"All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth" is a

novelty Novelty (derived from Latin word ''novus'' for "new") is the quality of being new, or following from that, of being striking, original or unusual. Novelty may be the shared experience of a new cultural phenomenon or the subjective perception of an ...

Christmas song written in 1944 by Donald Yetter Gardner""Donald Yetter Gardner, 91, Songwriter". ''The New York Times''. September 22, 2004. p. B-8.Oliver, Myrna (September 26, 2004)
"Donald Gardner, 91; Wrote the Popular 'Two Front Teeth' Christmas Tune"
''Los Angeles Times''. while teaching music at public schools in

Smithtown, New York Smithtown is a town in Suffolk County, New York on the North Shore of Long Island. It is part of the New York metropolitan area. The population was 116,296 at the 2020 Census. The census-designated place (CDP) of Smithtown lies within the town ...

. He asked his

second grade Second grade (also called grade two, corresponding to Year 3 in the United Kingdom) is a year of primary education in Canada and the United States. Second grade is the second year of primary school. Children are usually aged 7–8 at this grade l ...

class what they wanted for

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...

, and noticed that almost all of the students had at least one front tooth missing as they answered in a

lisp A lisp is a speech impairment in which a person misarticulates sibilants (, , , , , , , ). These misarticulations often result in unclear speech. Types * A frontal lisp occurs when the tongue is placed anterior to the target. Interdental lisping ...

. Gardner wrote the song in 30 minutes. In a 1995 interview, Gardner said, "I was amazed at the way that silly little song was picked up by the whole country." The song was published in 1948 after an employee of

Witmark Witmark was a catalog showroom and jewelry/electronics chain that operated in West Michigan from 1969 to 1997. The chain was founded by Paul Leven. Over its nearly 30-year history, Witmark dominated the jewelry market with an average of a 3 ...

music company heard Gardner sing it at a music teachers' conference. The song was introduced in 1948 by singing group The Satisfiers on

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...

's radio show,"Angels We Have Heard: The Christmas Song Stories". ''James Richliano''. 2002. and originally recorded for

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also Aris ...

Spike Jones and His City Slickers Lindley Armstrong "Spike" Jones (December 14, 1911 – May 1, 1965) was an American musician and bandleader specializing in spoof arrangements of popular songs and classical music. Ballads receiving the Jones treatment were punctuated with gun ...

on December 6, 1947, with lead vocal by

George Rock George Rock (October 11, 1919 – April 12, 1988) was a trumpet player and singer with various bands before starring with Spike Jones, Spike Jones and His City Slickers. A man of large physical stature, Rock attended Illinois Wesleyan Univ ...

. The record reached the top of the pop charts in 1948, and again in 1949. The song has also been recorded by numerous other singers and performers, including

Ray Stevens Harold Ray Ragsdale (born January 24, 1939), known professionally as Ray Stevens, is an American country and pop singer-songwriter and comedian, known for his Grammy-winning recordings "Everything Is Beautiful" and "Misty", as well as novelty ...

George Strait George Harvey Strait Sr. (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and music producer. Strait is considered one of the most influential and popular recording artists of all time. In the 1980s, he was credited for ...

Danny Kaye Danny Kaye (born David Daniel Kaminsky; yi, דוד־דניאל קאַמינסקי; January 18, 1911 – March 3, 1987) was an American actor, comedian, singer and dancer. His performances featured physical comedy, idiosyncratic pantomimes, and ...

with

The Andrews Sisters The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the Swing music, swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews (July 6, 1911 – May 8, 1967), soprano Maxene Anglyn Andre ...

, Urbie Green,

The Platters The Platters was an American vocal group formed in 1952. They are one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound bridges the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the new burgeoning genre. The ac ...

Dread Zeppelin Dread Zeppelin is an American reggae rock band. Formed in 1989 in Sierra Madre, California, the band combines hard rock and reggae styles with humor. They are best known for performing the songs of Led Zeppelin in a reggae style as sung by a La ...

The Kelly Family The Kelly Family is an Irish-American music group consisting of a multi-generational family, usually nine siblings who were joined occasionally on stage in their earlier years by their parents. They play a repertoire of rock, pop, and folk music ...

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

(reportedly Gardner's favorite version),

The Chipmunks Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three ...

, the

Hampton String Quartet The Hampton String Quartet or the Hampton Rock String Quartet is a string quartet specializing in rock music and other popular styles using two violins, a viola and a cello. In 1998 they were nominated for a Grammy Award, and as of 2012 they were th ...

The Three Stooges The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy team active from 1922 until 1970, best remembered for their 190 short subject films by Columbia Pictures. Their hallmark styles were physical farce and slapstick. Six Stooges appeared ...

, Comedian

Dick Emery Richard Gilbert Emery (19 February 19152 January 1983) was an English comedian and actor. His broadcasting career began on radio in the 1950s, and his self-titled television series ran from 1963 to 1981. Life and career Richard Gilbert Emery was ...

and

Count von Count Count von Count (known simply as the Count) is a Muppet character on the PBS/ HBO children's television show ''Sesame Street.'' He is meant to parody Bela Lugosi's portrayal of Count Dracula. He first appeared on the show in the Season 4 premie ...

of ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) a ...

.'' In the versions by Spike, The Chipmunks (Theodore on lead vocals), and Ray Stevens, the song ends with the performer shouting the words "Happy New Year!!!"

Homer and Jethro Homer and Jethro were the stage names of American country music duo Henry D. "Homer" Haynes (1920–1971) and Kenneth C. "Jethro" Burns (1920–1989), popular from the 1940s through the 1960s on radio and television for their satirical versio ...

parodied the song as "All I Want for Christmas Is My Upper Plate", on their 1968 album ''Cool Crazy Christmas''. Drag performer and singer

RuPaul RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960; stylized as RuPaul) is an American drag queen, television personality, actor, musician, and model. Best known for producing, hosting, and judging the reality competition series ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' ...

parodied the song on his Christmas album ''

Ho Ho Ho Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...

''. In his version, the singer lists "a litany of plastic surgery requests" that he would like to receive for the holiday. In 1986, the song title was parodied in "All I Want for Christmas Is a Dukla Prague Away Kit" by the band Half Man Half Biscuit on ''

The Trumpton Riots EP ''The Trumpton Riots E.P.'' is a 1986 12" 45½rpm vinyl EP by the English indie band Half Man Half Biscuit. The original release (TRUMP1) comprised the first four tracks listed below. A re-release later that year (TRUMX1) included the fifth ...

''. Country music parodist

Cledus T. Judd James Barry Poole (born December 18, 1964) is an American country music artist who records under the name Cledus T. Judd. Known primarily for his parodies of popular country songs, he has been called the "Weird Al" Yankovic of country music, and ...

parodied the song on his 2002 Christmas album ''

Cledus Navidad ''Cledus Navidad'' is a Christmas album released by country music artist Cledus T. Judd. The track "Merry Christmas from the Whole Fam Damily", included here, was previously on his 2000 album ''Just Another Day in Parodies''. Also featured are two ...

''. Titled "All I Want for Christmas Is Two Gold Front Teef", Judd's parody is performed in

rap Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

References

{{authority control Songs about children 1944 songs 1948 singles RCA Victor singles Spike Jones songs American Christmas songs Christmas novelty songs Comedy songs Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients

See also

References