Singing Cowboy Autry wrote the song with Oakley Haldeman. Autry was inspired to write this song after riding his horse in the 1946 Hollywood Boulevard Christmas Parade in Los Angeles just a few positions in front of Santa Claus in the parade, to which the crowds chanted, “Here comes Santa Claus!” (The kids could care less about Autry.) This chant inspired him to write a song that Haldeman set to music. Singer/guitarist Johnny Bond made a demo recording using ice cubes to mimic the sound of the jingling sleigh-bells. This inspired the use of real sleigh-bells in Autry’s own recording of the song. He first recorded the song in 1947; released as a single by Columbia Records, it became a #5 Billboard country hit and #9 pop hit. He re-recorded it again for Columbia in 1953 and once more for his own Challenge Records label in 1957. (more…)

We have come to the end of our exploration of the 50 years of the Billboard Hot 100. The beginning of the last decade starts with two songs that never went to #1, but ended up winning the Year-End #1 chart of their years. It ends with a solo #1 from a singer of one of the most successful girl groups of the new millennium. Unlike the ‘90s, the 2000’s rocked a little more. It’s now time to delve into the Year-End #1’s from 2000 to 2007 (my prediction…in case you were curious…is that the #1 tune of 2008 will go to “Low” by Flo Rida featuring T-Pain, which spent 10 weeks at #1 earlier this year.) Hey…if Go-Go’s lead singer Belinda Carlisle, Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, country singers Marty Stuart and Alan Jackson, Duran Duran lead singer Simon Le Bon, and Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx can all turn 50…why can’t the Hot 100? (more…)

As the Presidential election gets closer, we are seeing musicians backing both Democratic candidate Senator Barack Obama and Republican candidate Senator John McCain.  Rapper Ludaris’ song, ”Politics as Usual,” which is on the Gangsta Grillz: The Preview mixtape with Atlanta spinner DJ Drama, supports Obama while dissing McCain, Senator Hillary Clinton, President George W. Bush, and Reverend Jesse Jackson.  Obama’s campaign has blasted the song for being offensive and misogynistic…so I’m guessing he won’t be playing the song at his possible inauguration ceremony in January.  On the other side of the political fence…John Rich of the country duo Big & Rich has written and recorded a song about McCain.  Its theme is that he spent 5 1/2 years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam and his refusal of an early release.  So far, the McCain camp hasn’t objected to it.  I thought that I would see who would win the chart race between Ludacris and Rich. (more…)