"Hard Candy Christmas" with Alexandra Scott

When I first conceived of “The 12 Songs of Christmas,” I imagined singer Alexandra Scott as my co-host. That didn’t happen because she wanted to be a singer more than a co-host, and it wouldn’t have worked because she moved from New Orleans to Virginia, but the first episode of Season Three is a glimpse of what might have been. This week, Alexandra joins me as a guest to talk about one of our favorite semi-modern Christmas songs: “Hard Candy Christmas.”

We trace the history of the song from the Broadway soundtrack album for the musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas until we reach the much-loved Dolly Parton version, discussing what’s gained and lost in each version, and what Dolly brings to the song. En route to Dolly’s version, we play the version from the film adaptation with audio grabbed from this video since there is no album that includes it.

We then move on to two more stellar takes of “Hard Candy Christmas” by British singer Tracey Thorn and the combination of RuPaul, Barbara Mitchell and Michelle Visage. Both are exceptional for very different reasons.

Along the way, we talk about nostalgia, musical theater, stardom, and whether or not the song is a Christmas song at all.

For more on Alexandra Scott, you hear and buy her music at her Bandcamp page.