1950s Christmas songs continue to resonate; listen in!

Kelly O’Sullivan of Wide Open Media Group in New York City is regarded as an authority on Christmas music. Her playlist of the all-time top holiday tunes includes some monster hits from the 1950s.

 

Put “a little extra pep in your step during the holiday season by jamming out to some good Christmas music,” O’Sullivan advises. “In no time, you’ll be rockin’ around the Christmas tree…swearing you saw mommy kissing Santa Claus”…and jivin’ to the “Jingle Bell Rock.” 

This trio of popular holiday tunes has common threads. The oldest is “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus,” performed originally by Jimmy Boyd in 1952. He was a freckle-faced 13-year-old from McComb, Miss.

 

British songwriter Tommie Connor was commissioned to compose “I Saw Mommy…” to promote the 1952 Christmas card of Saks Fifth Avenue, a luxury department store chain headquartered in New York City. (The card featured an original sketch by artist Perry Barlow, who drew for The New Yorker magazine for many decades.)

 

The song, produced by Columbia Records, created quite a stir when in 1952. The Roman Catholic Church condemned the song for implying sexual improprieties, and radio stations in several markets refused to play it. 

Boyd met personally with church leaders to explain that the “yuletide kiss-and-tell” spoof wasn’t what it seemed. In the tune, “Santa Claus and Daddy are the same man,” he said. 

For his contributions to the recording industry, Boyd (at age 20) was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1959.

 

“Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” was recorded in 1958 by artist Brenda Lee of Atlanta, Ga., another 13-year-old rising star. Decca Records’ producer Owen Bradley sought out Lee to record the song, written by New Yorker Johnny Marks.

 

He had an impressive track record for writing successful Christmas tunes. Some memorable hits were: “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “When Santa Claus Gets Your Letter” (Gene Autry); “A Holly Jolly Christmas” and “Silver and Gold” (Burl Ives); and “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” (Bing Crosby). 

For Lee’s recording session of “Rockin’ Around…” Bradley assembled a dynamic all-star cast of musicians: Hank Garland and Harold Bradley on guitar; Floyd Cramer on piano; Boots Randolph on sax; Bob Moore on bass; and Buddy Harman on drums. 

Brenda Lee has her own chapter in the reference book “Dick Clark’s The First 25 Years of Rock and Roll. Authors commented: “Decca made a fortune on their little star (the 4-foot-9 Brenda Lee). Without doubt, she was one of “the most successful female artists of the early years of rock’n’roll.”

Brenda Lee’s success in the 1960s earned her recognition as Billboard’s “Top Female Artist of the Decade.” During that 10-year span, she charted more singles than any other female vocalist and was fourth overall, trailing only Elvis Presley, The Beatles and Ray Charles. 

Lee observed her 79th birthday on Dec. 11. She has sold more than 100 million records worldwide.

 

Moving on to “Jingle Bell Rock,” a 24-year-old artist named Bobby Helms (born in Helmsburg, Ind.) was recruited by Decca Records in 1957 to perform the holiday tune.

 

Hank Garland [shown below] was the lead guitarist during the recording session, and he complained bitterly to producer Paul Cohen that the song (composed by Joseph Carleton Beal and James Ross Boothe) “wasn’t any good.”

 

Garland and Helms worked on it for about an hour, changing the music, lyrics and tempo, while also giving it a previously missing bridge. “We came up with the ‘Jingle Bell Rock’ America hears every holiday season,” Garland said. 

Brenda Lee covered “Jingle Bell Rock” in 1964 for her Christmas album, carrying the song into immortality. 

Although “Jingle Bell Rock” is considered Helms’ signature song, he continued touring and recording for three more decades. His pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame.

 

Observations: 

Kelly O’Sullivan commented: “Jimmy Boyd’s original version of “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” is great, but the Jackson 5’s catchy cover will have everyone dancing and singing along to the funky beats.” 

The group was formed in 1964 in Gary, Ind., and consisted of brothers Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael. They were managed by their father, Joe Jackson. The Jackson 5 recorded “I Saw Mommy…” for its 1970 Christmas album.

 

 

O’Sullivan is also high on The Ronettes, a “girl group” that came out of New York City in 1961 – lead singer Veronica Bennett, her older sister Estelle Bennett and their cousin Nedra Talley. They had sung together since they were teenagers, then known as “The Darling Sisters.” They signed with Phil Spector’s Philles Records in March 1963 and changed their name to “The Ronettes.”

 

For Spector’s 1963 Christmas album, the Ronettes recorded their own version of “I Saw Mommy…” along with “Frosty the Snowman” and “Sleigh Ride.” All three are cited by O’Sullivan among her list of all-time top holiday songs.

 

“The Ronettes’ vibrant performance of ‘Frosty…’ is the most joyous by far,” O’Sullivan said. “It’s the perfect way to kick off the holiday season!” 

The tune was written by Walter “Jack” Rollins and Steve Nelson and first recorded by Gene Autry and the Cass County Boys in 1950. 

“Sleigh Ride” was composed in 1948 by Leroy Anderson, and the orchestral version was first recorded in 1949 by Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops Orchestra. Lyrics were added in 1950 by Mitchell Parish, when the Andrews Sisters (LaVerne, Maxene and Patty) recorded the first vocal version of the song.