Book Review: The Happiest People in the World by Brock Clarke

Author: Brock Clarke
Title: The Happiest People in the World
Publication Info: Chapel Hill, North Carolina : Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 2014.
ISBN: 9781616201111
Books previously read by same author: An Arsonist’s Guide to Writers’ Homes in New England by Brock Clarke
Summary/Review:

A Danish cartoonist, at risk for drawing cartons offensive to Muslims, is moved by the CIA to a small town in rural New York, given a position as a guidance councilor, and finds himself in the middle of the family drama of the high school principal and his wife the bartender of the local tavern.  To further complicate things, the CIA agent who assigned him to this town is the former mistress of the principal.  And to further make things wacky, pretty much everyone in the city is involved in the CIA or a secret agent of some time.  I suppose this book is supposed to be a farce and a satire, but I found it a chore to read.  I probably would not have finished it if I hadn’t been an award from the Library Things Early Reviewer program.  There are some funny bits, but after a while it’s just one reticent character avoiding communicating with another character who hates them over and over.

Recommended books: The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner

Rating: **

Playlist of Modern Christmas Music

Since Thanksgiving my children have enjoyed listening to an endless stream of Christmas music on the Boston radio station Magic 106.7.  I’ve been surprised that despite a 24/7 Christmas music format that the playlist of Magic 106.7 seems extremely limited.  They do not play any overtly religious songs which is not surprising as they would want to appeal to the largest audience possible.  And as Magic 106.7 has a pop “adult contemporary” radio format, I would not expect them to play any folk, traditional, or foreign language tracks either.

Nevertheless, there is a still a large body of popular Christmas music that they seem to ignore.  Tune in for an hour, or even half-an-hour and you are certain to hear some rendition of “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas,” “Sleigh Ride,” and “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” as well as Paul McCartney’s “Wonderful Christmastime.”

I decided I would use Rdio to make a playlist of Christmas songs to see how many I could get without repeating.  I decided to set the following guidelines. I would only select “modern” Christmas and winter-themed songs, that is ones that were written to be recorded and sold to the public (roughly the 1930s to the present).  I also chose the earliest recording of the song I could find as many have obviously been recorded numerous times by multiple artists.  So far I have 105 songs, more than 5 1/2 hours of Christmas music without repeating a song, and this doesn’t even include modern interpretations of traditional Christmas carols from the 19th-century and earlier.

Check out the playlist on Rdio.  If you use Rdio, feel free to add additional tracks, and if not please feel free to make suggestions in the comments on this post.

http://rd.io/x/Rl5fvL0v6y1i/

Songs that qualify for the playlist, but are not available through Rdio:

• “Fairytale of New York” by The Pogues with Kirsty MacColl
• “Do They Know It’s Christmas” by Band Aid
• “Three Kings” by Robbie O’Connell
• “Merry Xmas Everybody” by Slade
• “Christmas Time” by Bryan Adams

Songs that qualify for the playlist, but I cannot bear to listen to:

• “Wonderful Christmastime” by Paul McCartney
• “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer” by Elmo & Patsy

The complete playlist:

Name	Artist
‘Zat You, Santa Claus?	Louis Armstrong & The Commanders
(There’s No Place Like) Home for the Holidays (1954 Version)	Perry Como
2000 Miles	Pretenders
A Child Is Born	Oscar Peterson
A Holly Jolly Christmas	Burl Ives
Ain’t No Chimneys In The Projects	Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings
All I Want for Christmas (Is My Two Front Teeth)	Spike Jones
Anderson: Sleigh Ride	The Boston Pops Orchestra, Arthur Fiedler *
Another Lonely Christmas	Prince
Auld Lang Syne	Guy Lombardo
Baby, It’s Cold Outside (78rpm Version)	Dinah Shore
Back Door Santa	Clarence Carter
Blue Christmas	Ernest Tubb
Boogie Woogie Santa Claus	Mabel Scott
Carol of the Drum	Trapp Family Singers
Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)	Darlene Love
Christmas Canon	Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Christmas In Heaven (Monty Python Sings)	Monty Python
Christmas in Hollis	RUN-DMC
Christmas in Killarney	Dennis Day
Christmas In New Orleans	Louis Armstrong
Christmas In The Trenches	John McCutcheon
Christmas Is	Run-D.M.C.
Christmas Island	The Andrews Sisters
Christmas Medley	The Swingle Singers
Christmas Rappin’	Kurtis Blow
Christmas Song	Dave Matthews Band
Christmas Time Is Here (Vocal – Album Version)	Vince Guaraldi Trio
Christmas Will Soon Be Here	John Gaudet & The Laurels
Christmas Wrapping	The Waitresses
Do You Hear What I Hear?	The Harry Simeone Chorale
Dominick the Donkey	Lou Monte
Donde Esta Santa Claus?	Augie Rios
Father Christmas	The Kinks
Feliz Navidad	José Feliciano
Frosty the Snowman (78rpm Version)	Gene Autry
Gee Whiz, Its Christmas	Carla Thomas
Give Love On Christmas Day (Group A Cappella Version)	The Jackson 5
Happy Holiday	Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby
Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (2010 Digital Remaster)	John Lennon
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas	Judy Garland
Here Comes Santa Claus (Right down Santa Claus Lane)	Gene Autry
I Believe In Father Christmas (Album Version)	Emerson, Lake & Palmer
I Don’t Intend To Spend Christmas Without You	The Garlands
I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day	Fred Waring And His Pennsylvanians
I Just Can’t Wait Till Christmas	Teresa Brewer
I Pray On Christmas (Album Version)	Harry Connick, Jr.
I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus	Jimmy Boyd
I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas	Gayla Peevey
I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday	Wizzard
I’ll Be Home For Christmas	Bing Crosby
I’ve Got My Love To Keep Me Warm	Dick Powell
If It Doesn’t Snow On Christmas Day (Album Version)	Gene Autry
It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas	Perry Como
It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year	Andy Williams
Jingle Bell Rock	Bobby Helms
Just Like Christmas	Low
Last Christmas (Single Version)	Wham!
Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!	Vaughn Monroe
Little Saint Nick	The Beach Boys
Lord Of The Dance	The Christmas Revels
Lumberjack Christmas / No One Can Save You From Christmases Past	Sufjan Stevens
Marshmallow World	Dean Martin **
Mary’s Boy Child (Remastered)	Harry Belafonte
Mele Kalikimaka (Merry Christmas)	Bing Crosby
Merry Christmas Baby	Charles Brown, Johnny Moore, Eddie Williams
Merry Christmas Everyone (Remastered)	Shakin’ Stevens
Merry Christmas from the Family	Robert Earl Keen
No More Christmas Blues	The Vacant Lots
Nuttin’ for Christmas	Art Mooney Orchestra
Peace On Earth/Little Drummer Boy (Medley) (2006 Digital Remaster)	Bing Crosby
Percy, The Puny Poinsettia (Album Version)	Elmo & Patsy
Please Come Home for Christmas	Charles Brown
River	Joni Mitchell
Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree	Brenda Lee
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer	Gene Autry
Run Rudolph Run	Chuck Berry
Santa Baby	Eartha Kitt
Santa Claus	The Fuzztones
Santa Claus Go Straight To The Ghetto	James Brown
Santa Claus Is Coming to Town	Harry Reser & His Orchestra
Santa Claus Is Coming To Town	The Smothers Brothers
Silver Bells	Bob Hope
Sleigh Ride	Andrews Sisters *
Snoopy’s Christmas	The Royal Guardsmen
Someday At Christmas	Stevie Wonder
Step Into Christmas	Elton John
Suzy Snowflake	Rosemary Clooney
Suzy Snowflake	Rosemary Clooney
Swiss Christmas	The Smothers Brothers
The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late) (1999 – Remaster)	Alvin and The Chipmunks
The Christians and The Pagans	Dar Williams
The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You)	Nat King Cole Trio
The Closest I Can Get	Sunturns
The Secret Of Christmas	Ella Fitzgerald **
The Shepherd’s Carol (vocal by Kip Ledger)	Charlene Lockwood
This Christmas	Donny Hathaway
Twinkle (Little Christmas Lights)	JD McPherson
We Need A Little Christmas	Angela Lansbury (And Cast)
What Christmas Means To Me	Stevie Wonder
White Christmas	Bing Crosby
Who Took The Merry Out Of Christmas	The Staple Singers
Winter Song	Sara Bareilles, Ingrid Michaelson
Winter Wonderland (feat. Joey Nash)	Richard Himber and his Orchestra
Yes, There Is a Santa Claus	Betty Madigan
You’re A Mean One, Mr. Grinch	Thurl Ravenscroft

Footnotes:

* The only song repeated in this playlist is “Sleigh Ride.”  First there is the iconic orchestral rendition by The Boston Pops.  The Andrews Sisters provided one of the early vocal recordings with the song’s lyrics.

** Bing Crosby is credited as the first person to record “Marshmallow World” and “The Secret of Christmas,” but as this playlist was already heavy with Crosby’s crooning, I chose the Dean Martin and Ella Fitzgerald versions of these songs respectively.