Blue Christmas

“Blue Christmas” is a Christmas song written by Billy Hayes and Jay W. Johnson and most famously performed by Elvis Presley; it was first recorded by Doye O’Dell in 1948. It is a tale of unrequited love during the holidays and is a longstanding staple of Christmas music, especially in the country genre. The somg was popularized the following year in three separate recordings: one by country artist Ernest Tubb, one by musical conductor and arranger Hugo Winterhalter and his orchestra and chorus, and one by bandleader Russ Morgan and his orchestra (the latter featuring lead vocals by Morgan and backing vocals by singers credited as the Morganaires).  Elvis Presley cemented the status of “Blue Christmas” as a rock-and-roll holiday classic by recording it for his 1957 LP Elvis’ Christmas Album. Presley’s version is notable musicologically as well as culturally in that the vocal group the Jordanaires (especially in the soprano line, sung by Millie Kirkham.  The rock band The Beach Boys recorded a version featuring Brian Wilson on lead vocals, releasing it in the United States on November 16, 1964