The Christmas Charts - 2011

A common complaint I often hear in the run up to Christmas is that it seems to begin earlier every year. This became evident on October 17th 2011 when "Mistletoe" by Justin Bieber was released. It was still in the Top 40 by Christmas time but got no higher than number 21.

Stacey Solomon who had previously been an X Factor contestant with no Top 40 hits did a cover of "Driving Home For Christmas" for the Iceland adverts. It was then released as a single due to popular demand. Quite where the demand was coming from I don't know as it only reached 27, but it gave Stacey Solomon her only Top 40 hit to date.

Another Christmas cover came from the Cast Of The Only Way Is Essex with "Last Christmas" which made number 33. 

The most successful Christmas record of the year from a chart perspective was "Dominick The Donkey" by Lou Monte. Originally recorded in 1960, this charted for the first time in 2011 thanks to a campaign by Chris Moyles to make it Christmas number one. It didn't quite make it though, it peaked at number 3.

The Christmas number one campaigns were to prevent the X Factor winner getting Christmas number one. However X Factor winners Little Mix topped the charts the week prior to Christmas and were knocked off by "Wherever You Are" by Military Wives ft Gareth Malone.

There were also of course several old Christmas records that re-entered the Top 40. These were:

Pogues ft Kirsty MacColl - Fairytale of New York

Mariah Carey - All I Want For Christmas Is You

Wham - Last Christmas

Slade - Merry Xmas Everybody

Wizzard - I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday

Band Aid - Do They Know It's Christmas

Chris Rea - Driving Home For Christmas

The Christmas Charts - 2001

The 2001 Christmas charts is one that throws me somewhat because what I remember happening and what actually happened are two different things.

In terms of actually Christmas music the one record I remember from the time was "8 Days of Christmas" by Destiny's Child. This didn't make the Top 40 though, it only made number 185.

The only Christmas record to make the Top 40 that year was "I Believe In Christmas" by the Tweenies and I have no recollection of that record whatsoever but it made the Top 10.

I also remember "Gotta Get Thru This" by Daniel Bedingfield topping the charts, but this was knocked off the top for Christmas by Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman with "Somethin Stupid". I do remember said record but I do try to block it out my memory.

The Christmas Charts - 1981

For the 2nd year in a row "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" by John And Yoko And The Plastic Ono Band re-entered the Top 40. It would only make number 28 on this occasion but that's not bad considering the number of people who would have bought it the previous year.

Also re-entering the Top 40 was "Merry Xmas Everybody" by Slade. This was the first time it re-entered the Top 40 and made number 32 on this occasion.

1981 was the year of the medley with the likes of "Stars On 45" and at Christmas time we had the record "Christmas On 45" by Holly And The Ivys which made number 40.

Also Christmas related we had "Hokey Cokey" by Snowmen. Not technically a Christmas song but given it's by the Snowmen and came out around Christmas time it was clearly one for the Christmas market.

The Christmas number one was "Don't You Want Me" by the Human League. They had made their Top 40 debut earlier on in the year and this was their 4th Top 40 hit and final single to be taken from their "Dare" album.

The Christmas Charts - 1971

Not really much to report on the Christmas charts in 1971. No records in the Top 40 that could be considered Christmas records. The Christmas number one was the novelty record "Ernie (The Fastest Milkman In The West)" by Benny Hill. In some ways we've come full circle in that respect with the novelty records from Ladbaby making Christmas number one.

The Christmas Charts - 1961

1961 was one of those transition years where the 50s rock and roll was in the past but The Beatles were yet to arrive. 

One of the biggest charting acts from this period was Connie Francis and she had the only Christmas record to make the Top 40 that year with "Baby's First Christmas". I was the beginning of the end of her Top 40 career though making only number 30 which was her lowest charting Top 40 hit to this point. Even in her native America where she enjoyed huge chart success around this time it only made number 26.

The Christmas number one was "Moon River" by Danny Williams. 

The Christmas Charts - 2010

After the X Factor winner had failed to get the previous years Christmas number one for the first time since 2004, the X Factor winner was back on top again. This year it was Matt Cardle with "When We Collide". There were once again campaigns to prevent the X Factor winner topping the charts with the original version by Biffy Clyro, "The Bird" by Trashmen and "4.33 (Cage Against The Machine Version)" by John Cage. It presumably didn't work because people picked their own campaign to get behind instead of all getting behind one song. For the record, I got behind the John Cage one.

In terms of actual Christmas songs, there was "Christmas Lights" by Coldplay. There was also "X-M@$" by Corey Taylor from Slipknot. Making a return to the charts were Mariah Carey and the Pogues with their respective Christmas hits.

The Christmas Charts - 2000

Having scored the previous Christmas number one, Westlife failed to top the charts for the first time in their quest for Christmas number one with "What Makes A Man" stalling at number 2. They were beaten by cartoon character Bob the Builder with "Can We Fix It". 

In terms of actual Christmas songs, there was just one. This was from the Wombles featuring Roy Wood with a mash up of "Wombling Merry Christmas" with "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" which was called "I Wish It Could Be A Wombling Merry Christmas Everyday".

The Christmas Charts - 1990

This was the 3rd year in a row that the Christmas number one involved Cliff Richard. There was "Mistletoe & Wine" in 1988, "Do They Know Its Christmas?" by Band Aid II in 1989 on which he appeared and in 1990 came "Saviours Day"

Speaking of artists with multiple Christmas hits, 1990 also saw Shakin Stevens score his 3rd Christmas Top 40 hit. Having previous charted with "Blue Christmas" as part of "The Shakin Stevens EP" and scoring the Christmas number one in 1985 with "Merry Christmas Everyone" he reached number 19 in 1990 with "The Best Christmas Of Them All". He wasn't finished with Christmas hits either, but more on that next year.

Finally we have "Merry Christmas Darling" by The Carpenters hit the Top 40 for the first time having failed to make the Top 40 back in 1971. It was released as a double a-side with "(They Long To Be) Close To You".

The Christmas Charts - 1980

December 1980 was when John Lennon died and 3 number ones for him quickly followed. However, he was knocked of the top of the charts for 2 weeks at Christmas by St. Winifred's School Choir with "There's No One Quite Like Grandma". It's said the only reason it made number one is that everyone bought it for their grandmother for Christmas and that in all probability most copies of the single remain un-played. 

In addition to his 3 number ones, John Lennon also re-entered the Top 40 with "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" which hit a new peak of number 2 at the start of 1981. It originally made number 4 in 1972.

It was also the year that brought us "Stop The Cavalry" by Jona Lewie. It was his second and final Top 40 hit having charted earlier in the year with "You'll Always Find Me In The Kitchen At Parties". Finally we had perhaps a not so well remembered Christmas song from Kate Bush with "December Will Be Magic Again". It peaked at number 29 but had been recorded in 1979 and appeared on a Christmas TV special that year.

The Christmas Charts - 1970

No Christmas songs in the Top 40 this year. In fact there were only 6 new entries in the Top 40 in the whole of December. The Christmas number one went to Dave Edmunds with "I Hear You Knocking" which topped the charts at the end of November and remained there till January.

The Christmas Charts - 1960

Time once again to look at the Christmas charts every 10 years, this time beginning with 1960.

The biggest Christmas hit this year was "Little Donkey" by Nina & Frederick which made number 3. This did better than the 2 versions of the same song that had charted the previous year. It was the 2nd Top 40 hit for Nina & Frederick having charted with another Christmas record the previous year with "Mary's Boy Child".

Adam Faith had narrowly missed out on being Christmas number one in 1959 having been joint top the week before Christmas. This year he had a Christmas hit with "Lonely Pup (In A Christmas Shop)" which got to number 4.

The other 2 Christmas hits were both number 40s that I have written about in my number 40s posts earlier this year. They were "Little White Berry" by Roy Castle and "Must Be Santa" by Tommy Steele.

Christmas number one went to Cliff Richard with "I Love You". It was his first Christmas number one but it wasn't a Christmas song.

The Christmas Charts - 2019

The Beatles, Spice Girls, Ladbaby...

These are the only 3 acts in chart history to have consecutive Christmas number ones. Ladbaby has made Christmas number one again with "I Love Sausage Rolls" which again is a charity record. He's managed to keep Ed Sheeran of all people off the top. Now the era of the X Factor Christmas number one is over, could this be the era of the Ladbaby Christmas number one? As it's music that's not supposed to be taken seriously and for charity there should be a backlash against it in years to come.

Elsewhere we have the usual suspects making their annual return to the Christmas charts. I won't list them all as I suspect more will appear next week. The only new Christmas record in the Top 40 this year is John Legend with his version of "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)". I suspect most will have forgot about it come January.

The Christmas Charts - 2009

One thing that is never known when a new Christmas record comes out is whether it will stand the test of time. The reality is since Mariah Carey's effort 25 years ago, few if any Christmas songs made since have managed to become regulars on the Christmas lists. I'm aware some modern artists have had a go in recent years, but it's still too early to tell. If you still hear it after a decade though then maybe you have a Christmas anthem.

On to 2009 then, a decade ago. We had Terry Wogan and Aled Jones collaborate on their version of "Silver Bells". I recall their collaboration the year before on "Little Drummer Boy - Peace On Earth", but do not recall this one. It made 27 and has been on YouTube ever since, with 133k views at time of writing, not really the sort of number to suggest it's on many peoples Christmas playlists.

Having been responsible for one of the biggest Christmas hits ever, George Michael had another crack at a Christmas song with "December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas)". It had been available as a free download on his website the year before but this was the first commercial release. It made 14 in the charts, but the physical copies sold out and it's said that it would have charted higher if more copies were available. At 3.4 million views on YouTube it's done better than Terry Wogan and Aled Jones. However, it's still not Christmas playlist territory. The question is though, does anyone have more than one big Christmas record? Sure there are some that have more than one, but who can name the Elton John Christmas record that isn't "Step Into Christmas"? or the Shakin Stevens ones that isn't "Merry Xmas Everyone"?

The final Christmas effort came from an act who had already previously had a Christmas number one, Pet Shop Boys. The record was "It Doesn't Often Snow At Christmas" which was a fan club single in 1997. How did it chart? Well it made the number 40, so they now have the honour of having both a Christmas number one and a Christmas number 40. I don't think I've met anyone who's heard it without me playing it to them, which tells you whether it's stood the test of time. It's a shame as I quite like it. It is also the final Top 40 hit to date for them.

The Christmas number one had been the X Factor winner for 4 years in a row, but this was the year of the anti-X Factor campaign which got Rage Against the Machine to number one with "Killing in the Name". The X Factor winner Joe McElderry had to settle for number two with "The Climb", but made number one the following week.

The Christmas Charts: 1999

As I'm doing my Top 20 reviews of 1999 at the moment it almost seems a bit pointless to go into too much detail as I'd be repeating myself. What I will say then is keep an eye out for the reviews and that the Christmas songs were "Baby It's Cold Outside" by Tom Jones and Cerys Matthews, "A Christmas Kiss" by Daniel O'Donnell and "Mr Hankey The Christmas Poo" by Mr Hankey.

The Christmas Charts: 1989

The Christmas hits of 1989 all have one thing in common, they're all songs that have rarely been heard since 1989. There was "December" by All About Eve which is a record I'm not sure I even heard in 1989. They are of course remembered for their appearance on Top of the Pops with "Martha's Harbour" which gave them their only Top 10. The rest of their hits didn't do so well, with 7 of their 9 Top 40 hits charting in the 30s, this being one of them at 34.

At the other end of the charts we had the biggest act of the year, Jive Bunny & the Mastermixers. Having scored number ones with their first 2 hits, they went straight in at number one with their third, "Let's Party". It's a medley of Christmas songs, I guess given the individual songs all got played regularly in the years that followed made this redundant for future Christmases, and the inclusion of "Another Rock & Roll Christmas" by Gary Glitter probably killed any chance of this being resurrected years later. It only managed one week at the top though and had to settle for Christmas number two.

What could possibly keep Jive Bunny off the top in 1989?

Well take arguably the biggest Christmas record of the 80s and get Stock Aitken & Waterman to put their stamp on it and you get "Do They Know It's Christmas?" by Band Aid II. The inclusion of Cliff Richard meant he was involved in the 2nd Christmas number on in a row, and he wasn't finished. You don't hear it anymore though because people play the original instead.

The Christmas Charts - 1979

For whatever reason, the history books treat Paul McCartney's solo career and Wings as the same thing. The last actual Wings Top 40 hit came in 1979 and at the end of the year came Paul McCartney's first post-Wings Top 40 hit, "Wonderful Christmastime".

Elvis Presley had a posthumous Christmas hit in 1979 with "It Won't Seem Like Christmas (Without You)". It had originally been recorded in 1971 and featured on his Christmas album of that year.

It was 1979 that gave us rap music in the Top 40 for the first time. Many people know that first record was "Rappers Delight", but what about the second? It came shortly afterwards and was "Christmas Rapping" by Kurtis Blow.

Ever wondered what a collaboration between Thin Lizzy and the Sex Pistols would sound like? Wonder no more, they did collaborate in 1979 under the name The Greedies with "A Merry Jingle" which was essentially a medley of Christmas songs done in a Thin Lizzy/Sex Pistols crossover sort of style. It never made the Top 40 until the first week of 1980 though.

After 3 years of Christmas songs, or non-Christmas songs you hear at Christmas, at Christmas number one, 1979 brought us one that nobody has ever accused of being a Christmas song. That was "Another Brick In The Wall" by Pink Floyd. Surprisingly this would be the only Pink Floyd Top 40 hit of the 70s. Then again, it may be more of a surprise this was a hit at all given Pink Floyd were an albums band.

The Christmas Charts - 1969

Christmas songs clearly weren't big in 1969. The nearest we have to a Christmas song is "Winter World Of Love" by Englebert Humperdinck. It has winter in both the lyrics and title, plus the lyrics contain the words winter and snow. No references to Christmas itself though.

The Archie's reached number one at the end of October with "Sugar Sugar" where it remained until December. It however just fell short of being Christmas number one, being knocked off by Rolf Harris with "2 Little Boys".

The Christmas Charts - 1959

Time for my annual look at the Christmas charts 60, 50, 40, 30, 20 and 10 years ago plus the Christmas chart for this year.

We begin with 1959 where we have 2 versions of "Little Donkey" in the charts at the same time. The highest charting of these came from the Beverley Sisters which made 14. It was their penultimate Top 40 hit having made their Top 40 debut in 1953 with another Christmas song "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus". The other one came from Gracie Fields which made 20 and was her second and final hit.

We also had a Christmas hit from Russ Conway with "Snow Coach" which came at the end of his most successful year in the Top 40 having had 2 number ones.

For the 3rd year in a row and final time "Mary's Boy Child" by Harry Belafonte entered the charts, but it only made 30 at a time when it was still a Top 30. There was another version of "Mary's Boy Child" in the charts coming from Nina And Frederick. It was there first of three Top 40 hits, the second would come the following year with "Little Donkey".

Max Bygraves had a Christmas hit with his version of "Jingle Bell Rock". This was the first version of the song to make the Top 40 and highest charting reaching 7.

The Christmas number one wasn't a Christmas song, it was the very long titled "What Do You Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For? " by Emile Ford & the Checkmates. This was their debut hit and only number one.

The Christmas Charts - 2018

In early November I listened to all the records in the Top 20 of the singles chart and gave my verdict on each record. I concluded that "Thank You, Next" by Ariana Grande which had just entered the charts at number one was possibly the most dreadful song in the Top 20. It then stayed at number one for weeks to the point it was looking a possibility for Christmas number one.

However it didn't quite make it and was knocked off the top by Ladbaby with "We Built This City". It is a comedy version of the Starship song with the lyrics changed to "we built this city on sausage rolls" and is also a charity record.

In terms of actual Christmas music we have 15 old Christmas songs returning to the Top 40. There were 16 last year and all 15 songs this year were part of those 16 with "It's the Most Wonderful Time Of the Year" by Andy Williams being the only one not to make it. Here's the list:

Wham	Last Christmas
Mariah Carey	All I Want For Christmas Is You
Pogues	Fairytale Of New York
Band Aid	Do They Know It's Christmas?
Brenda Lee	Rockin Around the Christmas Tree
Shakin Stevens	Merry Xmas Everyone
Elton John	Step Into Christmas
Chris Rea	Driving Home For Christmas
Michael Buble	It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like
Wizzard	I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day
Slade	Merry Xmas Everybody
Ariana Grande	Santa Tell Me
John And Yoko And The Plastic Ono Band	Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Leona Lewis	One More Sleep
Paul McCartney	Wonderful Christmastime

The Christmas Charts - 2008

In 2008 we had the inevitable X Factor winner getting the Christmas number one. It came from Alexandra Burke with "Hallelujah". The Jeff Buckley version was at number two and the original Leonard Cohen version got to 36.

The biggest Christmas hit came from a make believe talent show winner called Geraldine McQueen. The person behind this was Peter Kay and the song was "Once Upon a Christmas Song" which reached number 5.

We also saw the return of several old Christmas songs thanks to downloads without a physical copy being eligible for the charts. There wasn't as many as there was in 2007, these are the songs that returned to the Top 40:

Mariah Carey	All I Want For Christmas Is You
Pogues	Fairytale Of New York
Wham	Last Christmas
Wizzard	I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day
Slade	Merry Xmas Everybody
Shakin Stevens	Merry Xmas Everyone

Gabriella Cilmi had a hit with "Warm This Winter" which had appeared on the Co-op adverts. It was a remake of a song called "I'm Gonna Be Warm This Winter" by Connie Francis and made number 22 in the charts. This was the third Top 40 hit for Gabriella Cilmi having debuted earlier on in the year and she would have one further hit which came out in 2010.

Another 2008 debutant rounded off the year with a Christmas song. Basshunter, who had the first number one of the year did a Eurodance cover of "Jingle Bells" called "Jingle Bells (Bass)" which was his fifth Top 40 hit that year. It only just made the Top 40 though reaching number 38. It would be almost a year until his next hit "Every Morning" and then in 2010 he had his final hit with "Saturday".

Status Quo had their only Christmas hit in 2008 with "It's Christmas Time" which made number 40. This was their 56th and penultimate UK Top 40 hit, only 5 other chart acts have managed to achieve more Top 40 hits though it probably won't be long until Drake and Ed Sheeran can claim to have had that many.