Welcome back to the Virtual Advent Tour! Today’s host is me!

Music is so important to making my holidays what they are. I grew up in a household where a stereo was always on, and my dad has been a big proponent of making Christmas mixes since before I was born. So I thought today I’d share three songs for your holiday listening pleasure that I’ve encountered for the first time this year:

The first is a re-imagined “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” updated for a #MeToo world. While I agree with those who say that it’s not the original intention of the song’s writers to make it seem creepy, I think some of the actions described in the song, combined with the frequent age discrepancies between the male and female singers in the duet, hit a little too close to reports from survivors of sexual assault/harassment to make it a completely comfortable song for me to listen to. Your mileage may vary, and I respect that, but for others who’ve moved away from the song, this version from Lydia Liza and Josiah Lemanski may give you a way back in:

Phoebe Bridgers (with Jackson Brown) dropped this cover of McCarthy Trenching’s “Christmas Song” last week, and I can see it getting a lot of play at my house this year:

Finally, singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson lost both her parents in the last year and wanted a way to reclaim the holidays at a time that was so hard for her. This version of “All I Want for Christmas Is You” with Leslie Odom Jr. gives you an example of what you’ll find on her new album, Songs for the Season:

That’s it from me. Join us again tomorrow for the Virtual Advent Tour. And if you want to join in with the writing of posts, drop me a line in the comments and we’ll find you a date that works.