Brenda Lee's Rockin' Abound the Christmas Tree was recorded and released in 1958 but took two years to first climb to the Charts.
Earlier this Holiday season, I mentioned that Jimmy Fallon had hopes to finally oust Mariah Carey’s perennial Christmas #1 with his new duet with Meagan Trainer. He made a run but didn’t succeed and the song faded fast. But this week the ubiquitous pop diva was finally bested by a song recorded 65 years ago by a 13-year-old belter. Brenda Lee’s Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree had been #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts from 2019 to last year.
The song was written by was written by Johnny Marks, who also penned Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, A Holly Jolly Christmas, and other holiday classics. He personally selected Lee to sing the original Decca release when she was only 12 and a diminutive ( 85 Lbs. 4 foot 9 inches tall) belter. Although he first records had not sold that well, she had attracted attention with performances on radio and country music television. She was becoming known as Little Miss Dynamite for her powerful vocals.
Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree is a rockabilly song. The original recording featured Hank Garland and Harold Bradley on guitar, Floyd Cramer on piano, Boots Randolph on tenor saxophone, Bob Moore on double bass, and veteran session player Buddy Harman on drums. Despite the song’s pedigree and stellar musicians, it did not perform well when released for the ’58 and ’59 seasons. But in 1960 Lee was a full-fledged star and Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree placed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for the first time, eventually peaking at No. 14. It continued to sell well during subsequent holiday seasons, peaking as high as No. 3 in December 1965.
Over the years it was boosted by use in Johnny Mark’s and Rankin/Bass’s 1979 sequel Rudolph and Frosty’s Christmas in July and Home Alone in 1990, each use introducing the song and singer to new generations.
Meanwhile, Lee’s career flourished first as a Rockabilly and later as a country music star. She charted many hits and has continued to tour and record. She was the 16th Greatest Hot 100 female artist of all time. Her success in the 1960s earned her recognition as Billboard’s Top Female Artist of the Decade and one of the four artists who charted the most singles, behind Elvis Presley, The Beatles, and Ray Charles. Among her accolades were Grammy Awards, four NARM Awards, three NME Awards, and five Edison Awards. She was inducted in both the Country Music and Rock & Roll Hall of Fames.
To celebrate the song’s 65th anniversary this year, Lee released a music video in November 2023, featuring her lip-synching to the original recording at a house party with Tanya Tucker and Trisha Yearwood. The 76-year-old singer is the oldest female artist and oldest artist overall to top the Hot 100, achievement formerly held by Cher and Louis Armstrong. And the 63 years between the original Billboard listing and its #1 showing this year is a record that can only be broken by her.
No comments:
Post a Comment