Feed the World.
The Snowman (David Bowie introduction, 1982).
Peace On Earth/Little Drummer Boy (David Bowie and Bing Crosby, 1977).

Merry Christmas! Here’s a grab-bag of vintage Eighties Bowie holiday cheer, including his brief but dramatic appearance on “Feed the World,” the B-side of “Do They Know It’s Christmas” and his introduction to The Snowman, a sweet, sad winter cartoon from ’82. And I’ve included the Bowie/Bing clip because I am required to by law (the track was already covered here).

That’s all for 2011. Thanks to everyone for reading. Thanks especially: Owen Hatherley, Agata Pyzik, Tariq Goddard, Jack Womack, Bowietweet, Annie McDuffie, Amy Granzin, Stephen Ryan. Thanks: Harry McCracken and Ryan Gilbey for the kind words. Thanks to all the regulars in the comment section, who have the rare traits (on the Internet) of disagreeing politely, being funny and being generally top-class. Thanks, as always, to David Bowie himself.

This is getting soppy. Enough: go drink. Back next year, with DB’s adventures in the movies (yes, this includes Labyrinth), the slight return of Iggy Pop and the reign of the Glass Spider. We’ve got another year-and-a-half left to run, most likely, so I hope you stick around.

I am far too modest to nominate any of my own stuff, and I have little objective sense of what pieces are better than others (well, I know what the real stinkers are), but if you feel like it, please feel free to offer nominations for the Best Music Writing 2012 here. This would be for anything that ran in 2011, so from “Sister Midnight” to, sadly, “God Only Knows,” and includes entries on all of the Berlin records, Scary Monsters, Let’s Dance and Baal.

Top: Lucy and Jake wish you happy holidays. Not too long ago, Lucy and Jake couldn’t be in the same room together without freaking out, but now look at the beasts. Take hope. Happy Xmas.