If you haven’t been following the charts this holiday season, Christmas classic “Rocking Around The Christmas Tree” hit number one in the United States…a whopping 65 years after it was recorded! Brenda Lee, who first recorded the hit at age 13, recently stole the number one spot from Mariah Carey. “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” has been a staple in holiday movies and on radio stations during the festive season, but its singer Brenda Lee has staged a glorious comeback after more than 6 decades. Lee released the 1958 song’s first official video, which features cameos from country music legends Trisha Yearwood and Tanya Tucker, on Nov. 3. Lee, who is now 79 years old, posted a picture to social media of the flowers that Mariah Carey sent, congratulating Lee on the number one hit which overtook Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You”

Here are some more cool stories you can think about this week as you listen to (or avoid) these holiday faves!!

The Guinness World Records named the holiday single “White Christmas” (1942) by Bing Crosby as the best-selling single worldwide. According to Guinness, “White Christmas” has sold over 50 million copies. The song was also infamously used as a secret military signal during the fall of Saigon. On April 29, 1975, as North Vietnamese troops shelled Saigon’s Tan Son Nhut Air Base, U.S. Ambassador Graham Martin ordered the evacuation of Saigon. As a signal to Americans in Saigon that the evacuation had begun, Armed Forces Radio started to play “White Christmas” on repeat.

“O Come, O Come Emmanuel” is one of the oldest Christmas hymns to still get airplay. Originally composed in Latin during the twelfth century. “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” and “Joy to the World” are two other very-oldies but goodies, originating in the 1700s.

“Joy to the World” is a hymn based on Psalm 98, penned by English hymn writer Isaac Watts in 1719. Originally written as a reflection on the second coming of Christ, it wasn’t until a century later that the melody we associate with it today was added by composer Lowell Mason. The triumphant tune and uplifting lyrics have made “Joy to the World” a jubilant anthem of Christmas joy.

“Silent Night” originated in Austria in 1818. The lyrics were penned by Joseph Mohr, a young priest, and the music was composed by Franz Gruber. The carol’s debut occurred on Christmas Eve in a small village church when the church organ malfunctioned. Gruber, a schoolteacher and musician, adapted the melody to be sung with a guitar, resulting in the serene and heartfelt composition we know today.
The song is said to have inspired The Christmas Truce of 1914, which occurred during World War I on Christmas Eve when troops on enemy lines temporarily set aside their differences. According to the Imperial War Museum, after British soldiers heard German troops singing “Stille Nacht” (Silent Night) and other Christmas carols, the troops on both sides began singing in unison.

Not all authors of Christmas songs celebrate Christmas! “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer,” “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” and “Holly Jolly Christmas” were all written by Johnny Marks, who was Jewish. The proudly Jewish Irving Berlin wrote “White Christmas.” “Let It Snow” and “The Christmas Song” were written by Mel Torme, who was also Jewish.

“You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” was sung by Thurl Ravenscroft who was also the voice of the Frosted Flakes cereal mascot, Tony the Tiger.

Jingle Bells: Originally intended as a Thanksgiving song titled “One Horse Open Sleigh”, “Jingle Bells” was Written by James Lord Pierpont in the mid-19th century. Pierpont had a fascinating life, and while we remember him primarily for his authorship of this holiday favorite, it was not the overwhelming achievement of his life at the time. He set out West to discover gold at one point, and fought in the Civil War. Despite having an abolitionist father, Pierpont was devout in his support of the Confederacy and joined the Confederate army. He lived out the remainder of his days in Georgia, where a plaque in his honor can be found in Savannah, across from the Unitarian church where Pierpont was music director at the time the song was published. According to the History Channel, Pierpont’s sister married a Morgan and their son (Pierpont’s nephew) grew to become a finance man whom we now know as JP (James Pierpont) Morgan.

“Jingle Bells” was also the first song to be played in space! In 1965, Astronauts Walter Schirra and Tom Stafford used a harmonica and a bell — also the first instruments in space — to perform the song aboard NASA’s Gemini 6A space flight, the BBC reported. It was part of a prank — they claimed the music was coming from a strange, flying object that looked a lot like Santa Claus.