Charlie Poole and holiday hangovers

Stats say that during the holidays the suicide rate goes up and it's understandable. With all of the forced cheer, it starts to drive you crazy and wonder "why aren't I feeling THAT happy...?" Since the real meaning of any holiday spirit is usually drown in buying frenzies, that's just another reason to get depressed or feel like Scrooge. But one upshot of the season is that sometimes we do get to hear some decent music that it inspires. I don't mean all those anonymous choirs that sing the holiday hits endlessly in stores but some artists who try some variations on the usual sludge. I covered four recent CD's that fit the bill nicely for Seattle Weekly including Brian Wilson's wonderful What I Really Want for Christmas , a wonderfully bizarre Ze records compilation, a alt-country benefit for children's transplants and a Kosher nosh.

Another late '05 entry that's helped ease in the new year is the Charlie Poole box set You Ain't Talkin' To Me. You have every right to get P.O.'d at Sony for their rootkit mess but praise 'em for the wonderful package: worthy of Revenant Records, it comes in a mock cigar box with huge booklet. Along with Poole's fun, scrappy tunes, you get other contemporaries and precedents and influences. It's a fun history lesson for sure. You've probably seen this exotic little item propped up in your favorite store, wondering if you should take the plunge. You just bought an armful of presents for family and friends so trust your instincts and indulge yourself.