The other soundtrack to sleigh bells in my house came from Petty Booka, whose Christmas Everywhere melts seasonal chills away with tropical escapes to fantasy islands. The Japanese duo (Petty and Booka) came to the Sunset last week decked in tinsel, with flowers in their hair and ukuleles in their hands, and charmed the pants off a packed house. Backed by lap steel and acoustic guitars and a standup bass, the two women sang so sweetly it was like no other cover band I've heard before. They transformed songs by Patsy Cline (the always beautiful 'I Fall to Pieces') and the Ramones ('I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend [sic]'), but my favorites that night had a holiday flavor: 'My Two Front Teeth,' 'Christmas Island,' and 'Mele Kalikimaka. By Anonymous More/ The Stranger ****************************************** Petty Booka: Christmas Everywhere by CaptainOT of A christmas Yuleblog *************************************** The first song is an accapella version of 'Christmas Is Coming' which slides right into a Hawaiian version of 'Christmas Island'. A quick shift of the gears gives us their 3rd song - a cover of John Prine's 'Christmas In Prison'. I've never been a big fan of this song but Petty Booka's version is so sincere and innocent that I was transfixed to the speakers. A country version of 'I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus' is next only to be followed by 'All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth' (utilizing the famous Nat King Cole arrangement). What next? Another change in gears? More like thrown in reverse: 'Colorado Christmas'. Written by Steve Goodman ('City Of New Orleans') and originally recorded by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, this song is so well done that all the previous silliness disappears and you're amazed by the beautiful singing voices of Petty and Booka. Somewhere, Steve Goodman (a Chicagoan, a songwriter extraordinaire, a personal hero of mine, a lifelong Cub fan, and a victim of leukemia back in 1984) is smiling (maybe even chuckling) at the beauty of the concept of this band. The next three songs are a very mambo flavored 'Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer' (think Billy May's classic version), a very Hawaiian flavored 'Mele Kalikimaka', and a very countrified-Chet Atkins instrumental version of 'Jingle Bells'. How to top these three songs? Very simple - two Japanese versions of 'Rudolph' and 'I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus'. I had so much fun listening to this CD that I wanted to share some of that fun with you. **************************************************** Top ten: reasons we love Petty Booka by Anderson-Minshall, Diane / Curve Magazine SF **************************************************** HONESTLY, WHAT'S NOT TO LOVE about a spunky Japanese girl group performing chirpy ukulele renditions of punk, pop, rock, country and Hawaiian tiki songs? Not much, which is why Tokyo-based Petty Booka is becoming a hot topic among lesbian music lovers. At the South by Southwest showcase in Austin, Texas, where the band performs each year, they're genuine rock stars. Though they're treading on Tiny Tim territory musically, the girls are now getting treatment you'd expect for the likes of the Rolling Stones. Here's why. 1. They remake the classics. Petty Booka did the most unusual Ramones remake ever, retooling the classic 'I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend' to a ukulele-and-steel-drum-charged 'I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend.' That's not all, of course. From CCR's 'Proud Mary' to Van Halen's 'Teacher's Pet,' Petty Booka is creating disarmingly fresh and girlie versions of classic dick rock. 2. They're ultracool. This petite cow-and-surf-pop duo (I swear, we didn't make that up) create ukulele huke-lau music for hipsters who like Patsy Cline and Blondie in an assuredly Asian riot grrl package. Think Texas cowgirl hats, fringed vests, grass skirts and Army boots. 3. They out-gayed Boy George. 'Karma Chameleon' was queer when Boy George crooned it, but it's even queerer when Petty Booka does it in a postmodern ukulele-and-steel-guitar version that, in concert, gets sandwiched between Madonna's 'Material Girl' and a sort of reg
