"Blue Christmas" is a Christmas song written by Billy Hayes and Jay W. Johnson. The heart-broken tale of unrequited love during the holidays had long been considered a Christmas staple of country music, having been recorded by Ernest Tubb in 1948. In 1957, Elvis Presley effectively made "Blue Christmas" a steadfast rock-and-roll holiday classic by recording it in his signature style. The song has since been recorded by a host of rock and country artists alike, as well as those of other genres. The song was also featured in the children's Christmas special, The Year Without a Santa Claus. More recently, the song has been covered by Céline Dion as well as the indie band Bright Eyes and Billy Idol in his 2006 Christmas album Happy Holidays.
Elvis Presley's famous recording of the song appeared on his 1957 LP Elvis' Christmas Album. It was also released as a single. Ernest Tubb's version of the song included an extra verse not used by Elvis' later version.
In 2009, Elvis' version was used in a TV commercial for Verizon Wireless.
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Beach Boys version
| "Blue Christmas" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by The Beach Boys | ||||
| from the album The Beach Boys' Christmas Album | ||||
| Format | Vinyl | |||
| Recorded | Unknown | |||
| Genre | Pop music | |||
| Length | 4 min 41 sec for both songs | |||
| Label | Capitol Records | |||
| Producer | Brian Wilson | |||
| The Beach Boys singles chronology | ||||
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The song was covered by the American pop band The Beach Boys. The song was released as the B-side of the "The Man with All the Toys" single on November 16, 1964; it charted at #3 in the U.S. Christmas charts but did not chart in the U.K. The song was also released on the bands 1964 album The Beach Boys' Christmas Album on the same day. The song featured Brian Wilson on lead vocals.
Details
- Time: 3 minutes, 9 seconds.
- Produced by Brian Wilson.
Other versions
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This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
The following artists have recorded covers of "Blue Christmas":
- Andrea Bocelli & Reba McEntire
- A Fine Frenzy, from the album Oh, Blue Christmas
- Art Paul Schlosser recorded a parody of "Blue Christmas" called "Plaid Christmas"
- Billy Eckstine
- Billy Idol
- Brenda Lee
- Bright Eyes with Conor Oberst
- Bruce Springsteen
- Bon Jovi
- Chaim Tannenbaum (on album The McGarrigle Christmas Hour)
- Clay Walker
- Celine Dion
- Chris Isaak
- Collective Soul
- Country Bear Jamboree
- David Frizzell
- Dean Martin
- Dinning Sisters with Bob Atcher
- Dustin Kensrue
- Earl Thomas Conley
- Elvis Presley, likely the most famous version
- Engelbert Humperdinck
- Face To Face
- Fats Domino
- Flee The Seen
- Frank Yankovic
- George Canyon
- Girl in a Coma (A Blackheart Christmas - *Blackheart Records, 2008) *Joan Jett's Record Label
- Glen Campbell
- Harry Connick, Jr.
- Heart
- High Horse (on The Rumor Mill's "Christmas on Clinton Street" compilation)
- Highway 101
- Hugo Winterhalter
- Jim Reeves
- Jingle Cats
- Joe Perry
- John Denver (with Elvis' former band members James Burton, Jerry Scheff, and Glen D. Hardin)
- John Holt
- Johnny Cash
- Johnny Mathis
- Johnny Reid
- Joshua James
- Laima
- Lawrence Welk
- Leon Redbone
- Low
- Mahogany Christmas Players
- Marie Osmond
- Melissa Etheridge
- Mike Denver
- moe.
- Nicole Atkins on The Hotel Café Presents Winter Songs – a compilation of original recordings and classic holiday tracks sung by a lineup of female singer-songwriters
- The Partridge Family on A Partridge Family Christmas Card
- Peter Cetera
- Porky Pig (sometimes credited as "Seymour Swine and the Squealers")
- Renee Olstead
- Robert Gordon
- Russ Morgan and His Orchestra – first pop version; #13 on Billboard in 1949
- Sawyer Brown
- Ray Stevens ( "Ray Stevens Christmas"- Clyde Records, 2009 )
- Shakin' Stevens
- Seymour Swine and the Squealers- an unofficial imitation of Porky Pig (variously attributed to Mark McCollum[1]; or Denny Brownlee; or John-Boy and Billy of WRFX [2])
- Sheryl Crow
- Steve Carlson
- Stonewall Jackson
- The Brian Setzer Orchestra
- Tammy Wynette
- The Misfits
- The Graduate
- The Oak Ridge Boys
- The Partridge Family
- The Perishers
- The Platters
- The Pretenders - This version of the song is featured as a downloadable track in the Rock Band series.
- The Ventures
- Tom Keifer
- Vince Gill
- Willie Nelson
- Wynonna
A cover also appeared in the 1974 Rankin-Bass special The Year Without a Santa Claus.
References
See also
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