WATCH: ‘Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree’ tops music charts for first time
Music legend Brenda Lee turns 79 on December 11, and she’ll have a lot to celebrate: Her holiday classic “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, 65 years after its release.
“Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” becomes only the third holiday song in history to top the Billboard Hot 100, following Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” and The Chipmunks’ “The Chipmunk Song” featuring David Seville.
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“Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” written by Johnny Marks, was released in 1958 but didn’t hit the charts until 1960, peaking at No. 14 that year. It climbed to No. 2 in 2019 and 2022.
Billboard posted a video of Lee’s reaction to the No. 1 ranking on Instagram on Monday.
Lee’s song sets another new record: the longest wait between a song’s release and its peak at No. 1 on the charts. Carey previously held the record of 25 years between the release of her Christmas hit in 1994 and its rise to the top of the list in 2019.
Lee is also now the oldest woman to ever reach No. 1 on the chart, surpassing Cher, who was 52 when “Believe” topped the Hot 100. Lee was 13 when she recorded “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.”
This is Lee’s third Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit, following 1960’s “I’m Sorry” and “I Want to Be Wanted.” In the 1960s she scored 46 Hot 100 hits, more than any other female artist.
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And that’s not the only Christmas hit in this week’s top 10. Carey’s song is No. 2, Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock” is No. 3, Wham!’s “Last Christmas” is No. 5, Burl Ives’ “A Holly Jolly Christmas” is No. 6 and Andy Williams’ “The “Most Wonderful Time of the Year” is No. 10.