When all you hear in the shopping malls is Mariah Carey, Michael Buble et al, William Dart celebrates the Christmas music from Aotearoa.
Photo: Frenzy Music
As William's regular listeners will know, he is a sucker for the good, the goofy, and sometimes the grotesquely garish in Christmas music. Santa songs a specialty.
This year, he can go all-Kiwi, thanks to the recent release of a CD called Merry Christmas New Zealand on the Frenzy Music label, curated by the indefatigable Grant Gillanders.
Several of the songs were written for RNZ's Christmas song competition last year.
Music Details
'Song title' (Composer) – Performers
Album title
(Label)
'Jolly Old Saint Nicholas' (Murray, Miller) – Buddy Kaine
Zodiac Archive Series, Vol. 12
(Zodiac)
'Telephone Mr Santa Claus' (Mahe) – Roslynn Mahe
Pohutukawas & Pavlova
(Frenzy)
'Star of Wonder' (Trad arr Dagg) – Fred Dagg
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
'Down Under Santa Gets a Suntan' (Brown) – Bulldogs All Star Goodtime Band
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
'Santa's Sand Castles' (Mackie) – Ronnie Mackie
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
'Sticky Beak the Kiwi' (Edwards, Roberts) – Julie Nelson & the Don Hall Orchestra
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
'It Came Upon a Midnight Clear' (Trad) – Frankie Stevens
A Beautiful Christmas
(Dick Le Fort)
'New Zealand Christmas Tree' (Freedman) – Wellington International Ukelele Orchestra
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
'Look what you've done (Christmas Bells)' (Cooper) – Rochelle Vinsen and Eddie O'Strange
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
'When Mariah Sings' (Curtis) – Gareth Curtis
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
'The Pavlova Song' (Brown) – The Pavs feat. Jordan Luck
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
'I Hate Xmas (but I Love You)' (Puffin) – Lincoln Puffin
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
'Christmas Away Blues' (Wright) – John Wright
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
'You are Christmas' (The Sations) – The Sations
Merry Christmas New Zealand
(Frenzy)
