Lead vocalist Michael Sweet tries to get the rest of the band involved – and they refuse. Regardless – Stryper has a lot of fun with Winter Wonderland. You would think that Twisted Sister would have one on their Christmas album – nope! Surprisingly – the only hard rock/metal version of Winter Wonderland I can find is Stryper’s. So who cares about the whys and wherefores? Stryper (1986) All in all – Winter Wonderland works surprisingly well as a Mariachi version. Those of us who know Steve’s music were not surprised – but still bewildered. Why he chose Mariachi, no one really knows. This was actually the last song he recorded before his first retirement as a solo artist. We’re not sure why – but the official lore says he found the backing band in the yellow pages at the last minute. Steve Taylor did a mariachi version of Winter Wonderland. Maybe that’s the reason for the first part – maybe the sense of dread adds to the pleasure we receive as we emerge into the song. We feel like we’re in a big cloud of happiness. There’s the mellow parts of the song we all know and love. I legitimately get the sense of dread while listening.Īnd then there’s relief. Seriously – the first part of Winter Wonderland, the part that so many versions omit, sounds kind of spooky. With the Eurythmics version of Winter Wonderland, we get an ethereal trip down a rabbit hole, only to emerge in a candy coated chorus. My parents listened to a lot of oldies radio – and I have vague memories of my mom dancing around to this version. Love’s “Winter Wonderland is a basic early 60s girl R&B group version – but then again, can you really apply the monicor of “basic” to anything Darlene Love sings? Eurythmics (1987) Love’s version of Winter Wonderland reminds me of childhood. Oh – and Tony Bennett is pretty good too, but that goes without saying. Lady Gaga earned my respect for her talent by not only pairing up with Tony Bennett, but also stepping out of the modern pop genres she was known for when they recorded this song. This version of “Winter Wonderland” really made me see her as more than just a top 40 musician actually. Lady Gaga does an amazing job on the female vocals. This version feels similar to Bing’s version – but we have a lot more horns! Oh, and this version is a duet. Regardless – how can we resist the amazing baritone blues Bing brings? Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga (2014) One wonders if they’re in a Las Vegas casino – and what kind of winter wonderland one might find in the middle of the Mojave Desert. Bing gives us a version that one could easily sip cocktails to. Let’s start with a classic, crooner version. Sure – some versions are dull and boring – but some versions are exciting and eccentric! So…walk with me as I explore several versions of this odd holiday classic. One thing I love about this specific song, is that Winter Wonderland can be sung in just about any genre. There’s “Let it Snow,” there’s “A Marshmallow World,” there’s “Sleigh Ride.” My favorite winter song, however, has to be Winter Wonderland. I will admit, these songs are kind of fun. Heck – I even included a melody of wintery songs in my Christmas Playlist. Still – winter songs have become a staple of our holiday music repertoire. Ok, ok, so we did have snow last Christmas – but that was a fluke! The point is – the whole “walking in a winter wonderland” = The holidays thing is totally stupid as so many of the “holiday” celebrating people of the world don’t even see snow during the holidays. A typical December night in Portland, Oregon. Sure – it’s cold, but there is no snow! We might get some snow later on in the winter (usually January or even February), but almost never in December. I’m looking out the window right now and there’s nothing but dry asphalt on the road. This kind of infuriates me for a few reasons. One peculiarity of “holiday” music is the celebration of snow and ice winter wonderland.
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