On Through the Night

by Brian Howard

Every Christmas Eve save one for the last 20 years, my friend Jon Solomon has stayed up all night. He's not waiting for Santa, nor is he the jolly old elf himself. But to lots of folks in the Delaware Valley and very much beyond, he's the next best thing. The radio DJ, record label owner and impresario of City Paper's biweekly music podcast Local Support is also the host of WPRB Princeton's annual 24-hour Holiday Radio Show.

This will be the 21st year that Jon will start broadcasting on Christmas Eve and not sign off until 24 hours later. What started as something of a gift to his fellow DJs — giving them Christmas off while he manned the booth — has turned into much more. He's managed each year to fill that mammoth time slot with nothing but holiday music: offbeat Christmas carols, punk rock Hanukkah songs, weird odes to winter.

Jon's got his staples — Fay McKay's "The 12 Daze of Christmas," The Goblins' "Ha-Ha Hanukkah," The Bigger Lovers' "For Christ's Sake," Beck's "Little Drum Machine Boy," The Law's "What Did Santa Claus Bring You for Christmas?" In fact, he's released two compilations of indie rock holiday music on his My Pal God label.

When I first met Jon in 2000, he hoped he'd eventually release enough of his own compilations to fill the 24 hours. Now he's deluged with so much new music he could fill the entire daylong slot just with tunes not heard last year.

"I have 23.1 hours of new music I could work in with ease," says Jon frantically burning discs for on-air play.

New stuff Jon's excited about: Santastic 4, a free download of 18 remixes by DJs from around the world (santastic4.com); the new Peace on Earth Vol. II: A Charity Holiday Album with tracks from American Analog Set, Jennifer O'Connor and Philly's The A-Sides & Sun Airway (the disc benefits the Children of Uganda Fund, $7.50, hardtofindafriend.blogspot.com); and, of course, Christmas in the Dogghouse, "because one Snoop Dogg Xmas disc wasn't enough."

"I have an atonal Jesus Christ Superstar knockoff I am looking forward to people being alarmed by," Jon says. "And this year, unlike last year, I won't forget to play Culturecide."

Also unlike last year, Jon will be doing the marathon as a parent. His and wife Nicole's 6-month-old, Maggie, has been riding shotgun on the preparation process. While it's a gargantuan task screening all that music, Maggie's been up for the challenge.

HALF OFF DEPOT

Why live life at full price?

"I have enjoyed seeing Maggie dig — as much as a 6-month-old can — certain songs I have listened to with her in the room," says Jon.

And though a "certain tiny bed hog" may have prevented Jon from getting a good night's sleep Sunday night, he's been maximizing his rest so that come Wednesday evening, he'll be ready to roll.

It's a relief to him that this year there will be no camera crews on hand. Last Christmas Eve a TV news crew and the filmmakers behind the forthcoming documentary Jingle Bell Rocks (jinglebellrocks.com), were in studio: "When they were both there, the documentarians filming the TV filming me, I wanted to crawl under the board."

This year should be calm, at least by comparison.

"I am sure things will be nutso," says Jon, "because they always are."

Jon Solomon's 24-hour Holiday Radio Show begins at 6 p.m., Dec. 24, at 103.3 FM and wprb.com. Call 609-258-1033 or IM wprbdj with requests.

If you're looking to get a head start on Jon's holiday tunes, you should go, right now, and download the most recent installment of Jon's Local Support podcast. LS 068, Thee third annual Holiday Spectacular, is 21 tracks of all-local holiday cheer, including Gang's oddly grooving "Little Drummer Boy," The Original Sins' "Bethlehem" and The Classic Brown's touching "Comin' on Christmas."

(bhoward@citypaper.net)