The Tolerable Christmas Playlist: The Ramones, "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight)"

Punk rock, at its best, is not merely angry, but sarcastic, clever, and observational. In the world of the Ramones, having one night without having your loved one jump down your throat over every stupid, frustrating thing is the best you can hope for - it would be enough because goddamnit, it's Christmas, and I just don't want to fight.

Cover: The Ramones, "Baby I Love You"

For whatever reason, I always find myself defending this Phil Spector-produced stab at Sixties pop from the Ramones, probably because I have a place in my heart for the utterly ridiculous, and I don't really care about "punk authenticity." There's something so goddamn ridiculous about Joey Ramone muttering, in his best doo wop voice, "Bay-beh Ah Luh Yew" while those awkward-ass violins hum in the background, it seems to illustrate a whole bunch of things at once: sometimes it's idiotic being in love, and sometimes you need to go with it. Really, though, the violins are the only thing keeping this song from being the same as the Ramones' earlier "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend." So don't judge.

Cover: The Ramones, "Do You Wanna Dance?"

On that note, there's the Ramones, the band that brought simplicity back to rock, playing the simplest and most effective song of the early rock & roll era.