"Last Christmas" is a song by British pop duo Wham! Written and produced by George Michael, it was released on 3 December 1984 via CBS Records internationally and as a double A-side via Epic Records with "Everything She Wants" in several European countries. The song has been covered by many artists since its original release, most notably by Whigfield, Crazy Frog, Billie Piper, Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande.
"Take Me Home, Country Roads", also known simply as "Country Roads", is a song written by Bill Danoff, Taffy Nivert and John Denver. It was released as a single performed by Denver on April 12, 1971, peaking at number two on Billboard's US Hot 100 singles for the week ending August 28, 1971. The song was a success on its initial release and was certified Gold by the RIAA on August 18, 1971, and Platinum on April 10, 2017. The song became one of John Denver's most popular songs. It has continued to sell, with over 1.6 million digital copies sold in the United States.
"What a Wonderful World" is a song written by Bob Thiele and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong and released in 1967 as a single. In April 1968, it topped the pop chart in the United Kingdom, but performed poorly in the United States because Larry Newton, the president of ABC Records, disliked the song and refused to promote it.
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song written in 1943 by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane and introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me in St. Louis. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics. In 2007, ASCAP ranked it the third most performed Christmas song during the preceding five years that had been written by ASCAP members. In 2004 it finished at No. 76 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs rankings of the top tunes in North American cinema.
"Blurry" is a song by American rock band Puddle of Mudd. It was released on October 16, 2001, as the second single from the band's debut album Come Clean (2001). It was 2002's most successful rock song in the United States, topping the Billboard Mainstream Rock and Modern Rock Tracks charts as well as their year-end listings. "Blurry" also found success outside the US, reaching the top 20 in Ireland, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.
"May It Be" is a song by the Irish recording artist Enya. She and Roma Ryan composed it for Peter Jackson's 2001 film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. The song entered the German Singles Chart at number one in 2002, and Enya performed it at the 74th Academy Awards. "May It Be" was acclaimed by music critics and received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, and the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media.
"White Christmas" is an Irving Berlin song reminiscing about an old-fashioned Christmas setting. The song was written by Berlin for the 1942 musical film Holiday Inn. The composition won the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 15th Academy Awards. Bing Crosby's record topped the Billboard chart for 11 weeks in 1942 and returned to the number one position again in December 1943 and 1944. His version would return to the top 40 a dozen times in subsequent years.
"Stutter" is a song by American R&B singer Joe. The original version of the song was produced by Roy "Royalty" Hamilton and Teddy Riley and written by Roy "Royalty" Hamilton and Ernest E. Dixon.
Gordon Haskell was an English musician and songwriter. A pop, rock, jazz, country and blues vocalist, guitarist, and bassist, he was a school friend of King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp. The two first worked together in Fripp's mid-1960s teenage group the League of Gentlemen.
"This Christmas" is a song by American soul musician Donny Hathaway released in 1970 by Atco Records. The song gained renewed popularity when it was included in 1991 on Atco Records' revised edition of their 1968 Soul Christmas compilation album and has since become a modern Christmas standard, with the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers reporting that it was the 30th most-performed holiday song of all time.
"What If" is a song performed by English actress Kate Winslet, recorded for the animated film Christmas Carol: The Movie (2001). Winslet provided the voice of Belle in the feature, which is based on the Charles Dickens classic 1843 novel and also stars Nicolas Cage, Jane Horrocks and Simon Callow. "What If" was written by Wayne Hector and Steve Mac, while production was helmed by the latter. The song is a ballad that follows the film's theme, as Belle laments the end of her and Scrooge's relationship and wonders what could have been. It was the only song to be released from the official movie soundtrack.
"We've Got Tonite" is a song written by American rock music artist Bob Seger, from his album Stranger in Town (1978). The single record charted twice for Seger, and was developed from a prior song that he had written. Further versions charted in 1983 for Kenny Rogers as a duet with Sheena Easton, and again in 2002 for Ronan Keating.
"Sleigh Ride" is a light orchestra standard composed by Leroy Anderson. He formed the idea for the piece during a heat wave in July 1946, and finished it in February 1948. Its first performance was by the Boston Pops Orchestra, with Arthur Fiedler conducting, on May 4, 1948.
"Wonderful Life" is a song by English singer Black from his 1987 debut album, Wonderful Life. The song was released twice as a single and was successful the second time, becoming a top-10 hit in Australia, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Black, who wrote the song while broke, commented: "I was really being ironic... Most people took it at face value."
"Sacred Trust / After You're Gone" is the debut double-A side single of British boy band One True Voice. It was released on 16 December 2002, the same day that female winners Girls Aloud released their single "Sound of the Underground". The two songs were competing for the coveted Christmas number one spot on the UK Singles Chart. "Sacred Trust / After You're Gone" reached number two on that chart, beaten to the top by "Sound of the Underground". The double A-side also reached number nine in Ireland.
"It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" is a popular Christmas song written in 1963 by Edward Pola and George Wyle. It was recorded and released that year by pop singer Andy Williams for his first Christmas album, The Andy Williams Christmas Album. However, the song was not released as a promotional single by Williams' record label that year, as they instead opted to promote his cover of "White Christmas" as the official promo single from the album. "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" has consistently made it onto pop singles charts around the world in the 2010s and 2020s. It peaked at No. 5 on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 2020 and at No. 9 on the UK Singles Chart in 2021.
"Wonderful Christmastime" is a Christmas song by English musician Paul McCartney. Recorded during the sessions for his solo album McCartney II (1980), it was released in November 1979 following Wings' final album Back to the Egg earlier that year. It was McCartney's first solo single in over eight years since "Eat at Home" in 1971. "Wonderful Christmastime" has charted within the top 10 in Austria, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom as well as the top 20 in Canada, Slovakia, Sweden, and Switzerland. Despite being regarded as one of McCartney's weaker compositions by some music critics, it is a popular song during Christmas and has been covered throughout the years by numerous artists.
"I Love Rock 'n' Roll" is a rock song written by Alan Merrill and Jake Hooker and first recorded by the Arrows, a British rock band, in 1975. A 1981 cover version by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, released as the first single from her album of the same name, became Jett's highest-charting hit, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and becoming the No. 3 song for 1982. The single was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, representing two million units shipped to stores. Jett's version was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2016.
Andy Williams recorded 43 studio albums, 17 of which received Gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America for selling 500,000 units. Andy Williams has sold over 11 million records in the US alone. Three of those recipients went on to reach one million in sales, for which they were awarded Platinum certification. Between studio, Christmas, and compilation albums he had 37 entries on the pop albums chart in Billboard magazine with 12 of those making the top 10. One of those 12, his 1963 album Days of Wine and Roses and Other TV Requests, spent 16 weeks at number one and comes in at number five on the list of the top albums released in the 1960s in terms of Billboard chart performance. During the 1960s and early 1970s two of his Platinum LPs, The Andy Williams Christmas Album and Merry Christmas, made annual appearances on the magazine's Christmas Albums chart, where they each reached the number one position in multiple holiday seasons. In a ranking of the top album artists of the 1960s in terms of Billboard chart performance, he comes in at number eight.
"Underneath the Tree" is a song by American pop singer Kelly Clarkson from her sixth studio album and first Christmas album, Wrapped in Red (2013). She co-wrote the track with its producer Greg Kurstin. It is a Christmas-themed song that sings of gratitude for companionship during the holidays, in which the loved one is referred to as the only present needed "underneath the tree". Accompanied by various instrumental sounds, the song is given a Wall of Sound treatment, along with sleigh bells and bell chimes to create a holiday atmosphere. "Underneath the Tree" was first released to Adult Contemporary radio stations on November 5, 2013, by RCA Records as the album's lead single.
