Coordinates	34°03′″N118°15′″N
Name	Kurt Nilsen
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Kurt Erik Kleppe Nilsen
Alias	Kurt
Birth date	September 29, 1978
Origin	Bergen, Norway
Instrument	Singing, guitar, drums, bass
Genre	Rock/Country
Occupation	Singer, Songwriter
Years active	2004–present
Label	SonyBMG
Website	KurtNilsenMusic.com }}

Kurt Erik Kleppe Nilsen (born September 29, 1978) is a Norwegian pop/country singer. He won the first season of the Norwegian version of the reality television show ''Pop Idol'', which aired on TV 2 in May 2003. He then won a one-off international version of ''Pop Idol'', called ''World Idol'' on January 1, 2004, featuring winners of the various national Idol shows.

Career

Pop Idol

Upon leaving school, Nilsen made his living as a plumber. Nilsen became the lead singer in the Norwegian band ''Fenrik Lane''. He is a left-handed musician and plays his guitar with the strings upside down. He appeared on and won ''Pop Idol'' with 54% of the votes against Gaute Ormåsen. He is one of only seven contestants in the Idol (Norway) history who succeeded in staying out of “bottom three/two” places in weekly votes.

His subsequent single, "She's So High", written by Tal Bachman, went straight to number one in the Norwegian singles chart and is among the biggest-selling singles in Norway to date. His debut album was simply called ''I''.

World Idol

He subsequently won the vote for the ''World Idol'' title on January 1, 2004, singing the hit "Beautiful Day" by U2, beating competitors from ten other nations, including the more famous Idols, Britain's Will Young, and favourite Kelly Clarkson of the United States, and scoring the first place in 10 out of 11 countries eligible to vote for him (Norwegian voters being unable to vote for him).

In the show presenting the entries on December 25, Ian Dickson, the Australian (English ex-pat) judge, said: "Kurt, you are a hell of a marketing challenge, because you have the voice of an angel, but you look like a Hobbit." The comment made Kurt laugh out loud. The crowd seemed to revel in his underdog status as a gap-toothed man, with the ''astonishingly good voice''.

After Idol

His second CD, ''A Part Of Me'', released in 2004, contains only his own material.

Nilsen performed the duet, It's All Coming Back To Me Now, alongside Norwegian Pop/Alternative Rocker, Marion Raven at the One Call Event. Taking the place of Meat Loaf, with whom Raven recorded the track for the Bat Out Of Hell 3 album

In 2006 he and three other Norwegian artists Askil Holm, Espen Lind and Alejandro Fuentes, all in the same management, joined forces and went on tour in March as what was known by the media as "The New Guitar Buddies".

Initially, they planned a short tour (five to six concerts), but ended up playing for more than 100,000 people during their tour of around 30 concerts. Although they had not planned to, they subsequently released a live album from that tour.

Nilsen performed the duet "When You're Gone" alongside English pop singer, and former-Spice Girls member, Melanie C at the Top 20 event at Rådhusplassen in Oslo, Norway in the summer of 2007.

In 2008, in connection with his latest and country flavoured album ''Rise To The Occasion'' Kurt teamed up with American music legend Willie Nelson to perform the old country music standard "Lost Highway". The song was an instant hit in his native Norway and helped him top both the single chart, the album chart and the radio chart all at once.

In 2009 "The New Guitar Buddies" will be back with a new tour and a new album, tour start is scheduled to be May 9, Rockefeller Oslo.

Spring 2010 sees Kurt touring Norway with an acoustic concert tour in intimate concert halls. His guest artist is Elin Gaustad, who was a competitor in Norway's first X Factor show in 2009. In late February, on the TV2 show Senkveld, Kurt and Elin sang the duet "The Water is Wide" to great acclaim. This performance can be found on youtube.

In 2010, Kurt recorded a Christmas song album entitled ''Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'' with the Kringkastingsorkester (KORK], the Norwegian Radio Orchestra. It was released on November 15, 2010 in Norway. He performs with this orchestra and some guest artists at Lillestrøm messecenter, near Oslo on 18 December 2010. It was broadcast live on NRK television. The album stayed at the top of the Norwegian Albums Chart for 5 consecutive weeks (48/2010 to 52/2010)

2011 will see Kurt out on the road touring again and playing at a number of music festivals and venues (most yet to be announced). It is also rumoured that a "best of" album is in the pipeline.

Personal life

In January 2005, he broke up with his fiancée, Kristine Jacobsen. They had been together for 11 years and had two children together: Marte (born 1996) and Erik (born 2000). In January 2006, Kurt's girlfriend gave birth to his 3rd child, Lucas. They married later that year.

Nilsen has received national attention for his guitar-shaped alpine hut, in the Hardangervidda in Norway.

Discography

Artist	Kurt Nilsen
Studio	7
Singles	17
Option name	B-sides
Option color	crimson
1option name	EPs
1option color	chartreuse
2option	3
2option name	Collaborations
2option color	violet
3option name	Tours
3option color	orange
Ref link	Notes and references }}

The following is a discography of albums and singles released by Norwegian music artist Kurt Nilsen.

Albums

{|class="wikitable" |- ! Statistics !! Singles |- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''I''

Released: September 8, 2003

Released: March 15, 2004 (International version of ''I'', includes "Beautiful Day") Peak chart positions:

* # 1 NOR

* # 8 BEL

* # 19 GER

* # 51 NL

* # 58 AUT

* # 69 SWI

Label: SonyBMG

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"She's So High"

"Here She Comes"

"All You Have to Offer"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''A Part of Me''

Released: November 8, 2004

Peak chart positions:

* # 2 NOR

Label: SonyBMG

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"My Street"

"Before You Leave"

"Never Easy"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Hallelujah - Live''

with Espen Lind, Askil Holm and Alejandro Fuentes)

Released: June 12, 2006

Peak chart positions:

* # 1 NOR

Label: SonyBMG

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"Hallelujah"

"Boys Of Summer"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Push Push''

Released: October 2007

Peak chart positions:

* # 2 NOR

Label: Sony BMG

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"Push, Push"

"Silence"

"Reality Kicks"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Rise To The Occasion''

Released: April 2008

Peak chart positions:

* # 1 NOR

* # 39 SWE

Label: Sony BMG

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"| "Lost Highway" (featuring Willie Nelson)

"Rise To The Occasion"

"Don't Have What It Takes"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Hallelujah - Live Volume 2''

with Espen Lind, Askil Holm and Alejandro Fuentes)

Released: 2009

Peak chart positions:

* # 1 NOR

Label: SonyBMG

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"With or Without You"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas''

Released: 2010

Peak chart positions:

* # 1 NOR

Label: Sony BMG

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"| |}

Singles

Year

Title

Chart positions

Album

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Other releases

1998 ''Shoe'' (with former band Breed; later Fenrik Lane)

2002 ''Come Down Here'' (EP) (Norwegian album charts: #2) (with Fenrik Lane)

2003 ''Idol '03'' (Norwegian album charts: #1)

#1 Singles in Norway

{{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: She's So High | years = 11 June 2003 – 6 August 2003 }} {{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: Hallelujah w/Lind, Fuentes and Holm | years = 10 January 2007 – 17 January 2007 }} {{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: "Push Push" | years = 4 July 2007 - 11 July 2007 }} {{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: "Lost Highway" w/Willie Nelson | years = 6–13 May 2008 }}

References

External links

Official site

The Official Kurt Nilsen Myspace website

The Official Unofficial Kurt Nilsen Fansite

CountryHQ's review of Rise to the Occasion

"She's so high" Music Video at TV2.no

Category:1978 births Category:Living people Category:Idol series winners Category:Norwegian Idol participants Category:Norwegian male singers Category:Norwegian pop singers Category:Norwegian songwriters Category:People from Bergen Category:Norwegian multi-instrumentalists

ca:Kurt Nilsen da:Kurt Nilsen de:Kurt Nilsen fr:Kurt Nilsen it:Kurt Nilsen nl:Kurt Nilsen ja:クルト・ニルセン no:Kurt Nilsen nn:Kurt Nilsen pl:Kurt Nilsen pt:Kurt Nilsen ru:Нильсен, Курт sk:Kurt Nilsen fi:Kurt Nilsen sv:Kurt Nilsen zh:庫爾特·尼爾森

Coordinates	34°03′″N118°15′″N
name	Espen Lind
background	solo_singer
origin	Tromsø, Norway
birth date	May 13, 1971
genre	Pop, Rock
years active	1995–present
label	Universal
notable instruments	}}

Espen Lind, (born 13 May 1971), is a Norwegian songwriter, producer, singer, and multi-instrumentalist. He is one half of the production team Espionage.

Solo records

Espen Lind released his first solo album, ''Mmm...Prepare To Be Swayed'', in 1995 under the moniker, 'Sway'. Only released in Norway, it received mixed reviews and sold approximately 5,000 copies. His commercial breakthrough came in 1997 with the single "When Susannah Cries" which was a hit in several European and Latin American countries, including Norway where it was number one for six weeks. His second album ''Red'' went on to sell more than 100,000 copies in Norway, and 350,000 copies worldwide, earning Lind three awards at the 1998 Norwegian Grammy's (Spellemannprisen) including Artist of the Year.

2000 saw Lind releasing his third album, ''This Is Pop Music'', and the singles "Black Sunday" and "Life Is Good". The album also contains a duet, "Where the Lost Ones Go," with Norwegian singer Sissel Kyrkjebø. The album reached gold status in Norway but was generally perceived to be a commercial disappointment compared to its predecessor. After a four year break Lind released a new single, "Unloved," in December 2004, followed by the album ''April'', in January 2005.

In 2006 Lind, together with fellow Norwegian artists Kurt Nilsen (World Idol winner), Alejandro Fuentes and Askil Holm released the concert album ''Hallelujah Live'', featuring songs from the foursome's solo records as well as several songs by other artists, most notably a cover version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah".

Lind released a new single, "Scared Of Heights," in May 2008. His fifth album titled ''Army Of One'' was released on the 23rd June 2008.

In January 2009 he received the award "Årets Spelleman" (artist of the year) at the Norwegian Grammy Awards (Spellemannprisen). He is also known to be "dope", as the hipsters say nowadays.

Writing and producing

During the past few years Espen Lind has done a lot of writing and producing, most notably as co-writer of both "Irreplaceable" by Beyoncé and "Hey, Soul Sister" by Train. Together with writing partner Amund Bjørklund in the production team Espionage he has also written and/or produced songs for artists Lionel Richie, Ne-Yo, Chris Brown and Leona Lewis.

Selected songwriting credits

"Brick By Brick" - Train

"Hey, Soul Sister" - Train

"Half Moon Bay" - Train

"Can't Stop the Rain" - Jennifer Hudson

"Pastime" - Lionel Richie - co-written

"My Little Secret" - Cavo

"Ghost" - Cavo

"I Need a Girl" - Trey Songz

"Irreplaceable" - Beyoncé - co-written

"With You" - Chris Brown - co-written

"Angel" - Leona Lewis - co-written

"Now You Tell Me" - Jordin Sparks - produced and co-written

"Just For The Record" - Jordin Sparks - co-written

"Go On Girl" - Ne-Yo - co-written

"One Word" - Elliott Yamin - co-produced and co-written

"I Don't Wanna Care" - Jessica Simpson - co-written

"The One That Got Away" - Johnta Austin - co-written

"Underdog" -Jonas Brothers - co-written

"I Will Be With You" - Sarah Brightman/Paul Stanley - written

"The Last Goodbye" - Atomic Kitten - co-written

"Cry" - Kym Marsh - produced and written

"Come Back To Me" - David Cook - co-written

"Life On The Moon" - David Cook - co-written

"Lie" - David Cook - co-written

"It’s Gotta Be Love" - Lee DeWyze - co-written with DeWyze & Bjørklund

"Stay Here" - Lee DeWyze - co-written with DeWyze & Bjørklund

Discography

The following is a discography of albums and singles released by Norwegian music artist Espen Lind.

Albums

{|class="wikitable" |- ! Statistics !! Singles |- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Mmm... Prepare To Be Swayed''

Released as ''Sway''

Released: 1995

Peak chart positions:

* # 29 NOR

Label: MCA Records

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"Yum Yum Gimme Some"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Red''

Released as ''Sway''

Released: May 20, 1997

Peak chart positions:

* didn't chart

Label: Universal

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"American Love"

"Baby You're So Cool"

"When Susannah Cries"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Red''

Re-release of the second ''Sway'' album

Released: 1997

Peak chart positions:

* # 3 NOR

* # 15 SWI

* # 19 GER

* # 25 AUT

* # 31 BEL (VL)

* # 50 NL

Label: Universal

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"When Susannah Cries"

"Lucky For You"

"American Love"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''This Is Pop Music''

Released: 2001

Peak chart positions:

* # 3 NOR

Label: Universal

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"Black Sunday"

"Where the Lost Ones Go" (duet with ''Sissel Kyrkjebø'')

"Life Is Good"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''April''

Released: 2005

Peak chart positions:

* # 3 NOR

Label: Universal

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"Unloved"

"Look Like Her"

"Million Miles Away"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Hallelujah - Live''

with Kurt Nilsen, Askil Holm and Alejandro Fuentes)

Released: June 12, 2006

Peak chart positions:

* # 1 NOR

Label: SonyBMG/Universal

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"Hallelujah"

"The Boys Of Summer"

"Norsk Medley"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Army of One''

Released: 2008

Peak chart positions:

* # 1 NOR

Label: Universal

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"Scared of Heights"

"Sweet Love"

|- | style="width:330px; text-align:left;"|''Hallelujah - Live Volume 2''

with Kurt Nilsen, Askil Holm and Alejandro Fuentes)

Released: 2009

Peak chart positions:

* # 1 NOR

Label: SonyBMG/Universal

| style="width:200px; text-align:left;"|

"With or Without You"

|- |}

Singles

Year

Title

Chart positions

Album

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#1 Hits

{{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: "When Susannah Cries" | years = 16 April 1997 – 28 May 1997 }}

{{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: "Unloved" | years = 19 January 2005 – 2 February 2005 }} {{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: Hallelujah (with Kurt Nilsen, Alejandro Fuentes and Askil Holm) | years = 10 January 2007 – 17 January 2007 (37 weeks on the chart) }} {{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: "Scared Of Heights" | years = 20 May 2008 - 27 May 2008 }} {{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: With Or Without You (with Kurt Nilsen, Alejandro Fuentes and Askil Holm) | years = 15 April 2009 – 29 April 2009 }}

References

External links

Biography Espen Lind - at Universal

Espen Lind - official website

Category:1971 births Category:Living people Category:People from Tromsø Category:Norwegian pop singers Category:Norwegian male singers Category:Norwegian songwriters Category:English-language singers Category:Spellemannprisen winners Category:Norwegian multi-instrumentalists

da:Espen Lind de:Espen Lind es:Espen Lind fr:Espen Lind it:Espen Lind nl:Espen Lind no:Espen Lind nn:Espen Lind pl:Espen Lind pt:Espen Lind fi:Espen Lind sv:Espen Lind

Alejandro Javier Fuentes Riffo (born 5 November 1987 in Chile) is a singer who finished third in Norwegian Idols third season in 2005.

Later in 2005, he released the album ''Diamonds and Pearls'', which reached gold by the end of the year.

In 2006, he and three other Norwegian artists, Askil Holm, Espen Lind, and Kurt Nilsen (winner of Norwegian Idols season 1), all under the same management, joined forces and went on tour in March as what was known by the media as "The New Guitar Buddies".

References

{{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: "Stars" | years = 28 September 2005 – 19 October 2005 }} {{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single: "Hallelujah" w/Lind, Nilsen and Holm | years = 10 January 2007 – 17 January 2007 }} {{s-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single, "Hell If I" | years = 3 October 2007 – 7 November 2007 }}

Category:1987 births Category:Living people Category:Norwegian male singers Category:Norwegian Idol participants Category:Norwegian people of Chilean descent

fr:Alejandro Fuentes nl:Alejandro Fuentes no:Alejandro Fuentes sv:Alejandro Fuentes

Coordinates	34°03′″N118°15′″N
name	Venke Knutson
background	solo_singer
born	October 20, 1978Birkeland, Norway
instrument	Vocals, Guitar, Drums
genre	Pop
occupation	Singer, songwriter, school teacher
years active	2003–present
label	Universal
website	}}

Venke Knutson (born October 20, 1978) is a Norwegian singer. Since 2003, she has had six top 10 hits in Norway.

Life and career

Venke Knutson was born in Birkeland, in 1978. She was the youngest of three sisters, in a musical family, and she got inspired to sing by her elder sisters.

Early in her life she lived with her family in the United States.

She joined the school choir. Inspired by two older sisters, she applied for music at the Vågsbygd skole (Vågsbygd school), when the family was about to go back home to Norway.

She used to be an elementary teacher in Norway. She was earlier married to Svenn Kåre Liodden, but they divorced. She married Thomas Wold in 2008.

She debuted in 2003 with the single "Panic", followed by her first album ''Scared'' and the singles "Scared" and "Kiss".

Venke Knutson entered the qualifying rounds of the Melodi Grand Prix 2010 (the Norwegian selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest) on 16 January and was voted through to the national "second chance" program, with the song "Jealous 'Cause I Love You", where she was voted through to the national final.

Discography

Albums

Year	Title	Chart positions	Sales
		! width="50"

Singles

Year	Title	Chart positions	Album
		! width="50"

¹ Released as airplay singles

References

{{S-ttl | title = Norwegian VG-lista number-one single | years = 7 September 2005 – 14 September 2005 }}

Category:1978 births Category:Living people Category:Norwegian female singers Category:Norwegian pop singers Category:Melodi Grand Prix contestants

fr:Venke Knutson it:Venke Knutson nl:Venke Knutson no:Venke Knutson pl:Venke Knutson ru:Кнутсон, Венке sv:Venke Knutson

Coordinates	34°03′″N118°15′″N
name	The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You)
type	Christmas song
artist	The King Cole Trio
b-side	"In the Cool of Evening" (Capitol 311)"Laguna Mood" (Capitol 15201)"(All I Want for Christmas Is) My Two Front Teeth" (Capitol F90036; Capitol F2955)"The Little Boy that Santa Claus Forgot" (Capitol 3561)
published	1944
released
recorded
format	10-inch, 7-inch
genre	Christmas, Jazz, Pop
length	(1946 recording) (1953 recording)
label	Capitol 311 (1946)Capitol 15201 (1948)Capitol F90036 (1953)Capitol F2955 (1954)Capitol 3561 (1956)
writer	Mel Tormé,Bob Wells
misc	}}

"The Christmas Song" (commonly subtitled "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire" or, as it was originally subtitled, "Merry Christmas to You") is a classic Christmas song written in 1944 by musician, composer, and vocalist Mel Tormé (aka The Velvet Fog), and Bob Wells. According to Tormé, the song was written during a blistering hot summer. In an effort to "stay cool by thinking cool", the most-performed (according to BMI) Christmas song was born.

"I saw a spiral pad on his piano with four lines written in pencil", Tormé recalled. "They started, "Chestnuts roasting..., Jack Frost nipping..., Yuletide carols..., Folks dressed up like Eskimos.' Bob (Wells, co-writer) didn't think he was writing a song lyric. He said he thought if he could immerse himself in winter he could cool off. Forty minutes later that song was written. I wrote all the music and some of the lyrics."

The Nat King Cole Trio first recorded the song early in 1946. At Cole's behest and over the objections of his label, Capitol Records a second recording was made the same year utilizing a small string section, this version becoming a massive hit on both the pop and R&B; charts. Cole again recorded the song in 1953, using the same arrangement with a full orchestra arranged and conducted by Nelson Riddle, and once more in 1961, in a stereophonic version with orchestra conducted by Ralph Carmichael. Nat King Cole's 1961 version is generally regarded as definitive, and in 2004 was the most loved seasonal song with women aged 30–49, while Cole's original 1946 recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1974. Mel Tormé recorded the song himself in 1954, and again in 1961, 1966 and 1992.

The Nat King Cole recordings

First recording: Recorded at WMCA Radio Studios, New York City, June 14, 1946. Label credit: The King Cole Trio (Nat King Cole, vocal-pianist; Oscar Moore, guitarist; Johnny Miller, bassist). Not issued until 1989, when it was (accidentally) included on the various-artists compilation ''Billboard Greatest Christmas Hits (1935–1954)'' Rhino R1 70637(LP) / R2 70637(CD).

Second recording: Recorded at WMCA Radio Studios, New York City, August 19, 1946. First record issue. Label credit: The King Cole Trio with String Choir (Nat King Cole, vocal-pianist, Oscar Moore, guitarist; Johnny Miller, bassist; Charlie Grean, conductor of 4 string players, a harpist and a drummer) Lacquer disc master #981. Issued November 1946 as Capitol 311 (78rpm). This is featured on a CD called ''The Holiday Album'', which has 1940s Christmas songs recorded by Cole and Bing Crosby. In 2005 Capitol restored and re-released it for the 25 bit re-mastered Cole album "The Christmas Song", which also contains tracks from his 1960 and 1963 holiday albums.

Third recording: Recorded at Capitol Studios, Hollywood, August 24, 1953. This was the song,s first magnetic tape recording. Label credit: The King Cole Trio with String Choir (Actual artists: Nat King Cole, vocal; Nelson Riddle, orchestra conductor) Master #11726, take 11. Issued November 1953 as the "new" Capitol 90036(78rpm) / F90036(45rpm) (Capitol first issued 90036 in 1950 with the second recording). Correct label credit issued on October 18, 1954 as Capitol 2955(78rpm) / F2955(45rpm). Label credit: Nat "King" Cole with Orchestra Conducted by Nelson Riddle. This recording is available on the 1990 CD ''Cole, Christmas and Kids,'' as well as the various-artists compilation ''Casey Kasem Presents All Time Christmas Favorites''. It was also included, along with both 1946 recordings, on the 1991 Mosaic Records box set ''The Complete Capitol Recordings of the Nat King Cole Trio''.

Fourth recording: Recorded at Capitol Studios, New York City, March 30, 1961. This rendition, the first recorded in stereo, is widely played on radio stations during the Christmas season, and is probably the most famous version of this song. Label credit: Nat King Cole (Nat King Cole, vocal; Charles Grean and Pete Rugolo, orchestration; Ralph Carmichael, orchestra conductor). The instrumental arrangement is nearly identical with the 1953 version, but the vocals are much deeper and more focused. Originally done for ''The Nat King Cole Story'' (a 1961 LP devoted to stereo re-recordings of Cole's earlier hits), this recording was later appended to a reissue of Cole's 1960 holiday album ''The Magic of Christmas''. Retitled ''The Christmas Song'', the album was issued in 1963 as Capitol W-1967(mono) / SW-1967(stereo) and today is in print on compact disc. This recording of "The Christmas Song" is also available on numerous compilation albums. Some are Capitol pop standards Christmas compilations while others are broader-based. It's available on WCBS-FM's ''Ultimate Christmas Album Volume 3'', for example.

There were several covers of Nat Cole's original record in the 1940s. The first of these was said to be by Dick Haymes on the Decca label, but his was released first not recorded first. The first cover of "The Christmas Song" was performed by pop tenor and bandleader Eddy Howard on Majestic. Howard was a big Cole fan, and also covered Nat's versions of "I Want to Thank Your Folks" and "I Love You for Sentimental Reasons", among others.

Selective list of notable recordings

"The Christmas Song" has been covered by numerous artists from a wide variety of genres, including:

Trace Adkins

Christina Aguilera

Clay Aiken

Herb Alpert

Thomas Anders

India.Arie and Stevie Wonder (winner of the Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals in 2003)

Aska

Babyface

Tony Bennett

Polly Bergen (who sang the song on the December 14, 1957 airing of her NBC variety show, ''The Polly Bergen Show'')

Justin Bieber and Usher (#58 in US, #59 in Canada)

Michael Bolton

Toni Braxton

Garth Brooks

James Brown

Les Brown and his Orchestra (with Doris Day on lead vocal)

Michael Bublé (his version, bearing close similarities to Celine Dion's recording of the song, reached #6 on the ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary chart in December 2003.)

Kenny Burrell

The Canadian Brass (from their 1985 Christmas album ''A Canadian Brass Christmas'')

The Carpenters (from their 1978 Christmas album ''Christmas Portrait'')

Celtic Woman

Charice

Chicago

Christmas Who? (a SpongeBob Christmas special. SpongeBob and Patrick in a Christmas song sing as a lyric "...chestnuts roasting and burns in the third degree" before the ending of their song.)

Charlotte Church

Rosemary Clooney

Natalie Cole

Bing Crosby

Danny Davis and the Nashville Brass (1970)

Sammy Davis, Jr.

Doris Day (from her 1964 Christmas album ''The Doris Day Christmas Album'')

Gavin DeGraw

Celine Dion

Vanessa Doofenshmirtz (voiced by Olivia Olson on the album ''Phineas and Ferb Holiday Favorites'')

Bob Dylan

Gloria Estefan

Connie Francis

Aretha Franklin

Judy Garland, who sang the song in a duet with its composer, Mel Torme, on a Christmas-themed episode of her television show in December 1963.

Amy Grant (from her 1983 Christmas album ''A Christmas Album'')

Josh Groban (from his 2007 holiday album, ''Noël'')

Robert Goulet

Hampton String Quartet

Eddie Higgins

Hootie and the Blowfish

Whitney Houston

Ramon "RJ" Jacinto (from his 1988 Christmas album ''Pasko Na Naman'')

The Jackson 5

Alan Jackson (from his 2007 Christmas album ''Let It Be Christmas'')

Joni James (from her 1956 ''Merry Christmas from Joni''). Joni's version alters the lyric: "I'm offering this simple phrase, for kids from one to ninety-two" to "... kids from one to ninety-one".

Al Jarreau

Joe

Wynonna Judd

Peggy Lee

Damien Leith (from a special limited Christmas edition of his 2007 album ''Where We Land'')

The Lettermen

Lovedrug

Aimee Mann (from her 2006 album ''One More Drifter in the Snow'')

Johnny Mathis

Martina McBride

Reba McEntire

Brian McKnight

*NSYNC

Ricky Nelson (on the episode of TV's ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet'' titled "A Busy Christmas")

Aaron Neville

New Kids on the Block

Des O'Connor (from a Tesco Christmas advert)

Alexander O'Neal

Olivia Olson (from a 2010 Christmas album ''Phineas and Ferb: Holiday Favourites'')

The Partridge Family (from their 1971 Christmas album ''A Partridge Family Christmas Card'')

Les Paul

CeCe Peniston (from the 1996 Christmas album ''Merry Arizona II: Desert Stars Shine at Christmas'')

LeAnn Rimes (on her first holiday album ''What a Wonderful World'')

Raven-Symoné

Smokey Robinson and The Miracles (from their 1963 Christmas album ''Christmas with The Miracles)

Linda Ronstadt (from her 2000 Christmas album ''A Merry Little Christmas'')

SWV

Diane Schuur (nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Female in 1990)

Neil Sedaka (from his 2008 first-ever holiday album, ''The Miracle of Christmas'')

Jessica Simpson

Frank Sinatra (including two recordings: a virtual duet with Nat King Cole, and an actual duet with Bing Crosby)

Tom Smith (of the Editors) and Agnes Obel (on the 2011 Smith and Burrows album, ''Funny Looking Angels'')

George Strait

Donna Summer

Demi Lovato

The Supremes (remained unreleased until their 1965 Christmas album, ''Merry Christmas'', was re-released in 1999 with additional tracks)

Kim Taeyeon (of the South Korean pop group Girls' Generation)

Take 6

James Taylor

Team Rocket (voiced by Rachael Lillis, Eric Stewart and Maddie Blaustein on the album ''Pokémon Christmas Bash'')

The Temptations

Mel Tormé recorded by the writer four times (1954, 1961, 1966 and finally in 1992 as part of his album "Christmas Songs")

Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons

Luther Vandross

Andy Williams

Stevie Wonder (from his 1967 Christmas album ''Someday at Christmas'')

Dwight Yoakam

Ascap entry for song showing numerous other covers

Parodies

The title of ''The Simpsons'' episode "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire" is a parody of the song.

Bob Rivers parodied the song with his 2000 album, and the title track from said album, "Chipmunks Roasting On an Open Fire".

Stan Freberg's "Green Chri$tma$" includes several snippets of holiday songs. One segment begins with a sincere-sounding "Chestnuts roasting..." and quickly segués into a mock 1950s radio or TV ad, for a brand of chestnuts, being described as if they were toothpaste or cigarettes.

Twisted Sister parodied the song in his 2006 album ''A Twisted Christmas''.

Footnotes

External links

Mark Evanier on Tormé and "The Christmas Song"

Category:Christmas songs Category:1946 songs Category:1961 singles Category:1999 singles Category:2009 singles Category:Nat King Cole songs Category:Amy Grant songs Category:Christina Aguilera songs Category:Toby Keith songs Category:Martina McBride songs Category:Joe Nichols songs Category:George Strait songs Category:Kenny Loggins songs Category:Trisha Yearwood songs Category:Vocal duets Category:Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Category:Barbra Streisand songs Category:Bob Dylan songs Category:Sheryl Crow songs Category:CeCe Peniston songs Category:The Partridge Family songs

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