Polka would be in Bob Dylan’s roots in Hibbing Minnesota but he got the moves from Texas

Must Be Santa by Bob Dylan

We’ve all gotten over, and perhaps forgotten Bob Dylan’s Christmas gift last year. Let’s be generous and thank him after all it’s Christmas and a time of good cheer.

Despite the misgivings of many about Dylan warbling on Silent Night, we’ve got to hand it to him for the awesome cover of Brave Combo’s Must Be Santa. Best polka Christmas song inspires Dylan

The Mitch Miller song has been a staple of children’s Christmas concerts since the 1960s. I’d never heard it done professionally until Dylan released it last year.

What a fun song! It’s a polka party with Dylan as the curmudgeonly singer in a Santa hat.

What does Dylan, a Jew converted Christian then back to the Jewish, have in common with Christmas? Don’t think religion: think northern Minnesota mining town full of eastern European immigrants.

Religion, music and culture have been mixing together since somebody thought of music, God and drink. Thank God for that and thanks Bob for a very Merry Christmas. 

“The song itself is a diversion from recent efforts, featuring a jaunty folk rhythm. Meanwhile the video shows a fun Christmas party with Bob Dylan resplendent in a long grey wig and a truly bizarre hat.” (Clash Music)

“The festive-theme of the video is arguably a bit bizarre, with the “Blowin’ in the Wind” crooner donning different hats and seeming quite out of place, while crazed Christmas revelers dance and party around him.” ( NY Daily News )

“For all his brilliance, Bob Dylan only rarely sounds like he’s having a good time when he’s recording. But he seemed to be having a blast when he recorded holiday standard “Must Be Santa” for his 2009 album “Christmas From the Heart.”” (NJ.com)

Only proving once again that Dylan can be counted on to push against any cliched concept of who he is. Cheers and Merry Christmas.