A legend weighs in on a Christmas classic

Consider This from NPR

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🗓️ 15 December 2024

⏱️ 12 minutes

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Summary

For many of us, Christmas songs are dominating our playlists this week. There's the one you start hearing in October, Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You," Eartha Kitt's "Santa Baby," and the Christmas banger that went to number one last year, Brenda Lee's "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree."

Lee, now 80, recorded the song when she was 13. The living legend talked to NPR last year when her song — finally — hit number one. We revisit that conversation.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	In a little over a week, it'll be Christmas.
0:04.4	Perhaps while you've been wrapping presents, decorating the tree, baking holiday treats, doing everything else,
0:09.5	had some tunes going in the background.
0:23.4	Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas is you is most likely on your playlist.
0:25.3	It is arguably one of the greatest Christmas songs of all time, a modern classic.
0:30.5	There's been some other gems out there.
0:32.3	Earth of Kitt's 1993 Santa Baby.
0:35.2	Santa Baby, just slip a sable under the tree for me.
0:43.4	Been an awful good girl, Santa Baby.
0:48.2	I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus by the Jackson Five.
0:52.5	Oh, what a rapid would have been. And I'm daddy head only. the Jackson 5.
1:09.3	More recently, True Love by Ariano Grande.
1:11.1	Look at all the things my true love gave to me. My true love. More recently, True Love by Ariano Grande. And don't forget the back street, And don't forget the backstreet
1:27.1	When Christ was Christ was born, oh, night.
1:38.3	Today, though, we are going to talk about one Christmas hit that has lasted through the years to the point where it went number one last year.
1:50.4	The 1958 classic by Brenda Lee Rocking Around the Christmas Tree.
1:56.4	The Christmas Tree. Last year the song Rocking around
2:01.2	The Christmas tree
2:02.8	Let the Christmas spirit
2:04.9	Last year the song had a new music video
2:07.4	With a cameo from Tricia Yearwood
2:08.9	And Tanya Tucker
	...

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