The rise and fall of Christmas music
圣诞音乐的兴衰史
Christmas music as we know it was born in 1963, when Phil Spector corralled his stable of singers into the studio to record “A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector”. Until then, there had only been schmaltzy carols and easy listening staples, with occasional hints of a party tune.
众所周知，圣诞音乐诞生于 1963 年，当时菲尔·斯佩克特把一群歌手聚集到录音室，录制了《菲尔·斯佩克特送给你的圣诞礼物》。在那之前，圣诞音乐只有一些伤感煽情的颂歌和轻松舒缓的主打歌，偶尔也会有一些欢乐的旋律。
Mr Spector made the first Christmas album that managed to be both thrilling and seasonal. It sounded like the Christmas party, not the snooze after Christmas dinner. So these days you can find heavy metal Christmas albums, funk Christmas albums and punk Christmas albums.
斯佩克特先生制作了第一张既扣人心弦又具有季节气息的圣诞专辑。它听起来像是圣诞派对，而不是圣诞晚餐后的昏昏欲睡。于是，现在你可以找到各种重金属风、乡村爵士风、朋克摇滚风的圣诞专辑。
Britain has embraced the Christmas single: between 1974 and 1990, nine of the number ones on Christmas Day were explicitly festive records. In America, meanwhile, there has never been a seasonal song at number one at Christmas in the Billboard Hot 100. Perhaps the Christmas single has lost some of its lustre.
圣诞单曲在英国广受欢迎：从 1974 年至 1990 年，在圣诞节当天排名第一的单曲中，有九首具有明显节日气氛的单曲。然而，在美国的圣诞节，从来没有一首应季歌曲登上《公告牌》百强单曲榜的榜首。也许圣诞单曲已经失去了它昔日的光彩。
Yet the Christmas album remains a regular feature on the release schedule of major artists. This year, for example, there is one album called “Christmas Party” from the Monkees. The people they aim at are middle-aged, trying to recreate their old Christmases of Slade or the Pogues.
然而，圣诞专辑的发行仍然是主流艺人日程安排表上的常规计划。例如，今年有一张来自门基乐队、名为《圣诞派对》的专辑。他们的目标人群是那些中年人们，而这些人试图重现播放着斯莱德乐队或者泼格斯乐队音乐的老式圣诞节。
In a sense, then, Christmas records have returned to their pre-Spector purpose. Forget the teenagers: they’re in their bedrooms on Spotify, YouTube or Netflix. But in the living room, the adults have pulled on the Christmas sweaters and poured the egg nog. Now, what will it be, Bing Crosby or Eric Clapton?
从某种意义上说，圣诞节唱片又有了在斯佩克特出现之前的意图。别去管那些青少年：他们都在自己的卧室里浏览 Spotify、YouTube 或 Netflix。但在客厅里，大人们已经穿上了圣诞毛衣，倒上了蛋奶酒。那么，接下来该播放点什么呢，是平·克劳斯贝还是埃里克·克莱普顿？
