Leona Lewis didn’t really cover “Last Christmas” at least not to our knowledge. But someone did think her song “Bleeding Love” would sound interesting over “Last Christmas.” And there you have it.

Wham! vs. Leona Lewis – Bleeding Christmas


Despite being named Country & Eastern Band, this Swedish group is very jazzy, smooth, and even a bit mathrocky, but only just a bit. I picture Sarah McLachlan doing a show with Rock Action-era Mogwai. This comes from their 2007 set, Country & Eastern Christmas, with a bunch of other really awesome takes on traditional Swedish holiday songs available on amazon or from klicktrack.

Country & Eastern Band & Friends – Last Christmas

Vintage System another solid house/dance/electronic/whatever version for those of you who like to dance your butts off every Christmas.

Vintage System – Last Christmas


and finally, here’s the video to the Nicotine version we featured in ’06.

Today, we are doing a special second post! We wanted to highlight these versions in particular as they were recorded just for us!


Oh, how we love Max, aka Applied Communications. This was recorded live on Dec. 20th on a rooftop in Guadalajara, Mexico. What’s interesting is this is the first version to our knowledge that includes a bit from the lost-love’s perspective. Also, I’m not sure if Max planned this, but the dog barking in the background really adds a level of dejection that the original version seems to need. It’s brief but brilliant! You can see the video of the event here.

Of his current projects, Max says, “I have a brand new 6 song EP called “III”, I’m currently on a tour of the US and Mexico (about half of which is with my good buddy emperor x), and my website has a ton of free mp3s. Life is awesome.”

Applied Communications – Last Christmas


Matt Saunders has this to say about his band’s version:

“I was actually planning on recording a version of Wham!‘s “Last Christmas” before I came across your site. I was aware of maybe one or two covers… but I don’t think I would have ever guessed around 150. At first, I was dismayed that so many people had covered it, but then after giving it some thought, I decided to go through with it and be a part of something special. This song really is a little gem… This track is also located at the myspace of my band, Bear Flag Revolt. It used to be a full band that played indie pop/rock tunes, but we’re going through some turnover right now. I’m currently trying to sort of re-imagine the band’s sound. We’ve been on a little hiatus this past month, but I wanted to give myself a project and ‘Last Christmas’ is what came out. Hope you guys enjoy!”

Ok, so maybe this one wasn’t just for us, but it’s a new version all the same, and we appreciate the honor of premiering it. Thanks, Matt!

Bear Flag Revolt – Last Christmas


UPDATE: We have one more entry into the exclusives category that we were unable to post earlier due to… well… Christmas stuff. But we can safely say this is one of the most intriguing versions to become a part of your next holiday mix. The Return of the Ice Cube Trays have taken it upon themselves to not record lyrics, instead sampling movie lines to create the vocals. Genius! It’s amazing because it adds a level of separation between songwriter and object of affection. Does that make it more sincere in its inability to directly communicate?

Return of the Ice Cube Trays – Last Christmas

For the past few years, the Parenthetical Girls have released Holiday EPs, the first of which had a pretty awesome version of “Last Christmas.” (This year’s EP has a track called “Last Christmas part 2,” but they say it’s related to the original only by name, so we’re not going to post it.) At the Parenthetical Girls site, you can find a few more Christmas gems and songs from their other releases as well. I’m not sure how to best describe how engaging their music is, so I’ll let Pitchfork help me out: “Xiu Xiu fans hungry for the new nervousness would do well to seek out the work of … Zac Pennington’s Parenthetical Girls, for a strong dose of panic-pop.” Panic pop? Ok, sounds good to me.

Well, we had the great pleasure to see the Parenthetical Girls when they came through town a month or so ago. Lead singer Zac Pennington took a minute and talked to us about his version and his love for holiday music in general, and then somehow we convinced him to give us a hand with today’s reviews. He got a good day, too; all today’s tracks are Magical Snowflake Award winners!

San Francisco-based blogger David Parrish is amazing. Not only did he send us several versions of “Last Christmas,” but he also took the helm for today’s song commentary. That means a much-needed rest for all of our ears at Last Christmas HQ. Thank you, David Parrish. Thank you…