Favorite Christmas carols
By Catalogs Editorial Staff
A top 25 list for Christmas carols that are family favorites
Tis the season to be jolly — and to sing your favorite Christmas carols.Have you ever wondered which Christmas carols get the most play during the holidays? Here are some of the most (and least) popular Christmas carols, based on how often they’re requested and played on the radio during December. See where your favorite Christmas carols rank:
The top twenty five Christmas carols
“The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)” With versions from everyone from Barry Manilow to Garth Brooks, this song is the hands down winner for most popular Christmas carol. Before you continue reading about the Favorite Christmas carols there is a special announcement we would like to share with you. Catalogs.com has negotiated special medicare rates for our vibrant community of seniors. If you are over the age of 60, you can head over to our Seniors Health Section which is full of information about medicare. All you need is your zip code and a few minutes of your time to potentially save 100s of dollars on your medicare bills.
The others in the top 25 are:
2. “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town”
3. “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” (incidentally, the most popular version of this one is still Judy Garland’s classic recording, despite hundreds of re-recording since hers was released.)
4. “Winter Wonderland”
5. “White Christmas” (Few people know the opening verse, where the singer talks about sitting amid the palm trees in sunny Southern California while only imaging the joys of a white Christmas! The best of both worlds!)
6. “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!”
7. “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”
8. “Jingle Bell Rock”
9. “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” (a melancholy wish from WWII that has not lost its power to touch those far from home at the holidays.)
10. “Little Drummer Boy”
11. “Sleigh Ride” (This is the most requested song at Mormon Tabernacle Choir holiday performances.)
12. “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of The Year”
13. “Silver Bells”
14. “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” ~
15. “Feliz Navidad”
16. “Silent Night” (A perpetual favorite even though it was written at the last minute to be played on guitar when a church organ broke hours before the Christmas Eve services.)
17. “Frosty The Snowman”
18. “A Holly Jolly Christmas”
19. “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus”
20. “Here Comes Santa Claus”
21. “We Wish You a Merry Christmas”
22. “(There’s No Place Like) Home for The Holidays”
23. “Carol of the Bells”
24. “Santa Baby” (Once popularized by Eartha Kitt, this song jumped in popularity again after a recording by Madonna and a Callista Flockheart performance on TV’s Ally McBeal.)
25. “Wonderful Christmastime” (The most recent song on the top 25, this song was written in 1979.)
Ironically, the Dr. Demento classic “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer,” a very un-Christmas-y Christmas carol has been climbing in the request and playlist numbers and is now in the top 40!
Least favorite Christmas carols
So what are the Christmas carols people least like to hear — or sing?Good old “Good King Wenceslas,” written in 1853, tops the list as the least favorite Christmas carol. Despite its long history, few people know the words or even the complete melody. Add this to your holiday sing-along and you’re guaranteed lots of humming and la, la, la’s.
Another long standing carol that inspires creative singing but few accurate lyrics is “Here We Come A-Wassailing.” Most people don’t know what Wassail is, much less what’s involved in wassailing, a custom that was popular around the same time William Shakespeare was penning his famous plays.
The cheerful “Up on the Housetop” was listed by most people as the Christmas song that most sets their teeth on edge. Clearly not the song to have playing as you welcome guests this holiday season — unless you want to keep the party short!
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