Longing and Listening to Christmas Number One Singles

25 Million New & Used CDs / Vinyl Records

Music Forum

My Account / Login

Longing and Listening to Christmas Number One Singles
by Alexis Andrews - December 18, 2008

Christmas music to make you fall in love

It is that time of the year again. You know what I am talking about: the holiday season, during which everything is merry, festive, and wrapped in glitter. To others, Christmas may inspire a spirit of sharing and gift-giving, a spirit of happiness. To me, however, there is also, come Christmas time, a heightened sense of longing, nostalgia, and an overwhelming desire to be with the one I love. The international singles charts are partly to blame: there are so many Christmas number one singles over the years that are too romantic for me to take. Here are some of them.

Moon River. This 1961 song was composed by Johnny Mercer and Henry Mancini and was released officially by South African singer Danny Williams. Not only did it reach number one in the UK; it also went on to win the 1961 Academy Award for Best Original Song, as it was sung by Audrey Hepburn in the classic movie, Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Since then, Moon River has been covered by many notable artists, among them Paul Anka, Louis Armstrong, Sarah Brightman, Ray Conniff, Judy Garland and Bobby Darin.

Hello, Goodbye. This Beatles single stayed 7 weeks at #1 after being released in November 1967. It topped the singles charts both in the US and the UK, being one of the many hits that come from the Beatles album, Magical Mystery Tour. The Beatles filmed three promotional music videos for “Hello, Goodbye”, but hearing it on Christmas Day – with simple yet powerful lines like “Hello, hello, I don’t know why you say goodbye” – is enough to usher in those strong waves of memory and pining.

Always On My Mind. My favorite version of this song has to be the one by Willie Nelson. But the version of “Always On My Mind” performed by electronic dance group Pet Shop Boys sounds more contemporary – and more appropriate to the jingling atmosphere of Christmas. Released in 1987, “Always on My Mind” by the Pet Shop Boys was a commemorative performance to remember the tenth death anniversary of Elvis Presley, who had originally recorded the song in 1972. It became a Christmas number one single in the UK and stayed atop the charts for four weeks.

Mistletoe & Wine. English pop rock singer Cliff Richard had a total of four Christmas number one singles, and one of them was called “Mistletoe & Wine”. This song was released in 1988 and was actually the 99th Cliff Richard single, but not many are aware that he had only changed the lyrics of an original composition by Jeremy Paul, Leslie Stewart and Keith Strachan. “Mistletoe and Wine” thus came to have several allusions to religious images and themes.

That’s My Goal. One of the most recent Christmas number one singles is “That’s My Goal,” performed by Shayne Ward. Shayne Ward is the second winner of UK’s popular reality TV show called “X Factor” – “That’s My Goal” was his first ever release. The song spent four weeks atop the UK singles charts and, to date, has sold over 1.3 million copies in the UK alone. Of course, it’s not without the sappiness with which I will always associate Christmas: “So when I say I love you, I’ll mean it forever and ever...” Oh, Christmas and the music, they keep me longing indeed.

Subscribe to Latest Articles

Recent Postings

New Music Releases – November 24, 2009 - Nov 24

New Music Releases – November 17 - Nov 16

New Music Releases – November 10, 2009 - Nov 9

New Music Releases – November 3, 2009 - Nov 2

New Music Releases - October 27, 2009 - Oct 27

New Music Releases - October 20, 2009 - Oct 19

Happy 40th Birthday To Abbey Road - Oct 1

New Music Releases – September 29, 2009 - Sep 29

Ask Mr. Music - September 29, 2009 - Sep 29

Bird and Animal Names In Rock and Roll History-part thirty-two - Sep 27

Categories

Recent Postings

Recent Comments