Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree

‘Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree’ is a Christmas song, written by Johnny Marks and recorded by Brenda Lee in 1958. Although Decca released it in both 1958 and again in 1959, it did not sell well until Lee became a popular star in 1960; that Christmas season, it hit number 16 on the Billboard pop chart and turned into a perennial holiday favorite. For well over 30 years, Brenda Lee’s version had sales and radio airplay all to itself. Then, in 1992, Ronnie Spector and Darlene Love got together and recorded the song for A Very Special Christmas Volume 2. In 1993, Dion recorded a version for his Christmas album and Amy Grant recorded a version for her second Christmas album.

In 2023, Brenda Lee’s version of ‘Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree’ hit number one in the US Billboard Hot 100 for the first time, after having been at number two behind Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ in December for several years.

Mel & Kim version

Kim Wilde recorded ‘Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree’ together with Mel Smith in order to raise money for Comic Relief. It was produced by Stuart Colman. Some extra comedy material was added to the track, written by Mel Smith and Griff Rhys-Jones. The track was released on 7″ and 12″ single in the autumn of 1987. The duo operated under the name Mel & Kim. The single raised a total of £ 76,610 for Comic Relief.

Versions

There are three versions of the song: the 7″ version and the 12″ version, released on vinyl in 1987, and an edited version of the 12″ version, released in 2017 on Spotify, iTunes and other media.

Live performances

‘Rockin’ around the Christmas tree’ was performed live during the Here & Now Greatest Hits Tour in 2003, the Here & Now Tour 2004, Quofestive Tour in 2011, Christmas gigs in December 2013, 2014 and 2015, and during the Wilde Wild Xmas Show in December 2017.

Kim about ‘Rockin’ around the Christmas tree’ [1987]

What do you mean I’m unkind to Mel in the song? Well, yes… I suppose I am a bit off hand with him, but that’s what’s funny about the record, isn’t it? (1)

Chart performance

Ireland: 4 (6 weeks)
United Kingdom: 3 (7 weeks)

Kim Wilde & Nik Kershaw version

In 2013, Kim recorded a new version of ‘Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree’, together with Nik Kershaw. Twelfth track of her album Wilde Winter Songbook.

Kim about ‘Rockin’ around the Christmas tree’ [2013]

Me and this song go back a long way, and started when ‘Comic Relief’ asked comedian Mel Smith and I to record it to support their first ever ‘Red Nose Day’ in 1987. It reached No 3 in the UK charts and has been played on the radio every Christmas since. More recently my brother Ricky and I were caught belting this tune out on a train from London Kings Cross to Potters Bar. We had both been to a rather wonderful Xmas party hosted by Magic FM 105.4, and were in a somewhat over-refreshed state…the rest, as they, is history ; ) (2)

Credits

Vocals: Kim Wilde & Nik Kershaw
Piano & keys: Steve Power
Drums & percussion: Jonathan Atkinson
Bass, keys, acoustic guitar & additional vocals: Ricky Wilde
Backing vocals: Scarlett Wilde
Guitar solo: Nik Kershaw
Produced by Ricky Wilde
Recorded at RAK Studios, London
Mixed by Ricky Wilde & Sean Vincent at RAK Studios, London
Engineered by Sean Vincent, assisted by Robbie Nelson & Helen Atkinson

Interview sources

(1) Wow! What an almighty Christmas groove! In: Smash Hits (UK), December 16, 1987
(2) Track by track, Kimwilde.com website (UK), November 11, 2013


Lyrics

Mel & Kim version

Mel Smith: Christmas coming around again eh?
Griff Rhys-Jones: Yeah I mean it must be nearly a year since the last one
Mel: Oh it’s a good twelve months
Both: Yeah yeah
Mel: You getting anything for your Granny this year?
Griff: Well I thought about it I couldn’t be bothered
Mel: Well it’s the thought that counts innit
Griff: Yeah that’s how I see it
What do you fancy for Christmas then
Mel: Kim Wilde as usual, kidding myself though arent’t I
It’s hopeless really it’s pathetic I suppose in a way
Griff: It is yeah – hello who is this?
Kim Wilde: Merry Christmas Melvyn
Mel: It can’t be
Kim: Come on Mel how about pulling a cracker
Mel: By the look of you darling I think I already have
Get it

Kim: Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
At the Christmas party hop
Mistletoe hung where you can see
Every couple try to stop
Come on Melly-pops

Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
Let the Christmas spirit ring
Later we’ll have some pumpkin pie
And we’ll do some caroling
Mel: Pumpkin pie anyone?

Both: You will get a sentimental feeling when you hear
Voices singing let’s be jolly
Deck the halls with boughs of holly

Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
Have a happy holiday
Kim: This is so corny
Both: Everyone’s dancing merrily
in the new old fashioned way
Mel: Wow I am in the most almighty Christmas groove
I haven’t had this much fun since “Two little boys” was number one
If my friends could see me now
How do I look?
Kim: Ridiculous
Mel: You little tease
A dance, Kimberley?

Kim: I do love a nice sax break
Mel: Yeah me too Kim, but let’s wait till the record’s over
Kim do you think our love will last forever?
Kim: No
Mel: Couple of years maybe?
Kim: No
Mel: Do you think we’ll make it to the end of the record?
Kim: How long is that – exactly?

Kim: You will get a sentimental feeling when you hear
Mel: All together now
Both: Voices singing let’s be jolly
Deck the halls with boughs of holly

Griff: Excuse me can I sing something now?
Mel: Get lost Griff!
Griff: Well that’s nice…

Mel & Kim: Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
Let the Christmas spirit ring
Mel: Root beer anyone?
Both: Later we’ll have pumpkin pie
And we’ll do some carolling
Mel: There’s plenty of pumpkin pie left by the way
Both: Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
Have a happy holiday
Kim: Do you mind Melvyn?
Both: Everyone’s dancing merrily
In the new old fashioned way

Griff: Wow yeah that was fantastic
Kim: Very nice
Mel: Let’s do it again! One two three four…
Kim: Strewth
Mel: Five!

Both: Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
Have a happy holiday
Mel: He overdid it with the pumpkin pie
Both: Everyone’s dancing merrily
In the new old fashioned way

Mel: Merry Christmas everybody!
Kim: Merry Christmas everybody!
Bye Mel it’s been really interesting
Griff: I’ll tell you who I fancy for Christmas
Mel: Who’s that
Griff: Bananarama
Mel: Yeah can’t help you there I’m afraid
Griff: Oh thanks a bundle!

Kim Wilde & Nik Kershaw version

Kim: Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
At the Christmas party hop
Mistletoe hung where you can see
Every couple tries to stop

Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
Let the Christmas spirit ring
Later we’ll have some pumpkin pie
And we’ll do some caroling

Nik: You will get a sentimental feeling when you hear
Voices singing let’s be jolly
Deck the halls with boughs of holly

Kim & Nik: Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
Have a happy holiday
Everyone’s dancing merrily
in the new old fashioned way

Kim: You will get a sentimental feeling when you hear
Voices singing let’s be jolly
Deck the halls with boughs of holly
Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
Have a happy holiday
Everyone’s dancing merrily
in the new old fashioned way

Kim & Nik: Rockin’ around the Christmas tree
Have a happy holiday
Everyone’s dancing merrily
In the new old fashioned way

Nik: Happy Crimbo Kimbo!

Colman, Stuart

Born as Ian Stuart Colman on 19 December 1944 into a well-known musical family, he took up piano and bass guitar and enjoyed his first taste of success when he joined Pinkerton’s Assorted Colours in 1966. Three years later, the group evolved into The Flying Machine and their first single under that name, ‘Smile a little smile for me’, made the top five in the US Billboard Hot 100.

In 1976, Colman jointly organised a march to the BBC, protesting about the lack of rock and roll music on BBC Radio 1. To his surprise, the corporation took him on as a presenter, headlining his own weekly show. Following the popularity of the programme, Epic Records wanted him to produce Shakin’ Stevens. His productions included the number ones ‘This Ole House’, ‘Green Door’ and ‘Oh Julie’. He was also called upon to produce a wide range of artists, ranging from The Shadows to Paul Kennerley, and Claire Hamill to The Revillos. Colman recorded a hit duet, ‘She Means Nothing to Me’, for Cliff Richard and Phil Everly, but his singles for the Liverpool acting family, the McGanns, and the Radio 1 DJ Mike Read didn’t take off.

By 1986 Colman had his own studio, Master Rock, in Kilburn; the first record to be made there was ‘Living Doll’ by Cliff Richard and The Young Ones, for Comic Relief. He followed it with another comedy hit, Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree, by Mel Smith and Kim Wilde. Apart from his own productions with Jeff Beck, The Inmates and Jane Harrison, the studio played host to Elton John, U2, Eric Clapton and Soul II Soul.

Still pursuing his broadcasting career, Colman then joined London’s newly launched Capital Gold, where he played rock and roll at the weekends and anchored the evening slot during the week. At the same time he was producing many major TV music specials for Central Television, where he worked with Natalie Cole, T’Pau, Nona Hendryx and Meat Loaf.

In 1995, geared by his love of American music, Colman decided to move with his family to Nashville, Tennessee, where he went on to record with a wide variety of artists including Victoria Shaw, Nanci Griffith, The Crickets and Linda Gail Lewis. He began by arranging and producing the country demo of the Faith Hill smash ‘This kiss’.

In 2002, Colman was diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus and he was subjected to an intense course of chemotherapy, radiation and surgery. Even so, during this time he wrote liner notes for many CD’s including a boxed set of Don Gibson recordings for Bear Family. Following his recovery, Colman appeared in a movie depicting the life and times of Jack Clement, and also reunited with Shakin’ Stevens playing bass on tours throughout Europe. Eventually Colman returned to the studios of Nashville where his energies were directed into developing a new set of artists. Then in the spring of 2009 he moved, this time to Manhattan where he married for the second time. His most recent studio projects included a debut album from the Hull based band, Moskow, preliminary recordings with the Italian tenor, Roberto IaRussi, and a new single from the five-piece, Yannick.

In January 2014, Colman returned to the UK to run his business from the Cotswolds. He died from cancer in a Cheltenham hospice on 19 April 2018, at the age of 73.


Now Christmas 2004

Compilation album featuring a cd with 21 tracks and a DVD with 8 tracks, exclusively released in Denmark in 2004. Featuring many well known Christmas pop tracks like Wham’s ‘Last Christmas’, Abba’s ‘Happy new year’ and Chris Rea’s ‘Driving home for Christmas’, this compilation is important for Kim Wilde fans because it has the only DVD with the music video for Mel & Kim‘s Rockin’ around the Christmas Tree so far.


Mel & Kim

Mel & Kim was the name for a one-off project between Kim Wilde and Mel Smith. Under this name they recorded the track Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree in 1987 for Comic Relief.

The name was a reference to another Mel & Kim, an English musical act that achieved success in the late 1980s. Sisters Melanie (11 July 1966 – 18 January 1990) and Kim Appleby (born 28 August 1961) half white English & half Jamaican, were noticed dancing in a nightclub in their native London and signed to a recording contract with Supreme Records under the guidance of production team Stock Aitken Waterman in 1985.
Their debut single ‘Showing Out (Get Fresh at the Weekend)’ reached number 3 on the British charts and got the number 1 status in the Dance charts of USA.  Their next single ‘Respectable’ reached number one in Britain and became one of the year’s biggest hits. Subsequent hits followed, but the sisters were eclipsed by two new Stock Aitken Waterman acts, Kylie Minogue and Rick Astley, who became the production team’s major focus in 1988. Mel, a former glamour model, began to withdraw from publicity in mid-1987 (the videos for ‘F.L.M.’ and ‘That’s the Way It Is’ composed of collages of older footage), claiming to have suffered a debilitating back injury. While the media speculated that she was terminally ill, both sisters categorically denied this. Mel was suffering from cancer of the spine, after having previously undergone surgery for a tumour on her liver in December 1985, prior to the duo’s rise to fame. She died of pneumonia, her immune system weakened by chemotherapy.
Kim Appleby continued with a solo career afterwards.


Pointless Celebrities

Date
24 December 2015
Channel
BBC (UK)

At the end of the Christmas Eve episode of the quiz show Pointless Celebrities, host Alexander Armstrong and special guest Kim Wilde sing a duet: ‘Rockin’ around the Christmas tree’.

Willkommen bei Mario Barth

Date
21 December 2013
Channel
RTL (Germany)

Kim Wilde sings ‘Rockin’ around the Christmas tree’ live over a pre-recorded backing track. German musicians mime to the music, and Kim is surrounded by female dancers and several men carrying Christmas props onto the stage.

Volle Kanne

Date
5 December 2013
Channel
ZDF (Germany)

Kim is interviewed about her Christmas album and her career so far. Later on in the programme she and Ricky sing an acoustic version of ‘Rockin’ around the Christmas tree’, with accompaniment on guitar by the presenter.

Comic Relief

Date
5 February 1988
Channel
BBC (UK)

During the fundraising television show for Comic Relief Kim is interviewed about 1987’s ‘Rockin’ around the Christmas Tree’ together with Mel Smith. The video is shown.

This video, it was a first for you with Mel Smith, wasn’t it?
Yeah it was!

A last as well?
I hope not. I mean, there’s the album of course, to be made, which we discussed of late, the concept album, but I feel it’s a bit too premature to talk about that just now, right.

In that case, let’s go straight to the video. Here’s ‘Rockin’ around the Christmas tree’.

[The video is shown]

Do you know how much money that made?
78.000 pounds, which is great!

And have you got that all on you?
No, I don’t have it with me just now.

Rockin’ around the Christmas tree (music video)

Date
23 November 1987
Channel

Directed by Geoff Posner, this video was made for Comic Relief and the single Mel Smith and Kim Wilde released as Mel & Kim to raise money for this organization.
The video starts off when Mel Smith and Griff Rhys-Jones talk about Christmas. When Mel confesses that he would like to ‘have’ Kim for Christmas, his wish comes true.
What follows is a Christmas party in a house, where some guests appear, like Curiosity killed the cat and a couple of Spitting Image puppets.