- - Brenda Lee Recalls the 'Weird' Thing About Recording 'Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree' at Age 13

Virginia ChamleeDecember 24, 2025 at 11:50 PM

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Brenda Lee -

Brenda Lee's "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" might be one of the popular tunes of the season — but she actually recorded it in the summer

Producer Owen Bradley decorated the studio with a Christmas tree — and some band members dressed in Santa suits

The song was recorded in 1958 but remains a holiday classic

Brenda Lee is remembering the "weird" thing about recording her 1958 holiday single "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" at age 13 — namely, that she was singing it in the summer.

In an interview with Woman's World, Lee recalled: “You know, you record your Christmas stuff in the summer. So that’s always, like, weird."

Lee, who is an inductee in both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Country Music Hall of Fame, told the outlet that the studio still felt like Christmas, thanks to producer Owen Bradley decorating with a Christmas tree — and some band members dressed in Santa suits

“It was a lot of fun,” Lee added. “It really was. The warmth of the studio, the laughter, the magic—it all just took hold that day.”

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In 2023, Lee's "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for the first time. Lee, then 78, became the oldest artist to top the chart, and it also became the single that took the longest time from its initial release to hit No. 1 — 65 years.

Speaking to PEOPLE in 2024, Lee said, "Johnny Marks wrote it. I said, 'Johnny, you don't even believe in Christmas,' and I said, 'Tell me how you wrote 'Rockin'?' "

"He said, 'I was laying on the beach in New York,' and pine trees were over to this side.' And then he said, 'I kind of went to sleep to take a little nap, and I woke up and I was facing the pine trees, and they were just kind of swinging like this [moves her hands back and forth].' And he thought, 'Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree.' And there it was."

Though recorded in the late 1950s, it would be a while before the song took off — and one classic holiday film is largely to thank for that.

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Brenda Lee

"I got a call on the phone, and they said, 'Brenda! Brenda! There's a movie out. It's called Home Alone, and your song's all over it,' " Lee recalled in the documentary. "And I said, 'Which song? What are you talking about?' They said, 'Rockin',' it's all over it.' Well, it just went from there."

Speaking to Woman's World about the song's continued popularity, Lee chalked it up to ease.

"It’s such a well-crafted song. You can hear it once and almost immediately sing along—you don’t have to puzzle over the lyrics. It’s just effortless and catchy, and that’s why it lasts," she said.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”