1. "The Christmas Shoes" is the best and possibly only Christmas song about shoes.
Sadly, shoes were never a big part of Christmas until 2000 when contemporary Christian music group NewSong bravely released an album with a Christmas bonus track called "The Christmas Shoes." The song weaves a very specific narrative about a poor little boy trying to buy shoes for his dying mother on Christmas Eve. And once it became an adult contemporary chart-topping hit, there was no turning back. Shoes had rightfully earned their place in Christmas tradition.
2. The lyrics are a sobering slap in the face to anyone who was enjoying the holidays too much.
3. The vocals are like the gentler version of Creed we never asked for but desperately needed.
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Here's THE song. The music video includes shots from the made-for-TV movie based on a book based on the song, aptly titled "The Christmas Shoes."
NewSong's lead singer lends a gravelly world-weariness to Christmas twinkles, which is the perfect juxtaposition for lyrics about a dying mom.
As a special bonus, the song ends with actual children singing the chorus, to pack an extra sadness punch.
4. The lead singer also proves you can sing a somber Christmas song while lookin' cool in a baseball cap.
5. And that your band can just stand in the background looking sad for the entire video.
6. It reminds us what Christmas is really all about: confronting the horrific reality of mortality.
Plus, you can tell the mom is dying by how she throws a football into a car.
7. The song opened the door for Rob Lowe's most amazing role ever.
8. We finally learn that Jesus is into shoes.
9. It utilizes a Christmas trope we don't see enough: poor, dirty children.
NewSong paints a grim picture of the little boy in the song, "His clothes were worn and old, he was dirty from head to toe." Unfortunately, the movie didn't stay true to the song and used a clean kid. But you know what they say, the song is always better than the movie.
10. It treats the death of a loved one with the gravity it deserves, unlike some other Christmas songs.
11. It reminds us that paying in change is super annoying.
12. It reminds us that waiting until the last minute is a bad idea.
13. It drives home that even the true meaning of Christmas involves consumerism.
