Tanya Tucker and Trisha Yearwood join Little Miss Dynamite in a new music video for the classic holiday song.
Brenda Lee is celebrating the 65th anniversary of her signature yuletide song “Rockin’ Round the Christmas Tree” this year, so she produced a new music video to mark the occasion. And she invited two sister country music stars — Tanya Tucker and Trisha Yearwood — to join her for the merrymaking.
“For those out there who know me and have supported me and my music through the years,” Lee said, “I’ve very proud to be putting out the first ever music video for ‘Rockin’.’ This song has been so special to me – I never thought it would be my signature song, but I love that it is because it brings so much joy.
“I remember the day I recorded this wonderful Johnny Marks song, and here we are 65 years later and I’m only here because of you. I won’t ever meet all of you, but I know you are there and have been since I was a little girl – so Thank You and I wish everyone a Merry Christmas!”
“I was elated when I got the invite to be in Brenda Lee’s video,” Tanya Tucker posted on Facebook. “Her ONLY video EVER!!! It was released 65 years ago!!! She’s the Perennial Queen of Christmas in my book!!! It’s so timeless and one of my very favorite Christmas songs!!! Everybody loves this song and everyone loves Brenda Lee!! She's my dearest friend and I’d do anything for her! She was so incredible at my Hall of Fame induction… she had everyone rolling with laughter. She’s my girl!”
Back in 2015, the artist known as Little Miss Dynamite described for C&I the original recording of the tune: “We did it in the heat of July. [Record producer] Owen Bradley had decorated the studio with a Christmas tree and Christmas lights to get us in the mood. I was only 14, I think, when I did that. Well, the first time I did it I was 12. But it wasn’t a hit until I was 14.”
The song continues to be a Christmas standard — indeed, many stations began playing it before Thanksgiving. “My kids are still going to be proud of that when I’m not here any longer,” Lee told us. “That’s a blessing. All my songs have been blessings, I suppose. But that one has really been a blessing, because it’s one of the most popular Christmas songs of all time.”
No kidding. Just last year, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” was the second highest streamed Christmas song with 240 million streams. It was recently certified 5x Platinum by the RIAA. And it’s featured on Lee’s newly released EP A Rockin’ Christmas with Brenda Lee, along with “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town,” “Jingle Bell Rock” “A Marshmallow World,” and a new take on “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” as reimagined by Austrian music producer, disc jockey, remixer and lower-case-letter devotee filous.
Lee will perform “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” on the upcoming NBC television special “Christmas at the Opry,” which airs Dec. 7 at 8 p.m. ET and streams next day on Peacock. We’ll be watching.
Photography: Courtesy Alexa King Stone
