Customer Reviews

Too Many Santas

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you're a fan of the Bobs, you already have this CD, so I'll direct myself to those who aren't already familiar with this a cappella treasure: the Bobs are an a cappella quartet who have been around for some time. They do fine covers, but their true forte is their originals, often written from a cheerfully twisted point of view. This, their Christmas album, is no exception.

These are not your usual Christmas songs: "Fifty Kilowatt Tree" describes the ultimate holiday light one-upsmanship; "Do You Hear What I Hear, Man?" is the cool Christmas medley Miles should've done; "Yuleman vs. the Anti-Claus" is an audio Christmas comic for all you burned out holiday shoppers. Buy it; it will raise your spirits...and remember, the Anti-Claus must die!

If you are not familiar with The Bobs, this Christmas record will be something like your first roller-coaster ride. Not only is it hilarious - at times it is amazingly poignant and sentimental, sometimes biting social commentary. ALL the Bobs disks are fine art, but Christmas would be far less festive without Too Many Santas.

This is a Christmas CD by my favorite a capella group. If you are familiar with the Bobs, you know what to expect. If not, let me describe the songs for you:

1. "Yuleman vs. the Anti-Claus" tells the epic tale of a battle between a Christmas themed superhero and his arch-enemy, the evil opposite of Santa Claus.
2. "Mambo, Santa, Mambo" is a remake of an obscure song recorded by the Enchanters back in 1956.
3. "Too Many Santas" is a comical song about seeing too many people dressed up like Santa Claus.
4. "Christmas in Jail" is a remake of an obscure song by the Youngsters about the dangers of drinking and driving.
5. "Santa's Got a Brand New Bag" features guest narration by Dr. Katz.
6. "Fifty Kilowatt Tree" is a hilarious song about a guy with an overdone Christmas display in his yard, and it's my personal favorite on the album.
7. "The Night Before the Night Before Christmas" is a country song about D-I-V-O-R-C-E.
8. "Do You Hear What I Hear, Man?" is an "instrumental" without instruments.
9. "Christmas in L.A." is a humorous song about...well, it's pretty obvious from the title.
10. "Mrs. Claus Wants Some Lovin'" is a gender changed version of an obsure Christmas song.
11. "Rasta Reindeer" is a reggae version of the Beach Boys best known Christmas song.
12. "All I Want For Christmas" is the only "serious" song on the album. It's a touching song about missing your loved ones at the holidays.

I give this CD my highest recommendation. Only Scrooge and the Grinch wouldn't like this album.

The Bobs are amazing! This holiday CD has some of the most obscure songs... Don't get me wrong, this is not an insult. You will laugh so hard you will hurt! The lyrics are so intelligent and the stories told within are hilarious. If you don't own this you should and you should also listen/buy their other records: "coaster";  "i brow club";  "plugged";  "the bobs cover the songs of...";  "shut up and sing!";  "the bobs sing the songs of..."; "best of the bobs";  "songs for tomorrow morning"; "my, i'm large"; and "the bobs". i highly recommend their cover albums - it's amazing to hear the likes of the doors, the beatles and johnny cash Bobs style!

Everything the Bobs do is enormously entertaining. However, this is the only Christmas disk I've ever left in the CD changer all year long. The lyrics are hilarious, the delivery is impeccable, and the attitude is contagious. This is the one MUST BUY gift for all your friends around the holidays. P.S. If you ever get to see them in concert, do so.

In typical Bobs style, this album is simply hysterical and about as irreverent a holiday album as I think I've ever heard. Tired of those usual Christmas hymns and carols? This album is certainly unique, even for The Bobs. From Richard Bob singing about spending Christmas in jail for drinking and driving, to Joe Bob screeching about "searching for the real santa" between all those men in red suits, to Dr. Katz completely (and wonderfully) butchering "The Night Before Christmas," to Matthew Bob providing wonderful imagery of Christmas in Los Angeles (think "carols of millions of car alarms") to the surprise of a Christmas divorce ("The Night Before The Night Before Christmas") to a Beach Boys classic ("Little Deuce Coupe") with a completely new twist ("Rasta Reindeer - Little Saint Nick")... this album is a wonderful addition to the holiday collection and certainly a great break from the typical Christmas music.

Even with all of the usual and not-so-usual nonsense, Joe Bob finds time for one last (serious) capper, "All I Want for Christmas," which is a touching reminiscence of friends and Christmas' past... an original that alone makes this album worth adding to your collection - certainly one of Joe's best, in my opinion. Perhaps my best memory of this album is seeing The Bobs live for a holiday concert at the Freight and Salvage in Berkeley, CA and seeing them perform this album as a large portion of the evening.

You can never go wrong with The Bobs. They're funny, they're intelligent, and they produce incredible sounds from various parts of their respective bodies.

Perhaps my expectations for this CD were just too high -- after all, I absolutely love The Bobs, especially Coaster and i Brow Club. And I also love good Christmas tunes, so I was all excited when I found and ordered this one.

And it's certainly an entertaining enough CD, with the usual charming lyrics. It's just that - for me at least - the music itself wasn't nearly as attention grabbing as with my other CDs by them -- I kept forgetting the CD was on, as the music just faded to the background of my attention.

Still worth buying though -- either for the perennial Bobs fan, or just for someone looking for some Christmas music that's far from the standard fare.