Here we go again. The tree is betinseled, the mince pies are in the oven and Mariah Carey and Wham! are in the top 10 yet again. It’s a time of tradition, but that doesn’t stop a sleigh-worth of musicians from attempting to join the canon of Christmas classics that come around every year.
No one can match Mariah’s annual ubiquity but it’s not impossible to nudge Slade and Shakin’ Stevens down a notch. One More Sleep by Leona Lewis and Underneath the Tree by Kelly Clarkson, both from 2013, seem to be keepers, as is Ariana Grande’s slightly younger Santa Tell Me, and believe it or not, Michael Bublé’s omnipresent Christmas album is only celebrating its 11th birthday. Will anything from this year’s present pile still be around for Christmas 2023? Let’s have a listen.
