"Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy" is a Christmas song co-written and recorded by

Buck Owens Alvis Edgar Owens Jr. (August 12, 1929 – March 25, 2006), known professionally as Buck Owens, was an American musician, singer, songwriter, and band leader. He was the lead singer for the Buckaroos, Buck Owens and the Buckaroos, which had 21 ...

. After its recording in 1965, the song has been covered by several country music artists, including

Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American country music singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him popularity, particularly in the United States with success on the co ...

Travis Tritt James Travis Tritt (born February 9, 1963) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In the 20 ...

, and

Brad Paisley Bradley Douglas Paisley (born October 28, 1972) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Starting with his 1999 debut album ''Who Needs Pictures'', he has released eleven studio albums and a Christmas compilation on the Arista Nashvil ...

History

The song was released on November 8, 1965, with "All I Want for Christmas, Dear, Is You" on the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

. It placed at number 2 on the yearly Christmas singles chart issued by ''Billboard'' at the time. The song is about a child who has sneaked downstairs to catch a glimpse of Santa where the child sees his father in a Santa costume.

Cover versions

In 1992,

covered the song on his Christmas album ''

Beyond the Season ''Beyond the Season'' is the first Christmas album by American country music artist Garth Brooks. It was released on August 25, 1992, however it was the first album on Liberty Records, and peaked at number 2 on both of '' Billboard'' magazine's ...

'', produced by

Allen Reynolds Allen Reynolds (born August 18, 1938) is an American record producer and songwriter who specializes in country music. He has been inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum. Biography Early ...

for

Liberty Records Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revival ...

. However, it did not chart from Christmas airplay until January 1998, when it reached number 56. The physical single release had "The Old Man's Back in Town", with which Brooks charted at number 48 on the same chart in 1992, on the B-side. Also in 1992,

covered both the single and its B-side for his Christmas album '' A Travis Tritt Christmas: Loving Time of the Year''. In 1995,

The Tractors The Tractors were an American country rock band composed of a loosely associated group of musicians headed by guitarist Steve Ripley. The original lineup consisted of Steve Ripley (lead vocals, guitar), Ron Getman (guitar, Dobro, mandolin, tenor ...

included a cover on their album ''

Have Yourself a Tractors Christmas ''Have Yourself a Tractors Christmas'' is the second studio album and first Christmas album by American country music band The Tractors. It was released by Arista Nashville on October 10, 1995. The album peaked at number 12 on the ''Billboard (mag ...

''. In 1998,

Paul Brandt Paul Rennée Belobersycky (born July 21, 1972), known professionally as Paul Brandt, is a Canadian country music artist. Growing up in Calgary, he was a pediatric RN at the time of his big break. In 1996, he made his mark on the country music c ...

included a cover on his album '' A Paul Brandt Christmas: Shall I Play for You?''

Psychobilly Psychobilly is a rock music fusion genre that fuses elements of rockabilly and punk rock. It's been defined as "loud frantic rockabilly music", it has also been said that it "takes the traditional countrified rock style known as rockabilly, ram ...

trio

The Reverend Horton Heat The Reverend Horton Heat is the stage name of American musician James C. Heath (born 1959) as well as the name of his Dallas, Texas-based psychobilly trio. Heath is a singer, songwriter and guitarist. A ''Prick'' magazine reviewer called Heath ...

recorded a cover for their 2005 album ''

We Three Kings "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 ...

''.

covered it in 2006 for his Christmas album ''

Brad Paisley Christmas ''Brad Paisley Christmas'' is the first Christmas album and fifth studio album by American country music artist Brad Paisley. It was released on October 10, 2006, by Arista Nashville. His first album of Christmas music, features a mix of traditio ...

'' on

Arista Nashville Arista Nashville is an American record label that serves as a wholly owned division of Sony Music, operated under the Sony Music Nashville division. Founded in 1989, the label specializes in country music artists, including Alan Jackson, Brooks & ...

under the production of Frank Rogers. Paisley's version peaked at number 49 on the country charts in January 2007.Whitburn, p. 313 Also in 2006,

Billy "Crash" Craddock Billy Wayne "Crash" Craddock (born June 16, 1939) is an American country and rockabilly singer. He first gained popularity in Australia in the 1950s with a string of rockabilly hits, including the Australian number one hits " Boom Boom Baby" an ...

included a cover on his album ''

Billy "Crash" Craddock's Christmas Favorites ''Billy "Crash" Craddock's Christmas Favorites'' is a Christmas album recorded by Billy "Crash" Craddock. It was released in 2006 on the Cee Cee label. Track listing #"An Old Christmas Card" #" Pretty Paper" #"Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy" #" ...

''. In 2011, rock band

Bowling for Soup Bowling for Soup (abbreviated as BFS) is an American rock band formed in Wichita Falls, Texas, in 1994. The band consists of Jaret Reddick (lead vocals, guitar), Chris Burney (guitar, backing vocals), Gary Wiseman (drums, percussion, backing voc ...

included a version of the song on their album ''Merry Flippin’ Christmas Vol. 1''. In 2013, the cast of ''

Duck Dynasty ''Duck Dynasty'' is an American reality television series that aired on A&E from 2012 to 2017. The series portrays the lives of the Robertson family, who became successful from their family-operated business, Duck Commander. The West Monroe, Lo ...

'' released '' Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas''. "Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy" was included as a bonus track on the Walmart exclusive edition.

Chart performance

Buck Owens

Garth Brooks

Brad Paisley

References

{{Brad Paisley singles 1965 songs 1965 singles 1998 singles 2006 singles American Christmas songs Garth Brooks songs Buck Owens songs Brad Paisley songs Christmas novelty songs Songs about Santa Claus Songs about fathers Arista Nashville singles Capitol Records singles Liberty Records singles Song recordings produced by Ken Nelson (American record producer) Song recordings produced by Allen Reynolds Song recordings produced by Frank Rogers (record producer) Songs written by Buck Owens Songs written by Don Rich