Pop fans – the time has come to start updating your Christmas playlists.
This year, we’ve really been spoilt, with some of the biggest names in music unveiling brand new festive offerings, including seasonal tunes from the likes of Lizzo, Sam Smith and Alicia Keys.
Fortunately for those who don’t feel like sifting through every single new song to sort out the “naughty” from the “nice”, we’ve done all the hard work for you.
Here’s our take on some of the biggest new Christmas releases for this year, starting with something very special indeed...
Lindsay Lohan – Jingle Bell Rock, feat. Ali Tomineek
Oh, Santa has been good to us this year. Not only is 2022 the year we finally got a Lindsay Lohan comeback in the wonderfully cheesy Netflix original Falling For Christmas, it also came with a bonus stocking filler in the form of a new musical offering from the criminally-underrated artiste.
What’s more, the track is a cover of the festive staple Jingle Bell Rock, in a nod to one of the most iconic scenes of Lindsay’s signature film, Mean Girls.
All in all, we’re very much here for her take on Jingle Bell Rock, and we enjoy what the musical team did in terms of bringing the song up to date without taking it too far away from the original. Still, we have had to deduct marks for the completely unnecessary addition of a rap verse (a bit of digging reveals Ali Tomineek originally rose to prominence on the Netflix talent search Rhythm + Flow, which may well explain how he came to be on the track in the first place).
Sample lyric: What a bright time, it’s the right time to rock the night away.
Our rating: 🎄🎄🎄
Alicia Keys – December Back 2 June
It can be the case that when a big-name singer releases a holiday album they spend the afternoon recording a few covers, slap some sleigh bells on it, pose in some fake snow for the artwork and call it a day.
Well, we’re happy to see that’s not the approach Alicia Keys has taken, with her new festive release featuring four original tracks (including a co-write with Emeli Sandé!) alongside covers of Santa Baby, Happy Xmas (War Is Over) and The Christmas song.
The stand-out is lead single December Back 2 June which mixes a retro R&B vibe with a modern sound in that way Alica does so well. It’s also a bit of a bop, with lyrics referencing how the festive season makes her feel nostalgic for the past year with a loved one. Ask us next year whether it’s made our permanent playlist, but we’ll definitely be giving it a spin this December at the very least.
Sample lyric: “For this Christmas, don’t need wishes, not since I met you, every season, you’ll give reason to love you from December back to June”
Our rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄
Lizzo – Someday At Christmas
And speaking of throwbacks…
As part of Amazon Music’s Christmas celebrations, Lizzo has chosen to delve deep into the festive vaults and cover Stevie Wonder’s classic Someday At Christmas, a full 55 years after it was first released.
While “peace on earth” is a pretty popular Yuletide lyrical theme, Someday At Christmas takes a more specific approach in its lyrics right from the opening line: “Someday at Christmas, men won’t be boys, playing with bombs like kids play with toys.”
The lyrics certainly pack a punch, and as you’d expect from a good Stevie Wonder cover, the production is definitely a 60s throwback. And there’s certainly no arguing with Lizzo’s vocal abilities here.
Sample lyric: “Someday all our dreams will come to be, someday in a world where we are free, maybe not in time for you and me, but someday at Christmas time.”
Our rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄
Sam Smith – Night Before Christmas
Anyone looking for something new to cosy up to in front of the fire while slurping down mulled wine and looking out of the window at where snow would no doubt be cascading if climate change hadn’t stopped us from ever having a white Christmas again is in luck.
Sam Smith’s new slow jam is very much in their usual wheelhouse (it’s certainly more Stay With Me than Unholy, in case anyone is worried about a festive jump-scare), and there’s no denying it’s a pretty song that would be the perfect soundtrack to an under-the-mistletoe moment.
Still, it’s not exactly imaginative, which is a shame as just a couple of years ago Sam gave us the brilliantly unique Christmas tune The Lighthouse Keeper, which is definitely the superior of their two festive originals.
Sample lyric: “Come rest your weary head on my chest, the year is behind us, we’re still at our best, the magic of Christmas is what’s coming next, so lean in and kiss me and all of the rest.”
Our rating: 🎄🎄🎄
Cliff Richard – Heart Of Christmas
You might be surprised to see Sir Cliff on our round-up of contemporary festive tunes, but with three Christmas number ones to his name, and a new album out for 2022, we’d be remiss not to include him.
This track is the lead single from the crooner’s new album Christmas With Cliff, beginning with some pretty standard lyrics about how “the streets are glistening with lights”, “the air is getting cold outside” and “the snow is falling from above”, but by the time we get to the chorus it becomes apparent that the “Heart Of Christmas” Sir Cliff is singing about is, Jesus. To be fair, his most recent number one was a reimagined version of The Lord’s Prayer so we could probably have seen this coming.
“Hear the angels singing out, unto us a child is born,” he sings on the chorus. “Jesus, the heart of Christmas.”
So, yeah – this one probably isn’t for everybody. But at the same time, we can’t pretend this isn’t among the catchier Christmas tunes on the list…
Sample lyric: “Listen and you hear the sound, the song they sang in Bethlehem is forever.”
Our rating: 🎄🎄🎄
Jinkx Monsoon And BenDeLaCreme – Looking At The Lights
Fans of drag duo Jinkx Monsoon and BenDeLaCreme might already know this original festive tune, as it was featured in their 2021 holiday special. This year, it’s been given a proper single release, which we’re over the moon about, as it hopefully means even more people will now discover it.
Written by BenDeLaCreme and performed by the recently-crowned “Queen of All Queens” Jinkx, Looking At The Lights is a sorrowful, musical theatre-inspired torch song that will certainly speak to anyone who finds this particular time of year difficult.
Still, don’t go thinking it’s all doom and gloom. Yes, Looking At The Lights does highlight the many reasons a lot of us struggle in the winter, but also highlights how having even just one person in your corner, whether that be a partner, friend or family member, can often be enough to get you through it.
Sample lyric: “You may see a tree wonder what’s the use… maybe there’s no use, just a nice excuse for me to sit beside you on these cold and lonely nights.”
Our rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄
Rosie Thomas and Sufjan Stevens – We Should Be Together
The second we heard that Rosie Thomas and Sufjan Stevens had teamed up to record a Christmas tune, we knew we were in for something truly devastating. And yet, there was still no preparing for quite how much of an emotional listen this would be.
On We Should Be Together, Rosie sings from the perspective of someone who’s hoping for a Yuletide reconciliation, after a pivotal relationship came to an end in the summer, with some truly heartbreaking lyrics comparing the relationship to a Christmas jumper the protagonist has spent the last year working on.
Between the lyrics and the beautiful way Rosie and Sufjan’s voices complement one another, We Should Be Together is an extremely effective festive effort. Admittedly, it’s probably a little too sad to stick on between Slade and Wizzard (unless you fancy crying into your turkey on Christmas day), but it’s the perfect soundtrack to a moody walk in the snow.
Sample lyric: “The pieces wouldn’t fit, not enough fit to make it through a winter, we’ve pulled this thread too long to let it come undone now, I still believe we still belong someway, somehow, so I’ll be home for Christmas time...”
Our rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄