terra’ – Carmen Consoli
- ‘Mandaci Una Cartolina’ – Carmen Consoli
Listen to the playlist, below.
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Beatles Newsletter
All the latest stories about The Beatles from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.