A Record 39 Holiday Songs Decorate This Week's Hot 100
By Gary Trust
12/29/2020
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www.billboard.com/articles/business/chart-beat/9505201/record-holiday-songs-hot-100/Among other festive feats, Eagles, Jackson 5 & The Beach Boys return after lengthy breaks.
As Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You" returns to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, her 1994 carol is one of 39 holiday hits on the survey, the most ever in a week over the chart's 62-year history.
As previously reported, a one-week record nine seasonal songs chart in the Hot 100's top 10, while 18 such hits rank in the top 20.
Here's a look at each holiday song on the latest Hot 100 (dated Jan. 2, 2021), with many granting artists notable personal achievements in their chart histories.
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No. 1, Mariah Carey, "All I Want for Christmas Is You"
No. 2, Brenda Lee, "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree"
No. 3, Bobby Helms, "Jingle Bell Rock"
No. 4, Burl Ives, "A Holly Jolly Christmas"
No. 5, Andy Williams, "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year"
No. 6, JosΓ© Feliciano, "Feliz Navidad"
No. 8, Dean Martin, "Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow"
No. 9, Wham!, "Last Christmas"
No. 10, Chuck Berry, "Run Rudolph Run"
See this week's recap of the Hot 100's top 10 for highlights of the nine hits above.
No. 11, Nat King Cole, "The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You)"
The iconic recording returns to its Hot 100 peak.
No. 12, Kelly Clarkson, "Underneath the Tree"
Clarkson's 2013 single reaches the top 20 for the first time. She scores her best placement since "Piece by Piece" hit No. 8 in March 2016.
No. 13, The Ronettes, "Sleigh Ride"
The group ranks in the top 15 for a second time, after its classic "Be My Baby" hit No. 2 in 1963.
No. 15, Perry Como and the Fontane Sisters with Mitchell Ayres and His Orchestra, "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas"
The song ascended to No. 12 a week earlier, marking Como's best rank since 1971, when "It's Impossible" became his lone top 10.
No. 16, Gene Autry, "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer"
The song revisits its best rank, and Autry's highest ever on the Hot 100, first reached two years earlier.
No. 17, Ariana Grande, "Santa Tell Me"
The 2014 single makes its first appearance in the top 20.
No. 18, Andy Williams, "Happy Holiday / The Holiday Season"
The joyous track likewise reaches the top 20 for the first time.
No. 19, Darlene Love, "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)"
As the song soars 37-19, it marks not only its first time in the top 20, but Love's, as well. She bests her prior No. 26 Hot 100 high set with "Wait 'Til My Bobby Gets Home," which hit No. 26 in 1963.
The Endless Green of 'White Christmas' & Other Holiday Hits
No. 20, Bing Crosby, "White Christmas"
The best-selling song of all time, first released in 1942, ranks in the Hot 100's top 20 for the first time since 1962, when it rose to No. 12.
No. 22, Perry Como, "(There's No Place Like) Home for the Holidays"
The ballad navigates the chart traffic to travel to its best Hot 100 rank.
No. 23, Michael BublΓ©, "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas"
BublΓ© earns his highest Hot 100 placement, one-upping the No. 24 peak of "Haven't Met You Yet" in 2010.
No. 26, Gene Autry, "Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane)"
Autry's other entry on the chart this week reaches a new high. The song and "Rudolph," above, mark his lone two charted Hot 100 hits.
No. 28, Paul McCartney, "Wonderful Christmastime"
As McCartney debuts at No. 1 on the Album Sales chart with his new LP, his 1979 carol hits the Hot 100's top 40 for the first time. He adds his 38th solo top 40 hit (including his billings with Wings) and his first unaccompanied by any other artists since "My Brave Face" reached No. 25 in 1989.
No. 32, Thurl Ravenscroft, "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch"
Sorry for some happy news, Mr. Grinch: The song, composed for the 1966 cartoon special Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas, makes its first appearance in the Hot 100's top 40.
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No. 33, Elvis Presley, "Blue Christmas"
The King charts at his highest Hot 100 rank since "Guitar Man" held at its No. 28 high in March 1981.
No. 36, Bing Crosby & The Andrews Sisters, "Mele Kalikimaka (Merry Christmas)"
The legendary Andrews Sisters chart their first Hot 100 hit, while the composition likewise says "aloha" to the survey for the first time.
No. 39, Donny Hathaway, "This Christmas"
The song by the late soul star makes its first Hot 100 appearance. Hathaway, who died in 1979, charts for the first time since 1980, and adds his first top 40 hit since his highest-peaking song, "The Closer I Get to You," reached No. 2 in 1978.
No. 43, Nat King Cole, "Deck the Halls"
The song climbs to a new high in its second week on the Hot 100.
No. 45, Eagles, "Please Come Home for Christmas"
The Don Henley-sung hit rings in on the Hot 100 for the first time since the 1978-79 holiday season, when it reached No. 18. Meanwhile, the group appears on the Hot 100 after over 17 years, since "Hole in the World" in 2003.
No. 46, Jackson 5, "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town"
The song makes its maiden Hot 100 appearance, while the group is back on the chart for the first time since 1989, when it spent seven weeks on the list with "Nothin (That Compares 2 U)."
No. 47, The Beach Boys, "Little Saint Nick"
Another legendary group returns to the Hot 100, as the song makes its first appearance on the chart. The Beach Boys had last splashed onto the tally with "Still Cruisin'" in 1989, a year after "Kokomo" became their fourth No. 1. "Little Saint Nick" is their 55th Hot 100 entry, the fourth-best sum among non-solo acts, after the Glee Cast (207), The Beatles (71) and The Rolling Stones (57).
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No. 48, Dan + Shay, "Take Me Home for Christmas"
The track hits a new Hot 100 peak, and does the same on the Hot Country Songs chart, where it rises to No. 2.
No. 49, Michael BublΓ©, "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"
The song marks BublΓ©'s first debut on the Hot 100 since 2014 β¦
No. 50, Bing Crosby, "I'll Be Home for Christmas"
β¦ while Crosby makes his first debut since just a bit earlier: 1960.
No. 54, Carrie Underwood & John Legend, "Hallelujah"
No. 61, Justin Bieber, "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree"
No. 62, Carrie Underwood, "Favorite Time of Year"
No. 75, Kelly Clarkson & Brett Eldredge, "Under the Mistletoe"
No. 78, Gabby Barrett, "The First Noel"
No. 94, Carrie Underwood, "Silent Night"
All six songs above except for No. 75 reach new highs, including Barrett's, which debuts. It's also the first version of "The First Noel" ever to appear on the Hot 100.
