Here Comes Santa Claus Explained

Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane)
Cover:Gene Autry - Here Comes Santa Claus.jpg
Type:single
Artist:Gene Autry
B-Side:An Old Fashioned Tree
Published: by Gene Autry Music Publishing, Inc.[1]
Recorded:[2]
Genre:Christmas
Label:Columbia 37942

"Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane)" is a popular Christmas song written and originally performed by Gene Autry, with music composed by Oakley Haldeman. Autry's original recording (in which he pronounces Santa Claus as "Santy Claus") was a top-10 hit on the pop and country charts; the song would go on to be covered many times in the subsequent decades.

History

Autry got the idea for the song after riding his horse in the 1946 Santa Claus Lane Parade (now the Hollywood Christmas Parade) in Los Angeles, during which crowds of spectators chanted, "Here comes Santa Claus". This inspired him to write a song that Haldeman set to music.[3] Autry's lyrics combined two veins of the Christmas tradition, the mythology of Santa Claus and the Christian origin of the holiday (most explicitly in its mention of the nativity promise of "peace on Earth" to those who "follow the light"). A demo recording was made by singer/guitarist Johnny Bond, whose recording made use of ice cubes to mimic the sound of jingling sleigh bells. This inspired the use of real sleigh bells in Autry's own recording of the song.

Autry first recorded the song on August 28, 1947;[2] released as a single by Columbia Records, It became a No. 5 country and No. 9 pop hit.[4] Autry performed the song in his 1949 movie The Cowboy and the Indians.[5] He re-recorded it again in 1953 for Columbia,[6] and once more in 1957 for his own Challenge Records label, which released it on more than one album that year.[7] [8]

Other artists to record the song include Doris Day (1949), Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters (recorded May 10, 1949),[9] Elvis Presley (1957), the Ray Conniff Singers (1959), Keely Smith (1960), David Seville and His Chipmunks (1961), Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans (1963), Hank Thompson (1964), in excerpt by The Beach Boys as part of their song "Child of Winter" (1974), Willie Nelson (1979), Glen Campbell, RuPaul, The Wiggles (1997), Billy Idol (2006), Bob Dylan (2009), Mariah Carey (2010), Chicago (2011), the Glee cast (2013), Anna Kendrick (2015), Pentatonix (2018), and Seth MacFarlane and Elizabeth Gillies (2023). In 1988, "Here Comes Santa Claus" was featured in Very Merry Christmas Songs which is part of the Disney Sing Along Songs collection. The song was also featured prominently in the popular 1989 Christmas movie National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation during the climax towards the end of the film.[10] [11] The version of the song used was Autry's 1957 Challenge Records recording.[8]

Chart performance

Gene Autry version

Chart (1948)! scope="col"
Peak
position
US Billboard Hot Country Singles5
US Billboard Best Sellers in Stores9
Chart (2019–2024)! scope="col"
Peak
position
Greece International (IFPI)[12] 93
Ireland (IRMA)[13] 94
Lithuania (AGATA)[14] 100
UK Streaming Chart (OCC)[15] 88
US Rolling Stone Top 100[16] 22

Elvis Presley version

Chart (2022–2024)! scope="col"
Peak
position
UK Streaming Chart (OCC)[17] 86

Frank Sinatra version

Chart (2023)! scope="col"
Peak
position
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[18] 89

Notes and References

  1. Book: Library of Congress. Copyright Office.. Catalog of Copyright Entries 1947 Published Music Jan-Dec 3D Ser Vol 1 Pt 5A. 1947. U.S. Govt. Print. Off.. United States Copyright Office. English.
  2. Web site: COLUMBIA 78rpm numerical listing discography: 37500 - 38000 . 2022-07-02 . www.78discography.com.
  3. Web site: Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane) . Geneautry.com . Gene Autry Entertainment . December 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191205205945/https://www.geneautry.com/clubhouse/christmas/geneautry_hcsc.html . December 5, 2019 . en.
  4. Book: Whitburn, Joel. Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. 2008. 978-0-89820-177-2.
  5. Web site: Internet Movie Database. imdb.com. July 22, 2017.
  6. Web site: Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane) Song Information . Geneautry.com . Gene Autry Entertainment . December 5, 2019 . https://archive.today/20191205194049/https://www.geneautry.com/clubhouse/christmas/geneautry_hcscsong.html . December 5, 2019 . en . "Gene Autry's Columbia Records Information for Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane): Columbia Records, Recorded August 28, 1947, in Hollywood... Columbia Records, Recorded June 25, 1953, in Hollywood." . live .
  7. Web site: Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer Song Information . Geneautry.com . Gene Autry Entertainment . December 5, 2019 . https://archive.today/20191205194955/https://www.geneautry.com/clubhouse/christmas/geneautry_rudolphsong.html . December 5, 2019 . In the Autumn of 1957 in Hollywood, California Gene Autry recorded seven Christmas tracks that were originally released on LP as Christmastime with Gene Autry on his own Challenge record label... All songs had vocals by Gene Autry with accompaniment by full orchestra and chorus condected [sic] by Carl Cotner. . live .
  8. Web site: Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane) . Amazon.com . December 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191205215157/https://www.amazon.com/Here-Comes-Santa-Claus-Right/dp/B00FU2XFZU . December 5, 2019 . en.
  9. Web site: A Bing Crosby Discography. BING magazine. International Club Crosby. July 22, 2017.
  10. News: Hughes . Becky . Why We Still Love National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation . Parade: Entertainment, Recipes, Health, Life, Holidays . AMG/Parade . December 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191205213924/https://parade.com/726616/beckyhughes/why-we-still-love-national-lampoons-christmas-vacation/ . December 5, 2019 . December 24, 2018 . When a SWAT team arrives to the strains of Gene Autry’s “Here Comes Santa Claus,” the tone is just right..
  11. Web site: Roberson . Joe . 25 Things You Never Knew About 'Christmas Vacation' . Zimbio.com . December 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191205214437/http://www.zimbio.com/Beyond+the+Box+Office/articles/K9d6hzS6Q8z/25+Things+Never+Knew+Christmas+Vacation . December 5, 2019 . December 5, 2014 . "Gene Autry's "Here Comes Santa Claus" scores the scene when the police storm the Griswolds' house. Coincidentally, Randy Quaid is Autry's third cousin.".
  12. Web site: Official IFPI Charts – Digital Singles Chart (International) - Week 52/2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20240103162214/https://www.ifpi.gr/digital_iel.html. dead. January 3, 2024. IFPI Greece. January 3, 2024.
  13. Web site: IRMA – Irish Charts. Irish Recorded Music Association. December 31, 2022.
  14. Web site: 2023 52-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100). AGATA. lt. December 29, 2023. January 4, 2024.
  15. Web site: Official Streaming Chart. Official Charts Company. December 29, 2023.
  16. Top 100 Songs. Rolling Stone. December 26, 2019. December 30, 2020. December 31, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191231033959/https://www.rollingstone.com/charts/songs/2019-12-26/. dead.
  17. Web site: Official Streaming Chart. Official Charts Company. December 29, 2023.
  18. Web site: Veckolista Singlar, vecka 52. Sverigetopplistan. December 30, 2023.

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