"We Need a Little Christmas" is a popular

Christmas song Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject ma ...

originating from Jerry Herman's Broadway musical '' Mame'', and first performed by Angela Lansbury in that 1966 production. In the musical, the song is performed after Mame has lost her fortune in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, and decides that she, her young nephew Patrick, and her two household servants "need a little Christmas now" to cheer them up. The original lyrics include the line, "But, Auntie Mame, it's one week past Thanksgiving Day now!" Since the time the song was written the phenomenon of Christmas creep has resulted in the normal holiday season beginning much earlier than it once did.

Notable recordings

* Percy Faith with His Orchestra and Chorus (1966) (''Christmas Is... Percy Faith'') * Skitch Henderson & The Tonight Show Orchestra (1966) (''Broadway Tonight! Skitch Henderson & The Tonight Show Orchestra Play Music From "Mame"'') *

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 ...

(1986) ('' Christmas Eve with Johnny Mathis'') * The Muppets (1987) ('' A Muppet Family Christmas'') * Bugs Bunny & Friends with Daffy Duck (1994) (''Have Yourself a Looney Tunes Christmas'') *

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

(1995) (''

We Need a Little Christmas "We Need a Little Christmas" is a popular Christmas song originating from Jerry Herman's Broadway musical ''Mame'', and first performed by Angela Lansbury in that 1966 production. In the musical, the song is performed after Mame has lost her for ...

'') * Mormon Tabernacle Choir with Angela Lansbury (2001) (later appeared on the choir's 2006 album, ''

The Wonder of Christmas ''The Wonder of Christmas'' was recorded during the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's 2001-2005 Christmas shows in the LDS Conference Center with special guests Angela Lansbury, Bryn Terfel, Audra McDonald, Frederica von Stade, Renée Fleming, and W ...

'') *

Legacy Five Legacy Five is a Southern gospel quartet founded by former Cathedral Quartet members Roger Bennett and Scott Fowler in 1999, after the owners of the Cathedral Quartet, Glen Payne and George Younce, decided to retire in 1999. History Legacy Fi ...

(2007) (''Little Christmas'') *

Kimberly Locke Kimberley Dawn Locke (born January 3, 1978) is an American singer-songwriter and television personality. She has recorded in the dance and pop genres, and has targeted the adult contemporary radio format. She was the cohost of the daytime talk ...

(2007) ('' Christmas'') * ''

Glee Glee means delight, a form of happiness. Glee may also refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 30 ...

'' Cast (2010) ('' Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album'' and episode '' A Very Glee Christmas'') *

Ages and Ages Ages and Ages is an American rock band from Portland, Oregon. Every member of the band sings accompanied by handclaps, shakers and noise-makers. The group was voted as a top Portland band by ''Willamette Week''. In 2011, they signed a record de ...

(2012) (''

Holidays Rule ''Holidays Rule'' is a collection of holiday music featuring various artists that range from indie rock to jazz and pop, including Paul McCartney, Rufus Wainwright, The Shins. The songs on the compilation are both traditional and modern. The album ...

'') * Idina Menzel (2019) ('' Christmas: A Season of Love'') *

Pentatonix Pentatonix (abbreviated PTX) is an American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas, currently consisting of vocalists Mitch Grassi, Scott Hoying, Kirstin Maldonado, Kevin Olusola, and Matt Sallee. Characterized by their pop-style arrangements ...

(2020) (''

'') * Kelly Rowland (2020) ''(We Need a Little Christmas)''

Charts

Kimberley Locke version

Glee Cast version

Pentatonix version

References

{{Authority control 1966 songs American Christmas songs Percy Faith songs Johnny Mathis songs Kimberley Locke songs Songs from musicals Songs written by Jerry Herman