- Playing
- Alt 50's Christmas
- From
- Mike Flanagan
Sure, Christmas in the 1950s was the stomping ground for Rudolph and Frosty. But underneath the marshmallow world of perfect conformity was another take on holiday cheer that involved rock n roll, space travel, my baby left me blues, and good old Cold War paranoia. Welcome to the Alt 50s Christmas, edgier than Perry Como, more corrupt than a rigged quiz show...something to sing while you dig your fallout shelter!
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Transcript
(Partial script)
Seasons greetings from the Eisenhower years. I’m your host, Mike Flanagan, a guy whose early memories of Christmas deal more with sending snail mail to the North Pole and snooping for presents than actually considering the social implications of what lies ahead.. Christmas in the 1950s is about as safe as you can get, what with Rudolph, and Frosty, and the snow that everyone got on their black and white televisions. But there was another side to the era. The Alt Fifties Christmas is next.
As the years keep piling on, I realize that fewer and fewer people are around who actually experienced Christmas in the 1950s.
You know the Fifties, the decade that dominates nostalgia like no others. The time when babies boomed. The era that rolled out Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, and the 1955 Thunderbird. The decade that birthed rock and roll, television, froze...
Read the full transcript
Musical Works
| Title | Artist | Album | Label | Year | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| We Wanna See Santa Do the Mambo (1954) | Big John Greer | Hipster's Holiday. | Rhino | 1989 | 02:23 |
| Be Bop Santa Claus (1955) | Babs Gonzales | Hipster's Holiday. | Rhino | 1989 | 03:36 |
| Rock n Roll Santa (1959) | Little Joey Farr | Rockabilly Christmas. | Rockabilly Records | 2008 | 00:00 |
| Dig That Crazy Santa Claus (1954) | Oscar McLollie & His Honey Jumpers | Hey! Lollie Lollie. | Ace | 2003 | 02:31 |
| Sleigh Bell Rock (1958) | Chuck Blevins | Rockabilly Christmas. | Rockabilly Records | 2008 | 01:54 |
| Santa Bring My Baby Back (1957) | Elvis Presley | Elvis Christmas Album. | RCA | 1957 | 01:53 |
| Santa Claus is Back in Town (1957) | Elvis Presley | Elvis Christmas Album. | RCA | 1957 | 02:22 |
| I Want to Spend Christmas with Elvis (1956) | Debbie Dabney | Christmas Party with Eddie G. | Columbia Legacy | 1996 | 02:57 |
| Santa and the Satellite Pt. 1 (1959) | Buchanan and Goodman | (Single). | Luniverse Records | 1959 | 01:53 |
| Space Age Santa Claus (1956) | Hal Bradley Orch. w/ Patty Marie Jay | (Single). | Delhi Records | 1956 | 00:00 |
| Santa to the Moon (1958) | Sonny Cole | Rockabilly Christmas. | Rockabilly Records | 2008 | 01:36 |
| North Pole Rock (1958) | Cathy Sharpe | Rockabilly Christmas. | Rockabilly Records | 2008 | 00:00 |
| Papa Noel (1959) | Brenda Lee | The Best of Cool Yule. | Rhino | 1988 | 02:55 |
| White/Hot Christmas (1958) | The Elves | Rhythm and Blues Christmas. | Ace | 2006 | 02:03 |
| Christmas Bells (1953) | Bobby Nunn | Rhythm and Blues Christmas. | Ace | 2006 | 03:13 |
| Gonna Have a Merry Christmas (1950) | Nic Nacs w/ Little Mickey Champion | Blues, Blues Christmas Vol. 2 1926-1958. | Document Records | 2008 | 00:00 |
| My Birthday Comes on Christmas (1956) | Spike Jones and His City Slickers | Let's Sing a Song of Christmas. | Verve | 1998 | 02:11 |
| Green Christmas (1958) | Stan Freberg | The Capitol Singles Collection. | Capitol | 2009 | 06:52 |
| Christmas in Jail (1956) | The Youngsters | Bummed Out Christmas. | Warner | 1989 | 03:20 |
| Reindeer Boogie (1953) | Hank Snow | HIllbilly Holiday. | Rhino | 1989 | 02:24 |
| Run Rudolph RUn (1958) | Chuck Berry | Reelin' and Rockin': The Very Best of Chuck Berry. | Universal International | 2006 | 02:44 |
| Yulesville (1959) | Edward "Kookie" Byrnes | The Best of Cool Yule. | Rhino | 1988 | 02:32 |
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