Ken Kessler from the Sounds of Christmas wraps up the ten-day countdown of the most-listened-to and most-downloaded episodes of the Sounds of Christmas podcast with this one from from Christmas 2024!
In this episode, Ken thanks you for listening and wishes you a Merry Christmas!
Happy Halloween! Tonight or tomorrow little trick or treaters will be out getting candy… what a perfect time to listen another spooky Christmas story for Halloween! Tonight’s tale is called “The Judge’s House”, by the master of horror Bram Stoker. The story seems simple enough – a college student in need of a quiet place to study, rents an old house that that belonged to a judge whose cruelty was renowned. While his malignant portrait oversees the room, the rats come out to play…
It may surprise you to learn that this tale was first published in a Christmas magazine in 1891. The Victorians, it seems, loved a good ghost story with their holiday cheer! I hope you find this story as delightfully chilling as I did while reading it for you.
56 Days until Christmas. This week on the podcast, since it is Halloween week, I am going to talk about the spookier side of Christmas
Today’s episode is all about The Winter Spirits
If you would like to pick up the Closer to Christmas Coloring Book that I released, for yourself, or as a gift for someone, you can do so, by clicking here: https://a.co/d/7n5QjOr… can follow me here: @closertoxmas You can also email me, I would love to hear your feedback. Email me at closertochristmaspodcast@gmail.com Please rate and review the podcast wherever you are listening, it helps spread the word, and I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. To check out any visual component to this epidode, check out my Youtube page: / @closertochristmas…
If you would like to check out my ko-fi page, and support me as an artist, you can follow this link: (5) Ko-fi.com – Your Ko-fi and click on the shop page to get some free, or pay what you like christmas phone wallpapers!
And finally, and HUGE thank you to my brother, Kevin, for allowing me to use his music throughout my show. If you like what you hear, you can pick up his album on Itunes, which can be found here: A solstice night on Apple music or A Solstice Night on Amazon (https://amazon.com/music/player/album…)
Grab your cocoa (or should we say cuppa?), because the Christmas Cousins are going international! This week, Cousin Chad welcomes back our favorite English cousin, Craig the Christmas Guy 365, for a festive cultural exchange that’s part Downton Abbey, part Home Alone 2: Lost in Translation.
First up: Halloween in the UK. Why do some Brits think it’s a bit too spooky—or too American? We dive into how the holiday differs across the pond, and why it still raises an eyebrow or two.
Then it’s on to Craig’s must-do Christmas checklist—the traditions, treats, and twinkling moments that make his season complete. What’s he most looking forward to this year? And what new festivities are on his radar?
Finally, Craig flips the script: what does he want to see Cousin Seth try, taste, or tackle next on his Christmas journey? From mince pies to mistletoe mishaps, nothing’s off the table (or the pudding).
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/ChristmasCousinsLogoSmallerFont.png10241280e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2025-10-30 03:49:002025-10-30 06:49:25Across the Pond & Under the Mistletoe: A Very British Halloween & Christmas with Craig the Christmas Guy
The elves are working overtime on this week’s edition of Merry Minutes, the weekly holiday news update from the #1 ranked Christmas podcast, Christmas Countdown, hosted by your favorite festive duo — Eric Petersen and Danny Jordan!
In this massively merry episode, Eric and Danny unwrap the latest breaking Christmas stories lighting up the season, including:
🎥 The brand-new A Christmas Story-adjacent documentary “Fragilé”, focused on a town divided over a massive leg lamp installed in the middle of a small town in Oklahoma
🏠 D23’s “On the Road” event series celebrating the 35th Anniversary of Home Alone — and yes, it’s packed with holiday magic and nostalgic fun
👻 Johnny Depp stepping into the role of Ebenezer Scrooge for a dark, cinematic new take on A Christmas Carol that’s already stirring up buzz
Of course, Eric and Danny deliver all the holiday humor, heart, and holly-jolly banter you know and love — with a few surprises along the way!
🎅 Big News Alert! The wait is over — Season 5 of Christmas Countdown has officially launched on all podcast platforms! Tune in for brand-new countdowns, festive games, and the most wonderful laughs of the year.
🎁 Show Some Christmas Spirit: Love what you hear? Please rate and review the show on your favorite podcast app, and make sure to follow @ChristmasCountdownShow on social media for daily doses of holiday cheer, updates, and behind-the-scenes fun!
So grab your cocoa, plug in the twinkle lights, and join Eric and Danny for another merry ride through the most magical Christmas news of the week!
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/FSWNSkrVkAAeN_d.jpg10801080e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2025-10-30 01:48:242025-10-30 06:48:47Merry Minutes: Johnny Depp’s Dark Christmas Carol, Home Alone Celebration & “Fragilé” Documentary
What’s up, dudes? Little #1 herself, Cecilia, and Art Kilmer from A Cozy Christmas join me to talk about the cat who hates Mondays: Garfield! That’s right! It’s “Garfield’s Halloween Adventure!”
Garfield wakes up to discover that it’s Halloween! Hearing about candy, he decides to go trick or treating. After scaring Jon, he drags Odie upstairs to try on some costumes. Ultimately, the duo decide on pirate costumes.
As the night passes, they fill their bags with candy until they run out of houses. Spotting more across a river, the duo traverse and find a dilapidated mansion. The old resident then tells them about some ghost pirates. Of course, the pirates emerge and chase Garfield and Odie. Barely escaping, the return home and the former shares his candy with the latter.
Binky the Clown? Check. Withered old cabin boy? Yep, over a hindered years old! Ghost pirates? Only if they’re scarier than “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl!” So grab your peg leg, out on your eye patch. And trick or treat to this episode on “Garfield’s Halloween Adventure!”
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/7418CA16-2CBF-45F1-893C-8E5ACBC3D471-scaled.jpg25602560e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2025-10-29 23:47:572025-10-30 06:48:14Garfield’s Halloween Adventure (w/ Art and Ceci)
Ken Kessler from the Sounds of Christmas continues the countdown of the ten most-listened-to and most-downloaded episodes of the Sounds of Christmas podcast with this one from November of 2022!
In this episode, Ken talks to Trans-Siberian Orchestra guitarist and music director Al Pitrelli about music, touring and the legacy of Paul O’Neill!
57 Days until Christmas. This week on the podcast, since it is Halloween week, I am going to talk about the spookier side of Christmas
Today’s episode is all about Krampus
If you would like to pick up the Closer to Christmas Coloring Book that I released, for yourself, or as a gift for someone, you can do so, by clicking here: https://a.co/d/7n5QjOr… can follow me here: @closertoxmas You can also email me, I would love to hear your feedback. Email me at closertochristmaspodcast@gmail.com Please rate and review the podcast wherever you are listening, it helps spread the word, and I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. To check out any visual component to this epidode, check out my Youtube page: / @closertochristmas…
If you would like to check out my ko-fi page, and support me as an artist, you can follow this link: (5) Ko-fi.com – Your Ko-fi and click on the shop page to get some free, or pay what you like christmas phone wallpapers!
And finally, and HUGE thank you to my brother, Kevin, for allowing me to use his music throughout my show. If you like what you hear, you can pick up his album on Itunes, which can be found here: A solstice night on Apple music or A Solstice Night on Amazon (https://amazon.com/music/player/album…)
It’s Merry Spooksmas! Merry Britsmas dresses up as a creepy podcast for October and takes a look at Welsh Halloween traditions, creepy monstrous songs by British artists, and goes to Motherland for chaotic trick or treating.
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Christmas-Morning.png20482048e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2025-10-29 01:09:152025-10-29 06:09:328 weeks / 57 days until Christmas! (Instrumental Christmas Song Battle)
Ken Kessler from the Sounds of Christmas continues the countdown of the ten most-listened-to and most-downloaded episodes of the Sounds of Christmas podcast with this one from August of 2021!
In this episode, Ken talks Elvis Presley and his Christmas music legacy!
58 Days until Christmas. This week on the podcast, since it is Halloween week, I am going to talk about the spookier side of Christmas
Today’s episode is all about The Haunting of Ebenezer Scrooge
If you would like to pick up the Closer to Christmas Coloring Book that I released, for yourself, or as a gift for someone, you can do so, by clicking here: https://a.co/d/7n5QjOr… can follow me here: @closertoxmas You can also email me, I would love to hear your feedback. Email me at closertochristmaspodcast@gmail.com Please rate and review the podcast wherever you are listening, it helps spread the word, and I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. To check out any visual component to this epidode, check out my Youtube page: / @closertochristmas…
If you would like to check out my ko-fi page, and support me as an artist, you can follow this link: (5) Ko-fi.com – Your Ko-fi and click on the shop page to get some free, or pay what you like christmas phone wallpapers!
And finally, and HUGE thank you to my brother, Kevin, for allowing me to use his music throughout my show. If you like what you hear, you can pick up his album on Itunes, which can be found here: A solstice night on Apple music or A Solstice Night on Amazon (https://amazon.com/music/player/album…)
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/12165064-1611469236407-b645cb278d3ef.jpg400400e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2025-10-28 08:08:222025-10-29 06:08:3858 Days, The Haunting of Ebenezer Scrooge
It’s a very special week on The Christmas Cousins Podcast, as we continue our crossover with our friends from The Christmas-Aficionado for the Hallmark Happy Hour!
Cousin Chad is joined by the always-jolly Joe the Christmas Aficionado, the festive legend Cousin Lee, and a super special guest — Brian from Deck the Hallmark! Together, they’ll unwrap the much-anticipated new holiday movie “Merry Christmas, Ted Cooper” and pair it with the perfect seasonal beer. 🍺🎅
But wait… where’s Cousin Seth? 🤔 Rumors are swirling. Is he home with a mysterious yuletide illness? Nursing a grudge against Brian from Deck the Hallmark? Or simply too jealous of Joe’s perfectly coiffed Christmas hair? We may never know!
Either way, it’s bound to be a holly-jolly good time — with laughter, festive banter, and maybe even a “Seth on the Lam” segment or two. Tune in and celebrate the chaos, Christmas-style! 🎁
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/ChristmasCousinsLogoSmallerFont.png10241280e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2025-10-28 03:10:442025-10-28 06:11:09Merry Christmas, Ted Cooper: A Hallmark Happy Hour with Deck The Hallmark’s Brian!
What’s up, dudes? They’re a legendary metal band whose songs were played all the time on MTV. Yes, we’re talking Stryper! I’ve got the incredibleMichael Sweet with me to talk about their 1984 singles “Reason for the Season” and “Winter Wonderland!” We also dive into their new album The Greatest Gift of Allavailable this year in November.
The boys lay down an eighth note riff in “Reason for the Season,” and modulate for the chorus. The song is full of their dual lead guitar, harmonized in 3rds for texture and interest. After coming to a rocked out climax, it ends with harmonics and acoustic and clean tone electrics. The tight vocal pads give an ethereal feeling contrasting with the previous heavy straightforward rock vibe.
Released in December ‘84, the single had a Stryperized version of the classic “Winter Wonderland” as a B-side. This time the band gave the song a swing eighth-triplet riff. After some introductory dialogue, they launch into it, and segue nicely into a triplet dual lead solo. Uniquely, a turnaround transitions to an Elvis inspired bluesy half time rendition of the chorus.
And now, this year the band has a new Christmas album! Stryper The Greatest Gift of All is full of classics and original tunes. From a lush and calming “Silent Night” to an uptempo “Joy to the World,” it has it all. The album even ends with re-recordings of their two ‘80s singles, updating them sonically and ending with a bang!
Guitar? Check. Soaring vocals? Yep. Full on Stryper vibes? Definitely! So grab your axe, put on your Christmas pajamas, and rock out to this episode on Stryper The Greatest Gift of All!
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/7418CA16-2CBF-45F1-893C-8E5ACBC3D471-scaled.jpg25602560e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2025-10-27 23:10:012025-10-28 06:10:36Stryper “The Greatest Gift of All” (w/ Michael Sweet)
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/TGI-Podcast-New.jpg10801080e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2025-10-27 23:09:302025-10-28 06:09:51Home Improvement: Let Them Eat Cake
Ken Kessler from the Sounds of Christmas continues the countdown of the ten most-listened-to and most-downloaded episodes of the Sounds of Christmas podcast with this one from September of 2022!
In this episode, Ken is joined by Gerry D from the Totally Rad Christmas podcast and Scott from the Holly Jolly X’masu podcast to weigh in on a list of the “Best 80s Christmas songs”, and then they come up with their own lists!
https://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/christmaspodcasts.jpg15001500e_xanderhttps://christmaspodcasts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/logo4-300x138.pnge_xander2025-10-27 18:51:242025-10-27 18:51:24Christmas Podcasts Roundup – October 18th through October 24th, 2025
/ @closertochristmas… 
