The Most Iconic Christmas Songs

As I was compiling some of my recent blogs regarding Christmas songs, it occurred to me that there are quite a few songs that really have one single recording that everyone thinks of when they think of that song. I mean, Mel Torme may have written "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire," but you just pictured Nat King Cole singing it, didn't you? That's because Nat King Cole's recording is absolutely iconic. No matter what wonderful covers have been done since, that will always be The One.

Here are a few more Christmas songs where there's absolutely one single artist who recorded The One.

White Christmas: Bing Crosby

Crosby first performed this Irving Berlin classic on the radio on Christmas Day, 1941. His 1942 recording was used in the film "Holiday Inn," and topped the US charts in not only 1942 but again during the Christmas season in 1945 and 1946. The 1942 master was damaged, and Crosby re-recorded the track in 1947, with every attempt being made to recreate the original as closely as possible, and this recording is the one most commonly heard today. Crosby re-recorded the song yet again in 1954 for the soundtrack of the film of the same name. The song has been recorded by dozens of other artists since, with varying levels of success, but Crosby's distinctive croon - and his delightful warbling whistle during the chorus - makes his version The One.


Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas: The Carpenters

Judy Garland sang it first, in the 1944 film "Meet Me in St. Louis," but Karen Carpenter's poignant recording from The Carpenters' 1978 album "Christmas Portrait" is The One. Carpenter delivers the song simply but with heartfelt feeling. Everyone from Rosemary Clooney to Kylie Minogue has recoded it since, but no-one else has ever matched the simple perfection of this recording.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year: Andy Williams

This upbeat jazz waltz was written in 1963 specifically for Williams to perform on his Christmas show. Williams released his recording on the album "The Andy Williams Christmas Album" that same year, although it was his recording of "White Christmas" and not "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" that the studio chose to promote as the hit single from the album. Johnny Mathis' 1986 recording is a reasonably close second, but it's Williams' version that makes us imagine ourselves curled up by the fire wearing a cozy sweater and drinking hot cocoa with marshmallows.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas: Perry Como

You may be surprised to discover that this song was written by Meredith Willson, the composer of "The Music Man". Both Como and Bing Crosby recorded the song in 1951, the year it was written, but Como's recording, accompanied by the Fontane Sisters and the Mitchell Ayres Orchestra, is still The One.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: Gene Autry

Gene Autry didn't have a particularly well-trained voice, but something about his folksy delivery of this children's favorite makes it more charming than any other recording. Ironically, Autry didn't want to use the song, but his wife convinced him to record it. Autry's recording reached #1 on the charts for the week ending January 7, 1950, making it the first #1 hit of the 1950s.

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree: Brenda Lee

Lee was only 13 years old in 1958 when she recorded the song, and even though it was released as a single in both 1958 and 1959, it didn't really sell that well until 1960 when Lee's career had begun to take off.

Carol of the Bells: The Mormon Tabernacle Choir

The crisp lyrics, the impeccable dynamics, the brisk tempo, the brassy orchestral backing, the perfect cutoffs...this piece sounds somewhat simple but is notoriously difficult to perform well. No-one else does it quite as well as the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Pure brilliance.

Sleigh Ride: The Boston Pops

Anyone who's grown up in the Boston area knows that Leroy Anderson's "Sleigh Ride" is always part of the Boston Pops Christmas concerts. So of course, it's their recording that's The One - but not just the Boston Pops, the Boston Pops under Arthur Fiedler. Fiedler recorded the song with the Pops in 1949, 1959, and 1970, and although the Pops recorded subsequent versions under both John Williams and Keith Lockhart, it's the Fiedler recordings that popularized the song. Interestingly, the song is not technically a Christmas song, as it makes no mention of Christmas (although some vocal recordings change the lyric "birthday party" to "Christmas party"). So Fiedler and the Pops probably had a hand in making it a Christmas staple!

Adeste Fidelis: Luciano Pavarotti

The 1960s and 1970s began to see some increased mainstream recognition of opera singers, and Pavarotti's 1976 Christmas album, "O Holy Night," took full advantage of that recognition. "Adeste Fidelis," although originally written in Latin, was much more well-known in its English translation, "O Come, All Ye Faithful." Along with the title track, "Adeste Fidelis" increased Pavarotti's popularity among the non-opera crowd. Although Pavarotti's rendition of "O Holy Night" is gorgeous, there are many other equally gorgeous recordings. But his "Adeste Fidelis" is, and always will be, The One.

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow: Dean Martin

You can practically hear the ice clinking in his glass and the ash falling off his cigar as Deano cheerily (and cheekily) warbles his way through this number. Another "Christmas song" that fails to actually mention Christmas, "Let It Snow" was written during a Hollywood heat wave in the summer of 1945, as composers Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne were imagining cooler weather. Vaughn Munro recorded it first, but Martin's 1959 recording is still The One.

Santa Baby: Eartha Kitt

Kitt was the first to record this song, shortly after it was written in 1953. Her breathy delivery is saucy without being over-the-top, and the laid-back tempo completely works. She recorded a more uptempo version in 1963 (after which Madonna modelled her 1987 recording), but it's the earlier, sultrier version that will always be The One.

Frosty the Snowman: Jimmy Durante

We have Rankin and Bass to thank for this recording, as it's taken directly from the soundtrack of the 1969 "Frosty The Snowman" animated Christmas special. The song had been written in 1950 and had seen some success from Gene Autry's recording, but it's Durante's husky voice and unique delivery style in the later recording that really brings Frosty's story to life.

The Little Drummer Boy: Harry Simeone Chorale

An a cappella recording from before a cappella was cool, the Chorale's only instrumental accompaniment here is finger cymbals. Simeone, a conductor and choral arranger, was contracted by Twentieth Century-Fox Records in 1958 to make a Christmas album, and thus the Harry Simeone Chorale was born. Simeone's friend Henry Onorati had written a song called "Carol of the Drum," and Simeone changed the title to "The Little Drummer Boy" and included it on the album, receiving joint authorship and composition credit, although he had no hand in writing the piece. The Chorale had similar success with their recording of "Do You Hear What I Hear?" in 1962.

Joy to the World: Nat King Cole

There's hardly a recording artist alive or dead who doesn't have a Christmas album with this song on it, and yet it's always Cole's version that comes to mind. Recorded in 1960, the upbeat, martial tempo changes it from a "churchy" hymn into a song of celebration and, well, joy. Lasting less than 90 seconds, this recording is still the best version of this song that I've ever heard (or hope to hear). It's The One.

Winter Wonderland: Johnny Mathis

Written in 1934, Johnny Mercer's 1946, Frank Sinatra's 1948, and Perry Como's 1959 recordings were all popular, but it's Mathis' 1958 recording that has best stood the test of time, with his delightful swoops each time the song modulates and his cheerful "giddy-YUP" and "YOO HOO!". I want to jump in the sleigh next to him and go for a ride. Yeah, it's The One.



I'm sure I've missed a few classics - what's YOUR favorite Christmas song that you can't imagine being sung by anyone else??