Feist

Not surprisingly, given what I do for a living, I often turn to my favorite TV specials (A Charlie Brown Christmas, The Snowman, and A Muppet Family Christmas, among many others) to get me in the holiday spirit. Well, this year, there's a new special on the scene, and it already seems destined to become a seasonal classic.

A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All (hee) premieres Sunday at 10 p.m. on Comedy Central and will hit DVD two days later. The skewering of celebrity holiday specials looks hilarious, with special guests ranging from Toby Keith to Elvis Costello to Willie Nelson. Oh, and if it's not obvious from that list, it's a musical!

The songs are the handiwork of Fountains of Wayne bassist Adam Schlesinger and Daily Show producer David Javerbaum, and they include a tune sung by Jon Stewart as he tries to interest Colbert in Hanukkah and a vaguely dirty song about nutmeg courtesy of Colbert and John Legend. Also, Feist appears as an angel, and she sings a song of her own and then joins the whole cast in a rendition of "(What's So Funny 'bout) Peace, Love And Understanding." You setting that DVR yet?

There's actually some good to go along with the funny: a portion of the proceeds from the sales of the DVD and soundtrack (also available on Tuesday, exclusively on iTunes) will go to Feeding America. Hysterical and generous? That's our Colbert. To check out a clip from the show with Stewart and Colbert, just read more

Somehow, the soft, dreamy sounds of Feist's "Honey Honey" make even this puppet story seem poignant and emotional. The video features very little of the singer herself, though she does start things off by lighting a lighthouse, bringing to life this mini world in which an old seafarer embarks on an ocean journey and faces off with a vicious creature of the deep. Meanwhile, his lady love (presumably) wonders what's happened to him.

It's all rather eerie and haunting, so to check it out, read more

• Frasier's John Mahoney is joining the cast of Burn Notice. — Entertainment Weekly
• Liev Schreiber and Helen Hunt will play a couple in a troubled marriage in the upcoming drama Every Day. — Variety
• David Strathairn and Catherine O'Hara are among the new additions to HBO's Temple Grandin film, which already stars Claire Danes. — Hollywood Reporter
• Feist is turning her Fall tour into a charity drive. — Pitchfork
• AMC is developing a TV series about a human colony on Mars. — TV Guide
• Salma Hayek will reportedly guest-star on 30 Rock. — New York Post
• Tyler Perry's in trouble with the Writers' Guild for firing four writers. — Variety
• Live tracks from Ben Folds' tour will be available almost immediately on iTunes. — Billboard

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If you haven't seen the commercial for the new iPod Nano yet, you probably will soon (and probably over and over again, at that). And you might find yourself wondering, like I always seem to do these days with Apple ads, "Wow, who is singing that cute and catchy song?" Once upon a time, the Nano made Feist a star, and it feels like just yesterday I was downloading Yael Naim after seeing the MacBook Air ads airing between my favorite shows.

So who's the lucky band who will soon be getting lots of attention? Why, it's the Brooklyn-based trio Chairlift, whose song "Bruises" is upbeat and bubbly in the avant-pop tradition and overflows with adorable lyrics ("I tried to do headstands for you" — or is it "I tried to do handstands for you"? Either way, cute!). The song is on Chairlift's 2008 debut album, Does You Inspire You, and the trio will be opening for Yeasayer soon (see dates here).

You can listen to the full version of the song here and check out a live performance of the same tune if you read more

The 39th season of Sesame Street is set to debut on August 11, so the Children's Television Workshop has provided us with a sneak peek at one of the celebrity acts to join Elmo and friends on set. Popular Canadian singer Feist will kick off the season with a special rendition of her “1 2 3 4” song.

The new season will feature a host of guest celebrity appearances, including Will Arnett, Jessica Alba, David Beckham, Heidi Klum, Neil Patrick Harris, Sandra Oh, Jenny McCarthy, Jason Taylor, and Jack Black. The show will also introduce parodies of several popular shows, such as 30 Rock, High School Musical, and Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?. With a lineup like this, I may be setting up the Tivo more for myself than my daughter!

Ever since Yum informed me that today is National Brandy Alexander Day, I haven't been able to get the chorus of the Feist song of the same name out of my head:

"He's my Brandy Alexander
Always gets me into trouble
But that's another matter
Brandy Alexander"

As far as the downtempo songs from The Reminder go, it's one of my favorites; its particular sing-song-y quality also guarantees that once it's in my head, I'll start involuntarily swaying back and forth, hoping none of my coworkers notice.

In case you've also been afflicted with this problem today, I decided to dig up a version of "Brandy Alexander." Feist hasn't made an official video of the song, but luckily, YouTube had several clips of her performing it live. Feist's voice sounds absolutely gorgeous on the one I chose, and the relatively steady video is filmed from pretty close up, so you can watch Feist in all her glory. To check out the song — whether it's been wedged in your head or you're hearing it for the first time — just read more