The week of December 28, 1965, saw a pair of singles atop the Billboard Hot 100 that typify the musical excellence of the 60s: Simon and Garfunkel’s ‘The Sound of Silence‘ at #1 and The Beatles’ ‘We Can Work It Out‘ at #2.
In the third spot that week was a song just as enduring and excellent as those two — James Brown’s ‘I Got You (I Feel Good).’ This track, Brown’s signature song, was the funk master’s highest-charting single, peaking right here at #3.
Throwing back to the week of December 27, 1955, we find Tennessee Ernie Ford’s ‘Sixteen Tons’ in its fifth week at #1, where it would remain for another three weeks.
At #2 that week was Dean Martin’s ‘Memories Are Made of This,’ which would enjoy its own five-week stint at #1 in early 1956. The song was written by Terry Gilkyson, Richard Dehr, and Frank Miller, a trio of singer-songwriters who performed as The Easy Riders. The Easy Riders sang backup for Martin on this recording.
Yesterday I gave the honor of my annual ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’ rendition to Kelly Clarkson. So forgive the redundancy when I return to the gifted singer today for my final post of Christmas week.
Ariana Grande’s ‘Santa Tell Me’ is the only 21st century Christmas song to reach the top five, but there is another modern-day yuletide tune giving it a run for its money. Clarkson’s ‘Underneath the Tree,’ written by the singer with producer Gregg Kurstin and released in 2013, has become a new holiday staple, peaking at #9 on the most recent Billboard chart.
Almost all of the Christmas songs that return to the Billboard Top Ten are at least a few decades old. Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want For Christmas is You’ was first released in 1994, Wham!’s ‘Last Christmas’ came out a decade earlier, and perennials like ‘Jingle Bell Rock,’ ‘The Christmas Song,’ and ‘It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year’ are 60-70 years old.
One notable exception is Ariana Grande’s ‘Santa Tell Me,’ released in 2014 as a bonus track on the Japanese edition of her EP Christmas Kisses. This is the only Christmas song released in the 21st century to reach Billboard’s Top Five.
Meet Me In Montauk 