Rockin' around the Christmas Tree
Encyclopedia
"Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" is a Christmas song
written by Johnny Marks
and recorded by Brenda Lee
in 1958 on Decca
9-30776.
season, it hit #14 on the Billboard pop chart and turned into a perennial holiday favorite. It continued to sell well during the holiday season, hitting #5 on the Christmas chart. Brenda Lee's recording still receives a great deal of airplay. Despite the song's title, its instrumentation also fits the Country genre which Brenda Lee more fully embraced as her career evolved. Despite her mature-sounding voice, she recorded this song when she was only 13 years old. The recording featured Hank Garland's ringing guitar and Boots Randolph's swinging solo sax break. For decades, Brenda Lee's recording was the only notable version of the song. Radio stations ranging from Top 40 to Adult Contemporary to Country Music
to Oldies
to even Adult Standards
played this version. An instrumental version of the song appears as background music in the 1964 television special
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
, which exclusively featured music written by Marks. It can be heard in the scene where Rudolph
first arrives at the "Reindeer Games" and meets another reindeer named Fireball.
Side B
and Mel Smith
(credited as "Mel & Kim" as a parody of then-popular sister act Mel and Kim
), featuring Pete Thomas
, reached #3 on the UK Singles Chart
during the 1987 Christmas season. The track was recorded to raise funds for Comic Relief
.
did a parody of the song entitled "Shoppin' Around for a Christmas Tree," released on his White Trash Christmas
album in 2002.
Christmas music
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music normally performed or heard around the Christmas season, which tends to begin in the months leading up the actual holiday and end in the weeks shortly thereafter.-Early:...
written by Johnny Marks
Johnny Marks
Johnny Marks was an American songwriter. Although he was Jewish, he specialized in Christmas songs and wrote many standards, including "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" , "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" , "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" , and "A Holly...
and recorded by Brenda Lee
Brenda Lee
Brenda Mae Tarpley , known as Brenda Lee, is an American performer who sang rockabilly, pop and country music, and had 37 US chart hits during the 1960s, a number surpassed only by Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Ray Charles and Connie Francis...
in 1958 on Decca
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
9-30776.
Background
Although Decca released it in both 1958 and again in 1959, it did not sell well until Lee became a popular star in 1960; that ChristmasChristmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
season, it hit #14 on the Billboard pop chart and turned into a perennial holiday favorite. It continued to sell well during the holiday season, hitting #5 on the Christmas chart. Brenda Lee's recording still receives a great deal of airplay. Despite the song's title, its instrumentation also fits the Country genre which Brenda Lee more fully embraced as her career evolved. Despite her mature-sounding voice, she recorded this song when she was only 13 years old. The recording featured Hank Garland's ringing guitar and Boots Randolph's swinging solo sax break. For decades, Brenda Lee's recording was the only notable version of the song. Radio stations ranging from Top 40 to Adult Contemporary to Country Music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
to Oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
to even Adult Standards
Adult standards
Adult standards is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations.Adult standards is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly those persons over 50 years of age, but it is mostly targeted for senior citizens...
played this version. An instrumental version of the song appears as background music in the 1964 television special
Television special
A television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (TV special)
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a Christmas television special produced in stop motion animation by Rankin/Bass. It first aired Sunday, December 6, 1964, on the NBC television network in the USA, and was sponsored by General Electric under the umbrella title of The General Electric Fantasy Hour...
, which exclusively featured music written by Marks. It can be heard in the scene where Rudolph
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer is a fictional reindeer with a glowing red nose. He is popularly known as "Santa's 9th Reindeer" and, when depicted, is the lead reindeer pulling Santa's sleigh on Christmas Eve. The luminosity of his nose is so great that it illuminates the team's path through...
first arrives at the "Reindeer Games" and meets another reindeer named Fireball.
Track listing
Side A- "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" (Johnny MarksJohnny MarksJohnny Marks was an American songwriter. Although he was Jewish, he specialized in Christmas songs and wrote many standards, including "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" , "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" , "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" , and "A Holly...
) – 2:02
Side B
- "Papa Noël" (Roy Botkin) – 2:25
Kim Wilde and Mel Smith version
A version of the song by Kim WildeKim Wilde
Kim Wilde is an English pop singer, author and television presenter who burst onto the music scene in 1981 with the number 2 UK Singles Chart new wave classic "Kids in America". In 1987 she had a major hit in the United States when her version of The Supremes' classic "You Keep Me Hangin' On"...
and Mel Smith
Mel Smith
Melvin Kenneth "Mel" Smith is an English comedian, writer, film director, producer, and actor. He is most famous for his work on the sketch comedy shows Not the Nine O'Clock News and Alas Smith and Jones along with his comedy partner Griff Rhys Jones.- Early life :Smith's father, Kenneth, was born...
(credited as "Mel & Kim" as a parody of then-popular sister act Mel and Kim
Mel and Kim
Mel and Kim were a British pop duo, comprising sisters Melanie and Kim Appleby. They achieved success between 1986 and 1988 before Melanie succumbed to cancer.-Biography:...
), featuring Pete Thomas
Pete Thomas (saxophonist)
Pete Thomas is a leading British music producer, TV and film composer, recording musician, and saxophonist. He was born in London and is now based in Southampton, England. He is also an expert in Jazz music and theory.-Biography:...
, reached #3 on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
during the 1987 Christmas season. The track was recorded to raise funds for Comic Relief
Comic Relief
Comic Relief is an operating British charity, founded in 1985 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Lenny Henry in response to famine in Ethiopia. The highlight of Comic Relief's appeal is Red Nose Day, a biennial telethon held in March, alternating with sister project Sport Relief...
.
Bob Rivers parody
Bob RiversBob Rivers
Bob Rivers is a well-known American rock and roll radio on air personality in the Pacific Northwest as well as a prolific producer of parody songs, most famous for his Christmas song parodies....
did a parody of the song entitled "Shoppin' Around for a Christmas Tree," released on his White Trash Christmas
White Trash Christmas
White Trash Christmas is the fifth Christmas album by Bob Rivers. It was released in 2002, two years after Chipmunks Roasting On an Open Fire...
album in 2002.
Cover Versions
The following artists have each recorded a cover version of the song:- 1910 Fruitgum Company1910 Fruitgum CompanyThe 1910 Fruitgum Company is an American bubblegum pop band of the 1960s. The group's biggest hits included "Simon Says," "1, 2, 3, Red Light," "May I Take A Giant Step," "Special Delivery," "Goody Goody Gumdrops," and "Indian Giver." Guitarist Frank Jeckell claimed to have adopted the name from a...
(for their 2007 album Bubblegum Christmas) - AlabamaAlabama (band)Alabama is a country music and southern rock band from Fort Payne, Alabama, United States. The band was founded in 1969 by Randy Owen and his cousin Teddy Gentry , soon joined by Jeff Cook...
(for their 1999 album Christmas Vol. II; this cover version peaked at #64 on the Billboard Country Singles chart) - ChicagoChicago (band)Chicago is an American rock band formed in 1967 in Chicago, Illinois. The self-described "rock and roll band with horns" began as a politically charged, sometimes experimental, rock band and later moved to a predominantly softer sound, becoming famous for producing a number of hit ballads. They had...
(for their 2011 album Chicago XXXIII: O Christmas Three) - Miley CyrusMiley CyrusMiley Ray Cyrus is an American actress and pop singer-songwriter. She achieved wide fame for her role as Miley Stewart/Hannah Montana on the Disney Channel sitcom Hannah Montana....
(as Hannah MontanaHannah MontanaHannah Montana is an American television series, which debuted on March 24, 2006 on the Disney Channel. The series focuses on a girl who lives a double life as an average teenage school girl named Miley Stewart by day and a famous pop singer named Hannah Montana by night, concealing her real...
) (for the 2007 album Disney Channel HolidayDisney Channel HolidayDisney Channel Holiday is a 2007 holiday album released on October 16, 2007. The album features musical artists associated or popularized by Disney Channel singing their own versions of holiday songs...
) - Lotta EngbergLotta Engberg-External links:* *...
(titled "Julen Är Här", and included on the 2009 album Jul hos mig) - Amy GrantAmy GrantAmy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
(for her 1992 album Home for ChristmasHome for Christmas (Amy Grant album)Home for Christmas is the 13th album by Christian music and pop music singer Amy Grant, released in 1992.Home for Christmas is Amy Grant's second holiday album, the first being 1983's A Christmas Album...
) - HansonHanson (band)Hanson are an American pop rock band formed in Tulsa, Oklahoma, by brothers Isaac , Taylor , and Zac Hanson . They are best known for the 1997 hit song "MMMBop" from their major label debut album Middle of Nowhere, which earned three Grammy nominations...
(for their 1997 album Snowed InSnowed InSnowed In is the fourth album by American pop rock group Hanson. A Christmas album, it was quickly released following the success of their previous album, Middle of Nowhere, and was recorded in London...
) - Toby KeithToby KeithToby Keith Covel , best known as Toby Keith, is an American country music singer-songwriter, record producer and actor. Keith released his first four studio albums — 1993's Toby Keith, 1994's Boomtown, 1996's Blue Moon and 1997's Dream Walkin, plus a Greatest Hits package for various divisions of...
(for his 2007 album A Classic ChristmasA Classic Christmas (Toby Keith album)-Disc Two:-Chart performance:-External links:*...
) - The Partridge FamilyThe Partridge FamilyThe Partridge Family is an American television sitcom about a widowed mother and her five children who embark on a music career. The series originally ran from September 25, 1970 until August 31, 1974, the last new episode airing on March 23, 1974, on the ABC network, as part of a Friday-night lineup...
(for their 1971 album A Partridge Family Christmas Card) - LeAnn RimesLeAnn RimesLeAnn Rimes is an American country/pop singer. She is known for her rich vocals and her rise to fame as an eight-year-old champion on the original Ed McMahon version of Star Search, followed by the release of the Patsy Cline-intended single "Blue" when Rimes was only age 13, resulting in her...
(for her 2004 album What a Wonderful WorldWhat a Wonderful World (LeAnn Rimes album)What a Wonderful World is a Holiday/Christmas album by LeAnn Rimes. This is a jazz inspired holiday album. Rimes released four singles from this album: "O Holy Night", "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree", "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, and "A Different Kind Of Christmas." LeAnn also...
; this cover version peaked at #3 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, #48 on the Billboard Country Singles chart, and #30 on the Billboard Holiday Songs chart) - Jessica SimpsonJessica SimpsonJessica Ann Simpson is an American recording artist, actress, television personality, and fashion designer whose rise to fame began in 1999. Since that time, Simpson has achieved many recording milestones, starred in several television shows, movies, and commercials, launched a line of hair and...
with Rosie O'DonnellRosie O'DonnellRoseann "Rosie" O'Donnell is an American stand-up comedian, actress, author and television personality. She has also been a magazine editor and continues to be a celebrity blogger, LGBT rights activist, television producer and collaborative partner in the LGBT family vacation company R Family...
(for O'Donnell's 2000 album Another Rosie Christmas) - Ronnie SpectorRonnie SpectorVeronica Yvette "Ronnie" Spector is an American rock and roll and popular music vocalist, and was the lead singer of the 1960s hit-making girl group, The Ronettes, who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. She is known as the "original bad girl of rock and roll."-Personal...
and Darlene LoveDarlene LoveDarlene Love is an American popular music singer and actress. She gained prominence in the 1960s for the song "He's a Rebel," a #1 American single in 1962, and was part of the Phil Spector stable that produced a celebrated Christmas album in 1963....
(for the 1992 charity album A Very Special Christmas 2A Very Special Christmas 2A Very Special Christmas 2 is the second in a series of Christmas-themed compilation albums produced to benefit Special Olympics. The album was released on 20 October 1992, and production was overseen by Jimmy Iovine, Vicki Iovine and Robert Sargent Shriver for A&M Records.-Track listing:#...
)
External links
- Lyrics to Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree