CHRISTMAS
The most famous classic Christmas songs: Full list
Music is a key part of the festivities and everyone has their own opinions on the old classics and new favourites. Here's the Top Twenty most-streamed Christmas songs of all time.
The holiday season is a time filled with celebrations and traditions; a time when many choose to look back on past memories when making new ones.
Whatever your plans are this Christmas it’s a fair guess to assume that it will probably include some sort of musical festivities. Christmas songs are a part of the experience and it’s often the same old classics that get the warmest receptions at holiday gatherings.
But which are the most famous, the most popular, the most well-loved and, simply, the best of the festive musical offerings? Fortunately, Spotify has released a list of the most streamed Christmas songs of all-time, giving you the perfect start to curating your own Yuletide playlists…
Here’s the Top 20 most streamed Christmas songs…
20. Underneath the Tree, Kelly Clarkson
This single, written by the American Idol winner herself, comes from Clarkson’s first Christmas album, 2013’s ‘Wrapped in Red’.
19. Blue Christmas, Elvis Presley
Crooner’s classic, Blue Christmas, has been reimagined several times over the years but it is The King’s version from 1957 that would become the most well-known, and well-streamed, version.
18. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, Sam Smith
Another song with a variety of versions, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas originates from the 1944 musical ‘Meet Me In St. Louis’. However Sam Smith’s 2014 edition has really struck a chord with festive streamers.
17. Wonderful Christmastime, Paul McCartney
Nearly a decade after the split of The Beatles, Paul McCartney released a holiday single that would prove hugely popular and continues to earn him around $400,000 per year to this day.
16. The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You), Nat King Cole
The iconic opening line (“Chestnuts roasting on an open fire…”) conjures up some of the most evocative images of Christmas and it remains popular to this day, 75 years after the Nat King Cole version was first recorded in 1946.
15. Driving Home For Christmas, Chris Rea
The orchestral 1986 classic is a particular holiday favourite in the United Kingdom, having first appeared on Chris Rea’s ‘New Light Through Old Windows’ album.
14. Holly Jolly Christmas, Michael Bublé
Of course, Mr Christmas himself was always going to be involved in a countdown of Christmas songs and the first of his two entries in the Top 20 comes with his 2014 version of a 1964 classic.
13. Feliz Navidad, José Feliciano
The Spanish-English Christmas song from 1970 was a slow-burner, taking over two decades to reach the Billboard chart, but its infectious chorus is now well-known around the world.
12. White Christmas, Bing Crosby, John Scott Trotter & His Orchestra, Ken Darby Singers
Since its first performance on 1941’s ‘The Kraft Music Hall’ NBC Show, White Christmas has sold more than 100 million copies and remains one of the most popular festive tracks on Spotify.
11. Happy Xmas (War Is Over), John Lennon and Yoko Ono
The second entry from a former member of The Beatles in the Top 20, the anti-war Christmas song sees John and Yoko adapt an 18th century ballad.
10. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!, Frank Sinatra
One of few iconic Christmas songs to reach No. 1, Frank Sinatra’s Christmas offering was actually penned during a heat wave but managed to reach the top of the charts in 1946.
9. Do They Know It’s Christmas, Band Aid
The Band Aid project saw a super group of some of the biggest performers of the 1980s combine to record a Christmas song to raise money for charity. The record sold over one million copies in the first week after being released and it remains popular to this day.
8. Jingle Bell Rock, Bobby Helms
Bobby Helm’s 1957 track was perhaps the first Christmas song written with clear rock ‘n’ roll influences and it even referenced other contemporary songs like Rock Around The Clock.
7. Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree, Brenda Lee
Similar to Helm’s festive single, Brenda Lee introduced the world to her own rocking Christmas the following year and by 2008, the 50th anniversary of the song, more than 25 million copies had been sold.
6. It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Andy Williams
Another Christmas tune with more than 50 years of memories is this crooning number from Andy William. Interestingly, the song was initially side-lined so the record label could push sales of William’s cover of White Christmas.
5. Mistletoe, Justin Bieber
We’re into the Top Five and a more contemporary addition to the countdown, with Justin’ Bieber’s Mistletoe. Bieber’s 2011 Christmas Album ‘Under the Mistletoe’ included a number of famous covers but it is this single that proved the most popular, charting at Number 11 in the United States.
4. It's Beginning to Look a Lot like Christmas, Michael Bublé
It’s double Bublé! The second of Michael’s entries in the Spotify Top 20 is this grand, orchestral number from his 2011 ‘Christmas’ album. No festive playlist is complete without a bit of Mr Christmas.
3. Santa Tell Me, Ariana Grande
You may be feeling a bit of recency bias from the Top Five so far, and this offering from Ariana Grande is certainly a streamers’ favourite. Grande actually co-wrote the track with Savan Kotecha and Ilya and it was first released in 2014.
2. Last Christmas, Wham!
Surely the most widely-covered Christmas song of all time, Wham!’s Last Christmas has more than 1,200 different versions and new ones are being added at a rate of around 100 per year. The 1984 single, written by George Michael and performed by Andrew and Michael Ridgeley, is the second most-streamed Christmas song on Spotify.
1. All I want for Christmas Is You, Mariah Carey
Of course, the Number One spot belongs to Mariah Carey and her 1994 classic All I Want For Christmas Is You. The ever-popular track has charted every single year since its original release 27 years ago and it remains the ultimate festive tune for millions around the world.