ClevelandRox
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Post by ClevelandRox on Dec 29, 2019 11:03:04 GMT -5
The Twelve Days of Christmas gets repetitive, but not one you see covered too often and I really loved what they did with the vocals there.
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born
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Post by born on Dec 29, 2019 12:53:20 GMT -5
“I’ll Be Home For Christmas” is one of my least favorite Christmas songs ever but I found Sara’s Version beautiful.
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taylor
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Post by taylor on Dec 29, 2019 14:02:29 GMT -5
12 Days is easily my least favorite on this record. I love Sara but that "5 golden rings" vocal gets more and more monotonous as the song continues. I loved the addition of her daughters though.
I'll Be Home for Christmas is so over-covered, but Sara does a fine job with it. The acapella Rascal Flatts rendition is my go-to, though.
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bboat11
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Post by bboat11 on Dec 29, 2019 15:55:21 GMT -5
Oh, I said “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” was painful, but I forgot I ranked “O Come All Ye Faithful” lower than it! OCAYF is a really beautiful song...but I can barely listen to Sara’s version 😰 It is soooooo stinking slow. It feels like they took an already-slow song and then decided to make it half its normal speed ⚰️ This could work if it had the arrangement to back it up, but instead they gave us the most dreary, boring arrangement of all time. It has an epic key change, but what’s the point if you can’t hold the listener’s attention for the eternity that comes before the key change???
“Winter Wonderland” is over-covered, and tbh I always forget this version exists even though I enjoy it when I am listening to it. Sara’s arrangement is pretty strong, but doesn’t add anything to the song. It feels a little pointless. I feel that there is much better stuff on the album, so this spot is fine.
IBHFC overstayed 😬 This is one of the worst Christmas songs, regardless of who sings it. However, just like with OCAYF, Sara managed to take an already-slow song and turn it into a downright dreary occasion.
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bboat11
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Post by bboat11 on Dec 29, 2019 15:57:38 GMT -5
Now, I’m going to predict the runaway top 4 was At Christmas, O Holy Night, New Again, and Go Tell It On The Mountain. All of which I would be happy to see win!!!
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.indulgecountry
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Post by .indulgecountry on Dec 30, 2019 0:38:38 GMT -5
The next Christmas standard to go is the classic "Silent Night," of which Sara Evans delivers a beautiful rendition vocally. It's just not one of the most interesting cover songs in the set though, which is likely the reason it wound up in the middle here. The majority of the submissions had this one slotted somewhere in the 5-9 range, indicating a general consensus of "good, but not great." g8erboi does lose a top 3 here, but no bottom 2s are lost.
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.indulgecountry
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"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Dec 30, 2019 0:48:14 GMT -5
Our final Sara Evans Christmas track to miss the top 5 in the rankdown is "Go Tell It on the Mountain," as it lands literally only two points shy of the threshold required to make it to the top 5 (technically three points, because it would've lost the lie due to highest rank -- which yes, means that a #1 loss is upon us next). That said, this song received no #1 ranks from anyone, meaning that aside from the lone #1 loss on "I'll Be Home for Christmas," everyone else's favorite made it into the top 5! Unlike our last reveal, however, this one had clear passion in both directions: d3vin44 loses his #2, but a #11 from ClevelandRox falls (leaving only one more last place rank in play) and another bottom 2 as well. Yet, five others ranked this one top 5, but it wasn't quite enough in the end!
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d3vin44
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Post by d3vin44 on Dec 30, 2019 18:06:52 GMT -5
Sara’s version of Go Tell it on the Mountain, has always been at the top of my Christmas playlist. I only set it at #2, because there is another song on this album that is a vocal masterpiece...
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.indulgecountry
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Post by .indulgecountry on Dec 31, 2019 12:23:37 GMT -5
Two #1 losses to kick off our top 5. Unfortunately, one of them is mine (the other is taylor 's -- who made this sneak back into the top 5 with her final list, so thank you for that!), as "New Again" is the first song to fall in the top 5. This gorgeous duet with Brad Paisley was originally recorded for the soundtrack to The Passion of the Christ in 2004, before later being re-purposed with 3 of her other previously-recorded Christmas tunes for an EP in 2009. The other three ("I'll Be Home for Christmas," "O Come All Ye Faithful," and "Go Tell It on the Mountain") were later featured on the At Christmas album, but sadly, for whatever reason, this song was left off the full-length release. It wasn't without its fans, but it received a last place rank from someguy (the final one that was still in play) and two other bottom 2s.
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taylor
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Post by taylor on Dec 31, 2019 12:27:11 GMT -5
y'all need Jesus
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g8erboi
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Post by g8erboi on Dec 31, 2019 13:14:20 GMT -5
"New Again" is gorgeous. I should have ranked it higher than #5 but at least I didn’t completely fuck it over like some people... lmao
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.indulgecountry
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"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Dec 31, 2019 13:23:51 GMT -5
The next song to go here is "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." Right on the heels of losing his #11, we see someguy as the next unfortunate poster to bid his #1 rank goodbye. It received six other top 5s, which allowed it a comfortable cushion ahead of "New Again" and the thread of being bumped out was alleviated early on. It's a pleasant cover, but I'm definitely just a bit surprised at how well this one performed, honestly.
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bboat11
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Post by bboat11 on Dec 31, 2019 15:06:38 GMT -5
I am a bit shocked that “Go Tell It On The Mountain” did so badly here. It always seems to be highly praised as one of the best versions of the song! I guess we can attribute the low rankings to people who just don’t like the song itself?
“New Again” was done DIRTY. The vocal from both Brad and Sara is beautiful, especially the way their voices blend together. Plus the lyrical perspective is very unique and gets your attention.
It is absolutely tragic that her version of HYAMLC did well enough to be ahead of both of the last two songs... HYAMLC is an odd song, in that it is either one of my favorite Christmas songs, or it is so boring it is barely tolerable, depending on the arrangement. Sara’s arrangement falls into the latter category. Which pains me because she is one of my favorite vocalists, but her version of this song is just plain subpar.
Now, all 3 remaining songs slay, so I’d be happy with any of them winning! I bet it’ll go to “At Christmas” because good original Christmas songs seem to have a bit of an advantage over classics, but I would love to see “O Holy Night” give it a run for its money! Her version of “ Run Rudolph” is my fave version, but defs deserves #3 here.
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Post by tim on Dec 31, 2019 19:26:14 GMT -5
I too thought that “Go Tell It on the Mountain” was almost a lock for a Top 5 finish as it always seemed to be a fan favorite from this album. While I don’t normally seek out this song for Christmas, Sara’s version is quite good and I do have to admit that her live performance of this on the CMA Country Christmas from a few years back certainly helped in my ranking.
I first heard “New Again” when we did Sara’s artist rankdown and I didn’t much care for it then and still feel the same about it now. While I think both Brad and Sara deliver a great performance, I just can’t get into this one.
“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is one of my all-time favorite holiday songs and while Sara’s may not be one of the best I’ve heard I still enjoyed it.
Thrilled to see the Top 3 the same as mine! I still think “At Christmas” has the best shot at winning this….and if I had to take a guess I’d say that “Run Run Rudolph” comes in at #3 with “O Holy Night” coming in at #2. That said, I think it’s going to be quite close between those two songs.
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.indulgecountry
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Post by .indulgecountry on Dec 31, 2019 20:06:24 GMT -5
Coming in with the bronze, it's "Run Rudolph Run"! Sara Evans delivers an absolutely perfect rendition of this song imo, completely nailing the attitude and personality needed to carry this lively Christmas classic. That said, it falls short of the top 2 by eight points, and it received no #1 rankings while our top 2 still have seven between them, which contributed to it coming up short. It was a consistent top 5 throughout the submission process though, and racked up a lot of #2s and #3s.
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.indulgecountry
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"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Dec 31, 2019 20:16:06 GMT -5
It came down to the battle of the country power ballad classic, "O Holy Night," and the boisterous original and title track to Sara's Christmas album, "At Christmas." In the end, the above predictions nailed it as the victory goes to "At Christmas"! Four #1s for the original vs three #1s for the classic, and only two outside the top 5 for the winner vs. three lower ranks for the cover song. "At Christmas" clinched the win in the rankdown with a lead of over 10 points and had basically no threat of ever leaving the pole position as it stayed there for the entire submission process and was even further ahead until the last two submissions came in, which were the two that ranked it outside top 5.
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.indulgecountry
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Post by .indulgecountry on Dec 31, 2019 20:21:03 GMT -5
Enjoy these live performances as an extra bonus!
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Post by tim on Dec 31, 2019 20:37:20 GMT -5
What a finish with a purrrfect ranking coming in for “At Christmas”! I was just jamming out to this album again on my drive home for Christmas and since this was also a first time listen for me it was my favorite holiday album discovery this year. Speaking of favorite discoveries I couldn’t get enough of Sara’s rendition of “Run Rudolph Run”…this just might now be my go-to for this song! “O Holy Night” was another standout and will be one I find myself revisiting again come next season. Thanks again .indulgecountry and I'm looking forward to getting back around to her studio albums!!
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taylor
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Post by taylor on Dec 31, 2019 22:04:22 GMT -5
"New Again" and "At Christmas" are (at least off the top of my head) definitely going to become go-to's for me. I'd forgotten how good this album was! Thanks for hosting .indulgecountry and I'm excited for her next albums!
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bboat11
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Post by bboat11 on Jan 1, 2020 5:48:14 GMT -5
Her version of “Run Rudolph Run” is literally perfect! Everyone is alway like “I love Luke Bryan’s version, it’s the only one I’ll listen to”, and I’m like BITCH PLEASE!!!! Sara friggin’ nails every aspect of this song, from the lively modern arrangement to the fun vocal!!
Her version of “O Holy Night” is an absolute educational moment for all the lessers to take notes on. She SLEIGHS this song. She chews it up and eats it for breakfast. The arrangement is very unique and feels fresh and modern, yet manages to add to the classicness of the song rather than diminishing it. My favorite part is the way it gradually builds for the entire 2nd verse only for the heavens to literally open in all heir glory as she MURDERS that multi-layered “FAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLL ON YOUR KNEEEEEEEEEEESS” vocal ♥️ Unfortunately, this song has a fatal flaw.... The fact that she completely ignores the famous glory note at the end of the song 😢 It would have been especially epic in this version considering how impressively the second chorus leads up to it. I was so thrown off the first time I heard this ending I was like “wtf just happened??” But I have come to appreciate it more over time, and despite that flaw this is still one of my top versions of this song!
(Note: I have heard people say before that that note would be too high for Sara anyway, and she made a choice that would work better for her voice. That is FALSE! It would be an Eb5 if she hit it, which is definitely in a higher key than just about anyone else’s version of this. However, that is the very same note that she attacks with gusto in the second half of “Run Rudolph Run”, with the “HE SAID ALL I want for Christmas is a rock and roll electric guitar...” Not to mention she hit them repeatedly in “Niagara”, and her high range has only gotten more powerful as time has gone on. Sooooooo clearly she had no reason to not hit the note...)
“At Christmas” is such an awesome modern Christmas classic! Perfect winner for this Rankdown 😍 I love the arrangement and the way Sara sings it. With how rushed this album was, it is pretty amazing that she was able to find such a strong original song to carry the project! Glad to see it win, even though it was my #2 beating my #1.
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.indulgecountry
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"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Feb 9, 2020 21:54:55 GMT -5
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bboat11
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Post by bboat11 on Feb 10, 2020 0:34:04 GMT -5
Totally here for it! Let's get this one out of the way!! 😂
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.indulgecountry
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"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Feb 15, 2020 19:51:37 GMT -5
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.indulgecountry
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"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Feb 21, 2020 23:35:46 GMT -5
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.indulgecountry
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Post by .indulgecountry on Feb 27, 2020 18:38:15 GMT -5
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LBTrocks
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Post by LBTrocks on Feb 27, 2020 20:10:49 GMT -5
So many RDs omg. I should be able to get this one done cuz it's short.
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taylor
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Post by taylor on Feb 29, 2020 11:59:31 GMT -5
Listening to Trisha's "Every Girl" album at the moment, and will follow it up with this one :)
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d3vin44
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Post by d3vin44 on Feb 29, 2020 20:27:07 GMT -5
Super excited for this!
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.indulgecountry
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"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Feb 29, 2020 22:46:09 GMT -5
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ClevelandRox
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Post by ClevelandRox on Mar 1, 2020 11:41:25 GMT -5
Working on this and Lori today! Trisha didn't even tag me for reminders so not sad I missed that one.
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