Christmas music comprises a variety of

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

s of music regularly performed or heard around the

Christmas season The Christmas season or the festive season (also known in some countries as the holiday season or the holidays) is an annually recurring period recognized in many Western and other countries that is generally considered to run from late November ...

. Music associated with

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 ...

may be purely

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to instru ...

, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject matter ranges from

the nativity The nativity of Jesus, nativity of Christ, birth of Jesus or birth of Christ is described in the biblical gospels of Luke and Matthew. The two accounts agree that Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judaea, his mother Mary was engaged to a man ...

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

, to

gift A gift or a present is an item given to someone without the expectation of payment or anything in return. An item is not a gift if that item is already owned by the one to whom it is given. Although gift-giving might involve an expectation ...

-giving and merrymaking, to cultural figures such as

Santa Claus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...

, among other topics. Many songs simply have a winter or seasonal theme, or have been adopted into the canon for other reasons. While most Christmas songs prior to 1930 were of a traditional religious character, the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

era of the 1930s brought a stream of songs of American origin, most of which did not explicitly reference the Christian nature of the holiday, but rather the more secular traditional

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

themes and customs associated with Christmas. These included songs aimed at children such as "

Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" is a Christmas song featuring Santa Claus written by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie. The earliest known recorded version of the song was by banjoist Harry Reser and his band on October 24, 1934. It was the ...

" and "

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a fictional reindeer created by Robert L. May. Rudolph is usually depicted as the ninth and youngest of Santa Claus's reindeer, using his luminous red nose to lead the reindeer team and guide Santa's sleigh on ...

", as well as sentimental ballad-type songs performed by famous

crooner Crooner is a term used to describe primarily male singers who performed using a smooth style made possible by better microphones which picked up quieter sounds and a wider range of frequencies, allowing the singer to access a more dynamic range ...

s of the era, such as "

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song written in 1943 by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane and introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical ''Meet Me in St. Louis''. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics. In ...

" and " White Christmas", the latter of which remains the best-selling single of all time as of 2018. ''

Elvis' Christmas Album ''Elvis' Christmas Album'' (also reissued as ''It's Christmas Time'') is the third studio album and first Christmas album by American singer and musician Elvis Presley on RCA Victor, LOC -1035, a deluxe limited edition, released October 15, 1957, ...

'' (1957) by

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

is the best-selling Christmas album of all time, selling more than 20 million copies worldwide. Performances of Christmas music at public

concerts A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or musical band, band. Concerts are held in a w ...

, in churches, at shopping malls, on city streets, and in private gatherings is an integral staple of the Christmas holiday in many cultures across the world. Radio stations often convert to a 24-7 Christmas music format leading up to the holiday, starting sometimes as early as the day after

Halloween Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observanc ...

– as part of a phenomenon known as "

Christmas creep Christmas creep is a merchandising phenomenon in which merchants and retailers introduce Christmas-themed merchandise or decorations before the traditional start of the holiday shopping season, which in the United States is on the day after ...

History

Early music

Music associated with Christmas is thought to have its origins in 4th-century

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, in Latin-language

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

s such as ''

Veni redemptor gentium "Veni redemptor gentium" (Come, Redeemer of the nations) is a Latin Advent or Christmas hymn by Ambrose of Milan in iambic tetrameter. The hymn is assigned to the Office of Readings for Advent, from December 17 through December 24, in the Liturgy ...

''. By the 13th century, under the influence of

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christianit ...

, the tradition of popular Christmas songs in regional native languages developed. Christmas carols in the English language first appear in a 1426 work of

John Awdlay John Audelay (or Awdelay; died c. 1426) was an English priest and poet from Haughmond Abbey, in Shropshire; one of the few English poets of the period whose name is known to us. Some of the first Christmas carols recorded in English appear amon ...

, an English chaplain, who lists twenty five "''caroles of Cristemas''", probably sung by groups of

wassailers The tradition of wassailing (''alt sp'' wasselling) falls into two distinct categories: the house-visiting wassail and the orchard-visiting wassail. The house-visiting wassail is the practice of people going door-to-door, singing and offering a ...

who would travel from house to house. In the 16th century, various Christmas carols still sung to this day, including " The 12 Days of Christmas", "

God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen "God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen" is an English traditional Christmas carol. It is in the Roxburghe Collection (iii. 452), and is listed as no. 394 in the Roud Folk Song Index. It is also known as "Tidings of Comfort and Joy", and by other varia ...

", and "

O Christmas Tree "" (; "O fir tree", English: O Christmas Tree) is a German Christmas song. Based on a traditional folk song which was unrelated to Christmas, it became associated with the traditional Christmas tree. History The modern lyrics were written in 1824 ...

", first emerged. Music was an early feature of the

and its celebrations. The earliest examples are hymnographic works (

chant A chant (from French ', from Latin ', "to sing") is the iterative speaking or singing of words or sounds, often primarily on one or two main pitches called reciting tones. Chants may range from a simple melody involving a limited set of notes ...

s and

litanies Litany, in Christian worship and some forms of Judaic worship, is a form of prayer used in services and processions, and consisting of a number of petitions. The word comes through Latin ''litania'' from Ancient Greek λιτανεία (''litan ...

) intended for liturgical use in observance of both the Feast of the Nativity and Theophany, many of which are still in use by the Eastern Orthodox Church. The 13th century saw the rise of the carol written in the vernacular, under the influence of

. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, the English combined circle dances with singing and called them carols. Later, the word carol came to mean a song in which a religious topic is treated in a style that is familiar or festive. From Italy, it passed to France and Germany, and later to England. Christmas carols in English first appear in a 1426 work of

John Audelay John Audelay (or Awdelay; died c. 1426) was an English priest and poet from Haughmond Abbey, in Shropshire; one of the few English poets of the period whose name is known to us. Some of the first Christmas carols recorded in English appear amon ...

, a

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...

priest and poet, who lists 25 "caroles of Cristemas", probably sung by groups of

, who went from house to house. Music in itself soon became one of the greatest tributes to Christmas, and Christmas music includes some of the noblest compositions of the great musicians.

Puritan prohibition

During the

Commonwealth of England The Commonwealth was the political structure during the period from 1649 to 1660 when England and Wales, later along with Ireland and Scotland, were governed as a republic after the end of the Second English Civil War and the trial and execut ...

government under

Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

, the

Rump Parliament The Rump Parliament was the English Parliament after Colonel Thomas Pride commanded soldiers to purge the Long Parliament, on 6 December 1648, of those members hostile to the Grandees' intention to try King Charles I for high treason. "Rump" n ...

prohibited the practice of singing Christmas carols as

Pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...

and sinful. Like other customs associated with popular

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Christianity, it earned the disapproval of

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

Puritans The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. P ...

. Famously, Cromwell's interregnum prohibited all celebrations of the Christmas holiday. This attempt to ban the public celebration of Christmas can also be seen in the early history of

Father Christmas Father Christmas is the traditional English name for the personification of Christmas. Although now known as a Christmas gift-bringer, and typically considered to be synonymous with Santa Claus, he was originally part of a much older and unrel ...

. The

Westminster Assembly of Divines The Westminster Assembly of Divines was a council of Divinity (academic discipline), divines (theologians) and members of the English Parliament appointed from 1643 to 1653 to restructure the Church of England. Several Scots also attended, and ...

established Sunday as the only holy day in the calendar in 1644. The new liturgy produced for the English church recognized this in 1645, and so legally abolished Christmas. Its celebration was declared an offense by Parliament in 1647. There is some debate as to the effectiveness of this ban, and whether or not it was enforced in the country. Puritans generally disapproved of the celebration of Christmas—a trend which continually resurfaced in Europe and the USA through the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Royal restoration

When in May 1660 Charles II restored the

Stuarts The House of Stuart, originally spelt Stewart, was a royal house of Scotland, England, Ireland and later Great Britain. The family name comes from the office of High Steward of Scotland, which had been held by the family progenitor Walter fi ...

to the throne, the people of England once again practiced the public singing of Christmas carols as part of the revival of Christmas customs, sanctioned by the king's own celebrations. The

Victorian Era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

saw a surge of Christmas carols associated with a renewed admiration of the holiday, including "

Silent Night "Silent Night" (german: "Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht", links=no, italic=no) is a popular Christmas carol, composed in 1818 by Franz Xaver Gruber to lyrics by Joseph Mohr in the small town of Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria. It was declared an ...

", "

O Little Town of Bethlehem "O Little Town of Bethlehem" is a Christmas carol. Based on an 1868 text written by Phillips Brooks, the carol is popular on both sides of the Atlantic, but to different tunes: in The United States, to "St. Louis" by Brooks' collaborator, Lewis R ...

", and "

O Holy Night "O Holy Night" (original title: ) is a well-known sacred song for Christmas performance. Originally based on a French-language poem by poet Placide Cappeau, written in 1843, with the first line (Midnight, Christian, is the solemn hour) that co ...

". The first Christmas songs associated with

Saint Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra, ; la, Sanctus Nicolaus (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor (; modern-da ...

or other gift-bringers also came during 19th century, including "

Up on the Housetop "Up on the Housetop" is a Christmas song written by Benjamin Hanby in 1864.Bronson, Fre"Signs Of The Season" Billboard Magazine; December 6, 2007. It has been recorded by a multitude of singers, most notably Gene Autry in 1953. Fresh Beat Band ...

" and "

Jolly Old St. Nicholas "Jolly Old Saint Nicholas" is a Christmas music, Christmas song that originated with a poem by Emily Huntington Miller (1833–1913), published as "Lilly's Secret" in ''The Little Corporal Magazine'' in December 1865. The song's lyrics have also ...

". Many older Christmas hymns were also translated or had lyrics added to them during this period, particularly in 1871 when

John Stainer Sir John Stainer (6 June 1840 – 31 March 1901) was an English composer and organist whose music, though seldom performed today (with the exception of ''The Crucifixion'', still heard at Passiontide in some churches of the Anglican Communi ...

published a widely influential collection entitled "''Christmas Carols New & Old''". William Sandys's ''Christmas Carols Ancient and Modern'' (1833), contained the first appearance in print of many now-classic English carols, and contributed to the mid-Victorian revival of the holiday. Singing carols in church was instituted on Christmas Eve 1880 (

Nine Lessons and Carols Nine Lessons and Carols, also known as the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols and Service of Nine Lessons and Carols, is a service of Christian worship traditionally celebrated on or near Christmas Eve. The story of the fall of humanity, the ...

) in

Truro Cathedral The Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Truro, Cornwall. It was built between 1880 and 1910 to a Gothic Revival design by John Loughborough Pearson on the site of the parish church of St Mary. It i ...

, Cornwall, England, which is now seen in churches all over the world. According to one of the only observational research studies of Christmas caroling, Christmas observance and caroling traditions vary considerably between nations in the 21st century, while the actual sources and meanings of even high-profile songs are commonly misattributed, and the motivations for carol singing can in some settings be as much associated with family tradition and national cultural heritage as with religious beliefs. Christmas festivities, including music, are also celebrated in a more secular fashion by such institutions as the

Santa Claus Village Santa Claus Village ( fi, Joulupukin Pajakylä) is an amusement park in Rovaniemi in the Lapland region of Finland. It was opened in 1985. Location and transportation Santa Claus Village is located about northeast of Rovaniemi and about fr ...

, in

Rovaniemi Rovaniemi ( , ; sme, Roavvenjárga ; smn, Ruávinjargâ; sms, Ruäʹvnjargg) is a city and municipality of Finland. It is the administrative capital and commercial centre of Finland's northernmost province, Lapland, and its southern part Per� ...

, Finland.

Alms

Nicolae Ionescu - Children carolers in Bucharest, 1929

The tradition of singing Christmas carols in return for

alms Alms (, ) are money, food, or other material goods donated to people living in poverty. Providing alms is often considered an act of virtue or Charity (practice), charity. The act of providing alms is called almsgiving, and it is a widespread p ...

or charity began in England in the seventeenth century after the

Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

. Town musicians or 'waits' were licensed to collect money in the streets in the weeks preceding Christmas, the custom spread throughout the population by the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries up to the present day. Also from the seventeenth century, there was the English custom, predominantly involving women, of taking a

wassail Wassail (, , most likely from Old Norse ''"ves heill"'') is a beverage made from hot mulled cider, ale, or wine and spices, drunk traditionally as an integral part of wassailing, an ancient English Yuletide drinking ritual and salutation ei ...

bowl to their neighbors to solicit gifts, accompanied by carols. Despite this long history, many Christmas carols date only from the nineteenth century onwards, with the exception of songs such as the "

Wexford Carol The Wexford Carol ( ga, Carúl Loch Garman, Carúl Inis Córthaidh) is a traditional religious Irish Christmas carol originating from County Wexford and, specifically, Enniscorthy (whence its other name). The subject of the song is the nativity o ...

", "

God Rest You Merry Gentlemen "God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen" is an English traditional Christmas carol. It is in the Roxburghe Collection (iii. 452), and is listed as no. 394 in the Roud Folk Song Index. It is also known as "Tidings of Comfort and Joy", and by other varia ...

", "As I Sat on a Sunny Bank", "

The Holly and the Ivy "The Holly and the Ivy" is a traditional British folk Christmas carol, listed as number 514 in the Roud Folk Song Index. The song can be traced only as far as the early nineteenth century, but the lyrics reflect an association between holly a ...

", the "

Coventry Carol The "Coventry Carol" is an English Christmas carol dating from the 16th century. The carol was traditionally performed in Coventry in England as part of a mystery play called ''Coventry Mystery Plays, The Pageant of the Shearmen and Tailors''. ...

" and "

I Saw Three Ships "I Saw Three Ships (Come Sailing In)" is an English Christmas carol, listed as number 700 in the Roud Folk Song Index. The earliest printed version of "I Saw Three Ships" is from the 17th century, possibly Derbyshire, and was also published by ...

Church feasts

The importance of

Advent Advent is a Christian season of preparation for the Nativity of Christ at Christmas. It is the beginning of the liturgical year in Western Christianity. The name was adopted from Latin "coming; arrival", translating Greek ''parousia''. In ...

and the feast of

Christmastide Christmastide is a season of the liturgical year in most Christian churches. In some, Christmastide is identical to Twelvetide. For the Catholic Church, Lutheran Church, Anglican Church and Methodist Church, Christmastide begins on 24 December ...

within the church year means there is a large repertoire of music specially composed for performance in church services celebrating the Christmas story. Various composers from the

Baroque era The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including th ...

to the 21st century have written

Christmas cantata A Christmas cantata or Nativity cantata is a cantata, music for voice or voices in several movements, for Christmas. The importance of the feast inspired many composers to write cantatas for the occasion, some designed to be performed in church ser ...

s and

motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the pre-eminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to Margar ...

s. Some notable compositions include: *

Thomas Tallis Thomas Tallis (23 November 1585; also Tallys or Talles) was an English composer of High Renaissance music. His compositions are primarily vocal, and he occupies a primary place in anthologies of English choral music. Tallis is considered one o ...

: ''Mass "Puer natus est nobis"'' (1554) *

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina ( – 2 February 1594) was an Italian composer of late Renaissance music. The central representative of the Roman School, with Orlande de Lassus and Tomás Luis de Victoria, Palestrina is considered the leading ...

: ''

O magnum mysterium O magnum mysterium is a responsorial chant from the Matins of Christmas. Text The text is drawn from the Matins of Christmas in the Roman Breviary. ; Latin text: : O magnum mysterium, : et admirabile sacramentum, : ut animalia viderent Do ...

'' (1569) *

Orlande de Lassus Orlande de Lassus ( various other names; probably – 14 June 1594) was a composer of the late Renaissance. The chief representative of the mature polyphonic style in the Franco-Flemish school, Lassus stands with Giovanni Pierluigi da Palest ...

: ''

Resonet in laudibus " (Latin for "Resound in praises") is a 14th-century Christmas carol which was widely known in medieval Europe, and is still performed today. Although probably earlier, in manuscript form it first appears in the Moosburg gradual of 1360 and occurs ...

'' (1569) *

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach, as well as one of the most important composers of the 17th century. He ...

: '' Weihnachtshistorie'' (1664) *

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

: several

cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of ...

s for Christmas to Epiphany and ''

Christmas Oratorio The ''Christmas Oratorio'' (German: ''Weihnachtsoratorium''), , is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach intended for performance in church during the Christmas season. It is in six parts, each part a cantata intended for performance on one of t ...

'' (1734) *

Jakub Jan Ryba Jakub Šimon Jan Ryba (surname also Poisson, Peace, Ryballandini, Rybaville; 26 October 1765 – 8 April 1815) was a Czech teacher and composer of classical music. His most famous work is '' Czech Christmas Mass "Hey, Master!"'' (''Česká mše ...

: ''

Czech Christmas Mass ''Czech Christmas Mass'' ( cs, Česká mše vánoční; la, Missa solemnis Festis Nativitatis D. J. Ch. accommodata in linguam bohemicam musikamque redacta – que redacta per Jac. Joa. Ryba) is a pastoral mass written by the Czech composer Jakub ...

"Hey, Master!"'' (1796) *

Anton Bruckner Josef Anton Bruckner (; 4 September 182411 October 1896) was an Austrian composer, organist, and music theorist best known for his symphonies, masses, Te Deum and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-Germ ...

: '' Virga Jesse floruit'' (1885)

Classical music

Many large-scale religious compositions are performed in a concert setting at Christmas. Performances of

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...

'' are a fixture of Christmas celebrations in some countries, and although it was originally written for performance at

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

, it covers aspects of the Biblical Christmas narrative. Informal

Scratch Messiah A Scratch ''Messiah'', People's ''Messiah'', Come Sing ''Messiah'', Sing-it-yourself ''Messiah'', Do-it-yourself ''Messiah'' (DIY ''Messiah''), or Sing along ''Messiah'' (the first two British and Australian usage, the last three common in North ...

performances involving public participation are very popular in the Christmas season.

's ''

'' (, ), written for Christmas 1734, describes the birth of Jesus, the annunciation to the shepherds, the adoration of the shepherds, the circumcision and naming of Jesus, the journey of the

Magi Magi (; singular magus ; from Latin ''magus'', cf. fa, مغ ) were priests in Zoroastrianism and the earlier religions of the western Iranians. The earliest known use of the word ''magi'' is in the trilingual inscription written by Darius th ...

, and the adoration of the Magi.

Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lifetime was widespread a ...

composed the Violin Concerto RV270 "''Il Riposo per il Santissimo Natale''" ("For the Most Holy Christmas").

Arcangelo Corelli Arcangelo Corelli (, also , , ; 17 February 1653 – 8 January 1713) was an Italian composer and violinist of the Baroque era. His music was key in the development of the modern genres of sonata and concerto, in establishing the preeminence of ...

composed the ''

Christmas Concerto Concerto grosso in G minor, Op. 6, No. 8 by Arcangelo Corelli, known commonly as the ''Christmas Concerto'', was commissioned by Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni and published posthumously in 1714 as part of Corelli's '' Twelve concerti grossi, Op.&nbs ...

'' in 1690.

Peter Cornelius Carl August Peter Cornelius (24 December 1824 – 26 October 1874) was a German composer, writer about music, poet and translator. Life He was born in Mainz to Carl Joseph Gerhard (1793–1843) and Friederike (1789–1867) Cornelius, actors i ...

composed a cycle of six songs related to Christmas themes he called '' Weihnachtslieder''. Setting his own poems for solo voice and piano, he alluded to older Christmas carols in the accompaniment of two of the songs. Other classical works associated with Christmas include: *

Marc-Antoine Charpentier Marc-Antoine Charpentier (; 1643 – 24 February 1704) was a French Baroque composer during the reign of Louis XIV. One of his most famous works is the main theme from the prelude of his ''Te Deum'', ''Marche en rondeau''. This theme is still us ...

, 9 vocal settings and 2 instrumental settings : ** ''Messe de Minuit'' H.9 for soloists, choir, flûtes, strings and bc (1690) ** ''In nativitatem Domini canticum'' H.314 for 4 voices, 2 flutes, 2 violins and bc (1670) ** ''Canticum in nativitatem Domini'' H.393 for 3 voies, 2 treeble instruments and bc (1675) ** ''Pastorale de Noël'' H.414 for soloists, choir, 2 treeble instruments and bc (1683-85) ** ''Oratorio de Noël'' H.416 for soloists, choir, flutes, strings and bc (1690) ** ''Dialogus inter angelos et pastores Judae in nativitatem Domini'' H.420 for soloists, choir, flutes, strings and bc (1695?) ** ''In nativitate Domini Nostri Jesu Christi canticum'' H.421 for 3 voices and bc (1698-99) ** ''Pastorale de Noël'' H.482 for soloists, choir, 2 treeble viols and bc (1683-85) ** ''Pastorale de Noël'' H.483 H.483 a H.483 b for soloists, choir, 2 flutes, 2 treeble viols and bc (1683-85) ** ''Noël pour les instruments'' H.531 for flutes, strings and bc (1688?) ** ''Noël sur les instruments'' H.534 for flutes, strings and bc (1698) * ''

Christus Christus may refer to: * Christ (title) People * Petrus Christus (c. 1410s – c. 1475), Dutch painter * Sir Christus (1978–2017), Finnish musician Music * ''Christus'' (Liszt), an oratorio * ''Christus'' (Mendelssohn), an unfinished oratorio ...

'' (1847) an unfinished oratorio by

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...

* ''

L'enfance du Christ ''L'enfance du Christ'' (''The Childhood of Christ''), Opus 25, is an oratorio by the French composer Hector Berlioz, based on the Holy Family's flight into Egypt (see Gospel of Matthew 2:13). Berlioz wrote his own words for the piece. Most of it ...

'' (1853–54) by

Hector Berlioz In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...

* ''

Oratorio de Noël The ''Oratorio de Noël'', Op. 12, by Camille Saint-Saëns, also known as his Christmas Oratorio, is a cantata-like work scored for soloists, chorus, organ, strings and harp. While an organist at La Madeleine, Saint-Saëns wrote the Christmas ...

'' (1858) by

Camille Saint-Saëns Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (; 9 October 183516 December 1921) was a French composer, organist, conductor and pianist of the Romantic music, Romantic era. His best-known works include Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso (1863), the Piano C ...

* ''

The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaiko ...

'' (1892) by

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

* ''

Fantasia on Christmas Carols Fantasia International Film Festival (also known as Fantasia-fest, FanTasia, and Fant-Asia) is a film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996. Regularly held in July of each year, it is valued by both hardcore ...

'' (1912) and ''

Hodie ''Hodie'' (''This Day'') is a cantata by Ralph Vaughan Williams. Composed between 1953 and 1954, it is the composer's last major choral-orchestral composition, and was premiered under his baton at Worcester Cathedral, as part of the Three Choi ...

'' (1954), both by

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

* '' A Ceremony of Carols'' (1942) by

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

Christmas carols

Songs which are traditional, even some without a specific religious context, are often called

Christmas carol A Christmas carol is a carol (a song or hymn) on the theme of Christmas, traditionally sung at Christmas itself or during the surrounding Christmas holiday season. The term noel has sometimes been used, especially for carols of French ori ...

s. Each of these has a rich history, some dating back many centuries.

Standards

A popular set of traditional carols that might be heard at any Christmas-related event include: * "

Angels We Have Heard on High "Angels We Have Heard on High" is a Christmas carol to the hymn tune "Gloria" from a traditional French song of unknown origin called "", with paraphrased English lyrics by James Chadwick. The song's subject is the birth of Jesus Christ as nar ...

" (in the UK the text of "

Angels from the Realms of Glory "Angels from the Realms of Glory" is a Christmas carol written by Scottish poet James Montgomery.Bradley, Ian. ''The Penguin Book of Carols''. Penguin (1999), p27–29. . It was first printed in the '' Sheffield Iris'' on Christmas Eve 1816, ...

" is sung to this tune) * "

Away in a Manger "Away in a Manger" is a Christmas carol first published in the late nineteenth century and used widely throughout the English-speaking world. In Britain, it is one of the most popular carols; a 1996 Gallup Poll ranked it joint second. Although i ...

" * "

Deck the Halls "Deck the Hall” is a traditional Christmas carol. The melody is Welsh, dating back to the sixteenth century, and belongs to a winter carol, "Nos Galan", while the English lyrics, written by the Scottish musician Thomas Oliphant, date to 1862. ...

" * "

Ding Dong Merrily on High "Ding Dong Merrily on High" is a Christmas carol. The tune first appeared as a secular dance tune known under the title "Branle de l'Official" in ''Orchésographie'', a dance book written by the French cleric, composer and writer Thoinot Arbeau, ...

" * "

The First Noel "The First Nowell", also known as "The First Noel (or Noël)", is a traditional English Christmas carol with Cornish origins, most likely from the early modern period, although possibly earlier.Go Tell It on the Mountain" * "

" * "

Good King Wenceslas "Good King Wenceslas" is a Christmas carol that tells a story of a Bohemian king who goes on a journey, braving harsh winter weather, to give alms to a poor peasant on the Feast of Stephen (December 26, the Second Day of Christmas). During the ...

" * "

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" is an English Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection ''Hymns and Sacred Poems''. The carol, based on , tells of an angelic chorus singing praises to God. As it is known in the modern era, it f ...

" * "

It Came Upon the Midnight Clear "It Came Upon the Midnight Clear", sometimes rendered as "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear", is an 1849 poem and Christmas carol written by Edmund Sears, pastor of the Unitarian Church in Wayland, Massachusetts. In 1850, Sears' lyrics were set ...

" * "

Joy to the World "Joy to the World" is an English Christmas carol. The carol was written in 1719 by the English minister and hymnwriter Isaac Watts, and its lyrics are an interpretation of Psalm 98 celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. Today, the carol is usua ...

" * "

" (''O Tannenbaum'') * "

O Come, All Ye Faithful "O Come, All Ye Faithful" (originally written in Latin as "") is a Christmas carol that has been attributed to various authors, including John Francis Wade (1711–1786), John Reading (1645–1692), King John IV of Portugal (1604–1656), and a ...

" (''Adeste Fideles'') * " O come, O come, Emmanuel" * "

" (''Cantique de Noël'') * "

" * "

Once in Royal David's City Once in Royal David's City is a Christmas carol originally written as a poem by Cecil Frances Alexander. The carol was first published in 1848 in her hymnbook ''Hymns for Little Children''. A year later, the English organist Henry Gauntlett dis ...

" * "

" (''Stille Nacht, heilige Nach''t) * "

The Twelve Days of Christmas The Twelve Days of Christmas, also known as Twelvetide, is a festive Christian season celebrating the Nativity of Jesus. In some Western ecclesiastical traditions, "Christmas Day" is considered the "First Day of Christmas" and the Twelve Days a ...

" * "

We Three Kings of Orient Are "We Three Kings", original title "Three Kings of Orient", also known as "We Three Kings of Orient Are" or "The Quest of the Magi", is a Christmas carol that was written by John Henry Hopkins Jr. in 1857. At the time of composing the carol, Hopki ...

" * "

We Wish You a Merry Christmas "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" is an English Christmas carol, listed as numbers 230 and 9681 in the Roud Folk Song Index. The famous version of the carol is from the English West Country The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is ...

" * "

What Child Is This? "What Child Is This?" is a Christmas carol with lyrics written by William Chatterton Dix in 1865 and set to the tune of "Greensleeves", a traditional English folk song, in 1871. Although written in Great Britain, the carol today is more popular ...

" * " While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks" Kolędnicy 2008

These songs hearken from centuries ago, the oldest ("Wexford Carol") originating in the 12th century. The newest came together in the mid- to late-19th century. Many began in non-English speaking countries, often with non-Christmas themes, and were later converted into English carols with English lyrics added—not always translated from the original, but newly created—sometimes as late as the early 20th century.

Early secular Christmas songs

Among the earliest secular Christmas songs was "

", which first appeared in 1780 in England (its melody would not come until 1909); the English West Country carol "

" has antecedents dating to the 1830s but was not published in its modern form until Arthur Warrell introduced it to a wider audience in 1935. As the secular mythos of the holiday (such as

in his modern form) emerged in the 19th century, so too did secular Christmas songs.

Benjamin Hanby Benjamin Russell Hanby (July 22, 1833 – March 16, 1867), also given as Benjamin Russel Hanby, was an American composer, educator, pastor, and abolitionist who wrote approximately 80 songs. The most famous are "Darling Nelly Gray" and the ...

's "

Up on the House Top "Up on the Housetop" is a Christmas song written by Benjamin Hanby in 1864.Bronson, Fre"Signs Of The Season" Billboard Magazine; December 6, 2007. It has been recorded by a multitude of singers, most notably Gene Autry in 1953. Fresh Beat Band ...

" and Emily Huntington Miller's "

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas "Jolly Old Saint Nicholas" is a Christmas song that originated with a poem by Emily Huntington Miller (1833–1913), published as "Lilly's Secret" in ''The Little Corporal Magazine'' in December 1865. The song's lyrics have also been attribute ...

" were among the first explicitly secular Christmas songs in the United States, both dating to the 1860s; they were preceded by "

Jingle Bells "Jingle Bells" is one of the best-known and most commonly sung American songs in the world. It was written by James Lord Pierpont (1822–1893) and published under the title "The One Horse Open Sleigh" in September 1857. It has been claimed th ...

", written in 1857 but not explicitly about Christmas, and "

," written in 1824 but only made about a Christmas tree after being translated from its original German.

Published Christmas music

Christmas music has been published as

sheet music Sheet music is a handwritten or printed form of musical notation that uses List of musical symbols, musical symbols to indicate the pitches, rhythms, or chord (music), chords of a song or instrumental Musical composition, musical piece. Like ...

for centuries. One of the earliest collections of printed Christmas music was ''

Piae Cantiones ''Piae Cantiones ecclesiasticae et scholasticae veterum episcoporum'' (in English ''Pious ecclesiastical and school songs of the ancient bishops'') is a collection of late medieval Latin songs first published in 1582. It was compiled by Jacobus F ...

'', a Finnish songbook first published in 1582 which contained a number of songs that have survived today as well-known Christmas carols. The publication of Christmas music books in the 19th century, such as ''Christmas Carols, New and Old'' ( Bramley and

Stainer Stainer is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Greg Stainer (born 1976), British musician *Jacob Stainer (c. 1617–1683), Austrian luthier *John Stainer (1840–1901), English classical composer and organist * Pauline Stainer (bor ...

, 1871), played an important role in widening the popular appeal of carols. In the 20th century,

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

(OUP) published some highly successful Christmas music collections such as ''

The Oxford Book of Carols ''The Oxford Book of Carols'' is a collection of vocal scores of Christmas carols and carols of other seasons. It was first published in 1928 by Oxford University Press and was edited by Percy Dearmer, Martin Shaw and Ralph Vaughan Williams. ...

'' (

Martin Shaw Martin Shaw (born 21 January 1945) is an English actor. He came to national recognition as Doyle in ITV (TV network), ITV crime-action television drama series ''The Professionals (TV series), The Professionals'' (1977–1983). Further notable ...

and

Percy Dearmer Percival Dearmer (1867–1936) was an English priest and liturgist best known as the author of ''The Parson's Handbook'', a liturgical manual for Anglican clergy, and as editor of ''The English Hymnal''. A lifelong socialist, he was an early ad ...

, 1928), which revived a number of early folk songs and established them as modern standard carols. This was followed by the bestselling ''

Carols for Choirs ''Carols for Choirs'' is a collection of choral scores, predominantly of Christmas carols and hymns, first published in 1961 by Oxford University Press. It was edited by Sir David Willcocks and Reginald Jacques, and is a widely used source of ...

'' series (

David Willcocks Sir David Valentine Willcocks, (30 December 1919 – 17 September 2015) was a British choral conductor, organist, composer and music administrator. He was particularly well known for his association with the Choir of King's College, Cambr ...

Reginald Jacques Thomas Reginald Jacques (13 January 1894 – 2 June 1969) was an English choral and orchestral conductor. His legacy includes various choral music arrangements, but he is not primarily remembered as a composer. Jacques was born in Ashby-de-l ...

and

John Rutter John Milford Rutter (born 24 September 1945) is an English composer, conductor, editor, arranger, and record producer, mainly of choral music. Biography Born on 24 September 1945 in London, the son of an industrial chemist and his wife, Rutte ...

), first published in 1961 and now available in a five volumes. The popular books have proved to be a popular resource for choirs and church congregations in the English-speaking world, and remain in print today. * ''Christmas Carols, New and Old'' (1871) * ''

Oxford Book of Carols ''The Oxford Book of Carols'' is a collection of vocal scores of Christmas carols and carols of other seasons. It was first published in 1928 by Oxford University Press and was edited by Percy Dearmer, Martin Shaw and Ralph Vaughan Williams. I ...

'' (1928) * ''

'' (1961) * ''

New Oxford Book of Carols ''The New Oxford Book of Carols'' is a collection of vocal scores of Christmas carols. It was first published in 1992 by Oxford University Press (OUP) and was edited by Hugh Keyte and Andrew Parrott. It is a widely used source of carols in amo ...

'' (1992) * ''A Shorter New Oxford Book of Carols'' (1992)

Choirmasters poll

In 2008, ''

BBC Music Magazine ''BBC Music Magazine'' is a British monthly magazine that focuses primarily on classical music. History The first issue appeared in September 1992. BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the BBC was the original owner and publisher toget ...

'' published a poll of the "50 Greatest Carols", compiled from the views of choral experts and choirmasters in the UK and the US. The resulting list of the top ten favored Christmas carols and

s was: # "

In the Bleak Midwinter "In the Bleak Midwinter" is a poem by the English poet Christina Rossetti, commonly performed as a Christmas carol. The poem was published, under the title "A Christmas Carol", in the January 1872 issue of ''Scribner's Monthly,'' and was first c ...

" –

Harold Darke Harold Edwin Darke (29 October 1888 – 28 November 1976) was an English composer and organist. He is particularly known for his choral compositions, which are an established part of the respertoire of Anglican church music. Darke had a fifty-y ...

# "

In Dulci Jubilo "In dulci jubilo" (Latin for "In sweet rejoicing") is a traditional Christmas carol. In its original setting, the carol is a macaronic text of German and Latin dating from the Middle Ages. Subsequent translations into English, such as J. M. N ...

" – traditional # "

A Spotless Rose "" (literally "A rose has sprung up") is a Christmas carol and Hymns to Mary, Marian hymn of German origin. It is most commonly translated into English as "Lo, how a rose e'er blooming" and is also called "A Spotless Rose" and "Behold a Rose of J ...

" –

Herbert Howells Herbert Norman Howells (17 October 1892 – 23 February 1983) was an English composer, organist, and teacher, most famous for his large output of Anglican church music. Life Background and early education Howells was born in Lydney, Gloucest ...

# " Bethlehem Down" –

Peter Warlock Philip Arnold Heseltine (30 October 189417 December 1930), known by the pseudonym Peter Warlock, was a British composer and music critic. The Warlock name, which reflects Heseltine's interest in occultism, occult practices, was used for all his ...

# " Lully, Lulla" – traditional # "

Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day "Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing-day" is an English carol usually attributed as "traditional"; its first written appearance is in William B. Sandys' ''Christmas Carols Ancient and Modern'' of 1833. However, it is almost certainly of a much earlier da ...

" # " There Is No Rose" - traditional (15th c.) # "

" # "

Of the Father's Heart Begotten "Of the Father's heart begotten" alternatively known as "Of the Father's love begotten" is a doctrinal hymn based on the Latin poem "Corde natus" by the Roman poet Aurelius Prudentius, from his ''Liber Cathemerinon'' (hymn no. IX) beginning "Da ...

" # "What Sweeter Music" –

Popular Christmas songs

United States

According to the

American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...

(ASCAP) in 2016, "

Santa Claus Is Coming to Town "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" is a Christmas song featuring Santa Claus written by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie. The earliest known recorded version of the song was by banjoist Harry Reser and his band on October 24, 1934. It was then ...

", written by Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie in 1934, is the most played holiday song of the last 50 years. It was first performed live by

Eddie Cantor Eddie Cantor (born Isidore Itzkowitz; January 31, 1892 – October 10, 1964) was an American comedian, actor, dancer, singer, songwriter, film producer, screenwriter and author. Familiar to Broadway, radio, movie, and early television audiences, ...

on his radio show in November 1934.

Tommy Dorsey Thomas Francis Dorsey Jr. (November 19, 1905 – November 26, 1956) was an American jazz trombonist, composer, conductor and bandleader of the big band era. He was known as the "Sentimental Gentleman of Swing" because of his smooth-toned trombo ...

and his orchestra recorded their version in 1935, followed later by a range of artists including Frank Sinatra in 1948,

the Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful ...

the Jackson 5 The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most o ...

the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and frie ...

, and Glenn Campbell.

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

recorded a rock rendition in December 1975. Long-time Christmas classics from prior to the "rock era" still dominate the holiday charts – such as "

Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!", also known as simply "Let It Snow", is a song written by lyricist Sammy Cahn and composer Jule Styne in July 1945 in Hollywood, California, during a heat wave as Cahn and Styne imagined cooler conditions ...

", "

Winter Wonderland "Winter Wonderland" is a song written in 1934 by Felix Bernard and lyricist Richard Bernhard Smith. Due to its seasonal theme, it is often regarded as a Christmas song in the Northern Hemisphere. Since its original recording by Richard Himber, ...

", "

Sleigh Ride "Sleigh Ride" is a light orchestra standard composed by Leroy Anderson. The composer had formed the original idea for the piece during a heat wave in July 1946, and he finished the work in February 1948. The original recordings were instrumental ...

" and "

". Songs from the rock era to enter the top tier of the season's canon include "

Wonderful Christmastime "Wonderful Christmastime" is a Christmas song by English musician Paul McCartney. Recorded during the sessions for his solo album '' McCartney II'' (1980), it was released in November 1979 following Wings' final album ''Back to the Egg'' earlie ...

" by

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

, " All I Want for Christmas Is You" by

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

and

Walter Afanasieff Walter Afanasieff (born Vladimir Nikitich Afanasyev; February 10, 1958), formerly nicknamed Baby Love in the 1980s, is an American record producer and songwriter of Russian-Chinese descent. He was a collaborator with Mariah Carey on her first ...

, and "

Last Christmas "Last Christmas" is a song by British pop duo Wham!, originally released in December 1984 on CBS Records internationally and as a double A-side on Epic Records with "Everything She Wants" in the UK. Described as a "high watermark of mid-80s Br ...

" by

George Michael George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the most significant cultural icons of the MTV generation and is one of the best-selling musici ...

. The most popular set of these titles—heard over airwaves, on the internet, in shopping malls, in elevators and lobbies, even on the street during the Christmas season—have been composed and performed from the 1930s onward. (Songs published before 1925 are all out of copyright, are no longer subject to ASCAP royalties and thus do not appear on their list.) In addition to Bing Crosby, major acts that have popularized and successfully covered a number of the titles in the top 30 most performed Christmas songs in 2015 include Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Andy Williams, and the Jackson 5. Since the mid-1950s, much of the Christmas music produced for popular audiences has explicitly romantic overtones, only using Christmas as a setting. The 1950s also featured the introduction of

novelty song A novelty song is a type of song built upon some form of novel concept, such as a gimmick, a piece of humor, or a sample of popular culture. Novelty songs partially overlap with comedy songs, which are more explicitly based on humor, and w ...

s that used the holiday as a target for satire and source for comedy. Exceptions such as " The Christmas Shoes" (2000) have re-introduced Christian themes as complementary to the secular Western themes, and myriad traditional carol

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s by various artists have explored virtually all

music genre A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music as belonging to a shared tradition or set of conventions. It is to be distinguished from ''musical form'' and musical style, although in practice these terms are some ...

Most-performed Christmas songs

The top thirty most-played holiday songs for the 2015 holiday season are ranked here, all titles written or co-written by ASCAP songwriters and composers. Most of these songs in some way describe or are reminiscent of Christmas traditions, how

Western Christian Western Christianity is one of two sub-divisions of Christianity (Eastern Christianity being the other). Western Christianity is composed of the Latin Church and Western Protestantism, together with their offshoots such as the Old Catholic C ...

countries tend to celebrate the holiday, i.e., with caroling,

mistletoe Mistletoe is the common name for obligate hemiparasitic plants in the order Santalales. They are attached to their host tree or shrub by a structure called the haustorium, through which they extract water and nutrients from the host plant. ...

, exchanging of presents, a Christmas tree, feasting, jingle bells, etc. Celebratory or sentimental, and nostalgic in tone, they hearken back to simpler times with memorable holiday practices—expressing the desire either to be with someone or at home for Christmas. The winter-related songs celebrate the climatic season, with all its snow, dressing up for the cold, sleighing, etc. Many titles help define the mythical aspects of modern Christmas celebration:

bringing presents, coming down the chimney, being pulled by

reindeer Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 subspe ...

, etc. New mythical characters are created, defined, and popularized by these songs; "

", adapted from a major retailer's promotional poem, was introduced to radio audiences by

Gene Autry Orvon Grover "Gene" Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998), nicknamed the Singing Cowboy, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, musician, rodeo performer, and baseball owner who gained fame largely by singing in a crooning s ...

in 1949. His follow-up a year later introduced "

Frosty the Snowman "Frosty the Snowman" is a popular Christmas song written by Walter "Jack" Rollins and Steve Nelson, and first recorded by Gene Autry and the Cass County Boys in 1950 and later recorded by Jimmy Durante. It was written after the success o ...

", the central character of his song. Though overtly religious, and authored (at least partly) by a writer of many church hymns, no drumming child appears in any biblical account of the Christian nativity scene. This character was introduced to the tradition by Katherine K. Davis in her "

The Little Drummer Boy "The Little Drummer Boy" (originally known as "Carol of the Drum") is a popular Christmas song written by American composer Katherine Kennicott Davis in 1941. First recorded in 1951 by the Trapp Family, the song was further popularized by a 19 ...

" (written in 1941, with a popular version being released in 1958).

Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as " You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My M ...

introduced "

Shadrack, the Black Reindeer "Shadrack, the Black Reindeer" is a song written by Zero Jones. It was notably recorded by American country singer-songwriter Loretta Lynn in 1974. It was released as a single the same year via MCA Records. It was given mixed reviews upon its init ...

" in 1974. ''The above-ranking results from an aggregation of performances of all different artist versions of each cited holiday song, across all forms of media, from January 1, 2015, through December 31, 2015.'' * Of the top 30 most performed Christmas songs in 2015, 13 (43%) were written in the 1930s or 1940s and 12 (40%) were written in the 1950s and 1960s; only five (17%) were written from the 1970s on, two (7%) were from after 1990, and none after 1995. This phenomenon was noted in the webcomic

xkcd ''xkcd'', sometimes styled ''XKCD'', is a webcomic created in 2005 by American author Randall Munroe. The comic's tagline describes it as "a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language". Munroe states on the comic's website that the name ...

and referred to as "a massive project to carefully recreate...

baby boomer Baby boomers, often shortened to boomers, are the Western demographic cohort following the Silent Generation and preceding Generation X. The generation is often defined as people born from 1946 to 1964, during the mid-20th century baby boom. T ...

s’ childhoods". * The newest song in the top 30 most performed Christmas songs – "All I Want for Christmas is You", co-written and performed by Mariah Carey in 1994 – entered the list for the first time in 2015; the song hit the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 top 10 for the first time in 2017, and was named "the UK's favourite Christmas song" the same year by ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

''. Troy Powers and Andy Stone wrote a song with the same title and theme, which Vince Vance & the Valiants recorded in 1989 and independently became popular at the same time as Carey's song. The melody is similar to

Bobby Vinton Stanley Robert "Bobby" Vinton (born April 16, 1935) is a American former singer and occasional actor, who also hosted his own self-titled TV show in the late 1970s. As a teen idol, he became known as "The Polish Prince", as his music paid trib ...

's "

My Heart Belongs to Only You "My Heart Belongs to Only You" is a song written by Frank Daniels & Dorothy Daniels. Bette McLaurin and June Christy both released versions of the song in 1952. In 1953, the song reached No. 27 on ''Cash Box''s chart of "The Nation's Top 50 Best ...

". * Johnny Marks wrote three songs that appear in these most-performed Christmas songs in 2015: "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", "Holly Jolly Christmas", and "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree". Irving Berlin wrote two: "White Christmas" and "Happy Holiday". These are the only songwriters to appear on the list more than once – and both are non-Christian. * Gene Autry was the first to sing three songs on the list of top 30 most performed Christmas songs in 2015 – "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", "Frosty the Snowman", and "Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane)" – co-writing the latter song. * Two of the songs, "Carol of the Bells" and "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24", rely on the same melody,

Mykola Leontovych Mykola Dmytrovych Leontovych (23 January 1921; ua, Микола Дмитрович Леонтович, link=no (); also Leontovich) was a Ukrainian composer, conductor, ethnomusicologist and teacher. His music was inspired by the Ukrainian c ...

's " Shchedryk", which was published in 1918 and is thus out of copyright, no longer subject to ASCAP royalties. The lyrics to "Carol of the Bells" are still under copyright. The copyright on "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24" extends only to the

arrangement In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

Christmas song surveys

In 2007 surveys of United States radio listeners by two different research groups, the most liked songs were standards such as

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

's " White Christmas" (1942),

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 ...

's "

The Christmas Song "The Christmas Song" (commonly subtitled "Chestnuts Roasting by an Open Fire" or, as it was originally subtitled, "Merry Christmas to You") is a classic Christmas song written in 1945 by Robert Wells and Mel Tormé. The Nat King Cole Trio f ...

" (1946), and

Burl Ives Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives (June 14, 1909 – April 14, 1995) was an American musician, actor, and author with a career that spanned more than six decades. Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his own rad ...

' "

A Holly Jolly Christmas "A Holly Jolly Christmas" (also called "Have a Holly Jolly Christmas") is a Christmas song written by Johnny Marks and most famously performed by Burl Ives. The song has since become one of the top 25 most-performed "holiday" songs written by ASC ...

" (1965). Other favorites like "

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" is a Christmas song written by Johnny Marks and recorded by Brenda Lee in 1958; it has since been recorded by numerous other music artists. By the song's 50th anniversary in 2008, Lee's original version had s ...

" (

Brenda Lee Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Performing rockabilly, pop and country music, she had 47 US chart hits during the 1960s and is ranked fourth in that decade, surpassed only ...

, 1958), "

Jingle Bell Rock "Jingle Bell Rock" is an American Christmas song first released by Bobby Helms in 1957. Since its release, it has received frequent airplay in the United States during every Christmas season since then. "Jingle Bell Rock" was composed by Joseph Ca ...

" (

Bobby Helms Robert Lee Helms (August 15, 1933 – June 19, 1997) was an American country singer, who is best remembered for his 1957 Christmas hit "Jingle Bell Rock". Additionally, he had two other hit records from that year: " Fraulein" and "My Special Ange ...

, 1957) and

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

and

Yoko Ono Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up i ...

's " Happy Xmas" (1971), scored well in one study. Also "loved" were

Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum s ...

' "

Do You Hear What I Hear? "Do You Hear What I Hear?" is a song written in October 1962, with lyrics by Noël Regney and music by Gloria Shayne. The pair, married at the time, wrote it as a plea for peace during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Regney had been invited by a record ...

" and

Harry Simeone Chorale Harry Moses Simeone (May 9, 1910 – February 22, 2005) was an American music arranger, conductor and composer who popularized the Christmas song " The Little Drummer Boy", for which he received co-writing credit. Early years Simeone was born ...

's "

Little Drummer Boy "The Little Drummer Boy" (originally known as "Carol of the Drum") is a popular Christmas song written by American composer Katherine Kennicott Davis in 1941. First recorded in 1951 by the Trapp Family, the song was further popularized by a 19 ...

" (1958). Among the most-hated Christmas songs, according to Edison Media Research's 2007 survey, are

Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers List ...

's "

?", the

Jackson 5 The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most o ...

's "

", Elmo & Patsy's "

Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" is a novelty Christmas song. Written by Randy Brooks, the song was originally performed by the then-husband-and-wife duo of Elmo Shropshire and Patsy Trigg in 1979. Lyrics The lyrics tell the story of a grandm ...

", and "

" as performed by cartoon characters from

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...

's ''

South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...

''. The "most-hated Christmastime recording" is a rendition of "Jingle Bells" by Carl Weissmann's Singing Dogs, a revolutionary novelty song originally released in 1955, and re-released as an edited version in 1970. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' magazine ranked

Darlene Love Darlene Wright (born July 26, 1941), known professionally as Darlene Love, is an American singer and actress. She was the lead singer of the girl group the Blossoms and she also recorded as a solo artist. She began singing as a child with her ...

's version of "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" (1963) first on its list of The Greatest Rock and Roll Christmas Songs in December 2010. Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You", co-written by Carey and Walter Afanasieff, was No. 1 on ''Billboard'''s Holiday Digital Songs chart in December 2013. "

Fairytale of New York "Fairytale of New York" is a song written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan and recorded by their London-based band the Pogues, featuring singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl on vocals. The song is an Irish folk-style ballad and was written as a du ...

" by

The Pogues The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in Kings Cross, London in 1982, as "Pogue Mahone" – the anglicisation of the Irish Gaelic ''póg mo thóin'', meaning "kiss my arse". T ...

is cited as the best Christmas song of all time in various television, radio and magazine related polls in the United Kingdom and Ireland. A 2021

YouGov YouGov is a British international Internet-based market research and data analytics firm, headquartered in the UK, with operations in Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. In 2007, it acquired US company Polimetrix, and sinc ...

survey of 1,000 adults ranked the most hated Christmas songs, counting only those songs that a majority of those polls recognized and listing the songs independent of any artist who may have recorded them. "

Santa Baby "Santa Baby" is a song performed by American singer Eartha Kitt with Henri René, Henri René and His Orchestra and originally released in 1953. The song was written by Joan Javits and Philip Springer, who also used the pseudonym Tony Springer i ...

" ranked atop the list; a side note from a news article covering the list noted that much of that hatred came from the

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

cover version from ''

A Very Special Christmas ''A Very Special Christmas'' is the title of an ongoing series of Christmas music compilation albums that benefit the Special Olympics. It features songs performed by artists from a variety of genres, such as U2, Stevie Nicks, Bon Jovi, Madonna ...

'', which gets more airplay than

Eartha Kitt Eartha Kitt (born Eartha Mae Keith; January 17, 1927 – December 25, 2008) was an American singer and actress known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 recordings of "C'est si bon" and the Christmas novelty song "Santa Ba ...

's original. Other songs that ranked high in terms of listener revulsion included "

I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" is a Christmas song with music and lyrics by British songwriter Tommie Connor and first recorded by American singer Jimmy Boyd in 1952. The song has since been covered by many artists, with the Ronettes's 1963 ...

," "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" and "

Pinnacle Media Worldwide survey

The Pinnacle Media Worldwide survey divided its listeners into music-type categories: * "Adult contemporary" listeners rated

's "

" best. * "Adult Top 40" fans liked

' "

". * "Hip-hop/R&B" fans liked the

's "

". * "Country" listeners ranked

' "

" No. 1. * "Smooth jazz" fans liked "

" as sung by

United Kingdom and Ireland

Most played songs

A collection of chart hits recorded in a bid to be crowned the UK Christmas No. 1 single during the 1970s and 1980s have become some of the most popular holiday tunes in the United Kingdom. Band Aid's 1984 song "

Do They Know It's Christmas? "Do They Know It's Christmas?" is a charity song written in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. It was first recorded by Band Aid, a supergroup assembled by Geldof and Ure consisting of pop ...

" is the second-best selling single in UK Chart history. "

", released by

in 1987, is regularly voted the British public's favourite-ever Christmas song. It is also the most-played Christmas song of the 21st century in the UK. British

glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was performed by musicians who wore outrageous costumes, makeup, and hairstyles, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists drew on diver ...

bands had major hit singles with Christmas songs in the 1970s. "

Merry Xmas Everybody "Merry Xmas Everybody" is a song by the British rock band Slade, released as a non-album single in 1973. The song was written by lead vocalist Noddy Holder and bassist Jim Lea, and it was produced by Chas Chandler. It was the band's sixth and ...

" by

Slade Slade are an English rock band formed in Wolverhampton in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The ''British Hit Singles ...

, "

I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" is a Christmas song recorded by British glam rock band Wizzard. It was first released in December 1973 and, as with most Wizzard songs, was written and produced by the band's frontman Roy Wood—formerly ...

" by

Wizzard Wizzard were an English rock band formed by Roy Wood, former member of the Move and co-founder of the Electric Light Orchestra. ''The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits'' states, "Wizzard was Roy Wood just as much as Wings was Paul McCartne ...

, and "

Lonely This Christmas "Lonely This Christmas" is a Christmas song by the English glam rock band Mud, that topped the UK Singles Chart in 1974, selling over 750,000 copies and reaching Christmas number one. Song Written and produced by Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman, ...

" by

Mud A MUD (; originally multi-user dungeon, with later variants multi-user dimension and multi-user domain) is a Multiplayer video game, multiplayer Time-keeping systems in games#Real-time, real-time virtual world, usually Text-based game, text-bas ...

all remain hugely popular. In 2012,

PRS for Music PRS for Music Limited (formerly The MCPS-PRS Alliance Limited) is a British music copyright collective, made up of two collection societies: the Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society (MCPS) and the Performing Right Society (PRS). It undertakes ...

(who collect and pay royalties to its 75,000 song-writing and composing members) conducted a survey of the top ten most played Christmas songs in the UK over the past year. The list was as follows: Included in the 2009 and 2008 lists are such other titles as Jona Lewie's "Stop the Cavalry",

's "Santa Claus is Coming to Town", Elton John's "Step into Christmas",

's "

", "Walking in the Air" by Aled Jones, Shakin' Stevens' "Merry Christmas Everyone", Chris Rea's "Driving Home for Christmas" and "Mistletoe and Wine" and "Saviour's Day (song), Saviour's Day" by Cliff Richard. The best Christmas song "to get adults and children in the festive spirit for the party season in 2016" was judged by the ''Daily Mirror'' to be "Fairytale of New York". Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas is You" was declared "the UK's favourite Christmas song", narrowly beating out "Fairytale of New York" according to a "points system" created by ''The Independent'' in 2017. Both score well ahead of all others on the list of top twenty Christmas songs in the UK.

Christmas Number Ones

The "Christmas Number One" – songs reaching the top spot on either the UK Singles Chart, the Irish Singles Chart, or occasionally both, on the edition preceding Christmas – is considered a major achievement in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The Christmas number one benefits from broad publicity, so much so that the List of UK Singles Chart Christmas number twos, songs that attempt but fail to achieve the honor and finish second also get widespread attention. Social media campaigns have been used to try to encourage sales of specific songs so that they could reach number one. These songs develop an association with Christmas or the holiday season from their chart performance, but the association tends to be shorter-lived than for the more traditionally-themed Christmas songs. Notable longer-lasting examples include Band Aid's "

" (No. 1, 1984, the second-biggest selling single in UK Chart history; two re-recordings also hit No. 1 in 1989 and 2004),

's "

" (No. 1, 1973), and Wham!'s "

" (No. 2, 1984). ''Last Christmas'' would go on to hold the UK record for highest-selling single not to reach No. 1, until it finally topped the chart on January 1, 2021, helped by extensive streaming in the final week of December 2020. The Beatles, Spice Girls, and LadBaby are the only artists to have achieved consecutive Christmas number-one hits on the UK Singles Chart, with LadBaby the only artist to have four consecutive Christmas number-ones. The Beatles annually between 1963 and 1965 (with a fourth in 1967), the Spice Girls between 1996 and 1998, and LadBaby between 2018 and 2021 (all four of LadBaby's Christmas number-ones were parody music, parodies of other popular songs that included a running gag mentioning sausage rolls). "Bohemian Rhapsody" is the only recording to have ever been Christmas number one twice, in both 1975 and 1991. Three of the four different Band Aid recordings of "

" have been number one in Christmas week. At the turn of the 21st century, songs associated with reality shows became a frequent source of Christmas number ones in the UK. In 2002, ''Popstars: The Rivals'' produced the top three singles on the British Christmas charts. The "rival" groups produced by the series—the girl group Girls Aloud and the boy band One True Voice—finished first and second respectively on the charts. Failed contestants The Cheeky Girls charted with a novelty hit, "Cheeky Song (Touch My Bum)", at third. Briton Will Young, winner of the first ''Pop Idol'', charted at the top of the Irish charts in 2003. ''The X Factor (UK TV series), The X Factor'' also typically concluded in December during its run; the winner's debut single earned the Christmas number one in at least one of the two countries every year from 2005 to 2014, and in both countries in five of those ten years. Each year since 2008 has seen protest campaigns to outsell the ''X Factor'' single (which benefits from precisely-timed release and corresponding media buzz) and prevent it from reaching number one. In 2009, as the result of a campaign intended to counter the phenomenon, Rage Against the Machine's 1992 single "Killing in the Name" reached number one in the UK instead of that year's ''X Factor'' winner, Joe McElderry. In 2011, "Wherever You Are (2011 song), Wherever You Are", the single from a choir of military wives assembled by the TV series ''The Choir (TV series), The Choir'', earned the Christmas number-one single in Britain—upsetting ''X Factor'' winners Little Mix. With the Military Wives Choir single not being released in Ireland, Little Mix won Christmas number-one in Ireland that year.

Australia

Situated in the southern hemisphere, where seasons are reversed from the northern, the heat of early summer in Australia affects the way Christmas is celebrated and how northern hemisphere Christmas traditions are followed. Australians generally spend Christmas outdoors, going to the beach for the day, or heading to campgrounds for a vacation. International visitors to Sydney at Christmas and holiday season, Christmastime often go to Bondi Beach where tens of thousands gather on Christmas Day. Blandfordia nobilis Berowra Valley

The tradition of an Australian Christmas Eve carol service lit by candles, started in 1937 by Victorian radio announcer Norman Banks (broadcaster), Norman Banks, has taken place in Melbourne annually since then. Carols by Candlelight events can be "huge gatherings . . televised live throughout the country" or smaller "local community and church events." Carols in the Domain in Sydney is now a "popular platform for the stars of stage and music." Some homegrown Christmas songs have become popular. William G. James' six sets of ''Australian Christmas Carols'', with words by John Wheeler, include "The Three Drovers", "The Silver Stars are in the Sky", "Christmas Day", "Carol of the Birds" and others. "Light-hearted Australian Christmas songs" have become "an essential part of the Australian Christmas experience." Rolf Harris' "Six White Boomers", Colin Buchanan (entertainer), Colin Buchanan's "Aussie Jingle Bells", and the "Australian Twelve Days of Christmas", proudly proclaim the differing traditions Down Under. A verse from "Aussie Jingle Bells" makes the point: Engine's getting hot Dodge the kangaroos swagman, Swaggie climbs aboard He is welcome too All the family is there Sitting by the pool Christmas Day, the Aussie way By the barbecue! "The The Twelve Days of Christmas (song), Twelve Days of Christmas" has been revised to fit the Australian context, as an example: "On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love sent to me: 12 parrots prattling, 11 numbats nagging, 10 lizards leaping, 9 wombats working, 8 dingoes digging, 7 possums playing, 6 brolgas dancing, 5 kangaroos, 4 koalas cuddling, 3 kookaburras laughing, 2 pink galahs, and an emu up a gum tree." Other popular Australian Christmas songs include: 'White Wine in the Sun" by Tim Minchin, "Aussie Jingle Bells" by Bucko & Champs, "Christmas Photo" by John Williamson (singer), John Williamson, "Go Santa, Go" by The Wiggles, and "Six White Boomers" by Russel Coight. "My Little Christmas Belle" (1909) composed by Joe Slater (1872-1926) to words by Ward McAlister (1872–1928) celebrates eastern Australian flora coming into bloom during the heat of Christmas. ''Blandfordia nobilis'', also known as Christmas Bells, are the specific subject of the song—with the original

bearing a depiction of the blossom. Whereas "The Holly and The Ivy" (1937) by Australian Louis Lavater (1867–1953) mentions northern hemisphere foliage. Australian singer-songwriter Paul Kelly (Australian musician), Paul Kelly first released "How to Make Gravy" as part of a four-track EP November 4, 1996, through White Label Records. The title track, written by Kelly, tells the story in a letter to his brother from a newly imprisoned man who laments how he will be missing the family Christmas. It received a Song of the Year nomination at the 1998 Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) Music Awards. Kelly's theme reflects a national experience with Christmas:

Other popular Christmas songs

" originated with a poem by Emily Huntington Miller (1833-1913), published as "Lilly's Secret" in ''The Little Corporal Magazine'' December 1865. Lyrics have also been attributed to

, who wrote

in 1864, but the words commonly heard today resemble Miller's 1865 poem. James Ramsey Murray, James R. Murray is attributed as composer in the first publication of the music in ''School Chimes, A New School Music Book'' by S. Brainard's Sons in 1874. Early notable recordings were made by Ray Smith (rockabilly singer), Ray Smith (1949), Chet Atkins (1961), Eddy Arnold (1962), and Alvin and the Chipmunks (1963). "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm", introduced in the musical film ''On the Avenue'' by Dick Powell and Alice Faye in 1937, was written by Irving Berlin. "The Little Boy that Santa Claus Forgot" – written by Michael Carr (composer), Michael Carr, Tommie Connor, and Jimmy Leach in 1937 – was notably performed by Vera Lynn and

. "I'll Be Home for Christmas", by lyricist Kim Gannon and composer Walter Kent, was recorded by

in 1943. "Merry Christmas Baby" is credited to Lou Baxter and Johnny Moore's Three Blazers, Johnny Moore, whose group originally recorded it in 1947, featuring singer and pianist Charles Brown (musician), Charles Brown. Kay Thompson introduced her "The Holiday Season" in 1945, which later became part of a medley by Andy Williams. "A Marshmallow World" (sometimes called "It's a Marshmallow World") was written in 1949 by Carl Sigman (lyrics) and Peter DeRose (music). More popular songs which reference the Nativity include "I Wonder as I Wander" (1933), "Mary's Boy Child" (1956), The Little Drummer Boy, "Carol of the Drum" ("Little Drummer Boy") (1941), and "

" (1962). Other titles and recordings added to the popular Christmas song canon include:

1950s

* 1950: "(Everybody's Waitin' for) The Man with the Bag", written by Irving Taylor (songwriter), Irving Taylor and Dudley Brooks; popularized by Kay Starr. * 1950: "Dixieland Band from Santa Claus Land" by Jimmy Dorsey and his orchestra. * 1950: "A Marshmallow World", written by Carl Sigman and Peter DeRose; released by Bing Crosby (backed by The Lee Gordon Singers and the Sonny Burke Orchestra). * 1950: "Mele Kalikimaka"; written in 1949 by R. Alex Anderson; released by Bing Crosby and The Andrews Sisters as a single (with "Poppa Santa Claus" on the reverse side). The title is the closest approximation of the pronunciation of "Merry Christmas" possible in the Hawaiian language. * 1951: "Christmas Choir", released by Patti Page on ''Christmas with Patti Page''. * 1951: "Suzy Snowflake", written by Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett; released by Rosemary Clooney as a 78 RPM record through Columbia Records. * 1953: "

", written by

in 1864; popularized by Gene Autry. * 1954: "The Christmas Waltz", written by Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne; released by Frank Sinatra on the B-side of his version of " White Christmas" and later ''A Jolly Christmas from Frank Sinatra (1957)'' and ''The Sinatra Family Wish You a Merry Christmas (1968)''. * 1955: "The First Snowfall" written by Paul Francis Webster, Sonny Burke and recorded by

on November 22, 1955. * 1956: "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day", written by Johnny Marks from a Christmas carol based on the 1863 poem "Christmas Bells" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow; released by Bing Crosby as a single (with "Christmas Is A-Comin' (May God Bless You)" on B-side). * 1956: "Mary's Boy Child", written by Jester Hairston; released by Harry Belafonte on ''An Evening with Belafonte''. * 1957: "Mistletoe and Holly" written by Frank Sinatra, Dok Stanford, and Hank Sanicola; recorded by Sinatra with orchestra conducted by Gordon Jenkins, released as a Capitol 7" 45 single backed with "The Christmas Waltz". Included on ''A Jolly Christmas From Frank Sinatra''. * 1958: "Run Rudolph Run", written by Johnny Marks and Marvin Brodie; popularized by Chuck Berry when released as a single on Chess Records. * 1959: "Caroling, Caroling", written by Alfred Burt in 1953; recorded by Fred Waring on ''The Sounds of Christmas''. * 1959: "The Secret of Christmas", written by Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen for Bing Crosby, first performed in the film ''Say One for Me''; Crosby recorded the song with an arrangement by Frank DeVol for a single that year released by Columbia Records.

1960s

* 1960: "Caroling, Caroling", written by Alfred Burt in 1953; popularized by Nat King Cole on ''The Magic of Christmas (Nat King Cole album), The Magic of Christmas''. * 1960: "Please Come Home for Christmas", written by Charles Brown (musician), Charles Brown and Gene Redd; released by Brown on ''Charles Brown Sings Christmas Songs'' (since becoming associated with the Eagles' 1978 cover). * 1960: "Must Be Santa (song), Must Be Santa", written by Hal Moore and Bill Fredericks; first released by Mitch Miller; Tommy Steele's cover of the song reaching No. 40 on the UK Singles Chart the same year. * 1960: "Dominick the Donkey" written by Ray Allen, Wandra Merrell, and Sam Saltzberg; recorded by Lou Monte on Roulette Records. The song describes a donkey who helps

bring presents ("made in Brooklyn") to children in Italy "because Santa Claus's reindeer, the reindeer cannot climb" Italy's hills. * 1961: "The Merriest", "Ring a Merry Bell" and "Seven Shades of Snow", all written by Connie Pearce and Arnold Miller; released by June Christy on ''This Time of Year.'' * 1961: "We Wish You the Merriest", written and recorded by Les Brown (bandleader), Les Brown; released by Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, and Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians on ''12 Songs of Christmas (Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, and Fred Waring album), 12 Songs of Christmas'' in 1964. * 1963: "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)", written by Ellie Greenwich, Jeff Barry with Phil Spector; released by

on ''A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector.'' * 1963: "Happy Holidays/The Holiday Season" medley by Andy Williams of Irving Berlin's 1942 classic with Kay Thompson's "The Holiday Season" from 1945. * 1963: "Little Saint Nick", written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love; released by the Beach Boys as a single and included on ''The Beach Boys' Christmas Album'' in 1964. * 1963: "Pretty Paper (song), Pretty Paper" by Willie Nelson; sung by Roy Orbison. Nelson had a hit with his own song in 1978. * 1964: "Silver and Gold (Burl Ives song), Silver and Gold", written by Johnny Marks; sung by

on the Rankin-Bass Christmas special ''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (TV special), Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.'' * 1964: "Babes in Toyland (operetta)#Musical numbers, Toyland" written by Victor Herbert and Glen McDonough for the operetta Babes in Toyland (operetta), ''Babes in Toyland'' (originally produced in 1903); released by Doris Day on ''The Doris Day Christmas Album''. * 1964: "Claude Thornhill#Cover versions of "Snowfall", Snowfall", written by Claude Thornhill in 1941, with lyrics later added by his wife, Ruth Thornhill; covered by Doris Day on ''The Doris Day Christmas Album''. * 1965: "Christmas Time Is Here", written for ''A Charlie Brown Christmas'' animated TV special; harmonized by the choir of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in San Rafael, California. * 1965: "My Favorite Things (song), My Favorite Things", written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, Oscar Hammerstein for the 1959 musical, ''The Sound of Music''; covered by Diana Ross and the Supremes on ''Merry Christmas (The Supremes album), Merry Christmas.'' * 1965: "Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy", written by Buck Owens and Don Rich; released by Owens as single with "All I Want for Christmas, Dear, Is You" on the B-side. * 1966: "We Need a Little Christmas" written by Jerry Herman for the Broadway musical ''Mame (musical), Mame'', and first performed by Angela Lansbury in that 1966 production; popularly covered by Percy Faith & His Orchestra on ''Christmas Is... Percy Faith.'' * 1966: "The Happiest Christmas Tree", written by Cathy Lynn; recorded by Nat King Cole. * 1967: "Snoopy's Christmas", written by George David Weiss and Hugo & Luigi; released by the Royal Guardsmen on ''Snoopy and His Friends''. * 1967: "What Christmas Means to Me" written by Allen Story, Anna Gordy Gaye, and George Gordy; recorded by Stevie Wonder on ''Someday at Christmas''.

1970s

* 1970: "Give Love on Christmas Day", written by The Corporation (record production team), The Corporation (Berry Gordy, Alphonzo Mizell, Christine Perren, Freddie Perren, and Deke Richards); recorded by the

for ''The Jackson 5 Christmas Album''. * 1970: "Merry Christmas Darling", written by Richard Carpenter (musician), Richard Carpenter with lyrics by Frank Pooler; released by The Carpenters as a single (re-released 1974 & 1977); remixed on ''Christmas Portrait'' in 1978 with new vocal by Karen Carpenter. * 1970: "This Christmas (Donny Hathaway song), This Christmas", written by Donny Hathaway (as "Donny Pitts") and Nadine Theresa McKinnor; recorded by Hathaway and released as a single (with "Be There" on the B-side). * 1971: "My Christmas Card To You" released by The Partridge Family on ''A Partridge Family Christmas Card.'' * 1971: "River (Joni Mitchell song), River" written by Joni Mitchell; released by her on ''Blue (Joni Mitchell album), Blue.'' * 1973: "Step into Christmas", written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin; released by John as a stand-alone single. * 1974: "I Believe in Father Christmas" written by Greg Lake with lyrics by Peter Sinfield; released by Lake as a single (with "Humbug" on B-side). Instrumental riff between verses interpolated from "Troika" portion of Sergei Prokofiev's ''Lieutenant Kijé (Prokofiev), Lieutenant Kijé Suite'', written for 1934 Soviet Union, Soviet film, ''Lieutenant Kijé (film), Lieutenant Kijé'' * 1976: "When a Child Is Born#Johnny Mathis version, When a Child is Born" (original melody titled "Soleado"), written by Daniel Sentacruz Ensemble, Ciro Dammicco (alias "Zacar") and Dario Baldan Bembo in 1973 (English language lyrics written later by Fred Jay); released by

as single entitled "When A Child Is Born (Soleado)" with "Every Time You Touch Me (I Get High)" on the B-side. * 1977: "Celebrate Me Home (song), Celebrate Me Home", written by Kenny Loggins and Bob James (musician), Bob James; recorded by Loggins as title track of his debut solo album ''Celebrate Me Home''. * 1977: "Father Christmas (song), Father Christmas", written by Ray Davies; released by The Kinks as a single (with "Prince of the Punks" on B-side). * 1977: "Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy", "The Little Drummer Boy" written in 1941 by Katherine Kennicott Davis; "Peace on Earth" written by Ian Fraser (composer), Ian Fraser, Larry Grossman (composer), Larry Grossman, and Buz Kohan, Alan Kohan; medley recorded by David Bowie and

for the television special, ''Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas''. (Bowie single released 1982.) * 1978: "Mary's Boy Child – Oh My Lord", written by Jester Hairston in 1956 with new song by Frank Farian, Fred Jay, and Hela Lorin; medley released by Boney M as a single. * 1978: "Please Come Home for Christmas", written by Charles Brown and Gene Redd in 1960; cover released by The Eagles as a single (with "Funky New Year" on B-side) * 1979: "

"; written by Randy Brooks; released by Elmo & Patsy as a single (with "Christmas" on B-side).

1980s

* 1980: "It Must Have Been The Mistletoe (Our First Christmas)", written by Doug Konecky and Justin Wilde; released by Barbara Mandrell on ''Christmas at Our House''. * 1980: "Same Old Lang Syne", written by Dan Fogelberg; released as a single by Folgelberg in 1980 (with "Hearts and Crafts" on B-side). It was included on his 1981 album ''The Innocent Age''. * 1980: "Stop The Cavalry" written by Jona Lewie; released by Lewie as a single (with "Laughing Tonight" on B-side). * 1981: "Christmas is the Time to Say 'I Love You'" written by Billy Squier; released by him by as the B-side of his hit, "My Kinda Lover". * 1981: "Christmas Wrapping", written by Chris Butler (musician), Chris Butler; released by The Waitresses as a single (with "Christmas Fever" by Charlelie Couture on B-side). Also included in a Christmas compilation album. * 1982: "Hard Candy Christmas"; written by Carol Hall for the Musical theatre, musical, ''The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas''; released by Dolly Parton as a single (with "Act Like a Fool" on B-side). * 1984: "Thank God It's Christmas", written by Brian May and Roger Taylor (Queen drummer), Roger Taylor; released by Queen (band), Queen as a single (with "The Works (Queen album)#"Man on the Prowl", Man on the Prowl" and "The Works (Queen album)#"Keep Passing the Open Windows", Keep Passing the Open Windows" on B-side). * 1984: "Another Lonely Christmas", written by Prince (musician), Prince; released by Prince and the Revolution as a single. * 1984: "The Power of Love (Frankie Goes to Hollywood song), The Power of Love", written by Holly Johnson, Peter Gill (FGTH drummer), Peter Gill, Mark O'Toole (musician), Mark O'Toole, and Brian Nash; released by Frankie Goes to Hollywood as a single (with "The World Is My Oyster" on B-side). * 1985: "Merry Christmas Everyone"; written by Bob Heatlie; released by Shakin' Stevens as a single (with "With My Heart" and "Blue Christmas" on B-side). * 1985: "There's a New Kid in Town", written by Don Cook, Curly Putman, and Keith Whitley. * 1987: "Christmas in Hollis", written by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell; released by Run D.M.C. on two Christmas compilation albums: ''A Very Special Christmas (album), A Very Special Christmas'' and ''Christmas Rap,'' and as a single (with "Peter Piper" on B-side). * 1988: "Driving Home for Christmas"; written by Chris Rea; originally released as one of two new songs on Rea's first compilation album ''New Light Through Old Windows'' in October, then issued as the fourth single from the album in December. * 1988: "Mistletoe and Wine", written by Jeremy Paul (screenwriter), Jeremy Paul, Leslie Stewart (writer), Leslie Stewart and Keith Strachan for the 1976 musical, ''Scraps'' (an adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen's "The Little Match Girl"); released by Cliff Richard as a single (with "Marmaduke" on B-side), and on his album ''Private Collection: 1979–1988.'' * 1989: "All I Want for Christmas Is You (Vince Vance & The Valiants song), All I Want for Christmas Is You", written by Troy Powers and Andy Stone; released by Vince Vance & The Valiants as a single. * 1989: "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)" by The Ramones on their ''Brain Drain (album), Brain Drain'' album.

1990s

* 1990: "Saviour's Day (song), Saviour's Day", written by Chris Eaton (UK musician), Chris Eaton; released by Cliff Richard as a single (with "Where You Are" on B-side). * 1990: "Grown-Up Christmas List", written by David Foster, Linda Thompson (actress), Linda Thompson-Jenner, and Amy Grant; released by David Foster with Natalie Cole for his album ''River of Love'' (with a 1992 version by Amy Grant). * 1991: "Mary, Did You Know?", with lyrics written by Mark Lowry (in 1984) and music by Buddy Greene; originally recorded by Michael English (American singer), Michael English on a self-titled album (with a 1996 version by Kenny Rogers and Wynonna Judd, Wynona Judd). * 1992: "All Alone on Christmas", written and arranged by Steve Van Zandt; recorded by

as a single with members of The E Street Band and The Miami Horns. Originally featured on ''Home Alone 2: Lost in New York#Soundtrack, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York soundtrack''. * 1992: "Christmas All Over Again" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers on the album box set ''Playback (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers album), Playback'' * 1993: "Hey Santa!", written (with the help of Jack Kugell) and sung by Carnie Wilson, Carnie and Wendy Wilson on the album of the same name. * 1994: "The Chanukah Song"; written by Adam Sandler, Lewis Morton, and Ian Maxtone-Graham; originally performed by Sandler on Saturday Night Live's ''Weekend Update'' segment on December 3, 1994. Released as a single by Sandler in 1995 from ''What the Hell Happened to Me?''. * 1996: "How to Make Gravy" written and performed by Paul Kelly (Australian musician), Paul Kelly in Australia. * 1998: "Christmas Canon" by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra on their album ''The Christmas Attic'' * 1998: "Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays" by NSYNC from the albums ''Home for Christmas (NSYNC album), Home for Christmas'' and ''The Winter Album (NSYNC album), The Winter Album''

2000s

* 2000: "My Only Wish (This Year)" by Britney Spears off the compilation album, ''Platinum Christmas'' * 2000: "Where Are You, Christmas?" co-written by

, James Horner, and Will Jennings, but recorded by Faith Hill. The song was originally recorded by Carey, but because of a legal case with her ex-husband Tommy Mottola, it could not be released, so it was re-recorded and released by Faith Hill. * 2003: "Christmas Time (Don't Let the Bells End)" by The Darkness (band), The Darkness * 2004: "Believe (Josh Groban song), Believe" written by Glen Ballard and Alan Silvestri for Josh Groban *2004: "Joseph's Lullaby" by MercyMe from the album The Christmas Sessions * 2004: "Wizards in Winter", an instrumental written and composed by Paul O'Neill (rock producer), Paul O'Neill and Robert Kinkel, performed by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra * 2007: "Mistletoe (Colbie Caillat song), Mistletoe" written by Stacy Blue and Colbie Caillat, and performed by Caillat. * 2008: "White Is in the Winter Night" by Enya on the album, ''And Winter Came...'' * 2009: "It Doesn't Often Snow at Christmas" by Pet Shop Boys (UK No. 40 hit)

2010s

* 2010: "Oh Santa!" by

from her album ''Merry Christmas II You''. A new version, featuring Ariana Grande and Jennifer Hudson, was released in 2020 for the ''Mariah Carey's Magical Christmas Special, Mariah Carey's Magical Christmas Special's'' soundtrack. * 2010: "Christmas Lights (song), Christmas Lights" by Coldplay * 2010: "Christmas in Harlem" by Kanye West from the GOOD Fridays series of releases under the GOOD Music label * 2011: "Mistletoe (Justin Bieber song), Mistletoe" by Justin Bieber from his album ''Under the Mistletoe'' * 2012: "Christmas in the Sand (song), Christmas in the Sand" by Colbie Caillat from her album of the Christmas in the Sand, same name; meant to conjure up (humorously) what Christmas might be like in Hawaii * 2013: "Underneath the Tree" by Kelly Clarkson on her album ''Wrapped in Red'' * 2013: "One More Sleep" by Leona Lewis on her album ''Christmas, with Love'' * 2013: "Wrapped in Red (song), Wrapped in Red" written by Kelly Clarkson, Ashley Arrison, Aben Eubanks, and Shane McAnally and recorded by Clarkson as the opening track on her sixth studio album, ''Wrapped in Red'' * 2014: "That's Christmas to Me" by a cappella group Pentatonix (No. 2 Billboard 200, ''Billboard'' 200, double platinum by Recording Industry Association of America, RIAA) * 2014: "Santa Tell Me" by Ariana Grande on her EP ''Christmas Kisses (EP), Christmas Kisses'' * 2015: "Every Day's Like Christmas" by Kylie Minogue on her album ''Kylie Christmas'' * 2017: "Santa's Coming for Us" written by Sia and Greg Kurstin and released by Sia on ''Everyday Is Christmas (album), Everyday Is Christmas'' * 2017: "Snowman (Sia song), Snowman" written by Sia and Greg Kurstin and released by Sia on ''Everyday Is Christmas (album), Everyday Is Christmas''

2020s

* 2020 "Holiday (Lil Nas X song), Holiday" by Lil Nas X * 2020: "Christmas Saves the Year" a single written and recorded by Twenty One Pilots; released after a Twitch (service), Twitch stream where lead singer Tyler Joseph played in a ''Fortnite'' tournament sponsored by Chipotle Mexican Grill, Chipotle in hopes to raise money for Make-A-Wish Foundation. * 2021: "Merry Christmas (song), Merry Christmas" by Ed Sheeran and Elton John * 2022: Three Lions , Three Lions (It's Coming Home for Christmas) by Baddiel, Skinner & Lightning Seeds; due to the 2022 FIFA World Cup taking place in Qatar the tournament started in November instead of June. As a result Frank Skinner and David Baddiel recorded a new version of their iconic Three Lions song to make references to both Christmas and the success of the England women's national football team, England Lionesses in the UEFA Women's Euro 2022, Women's Euro 2022.

Christmas songs from musicals

"I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm", written by Irving Berlin, was introduced in the musical film ''On the Avenue'' by Dick Powell and Alice Faye in 1937. " White Christmas" was introduced in the film ''Holiday Inn (film), Holiday Inn'' (1942), while "

" was from ''Meet Me in St. Louis'' (1944), and "Silver Bells" ''The Lemon Drop Kid'' (1950). The operetta ''Babes in Toyland (operetta), Babes in Toyland'' (1903) featured the song "Toyland". The 1934 film adaptation, a Laurel and Hardy musical film known by alternative titles, opened with the song. Introducing Christmas-themed songs that have yet to achieve popularity, ''Scrooge (1970 film), Scrooge'' (1970) included "Father Christmas", "December the 25th", and the Academy Award-nominated "Thank You Very Much". "Mistletoe and Wine" was written for a 1976 musical entitled ''Scraps'', which was an adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen's "The Little Match Girl". "Hard Candy Christmas" was written by Carol Hall for the 1982 musical, ''The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas'', and later released by Dolly Parton as a single. ''Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (1993) features Christmas-themed songs like "Making Christmas", "What's This?", "Town Meeting Song", and "Jack's Obsession".

Christmas novelty songs

Musical parodies of the season – comical or nonsensical songs performed principally for their comical effect – are often heard around Christmas. Many novelty songs employ unusual lyrics, subjects, sounds, or instrumentation, and may not even be particularly musical. The term arose in the Tin Pan Alley world of popular songwriting, with novelty songs achieving great popularity during the 1920s and 1930s. The Christmas novelty song genre, which got its start with "I Yust Go Nuts at Christmas" written by Yogi Yorgesson and sung by him with the Johnny Duffy Trio in 1949, includes such notable titles as: * "

" by the Singing Dogs was recorded in 1955 by Don Charles from Copenhagen; considered the work of Carl Weismann, it was revolutionary in its use of the latest recording technology. * "Green Chri$tma$", a radio play parody by Stan Freberg that came out in 1958 and satirized commercial advertising. * "I'm Gonna Spend My Christmas with a Dalek," a ''Doctor Who'' spin-off song, released in 1964 by The Go-Go's (British band), The Go-Go's (the 1960s British band, not the later American band of the same name). Originally intended to help fuel Dalekmania, it tried to turn the sinister Daleks into another version of The Chipmunks. * "Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy", co-written and recorded by Buck Owens in 1965, has been covered by other country music stars, including Garth Brooks, Travis Tritt, and Brad Paisley. In the 1970s comedic singing duo Cheech & Chong's debut single in 1971 was "Santa Claus and His Old Lady". The Kinks did "Father Christmas (song), Father Christmas" in 1977, and Elmo & Patsy came out with "

" in 1979. More recent titles added to the canon include: * "

" parodies (including one by Bob and Doug McKenzie in 1982) * "Christmas at Ground Zero" by Weird Al Yankovic (1986) * "Rusty Chevrolet" by Da Yoopers, a parody of "

" (1987) * "Christmas in Hollis", a rap single by Run–D.M.C. (1987) * ''A Rubber Band Christmas'' – an entire album featuring traditional and popular Christmas songs played on rubber bands, staplers and other office equipment (1996) * "Christmas Convoy", a southern rock song by Paul Brandt, a parody of the C.W. McCall song "Convoy (song), Convoy" (2006) Seattle radio personality Bob Rivers became nationally famous for his line of novelty Christmas songs and released five albums (collectively known as the ''Twisted Christmas'' quintilogy, after the name of Rivers' radio program, ''Twisted Radio'') consisting entirely of Christmas parodies from 1987 to 2002. "Don't Shoot Me Santa" was released by The Killers in 2007, benefiting various AIDS charities. Christmas novelty songs can involve gallows humor and even morbid humor like that found in "Christmas at Ground Zero" and "The Night Santa Went Crazy", both by "Weird Al" Yankovic. The Dan Band released several adult-oriented Christmas songs on their 2007 album ''Ho: A Dan Band Christmas'' which included "Ho, Ho, Ho" (ho being slang for a prostitute), "I Wanna Rock You Hard This Christmas", "Please Don't Bomb Nobody This Holiday" and "Get Drunk & Make Out This Christmas". Kristen Bell and a cappella group Straight No Chaser (group), Straight No Chaser "teamed up to poke fun at the modern seasons greeting" with "Text Me Merry Christmas": :Text me Merry Christmas :Let me know you care :Just a word or two :Of text from you :Will remind me you’re still there Straight No Chaser singer Randy Stine said of the song: "We wanted a Christmas song that spoke to how informal communication has become."

Juvenile

Christmas novelty songs include many sung by young teens, or performed largely for the enjoyment of a young audience. Starting with "

" sung by 13-year-old Jimmy Boyd in 1952, a few other notable novelty songs written to parody the Christmas season and sung by young singers include: * "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" sung by 10-year-old Gayla Peevey (1953) * "Nuttin' for Christmas" by Art Mooney and Barry Gordon, who was seven years old when he sang it (1955) * "¿Dónde Está Santa Claus? (Where is Santa Claus?)" sung by 12-year-old Augie Rios, featuring the Mark Jeffrey Orchestra (1959) Christmas novelty songs aimed at a young audience include: * "All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth", written by Donald Yetter Gardner in 1944 and introduced by Spike Jones and his City Slickers (1948) * "

" with music and lyrics by British songwriter Tommie Connor was first recorded by 13-year-old Jimmy Boyd in 1952, reaching No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' pop singles chart in December of that year. The Jackson 5 recorded a popular cover in 1970 with a young Michael Jackson singing lead. * "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late), The Chipmunk Song", written by Ross Bagdasarian Sr./David Seville and performed by Alvin and the Chipmunks (1958) * "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" originally done for the 1966 cartoon special ''How the Grinch Stole Christmas!''; lyrics written by Dr. Seuss, music by Albert Hague, and performed by Thurl Ravenscroft * "Snoopy's Christmas" performed by The Royal Guardsmen in 1967; a follow-up to their earlier song "Snoopy vs. the Red Baron (song), Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron" recorded in 1966 * "Santa Claus Is a Black Man" by Akim and the Teddy Vann Production Company (1973) The number of Christmas novelty songs is so vast that radio host Dr. Demento devotes an entire month of weekly two-hour episodes to the format each year, and the novelty songs receive frequent requests at radio stations across the country.

Non-Christian writers

Approximately half of the 30 best-selling Christmas songs by ASCAP members in 2015 were written by Jewish composers. Johnny Marks has three top Christmas songs, the most for any writer—"

", "

", and "

". By far the most recorded Christmas song is " White Christmas" by Irving Berlin (born Israel Isidore Beilin in Russia)—who also wrote "Happy Holiday (song), Happy Holiday"—with well over 500 versions in dozens of languages. Others include: * "

" by Sammy Cahn (born Cohen) and Jule Styne (who also wrote "The Christmas Waltz" together) * "

" (composer Felix Bernard was born Felix William Bernhardt) * "The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)" by Robert Wells (songwriter), Robert Wells (born Levinson) and Mel Tormé * "

" (lyricist Mitchell Parish was born Michael Hyman Pashelinsky in Lithuania) * "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" (composer George Wyle was born Bernard Weissman) * "Silver Bells" by Jay Livingston (born Jacob Levinson) and Ray Evans * "(There's No Place Like) Home for the Holidays" by Robert Allen (song composer), Bob Allen (born Robert Allen Deitcher) and Al Stillman (born Albert Silverman) * "I'll Be Home for Christmas" by Walter Kent (born Walter Kauffman) and Buck Ram (born Samuel). * "

" by Joan Ellen Javits (Zeeman), niece of Senator Jacob Javits, and Philip Springer. * "Baby, It's Cold Outside" by Frank Loesser Leiber-Stoller, Lyricist Jerome "Jerry" Leiber and composer Mike Stoller wrote "Santa Claus Is Back in Town", which

debuted on his first Elvis' Christmas Album, Christmas album in 1957. "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" was written by Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry (with Phil Spector), originally for Ronnie Spector of The Ronettes. It was made into a hit by

in 1963. "Peace on Earth" was written by Ian Fraser (composer), Ian Fraser, Larry Grossman (composer), Larry Grossman, and Alan Kohan as a counterpoint to "

" (1941) to make David Bowie comfortable recording "Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy" with

on September 11, 1977 – for Crosby's then-upcoming television special, ''Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas''.

Adopted Christmas music

What is known as Christmas music today, coming to be associated with the holiday season in some way, has often been adopted from works initially composed for other purposes. Many tunes adopted into the Christmas canon carry no Christmas connotation at all. Some were written to celebrate other holidays and gradually came to cover the Christmas season. * "Tempus Adest Floridum", a romantic spring carol with Latin words dating to the 13th-century ''Carmina Burana'' and a melody attested no later than 1584, became associated with Christmas after John Mason Neale set his epic ballad "

" to its melody in 1853. Neale's poem does not directly mention Christmas or the nativity but describes Bohemian Duke Wenceslas I, Duke of Bohemia, Wenceslas I's journey to aid a poor traveler on a cold St. Stephen's Day; that day falls on the day after Christmas and within the traditional Twelve Days of Christmas. * "

", with words written by Isaac Watts in 1719 and music by Lowell Mason (who in turn borrowed liberally from Handel) in 1839, was originally written anticipating the Second Coming. * "Jingle Bells", first published under the title "One Horse Open Sleigh" in 1857, was originally associated with Thanksgiving (United States), Thanksgiving rather than Christmas. *With a Welsh melody dating back to the sixteenth century, and English lyrics from 1862, "Deck the Halls" celebrates the Paganism, pagan holiday of Yule and the New Year, but not explicitly Christmas ("Troll the ancient Yuletide carol/See the blazing Yule before us/While I tell of Yuletide treasure"). "Shchedryk", a Ukrainian tune celebrating the arrival of springtime, was adapted in 1936 with English lyrics to become the Christmas carol "Carol of the Bells" and in 1995 as the heavy-metal instrumental "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24." "When You Wish Upon a Star", an Academy Award-winning song about dreams, hope, and magic featured in Walt Disney's ''Pinocchio (1940 film), Pinocchio'' (1940). What later became the main theme for Disney studios was sung by Cliff Edwards, who voiced Jiminy Cricket in the film. In Scandinavian countries and Japan, the song is used in reference to the Star of Bethlehem and the "ask, and it will be given to you" discourse in Matthew 7:7–8; in the movie it is in reference to the Blue Fairy. Many popular Christmas tunes of the 20th-century mention winter imagery, leading to their being adopted into the Christmas and holiday season. These include: * "Winter Wonderland" (1934) * "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm" (1937) * "Baby, It's Cold Outside" (1944) * "A Marshmallow World" (1949) * "Jingle Bell Rock" (1957) * "My Favorite Things" (1959) "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?" (2013), from the movie ''Frozen (2013 film), Frozen'', features lyrics that are more of an illustration of the relationship between the two main characters than a general description of winter or the holidays, but its title rhetoric and the winter imagery used throughout the film have led it to be considered a holiday song. Quite the contrary, "Sleigh Ride", composed originally in 1948 as an instrumental by Leroy Anderson, was inspired by a heatwave in Connecticut. The song premiered with the Boston Pops Orchestra in May 1948 with no association with Christmas. The lyrics added in 1950 have "nothing to do with Santa, Jesus, presents or reindeer," but the jingling bells and "sleigh" in the title made it a natural Christmas song. Lyricist Sammy Cahn and composer Jule Styne also found themselves in a heatwave in July 1945 when they wrote "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!", inserting no reference to Christmas in the song. "Holiday (Vampire Weekend song), Holiday" (2010) is about the summer holidays, but has been used in some Christmas ad campaigns. Perry Como famously sang Franz Schubert's setting of "Ave Maria (Schubert), Ave Maria" in his televised Christmas special each year, including the song on ''The Perry Como Christmas Album'' (1968). The song, a prayer to the Mary, mother of Jesus, Virgin Mary sung in Latin, would become a "staple of family holiday record collections." American ''a capella'' group Pentatonix released their version of "Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen song), Hallelujah", the 1984 song written by Leonard Cohen and covered famously by a number of acts, on A Pentatonix Christmas, their Christmas album shortly before the songwriter's death in 2016. Besides the Hallelujah, title, and several biblical references, the song contains no connection to Christmas or the holidays ''per se''. Various versions have been added to Christmas music playlists on radio stations in the United States and Canada. In the United Kingdom, songs not explicitly tied to Christmas are popularly played during the year-end holidays. "Stop the Cavalry", written and performed by English musician Jona Lewie in 1980, was intended as a war protest. The line "Wish I was at home for Christmas" with brass band arrangements styled it as an appropriate song to play in the Christmas season. Children's songs such as "Mr Blobby (song), Mr Blobby" (No. 1, 1993) and Can We Fix It?, the theme from ''Bob the Builder'' (No. 1, 2000), novelty songs such as Benny Hill's "Ernie (The Fastest Milkman in the West), Ernie" (No. 1, 1971) and ''

s "Chocolate Salty Balls" (No. 2, 1998), and "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" from an ensemble of Liverpudlian celebrities in commemoration of the 1989 Hillsborough Disaster (No. 1, 2012) are often heard around Christmas.

Radio broadcasting of Christmas music

In the United States, it is common for local radio stations to gradually begin adding Christmas music to their regular playlists in late-November, typically after Thanksgiving (United States), Thanksgiving (which is generally considered the official start of the holiday season), and sometimes culminating with all-Christmas music by Christmas itself. More prominently, some stations temporarily drop their regular music Radio format, format entirely and switch exclusively to Christmas music for the holiday season. The latter practice became more widespread in 2001 after the September 11 attacks, as a means of helping improve the morale of listeners. Although there is a chance that a station's normal audience may be alienated by a switch to all-Christmas music (adult contemporary, country music, and oldies audiences are generally the most accepting), these risks are outweighed by the increase in Audience measurement, ratings that such a shift can attract. There is also a chance that after they return to regular programming, a station may be able to retain some of this expanded audience as new, regular listeners. Arbitron (now Nielsen Audio) reported in 2011 that it was not uncommon for a station's average audience to double after switching to Christmas music, citing several large-market stations in 2010 such as Boston's WBGB (FM), WODS, Los Angeles's KOST, New York's WLTW, and San Diego's KYXY. In 2017, Chicago's WLIT-FM roughly quadrupled its audience share between November (2.8) and December (12.4) after making the switch. The practice may not always transition well into financial success, since advertisers do not universally recognize Nielsen's holiday ratings book. In some Media market, markets, there may be one dominant broadcaster of Christmas music, but this is not always the case. Perceiving a competitive advantage in being the first in a market to begin playing Christmas music, it is not uncommon for some stations to adopt the format prior to Thanksgiving, or even as early as late-October. The practice has been considered an example of

. In an extreme example of Christmas creep, at least one station in 2020 (WWIZ in the Mahoning Valley) flipped to Christmas music in late September, exactly three full months before Christmas; the same station had also been first in the nation in 2019, but had begun two months before Christmas that year, on October 25. WWIZ was the first of many stations in the United States that had flipped to Christmas especially early in 2020, in part to alleviate stress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. As many Christmas songs contain themes strongly associated with Christmas Day (such as references to figures such as

), and popular observance of the Christmas season often ends after December 25 (in contrast to the traditional Twelve Days of Christmas, which by definition runs until Epiphany (holiday), Epiphany on January 6), most stations typically end their all-Christmas programming at some point on December 25 or 26. However, it is not uncommon for stations to continue to play at least some Christmas music through the weekend following Christmas, or even through New Year's Day (particularly when #As a stunt format, stunting in anticipation of a format change). Radio stations will also adjust their playlists throughout the Christmas season; songs that are less readily tolerated for repeated listenings, such as novelty songs, are seldom played in November and only get mixed into the playlist closer to Christmas as a change of pace.

As a stunt format

Christmas music is a popular stunting (broadcasting), stunt format for radio stations, either as a "Christmas in July" promotion, or as a buffer period for transitioning from one format to another. The end of a calendar year is a common time period for format switches, often following an all-Christmas format (either immediately, or with a second stunt occurring directly afterward). However, the transition itself can still occur before the end of the holiday season, such as the sudden transition of country station KMPS in Seattle to soft adult contemporary KSWD (FM), KSWD, after briefly playing an all-Christmas format following the merger of CBS Radio and Entercom (due to redundancy with sister station KKWF). Playing Christmas music outside of the holiday season, or otherwise implying that the format is permanent, is a more obvious stunt. In April 2008, the new radio station CFWD-FM in Saskatoon soft launched with an all-Christmas format in preparation for the station's official launch as a top 40 station. In an extreme case, adult hits station WJSR in Lakeside/Richmond, Virginia maintained a Christmas music format from October 13, 2020, all the way through March 4, 2021, after which it flipped to classic hits; the station had stunted from the beginning of October as "Short Attention Span Radio" before switching to Christmas music.

Outside the United States

With the growth in digital broadcasting platforms around the world, the opportunity to offer thematic radio formats on a pop-up basis has increased. In Ireland, a temporary radio station named Christmas FM broadcasts on a temporary license in Dublin and Cork (city), Cork from November 28 to December 26, solely playing Christmas music. In the UK, the Festive Fifty list of songs as voted for by listeners is broadcast starting on Christmas Day, originally by DJ John Peel, and nowadays by Internet radio station Dandelion Radio. Since the early 2010s, a number of Christmas music stations have broadcast on national and local digital platforms in the United Kingdom, with some also being carried on the FM band. These have included: * Smooth Christmas, launched by the then-owner of Smooth Radio (2010), Smooth Radio, Guardian Media Group, on national Digital One DAB in November/December 2011, with the slot used after Christmas by Smooth 70s. The Christmas station returned around the same timeframe of 2012 with this space taken over after Christmas by Bauer Radio station Kiss (UK radio station), Kiss. Following the acquisition of Smooth by Global Media & Entertainment, Global and the addition of Capital Xtra to national DAB in October 2013, there was not capacity available for Smooth Christmas to run in 2013, but the service was revived by Global to run in 2014 and 2015 before being superseded by Heart extra Christmas on DAB in subsequent years; the name Smooth Christmas has since been revived as a seasonal pop-up stream within the online Global Player service, playing melodic Christmas hits. Several other streams, such as 'Classic FM (UK), Classic FM Christmas' playing thematically-appropriate classical music, have also appeared on Global Player at the relevant time of year. * Heart extra Christmas / Heart Christmas – Following the launch of national digital station Heart extra in February 2016, Global would annually flip that service to playing continuous Christmas music during November and December of each year. The service broadcast in mono using the older DAB standard in 2016, 2017 and 2018; following the transition of Heart extra to broadcast in stereo using the DAB+format earlier in 2019, Heart extra Christmas ran in that format in 2019. Following the cancellation of Heart extra in favour of Heart UK on national DAB+ in 2020, Heart Christmas ran from October 2020 as a discrete station at the local tier, broadcast in DAB+ in the London area and in standard DAB in a number of other locations, as well as being available nationwide online. * Pulse Christmas / Signal Christmas / The Wave Christmas - in 2014, Wireless Group (then under the control of UTV Radio) made use of available DAB capacity in three of its FM broadcast areas to launch temporary Christmas stations co-branded with the local FM station names: Pulse Christmas in Bradford/Huddersfield, Signal Christmas in Stoke-on-Trent, and The Wave Christmas in Swansea/southwest Wales. The stations ran annually, appearing each November/December between 2014 and 2019 but ceased thereafter due to the acquisition of Wireless local stations by Bauer Radio in 2019 and the absorption of these services into Bauer's Hits Radio and Greatest Hits Radio in 2020. In addition, in 2016 and 2017, Wireless additionally ran a similar pop-up Christmas music station, Scottish Sun Christmas, on regional DAB in central Scotland. * Nation Xmas – Nation Broadcasting ran a Christmas station on DAB in several areas of Wales in November/December 2015, and following the festive pop-up these slots were taken by Nation Gold (now Dragon Radio Wales). * Magic Christmas / Magic 100% Christmas - Bauer Radio launched this station, a subsidiary of its main Magic 105.4 FM, Magic station, on national Digital One DAB in late 2017, taking over a slot Bauer had been holding since the summer with Kiss Fresh. (After Christmas this slot was taken up by Absolute Radio 90s, with Kisstory occupying the slot since February 2019.) During December 2018 and 2019, rather than launching a standalone Christmas station Bauer instead flipped the playlist of the main Magic service – available on 105.4 FM in London in addition to broadcasting nationally on DAB – to Christmas music. In 2020, Bauer launched an online Christmas music stream, as Magic 100% Christmas, through its websites and apps in August, before flipping the main Magic service to play principally Christmas music from November 25. In addition, in December 2018, Bauer launched a temporary Christmas music service, Greatest Hits Christmas, broadcast on 105.2 FM in Birmingham and The Black Country during the period leading up to the relaunch of the frequency as Greatest Hits Radio in January 2019; GHC played Christmas music with announcements regarding the impending new station launch, and information for listeners to the service previously carried on 105.2 FM - Absolute Radio - as to how they could regain access to Absolute by retuning to a digital platform. GHC was not itself broadcast on digital services. * MincePie NonStop – run by UKRD as a sibling service to York FM/DAB station Minster FM, this station was initially an online-only service, being made available on DAB in 2017, 2018 and 2019 but did not return in 2020 due to the acquisition of UKRD's stations by Bauer Radio, with the conversion of Minster FM to Greatest Hits Radio York and North Yorkshire. UKRD also ran a pop-up Christmas station in Cornwall, Pirate Christmas – a sibling to Pirate FM – on DAB in 2018 and 2019, freeing space for this with a reduction in the broadcast bitrate of Pirate FM and its sibling services. Although MincePie NonStop no longer broadcasts, listeners in North Yorkshire were able to access a locally programmed Christmas station on DAB in 2020 with community service YorkMix launching XmasMix on the local digital multiplex. * Several other smaller services have appeared on individual local DAB platforms in recent times, either popping up as self-contained stations (such as Radio Marsden Christmas, which ran in Surrey in 2015 and 2017) or as a temporary rebranding of an existing regular station (such as Sandgrounder Radio temporarily renaming as 'Santagrounder' on DAB in 2016 and 2017).

Christmas music on satellite and internet radio

Outside of traditional AM/FM radio, satellite radio provider SiriusXM Satellite Radio, SiriusXM typically devotes multiple channels to different genres of Christmas music during the holiday season. Numerous Internet radio services also offer Christmas music channels, some of them available year-round. Citadel Media produced The Christmas Channel, a syndicated 24-hour radio network, during the holiday season in past years (though in 2010, Citadel instead included Christmas music on its regular Classic Hits (Cumulus radio network), Classic Hits network). Music Choice offers nonstop holiday music to its digital cable, cable modem, and mobile phone subscribers between November 1 and New Year's Day on its "Sounds of the Seasons" (traditional), "R&B" (soul), "Tropicales" (Latin), and "Soft Rock" (contemporary) channels, as well as a year-round "All Christmas" channel. DMX (music), DMX provides holiday music as part of its SonicTap music service for digital cable and DirecTV subscribers, as does Dish Network via its in-house Dish CD music channels. Services such as Muzak also distribute Christmas music to retail stores for use as in-store background music during the holidays. The growing popularity of Internet radio has inspired other media outlets to begin offering Christmas music. In 2009 Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix television station KTVK launched four commercial-free online radio stations including Ho Ho Radio, which streams Christmas music throughout the month of December. iHeartRadio also has two-year-round stations that are dedicated to Christmas music. One station, iHeart Christmas, focuses on more contemporary holiday music, while the other, iHeart Christmas Classics, offers seasonal music from past decades.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Christmas music, Christmas songs, Christmas albums, Lists of songs Radio formats

History

Early music

Puritan prohibition

Royal restoration

Alms

Church feasts

Classical music

Christmas carols

Standards

Early secular Christmas songs

Published Christmas music

Choirmasters poll

Popular Christmas songs

United States

Most-performed Christmas songs

Christmas song surveys

Pinnacle Media Worldwide survey

United Kingdom and Ireland

Most played songs

Christmas Number Ones

Australia

Other popular Christmas songs

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

Christmas songs from musicals

Christmas novelty songs

Juvenile

Non-Christian writers

Adopted Christmas music

Radio broadcasting of Christmas music

As a stunt format

Outside the United States

Christmas music on satellite and internet radio

See also

References

Further reading

External links