Totally Twangy Christmas

I know country music isn't everyone's gig. It's not necessarily my absolute thing either, but I do enjoy the sound of a good acoustic guitar, banjo, and zither, as well as singing where you can actually understand what the hell they're singing--even if they're singing nothing but woe and loss.

Near the end of the season last year, I bought Brad Paisley's Christmas album, and I'm glad I did! First of all, I like Brad. He's just a decent guy and his music is very traditional and fun. "Being a Celebrity" comes to mind. If you haven't seen this music video, you must. Jason Alexander and William Shatner feature in this video and they're great. "Alcohol" is also a good one and he has some lovely, heartwarming ballads. But getting back to Christmas...

Brad Paisley has a Christmas album called... Wait for it... A Brad Paisley Christmas. Okay, so not the most original album title, but hey, it's Christmas. No one has an original name for their albums, so we'll forgive Brad, too. In addition to the traditional songs, Paisley includes a Elmo & Patsy-type song called "Penguin, James Penguin" that is just plain fun. If for no other reason, this album is worth getting just for this funny parody on the holidays. He's also got a piece called "Kung Pao Buckaroo Holiday" that's wacky and especially twangy. The song pokes fun at how political correctness has made using the word "Christmas" offensive. The bleeping alone is hilarious!

If you can handle country, this is an album you should add to your Christmas collection. It's worth every penny.