All I Want For Christmas Is You.

A holiday bonus!  Few Christmas songs from the modern era seem to be withstanding the test of time.  However, a few years back pop singer Mariah Carey recorded All I want for Christmas is You.  It seems to be on the verge of making it into the Holiday Pantheon.  Below is the story of how this song came to be.

"All I Want for Christmas Is You" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey from her fourth studio album, Merry Christmas. It was released by Columbia Records on November 1, 1994, as the lead single from the album. The song was written by Carey and Walter Afanasieff, who also served as producer. An uptempo, pop love song, it incorporates bell chimes and heavy back-up vocals. Its lyrics describe a woman's declaration that she does not care about Christmas presents or lights; all she desires for Christmas is to spend time with her lover.

The song's music video was filmed during the Christmas season of 1993. It presents scenes of Carey decorating a Christmas tree, spending time in the snow, and performing other festive activities. .......Music critics have universally lauded "All I Want for Christmas Is You". According to The New Yorker, the song is "one of the few worthy modern additions to the holiday canon."[1]

In order for Carey to be perceived as an entertainer by the public, and not just a pop singer, she was pressured to record a Christmas album. Carey, having grown up in a religious Catholic family, agreed to record the album.[4] In an interview, Carey explained the inspiration and reasoning behind the song:

"I'm a very festive person and I love the holidays. I've sung Christmas songs since I was a little girl. I used to go Christmas caroling. When it came to the album, we had to have a nice balance between standard Christian hymns and fun songs. It was definitely a priority for me to write at least a few new songs, but for the most part people really want to hear the standards at Christmas time, no matter how good a new song is.[4]"

While recording the album during the summer of 1994, Carey wrote the song. Author Chris Nickson described the song as "fun and mellow," and felt its energy level contrasted with the album's strong religious theme, assisting Merry Christmas cross demographic barriers.[5] The song's inspiration came from Carey's sentiments toward then husband, Tommy Mottola.[5]....

....Carey performing live in las Vegas in 2009"All Want for Christmas Is You" has become "one of the essential musical hallmarks of the holiday season and continues to set records each year," according to Legacy Recordings....Every December from 2005-2008, the song has topped the Billboard Hot 100 Re-currents chart and has become the best-selling holiday ringtone. Additionally, it is the first holiday ringtone to be certified double-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[3] Additionally, the song is the nineteenth best-selling digital single prior to the 2000s decade; the highest charting female and holiday entry on the list.[2] As of December 2010, Nielsen SoundScan estimates the sales of the digital track at over 1,772,000 downloads.[19]

Here is Mariah Carey performing All I Want for Christmas is You!

Source:  Wikipedia.  Link