A perfect list
Because nobody doesn't love a list and everybody is an expert nowadays, I've compiled a list of the definitive recordings of 35 of the most loved classic Christmas carols.
Don't agree? That's OK — you're allowed to be wrong. (Spoiler alert: There are zero Josh Groban or Pentatonix songs on this list. If you find that upsetting, this probably isn't the list for you anyway. Just click on something else.)
Merry Christmas! And happy listening:
This one was a gimme — that way we don't start out the list fighting.
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Yes, I know, I know, Judy did it first for "Meet Me in St. Louis"; however, that does not make it the best. If you think Garland's rendition is better than Ella's, you're probably also a Liza Minnelli fan.
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Now, a lot of people will tell you that Mariah Carey has cornered the market on this old hymn, but that's only because she was hitched to Sony's Tommy Mottola when she cut the holiday album that features the song. If Whitney were still around today and able to get the press Mariah does, I'm pretty sure everybody would be saying "Mariah who?" when it was time to drop the needle on "Joy to the World."
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If you fight me on this one, we can't be friends.
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C'mon. Mel Torme wrote the song (with Bob Wells) and gave it to Cole to sing, knowing he was the guy to make this song unforgettable. Other people can roast their chestnuts all they want — many have done it well — but Cole's take will never be topped. Ever.
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Truthfully, Jewel's arrangement of "Hark!" is superior, but the problem is ... Jewel, the woman who sings like she has marbles in her mouth and can't decide if she's going to do an adult voice or a little girl voice. Advantage: Grant.
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No one really knows who wrote "O Come, All Ye Faithful," but anyone with any sense knows who did best. (Though I have to give a nod to David Osmond's strong performance on Glenn Beck's "Believe Again" album.)
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There's a reason this Crosby record is the best-selling single in the world — not just in the holiday genre, but best-selling single of all time. Nothing has ever topped it, and it's likely nothing ever will.
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Yes, Burl Ives was the narrator for the TV special. Yes, I get a warm, fuzzy feeling from Ives' record. No, it's isn't the best version. That belongs to The Singing Cowboy.
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Crosby and Como both killed it when they recorded this song, but the Mathis version has the edge — not just in quality but also culturally with its inclusion in "Home Alone 2," which gave it a massive surge in popularity.
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Is there really any question? No. No there isn't.
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Don't question this one either: Frank knows people who know how to hurt people. (Well, at least, he used to.)
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The Boss would say different. But you and I know the truth.
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The "Gloria, in excelsis Deo" chorus requires a powerful choir. Good luck finding a choir more powerful than the one the LDS folks put together.
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The Ronettes produced a very good version and it gets way more airplay, which is a shame: Durante's recording is a musical number Rankin & Bass actually got right.
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This is Ives' song. No one else should even try to sing it.
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Admit it, you were expecting me to say Darline Love here. It's OK. It's a normal and fairly logical guess. But it also happens to be incorrect. Not only did Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass cut a version that was better (though wordless), both of Perry Como's versions (here and here) are objectively better. Here is the track from his 1946 album "Perry Como Sings Merry Christmas Music."
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Lots of artists have made great "Let It Snow!" records (including Harry Connick Jr., who deserves a mention). But none of them ever reached the smoothness — and, frankly, sexiness — of Lena Horne's.
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It's a more modern version of an old hymn with some cool rhythm. It's also the best version ever recorded.
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After The King walked out of the studio the day he laid this down, there was no reason for anyone to ever bother trying to do it better.
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You want me to say Arthur Fiedler & The Boston Pops Orchestra. Not gonna happen. Lady Ella owns this — and always will.
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Ashley Hess is not likely a name you recognize at first. But if you're a Glenn Beck fan, you'll remember this after a quick listen. And then you'll agree.
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Here's one that had me going back and forth for hours. Everything Nat King Cole touched was superb, so I could easily put his recording here and be done with it. But ... the Barenaked Ladies put a spin on this classic that has just the edge needed to bump it ahead of Cole.
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The LP of this 1979 Christmas special (which has never been released on home video) is full of great music. The most notable is the Muppet Gang's clever rundown of the many gifts the writer's obnoxious "true love" gave him. Bah-dum-bum-bum.
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If you like Andrews' style, you'll absolutely love all of her Christmas songs. Her best Christmas record happens to also be the best version of that song.
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I know he's already got a couple wins on this list, but I've got to give Como this one, too, with Andy Williams coming in a close second.
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Another modern take on a hymn. On first listen, you'll disagree with me on its ranking. But then you'll listen again and again and be forced to admit that, well, the fat Blaze editor was right once more.
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It's a beautiful song — it's also the strangest Christmas song. Crosby and Bowie's awkward video didn't help make it less weird. But you can't argue with the talent they brought to the studio when it was time to record.
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Every Christmas music list is required to include Alvin and the Chipmunks. It's scriptural.
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"Brenda Lee!" you're shouting as you read this. "You're nuts!" I'm shouting back. Lee's famous record doesn't have 1 percent of the feel (or talent, for that matter) that Rimes' does.
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I was torn on this one — all the way up until it was time to post this. My brain tells me to go with Mahalia Jackson's soulful version. But my heart says this is another song that The King of Christmas just nailed.
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Guaraldi's "Charlie Brown Christmas" album is arguably the best complete holiday album ever produced. No one has ever made "Greensleeves" sound better.
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Though a lot of folks will say The Velvet Fog's jazzy turn on this tale of a ruler who looked out for others should be tops, I've got a soft spot in my heart for the Ames Brothers' record. The majesty of the music sets the tone for understanding the lesson we can learn from Wenceslas.
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Here's another hymn that could have gone to a couple artists. Critics have rightfully celebrated Celine Dion for her rendition, but David Phelps really brought it home. (Plus, Celine is Canadian, so the thought of giving her more than one song on this list was nauseating.)
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No one has ever explained to me how this became a Christmas song. Julie Andrews really made it famous on "The Sound of Music," and since then, scads of very notable vocalists have covered it for Christmas — no one better than Bennett. (Barbra Streisand can get bent.)
This post originally ran Dec. 25, 2019.
