I worked at a college radio station for many years, long after I even graduated.  Spending hours spinning records, it was like making a live compilation (or mix tape) using every song I could imagine.  Every year, I looked forward to December when holiday music was added to the music library.  These songs held a little extra magic because of their short play-time.  By January, they were obsolete.

Now, away from the radio environment, I relive this tradition by making holiday compilations CDs.  Over the years I've built quite a collection, finding the alternative and quirky to mix with the standards.  It puts me in the holiday spirit.  Yesterday I was putting together a compilation and realized that I'm somehow lacking the penultimate 80's Christmas classic, "Christmas Wrapping" by the Waitresses. Which is stunning, given my collection and the popularity of this song.  I don't know how I've missed owning it.  Hearing it always officially opens the holiday season. 

Going through my collection, I noted the other songs I had (to make sure I'm not missing anything crucial).  And perhaps I was missing the most obvious, but I also have some other gems.  Being partial to the original songs (not covers or standards) I worked out a complete top 10.  They're in no particular order, and I'll probably think of a few more once I finish typing.  Here they are:

1. "Christmas Wrapping" by The Waitresses
2. "Shouldn't Have Given Him A Gun For Christmas" by Wall of Voodoo
3. "Gloria" by Elastica
4. "All the Right Reasons" by Dressy Bessy
5. "Santa Claus" by Throwing Muses
6. "A Christmas Duel" by The Hives & Cyndi Lauper
7. "Forget December" by Something Corporate
8. "It's Christmas So We'll Stop" by Frightened Rabbit
9. "The Christmas Song" by Adam Acuragi
10. "Fairy Tale of New York" by The Pogues & Kirsty MacColl

Now you'll notice this list doesn't contain the standards like "Step Into Christmas" by Elton John, "Last Christmas" by Wham!, and "Wonderful Christmas Time" by Paul McCartney.  These songs are all spectacular, but at the moment I'm listening with new ears.  The above list contains songs you might not have heard yet, but I highly recommend you do.