Brenda Lee released “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” 65 years ago. Since its release, the song has become a staple of any good holiday playlist. It’s also common to hear it playing over the speakers in stores and supermarkets. Despite its popularity, the song didn’t reach the top of the Billboard Hot 100 until this year. Recently, Lee took time to talk about the song.
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Lee released “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” in 1958. It saw some chart success in 1960 when it peaked at No. 14 on the Hot 100. Then, earlier this month, it spent two weeks in the No. 1 spot. The time it took the song to make it to the top of the chart and Lee’s age at the time made it more than a hit single. The Christmas classic became a history-making hit.
Lee spoke to host Scott Detrow for NPR’s All Things Considered. During the interview, she talked about “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” and how she felt about it hitting the top of the Hot 100 after so many years.
[RELATED: 5 Stellar Brenda Lee Songs (That Aren’t “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”)]
Brenda Lee on “Rockin’” Going to No. 1
“Well, you know what? That is still not connecting with my brain,” Lee said of the song finally hitting the No. 1 spot. “I’m just so thrilled for the writer. I was very close to the writer, Johnny Marks, and I wish he was here to witness all this,” she added. “It’s a great song. It’s a wonderful song, and, Lord, has it been good to me. I never thought that a Christmas song would be my signature song.”
Later in the conversation, Lee discussed what it’s like to hear the song on the radio or in the grocery store every year. “It still feels pretty surreal. It really does,” she said. “When I say that, people say, ‘Oh, Brenda, good Lord. That thing came out when you were 12 or 13 or however old you were.’ I said, but you know what? It never gets old.”
Recording “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”
Lee also looked back at recording the holiday staple in Nashville. “I remember that my great producer, Owen Bradley—he had the air conditioning turned to zero because we recorded it, of course, in the summer,” she recalled. “He had a Christmas tree up, and we just had a great time doing it,” she added. “You know, good songs are easy to do, and I think we did that one in maybe one rehearsal and one take.”
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