Why is it that at ‘the most wonderful’ time of the year’, we like to get into the spirit with such sad songs? The Christmas season is known for its festive cheer, twinkling lights, and heart-warming moments with our loved ones. But for many, it doubles as the perfect time for a good cry.
Think of the bittersweet longing of Wham’s “Last Christmas”, one of the biggest hits this time of year. A song that tells the tale of heartache and unfulfilled love during the holidays, of vulnerability and disappointment. A song that captures the pain of remembering a lost love in a season meant for joy, masked by a bright melody. Songs like this remind us that it’s okay to feel mixed emotions at the Christmas season, that it’s okay not to be okay.
According to OfficalCharts.com, it is the second most played Christmas song of all time, losing only to Mariah Carey’s iconic “All I want for Christmas Is You”. Why, amidst such a joyous season, are we drawn to such melancholy songs?
The answer likely lies here: the holidays aren’t just about decorating trees, exchanging presents, and sitting down for a festive feast, they can also be about looking back on the year and feeling the tug of nostalgia on our hearts. As the year comes to a close, we naturally find ourselves looking back on what we’ve achieved, what we’ve done, who we’ve met, and who we’ve loved. What we’ve gained, and what we’ve lost. Songs like Wham’s ‘Last Christmas’, Elvis Presley’s ‘Blue Christmas’, Judy Garland’s ‘Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas’ and many more can feel cathartic for those going through a tough time, surrounded by joy they feel like they’re meant to be experiencing.
Recently, Bleachers hopped on the bandwagon of the heart-tugging holiday music tradition with their new release “Merry Christmas, Please Don’t Call”. The track encapsulates the bittersweet emotions many of us so often feel this time of year. It explores the boundaries we sometimes need to protect our hearts at such a time where nostalgia and reminiscing are so prominent.
The sadness of Christmas music can also, paradoxically, provide us with a strange sense of comfort. Students at the University of Southern California in 2015 found that these solemn festive songs that deal with emotions like sorrow, grief and heartache can actually have an effect of healing on our brains.
A common theme of many of our favourite melancholy tracks about Christmas is romantic heartache. It makes sense that as the year comes to an end and we celebrate a holiday that comes around every year that many feel saddened as we mourn what the holidays could have looked like with a lost love. It’s the ‘what if’s and the power of our imaginations that ignite such a melancholy feeling within us.
Sad Christmas songs may not be the jolly jingles that blare from every store, but they resonate deeply with so many of us because they’re real. They reflect the full range of our emotions that the holiday season brings – nostalgia, love, loss and hope. So, if you find yourself unable to take that bittersweet song off loop this year, let it remind you that Christmas isn’t just about the joy we share, but also about embracing everything that we feel during this time. And that, in itself, is a gift worth cherishing.
Ellie Jupp
Featured image courtesy of Jack Sharp via Unsplash. Image use license found here . No changes were made to this image.
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