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CHRISTMAS 2025, CONTINUED

Updated: 1 hour ago

Shopping Tips & Recommended Music


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The Man, the Mall, & the Maddening Mob Scene


Two weeks ago the calendar flipped from Thanksgiving to Black Friday... and then it was suddenly December, with the 2025 Christmas Season full-on. Last year we published a playlist featuring our favorite versions of all the classic yuletide carols along with a few modern compositions. For this year we re-present that list along with another of Christmas Albums worth finding, and we also have some shopping advice. But first, a brief message--


During my 67 years on this planet I've learned that the older one gets, the greater the potential for finding the run-up to Christmas simultaneously overwhelming and depressing... overwhelming, because the full-court press of Christmas mercantilism now begins immediately after Labor Day, when it is still technically summer; and depressing, because the true spirit of Christmas gets buried ever deeper each season beneath the crass commercialism, the mountains of plastic garbage generated every year, and the sheer godlessness of what is ostensibly a religious holiday. And so we around Danny's Table hereby craft our musical and shopping suggestions with an emphasis on simplicity.



CHRISTMAS SHOPPING TIPS for 2025:


AVOID ACTUAL STORES!

I begin my workweek every Friday by fueling at BJ's right beside Eastview Mall, arguably the fanciest, swankest mall in upstate New York. It didn't occur to me until it was too late that Friday, November 28th was BLACK Friday... and that the snarled, inescapable traffic was adding half an hour to my weekly commute. Shopping the crowded mall and walking with armfuls of purchases to one's distant parking spot on this dubious holiday would be even worse; second only, I suppose, to actually WORKING in one of those stores, trying to placate whole battalions of irate Karens on the busiest shopping day of the year. I instinctually avoid crowds in cussed compliance with a truism somehow stamped upon my brow-- "That THIS many people CAN'T be right." But if you simply must visit the mall this Christmas season, here's my favorite tip for saving both time and money--

Put a freaking stone in your shoe.


And so, without going to actual stores, that means you'll be shopping online.


ONLINE SHOPPING

Just imagine-- no in-person shopping safaris, no gift-wrapping, no standing in line at UPS... simply point and click. But online shopping is not without potential pitfalls. We recommend that you ALWAYS use American Express for online purchases because in my experience, no other card provider fights fraud and steadfastly defends the customer in purchasing disputes like AMEX. Conversely, I avoid using PayPal for online shopping because the actual cash departs your checking account-- often to companies in faraway countries-- before you even know that there's any sort of problem. And possession, as they say, is 9/10ths of the law.


What to buy online? When choosing gifts for friends or relatives it is obviously worth avoiding things better bought in person, like, say, clothing. After all, one company's XL sweater might be significantly smaller than another's, or just simply fit differently. Purchasing online gifts of alcohol, meanwhile, usually entails in-person delivery with signature required. And buyer always beware! We currently have the all-new Holiday Scam for 2025 that we uncovered in the preceding essay. But instead of itemizing a litany of "dont's," we present a trio useful gift suggestions:


THREE ONLINE GIFT RECOMMENDATIONS FOR 2025


All-Purpose Wine Glasses

Whether or not we like to admit it, wine glasses are consumable goods in that they all eventually break. That means that a gift of wine glasses-- usually sold in sets of 4 or 6-- will surely come into use at some point. But what about all those different glass shapes? What if you accidentally buy, say, "Bordeaux Glasses" for a Pinot Noir lover, or maybe "White Wine Glasses" for a sparkling wine devotee? Fear not, Dear Reader-- the good news is that such specificity is mostly marketing B.S., and also that this season we are in the midst of the current fad of "all-purpose" wine glasses that are considered suitable for ALL wines-- red, white, rosé, and sparkling.


So off I went in search of "all-purpose wine glasses" on my favorite glassware sites, only to recoil with sticker shock at all the $35+/per glass price-tags. But then I realized that a glass needn't be labeled "all-purpose" in order to perfectly function as such. It took a little detective work, but I traced the origin of my own favorite wine glass from a premium winery that sells them etched with their logo back to the actual manufacturer and thence to AMAZON.


Behold, your Grumpy Old Mansplainer's go-to all-purpose wine glass, and this season's top recommendation for glassware gifting:


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The SCHOTT-ZWIESEL "Pure Sauvignon Blanc White Wine Glass" needn't be used solely for Sauvignon Blanc, nor even confined to white wines only. It is large enough (14 oz.) to properly aerate a full-blown red, skinny enough to vertically channel Champenoise bubbles... and cheap enough (at $12/stem) to accidentally break without ruining your evening.


Want an even better deal? If you care to purchase a dozen glasses and either keep some (or ALL) for yourself or maybe divvy them up for multiple recipients, Bed, Bath, & Beyond currently sells the American-made and similarly-shaped RESERVE by LIBBEY PRISM ALL-PURPOSE WINE GLASS (16 oz.) for $83.59/12.



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Scrumptious holiday nibbles from Vosges Haut-Chocolat


Premium Chocolate

Who among us doesn't love chocolate? (I personally cannot fully trust anyone who doesn't.) Sending chocolate is risky during warmer months, but your Christmas Season gift of premium chocolate is nearly certain to arrive safely. And since we're talking about Christmas gifts, let us be mindful that perfectly good Halloween candy-- like Hershey's Special Dark Bars and even those individually-wrapped Lindt Balls-- don't quite cut it on December 25th. Aim higher. Godiva and See’s are always good options; my current go-to mail-order chocolatier is the Chicago-based VOSGES HAUT-CHOCOLAT.



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The soul-warming fantasy of Christmas in Vermont, as depicted in

a jigsaw puzzle from VERMONT CHRISTMAS COMPANY.


Anything Vermont

If you're still stumped in your search for the perfect mail-order gift for a special someone on your list, we recommend you turn to the Green Mountain State, i.e., Vermont. Thanks in large part to Hallmark, Vermont has become synonymous with an old-school, snow-and-pine-bough White Christmas. The good folks at THE VERMONT COUNTRY STORE have created an online retail juggernaut offering Vermont-themed knick-knacks, edible goodies, and warm, fuzzy clothing for indoors and out.


* * * * * * * * *


Having settled our holiday shopping for now, we turn to...


CHRISTMAS MUSIC!


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I've long loved to listen to the various Christmas channels on satellite radio, but it gets more difficult every year because of two factors-- one, they tend to severely silo the yuletide favorites into ever more specific categories; and two, way too many current singers try to compensate for their musical mediocrity by what might be charitably described as "over-vocalizing." The good news is that the "Holiday Traditions" channel is especially good this year, focusing on what I call the "Golden Age of Pop Christmas Albums." In particular, SONGS FOR A MERRY CHRISTMAS (Wayne Newton, 1966) is suddenly getting plenty of airplay this year... a heretofore lesser-known album from a singer whose substantial musical chops have long been overshadowed by his downright effeminate high tenor and irrepressible Vegas show biz persona. Highly recommended!


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Here's a short list of some other all-time classic Christmas albums from established stars in their musical primes. (Pro-tip: When a major performer issues multiple Christmas albums, ALWAYS seek out the earliest one. I'm not sure why, but it is always their best.)


Bing Crosby-- Merry Christmas, 1947 (The ORIGINAL Christmas Album)

Elvis Presley-- Elvis' Christmas Album, 1957 (Elvis wins over the parents of his fans)

Frank Sinatra-- A Jolly Christmas from Frank Sinatra, 1957 (Frankie has feelings, too)

Phil Spector-- A Christmas Gift for You, 1963 (The greatest pop Christmas album EVER!)

The Beach Boys-- The Beach Boys Christmas Album, 1964 (Why NOT? BTW, it's great)

Dean Martin-- The Dean Martin Christmas Album, 1966 (Making Christmas cool)

The Carpenters-- Christmas Portrait, 1978 (Carols from the pure heart of a songbird)

Celine Dion-- These Are Special Times, 1998 (Her "O, Holy Night" buckles my knees)



And finally, last year my bride Andrea & I meticulously sorted through the entire cannon of pop Christmas music in search of the absolute best versions. And so, for your convenience and listening pleasure, here we go-- in song title alphabetical order-- 67 of our holiday favorites.


Vince Vance & the Valiants All I Want for Christmas is You 

George Winston Carol of the Bells (instrumental)

Robert Goulet/Carol Lawrence Carol of the Bells (vocal)

Nat King Cole The Christmas Song

Dominic Hauser/Katie Campbell Christmas Vacation Theme

Amy Grant & Marc Martel The Christmas Waltz

Whitney Houston Do You Hear What I Hear?

Andy Williams The First Nöel

Barenaked Ladies/Sarah McLachlan God Rest You Merry Gentlemen

Wilson Phillips Hey, Santa!

Natalie Cole The Holly & The Ivy

Frank Sinatra Jingle Bells

Dean Martin Let it Snow

Wayne Newton, Let it Snow  (Both versions are too fabulous to choose only 1.)

Bing Crosby/David Bowie Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth

Dean Martin Marshmallow World

Kenny Rogers/Wynona Judd Mary, Did You Know?

Harry Belafonte Mary’s Boy Child

Elvis Presley Merry Christmas, Baby

Salsoul Orchestra Merry Christmas All

Frank Sinatra Mistletoe & Holly

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky The Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a

Josh Groban/ Mormon Tabernacle Choir O, Come, All Ye Faithful

Dusty Springfield O Holy Child

Celine Dion O, Holy Night

Roy Orbison Pretty Paper

Chuck Berry Run Rudolph Run

Eartha Kitt Santa Baby

André Rieu Silent Night (instrumental, mostly)

Elvis Presley Silent Night (vocal)

Diana Ross & the Supremes Silver Bells

The Boston Pops Orchestra Sleigh Ride (instrumental)

Carpenters Sleigh Ride (vocal)

Stevie Wonder Someday at Christmas

Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gorme That Holiday Feeling

The Who Village Choir Trim Up the Tree

Kelly Clarkson Underneath the Tree

Angela Lansbury We Need a Little Christmas 

Dolly Parton We Three Kings

Bing Crosby White Christmas



Merry Christmas everyone! And heartfelt thanks to all who have joined us around DANNY'S TABLE in 2025. Here's to a wonderful 2026 filled with joy and love.






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