Each week, several cats battle it out over the same song. I ask you to listen to the audio file below, which contains a themed music program and concludes with several versions of the same song by many different artists. Listen to both versions in their entirety before deciding which one you TRULY DIG THE MOST! Then vote below and see how your fellow Cat Fighters voted. That's the Friday Night Cat Fight from MattTheCat.com.

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19 Comments on “12/11/09 – “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” Cat Fight!”

1. 
   1 CCK said at 12:52 pm on December 11th, 2009:

   I do adore U2, but Darlene’s is such a soulful classic, I’ve got to go with her. Amazing Cat Fight!

2. 
   2 stickball eddie said at 1:55 pm on December 11th, 2009:

   There is no contest when Darlene Love is involved. She is simply the greatest of them all. Bono stood no chance. Darlene brought feeling to the lyrics as she has done throughout her craeer.

3. 
   3 Yum Yum said at 2:21 pm on December 11th, 2009:

   Darlene Love to Love You Baby is to Christmas as Santa Claus and Der Bingle ! This will be Natalie Cole the biggest one sided Cat Fight since Sammy Turner and Burl Ives for Lavender Blue !! Yum Yum

4. 
   4 Virginia said at 6:37 pm on December 11th, 2009:

   Darlene Love please! No contest to my ears, thank you again Matt for supplying us again with a little Friday Night entertainment.

5. 
   5 Long Island Bob said at 7:28 pm on December 11th, 2009:

   Bono is gonna end up in Pat Boone territory after this “no match” matchup.

6. 
   6 Sierra said at 7:36 pm on December 11th, 2009:

   Have to make it unanimous so far; Darlene’s the queen for this type song. i like most of Phil’s stuff anyway.

7. 
   7 Terry Clauson said at 10:34 pm on December 11th, 2009:

   No contest. Darlene Love! But if you ever watch the Christmas Eve David Letterman show where Darlene does it live to a Paul Shaffer arrangement with full strings section is really something to hear and see.

8. 
   8 admin said at 1:46 pm on December 12th, 2009:

   WOW! So I guess Sierra doesn’t hate ALL R&B! We’ve learned something this week!

9. 
   9 Sierra said at 2:12 pm on December 12th, 2009:

   For all to see: No, I don’t hate it all; I just think sometimes it’s a bit lopsided and that MTC and all the rest of you forget there’s a lot of good other stuff out there too. If I never heard Harlem again, it’d be too soon, but groups like Crystals, Ronnettes, Blossoms, and of course, Darlene are cool, and even though it is lopsided most of the time, I listen loyally every week.

10. 
    10 admin said at 2:22 pm on December 12th, 2009:

    I respect your opinion, Sierra, but honestly, I don’t feel I need to evenly present all musical genres. I’ve spent my life trying to get more exposure to lesser-known African American artists and styles. First in Boston with “The Soul Bucket” and then on XM with “The Night Prowl” and “Harlem.” That’s my bag and that’s my passion. Thanks for being so “loyal”, but don’t expect me to lighten up on the R&B/Soul any time soon. I think THAT is precisely my “appeal” to most people.

    To each his own or as Yum Yum would say, “sausage his own”.

    Soulfully,
    Matt The Cat

11. 
    11 Karl From Selma,NC said at 2:57 pm on December 12th, 2009:

    No Contest, Darleen Love all the way!!!!!
    U2 can go back to where they came from(in my opinion)

12. 
    12 Virginia said at 10:05 pm on December 12th, 2009:

    Sierra’s post just goes to show what a great DJ Matt is. She hates Harlem and I am dying to hear more Harlem shows I absolutely loved them, but we both want more of Matt’s expertise. If SXM has any sense they will put him back on the air soon.

13. 
    13 timevac3 said at 11:36 pm on December 12th, 2009:

    It’s Love, Love Love. Honestly, the original is fully formed, flawlessly executed and well served by flippy Phil’s production. It was a fool’s mission to tackle this one. Bono shoulda known better.

14. 
    14 Sierra said at 2:33 pm on December 13th, 2009:

    Right, you belong back on the air. I love the personality and showmanship, even though you aren’t fair enough to give a representation of EVERYTHING that’s out there, I will always admire the spirit and feeling that emanates from every show.

15. 
    15 Crystal said at 8:48 pm on December 13th, 2009:

    It certainly was no contest. I don’t know why anyone would want to hear Bono sing anything.
    I love Matt’s ‘soul’ it’s definately why I love him.

16. 
    16 The Shadow said at 5:47 pm on December 15th, 2009:

    This has got to be the most lopsided cat fight I’ve ever seen, or In quite a while anyway.
    For me, This was a no brainer. Although U2s version was interesting, It can’t hold a candle to Darlene’s version.

    As far as the debate on types of music Matt plays, You can hear good times and 8 oldise in many places. We need someone like Matt to keep the great R&B alive. It just can’t be found anywhere else. I love the rare stuff. I wish Matt could get back on the air with more shows like the night prowl, and Harlem.
    Keep up the great work, keeping the music alive, Furry Leader.
    .

17. 
    17 dave said at 11:45 am on December 18th, 2009:

    all you need is love

18. 
    18 Bruce said at 1:31 pm on December 21st, 2009:

    No question, no doubt, without a thought, Darlene Love. I’ve always considered it to be close to a perfect song, even outside of the Christmas genre. It just soars! It’s an incredible vocal performance that just wraps itself in the “wall of sound” production and takes off. The piano at the end really seals the deal. I was suprised at Bono’s performance, not bad, but you can’t improve on perfection.

19. 
    19 mike said at 12:29 am on February 6th, 2010:

    Late to the conversation, but Darlene all the way, even though u2’s was the first version I ever heard.

    Also, they may run me out of Boston on a rail, but for me U2 pretty much jumped the shark after rattle and hum. Fortunately they recorded Xmas just before that.

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